Filed under: Cellphones

G1s said to be “pouring into China,” selling for big bucks originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 27 Oct 2008 17:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Cellphones

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Filed under: Cellphones

Well, it looks like G1 owners (or some, at least) will be getting a bit of an unexpected surprise when they turn on their brand new device tomorrow, as T-Mobile is apparently already set to start pushing out the very first OTA software update for the phone. Nothing too major, it seems, but the update will include a fix for a bug that has prevented folks from listening to songs on Amazon, as well as a number of other unspecified “enhancements.” As with all OTA updates, however, it’s likely everyone won’t get their fix at once, and T-Mobile helpfully recommends that you simply just “wait,” or “wait a little longer” to make sure you get yours, or check your software version to see if you may have gotten the update without noticing (the new release is version RC28).

[Via TmoNews]

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Filed under: Podcasts

Desirous of more of that enlightening Engadget banter? You’re in luck! We’ve got another installment of the newly-minted Engadget Podcast on tap, featuring an in-depth exploration of thoughts, feelings, and thoughts about feelings. This week Joshua Topolsky, Paul Miller, and Nilay Patel take you thorough a breathtaking range of topics, with a thorough dissection of the new MacBooks / MacBook Pros, a little Windows 7 talk, and an extra deep look at the T-Mobile G1 with the help of Engadget Mobile super-editor Chris Ziegler. Prepare for extreme geek-craft… now.

Note: We had some minor audio trouble with this one, so don’t be alarmed if you hear a little crosstalk — we’ll make sure things are as magically pristine as usual next week. Also, iTunes should be back properly soon, so stay tuned.

Hosts: Joshua Topolsky, Paul Miller, and Nilay Patel
Guest: Chris Ziegler
Producer: Trent Wolbe
Music: Dr. Teeth — The Interview Is Over

00:00:42 - Apple’s “spotlight turns to notebooks” event roundup
00:38:43 - T-Mobile G1 review
01:10:59 - Motorola Krave ZN4 officially launches on Verizon for $149.99
01:18:10 - Windows 7 to be officially named… Windows 7
01:21:18 - Engadget: now the Official Blog Partner of CES

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Contact the podcast: 1-888-ENGADGET or podcast (at) engadget (dot) com.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/gadgets/T_Mobile_G1_The_Engadget_Review’; It’s hard to believe, but rumors of a “Googlephone” have been floating around since 2006. To put it in perspective, the first Gphone post on Engadget was written by Peter Rojas. Needless to say, it’s been a long, slow ride to get to Android, the Open Handset Alliance, and ultimately the T-Mobile G1. If we said expectations were high for the introduction of this device, it would be an understatement. It’s not every day that a company with the stature of Google announces it’s getting into the phone game, and it’s certainly not every day that an honest-to-goodness innovator comes along. That last time the team at Engadget got this stoked for a device, it was a little something called the iPhone — and you know how that turned out. Will Android and the G1 live up to the hype? Is this the first coming of a serious new contender in the mobile space, or has the triple threat of Google, HTC, and T-Mobile not delivered on their promises? We’ve put both the device and the software through its paces to bring you the definitive review of the T-Mobile G1 and Android, so read on to get your answers.

As we’ve really gone to great lengths to dissect the phone and OS, we’re splitting the review into two, easy to digest parts. Enjoy!

Part 1: Hardware
Part 2: Software and wrap-up

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Filed under: Podcasts

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Filed under: Cellphones

T-Mobile sold right out of its original allotment of G1 pre-orders quick, fast and in a hurry, and even the second round has been claimed in a flash. What’s it all mean? It means that someone at T-Mobile and Google are sitting in a fancy restaurant in France sipping on the good stuff, and it also means that 1.5 million G1s have already been reserved for eager early adopters. In addition to that, another couple of million are all set to take the retail scene by storm later this month. In other words, folks are genuinely stoked about the possibilities of Android, and scads of ‘em have already committed to the OS (and HTC’s design, by extension) before even having a chance to toy around with it in person. No pressure at all, Google.

[Via Pulse2]

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Filed under: Cellphones

Each week Ross Rubin contributes Switched On, a column about technology, multimedia, and digital entertainment.

As Switched On exemplified in the frenzy of mobile Ts and primary Gs last week, much of the attention focused on the involvement of Google and comparisons to the iPhone. Searching Google for “‘T-Mobile G1′ Apple” yields over 6.7 million results on Google. Searching for “‘T-Mobile G1′ HTC” yields only 3.4 million.

Given that the phone is being branded “T-Mobile G1 with Google,” the temptation is to say that HTC, which has long vowed to step into the white light from behind the white label, has failed to capitalize on one of the best branding opportunities in handset history. However, there would have been limits as to how much spotlight it could have stolen in the wake of media fascination with Google and one can have only so many brands listed in the name of a phone. Wireless carriers are among the biggest television advertisers, and Google is the biggest advertising powerhouse online. Together they will fund the G1 marketing push. The stakes were just too high for HTC to significantly advance its branding status with T-Mobile, which has used its carrier brand for such HTC handsets as the Dash, Wing and Shadow.

But there are more paradoxes in HTC’s first Android handset.

Continue reading Switched On: The T-Mobile G1 — by Google and what’s-their-names

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Filed under: Cellphones

There’s really no denying it — T-Mobile’s G1 and Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA X1 are two of the hottest mobiles around right now, and as predicted, all sorts of sparks flew when the two sat down for a side-by-side photo session. In a Dutch comparison of the two handsets, reviewers pointed out that the G1 was “significantly larger” than the SE counterpart, and while it’s completely subjective, they also asserted that the X1 was a “true piece of art in comparison to the dusty look of the G1 [nice one, Google Translator].” Do yourself a favor and check out the whole thing in the read link.

[Via CoolSmartphone]

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Filed under: Cellphones

Ah yes, the natural progression of a release. First comes the hands-on at the introduction, then comes the leaked user manual, then comes the pre-order fiasco — now, it’s time for those always titillating in the wild shots. The box and handset are nothing out of the ordinary / surprising (respectively), but at least you now know that bona fide unboxing images are just around the bend.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

It’s going to be a few weeks yet until your unwashed hands are touching an actual G1, so how’d you like some reading material to pass the days in the meantime? T-Mobile has trotted out its first Android phone’s user’s manual — probably not on purpose, if we had to guess — and there are some interesting little morsels in there that’d be even more interesting if you actually had the phone in front of you. For example, did you know the G1 had a status light? Don’t see those too often these days. You’ve also got a full rundown of the notification icons, apps (including the Android flavor of T-Mobile’s myFaves app), and — get this — procedure for battery removal. Fancy that! [Warning: PDF link]

[Via TmoNews, thanks Jose]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

How many Google and HTC engineers does it take to build an Android phone? We don’t have the punchline to that one, exactly — but at least we have a pretty good idea of how long it takes. HTC’s Chief Marketing Officer has revealed that it kicked off negotiations with Google some five years ago — before it had even acquired Android, interestingly — and has been deeply embedded in the Android team for the past three years. That’s a long frickin’ time, but we figure the first model’s probably ten times harder to throw together than its successors are, so hopefully we’ll see a nice cadence of “HTC Innovation” from here on out. We know it’s been said many times before, but it probably bears repeating: Touch Pro and Touch HD with Android, guys. Please.

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = ‘http://digg.com/design/T_Mobile_G1_impressions_Engadget’; T-Mobile, HTC and Google stood hand in hand yesterday to debut the first Android phone, the T-Mobile G1. It felt a bit like a new era for the mobile industry — though the rollerblading seemed a tad out of place — with high-profile companies backing a Linux-based, touch-driven mobile OS, and spouting the word “open” every two sentences. But, naturally, high aims alone don’t build a killer phone; there are a lot details to get right, and a lot more that Google and company have seen fit to leave in the hands of developers. Let’s take a look at what’s working so far, and what might need some more time in the oven:

Continue reading T-Mobile G1 impressions: what we love, what we don’t

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Filed under: Cellphones

Continue reading T-Mobile G1 video hands-on

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = ‘http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/23/t-mobile-soft-capping-3g-data-at-1gb-per-month/’; Caps are nothing new to the world’s 3G networks, but T-Mobile’s being particularly stingy with the bytes — 1GB is all you get. Well, technically you can get more than that, but our friends in magenta are reserving the right to throttle you back to a stifling 50Kbps — virtually useless by smartphone standards, and less than what even a good EDGE network is capable of providing. That’s going to be sour news to heavy G1 users, especially as Android touts its stellar connectivity, world-class browser, and a full suite of data-gorging apps. For now, we’re going to cut T-Mob some slack on this since the threat is purely theoretical, but if they start enforcing this little stipulation with a heavy hand, the G1 is going to have to stay in the pocket a little more than we’d like.

[Thanks, Emmanuel C.]

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds

digg_url = ‘http://www.engadget.com/2008/09/23/t-mobile-soft-capping-3g-data-at-1gb-per-month/’; Caps are nothing new to the world’s 3G networks, but T-Mobile’s being particularly stingy with the bytes — 1GB is all you get. Well, technically you can get more than that, but our friends in magenta are reserving the right to throttle you back to a stifling 50Kbps — virtually useless by smartphone standards, and less than what even a good EDGE network is capable of providing. That’s going to be sour news to heavy G1 users, especially as Android touts its stellar connectivity, world-class browser, and a full suite of data-gorging apps. For now, we’re going to cut T-Mob some slack on this since the threat is purely theoretical, but if they start enforcing this little stipulation with a heavy hand, the G1 is going to have to stay in the pocket a little more than we’d like.

[Thanks, Emmanuel C.]

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Filed under: Cellphones

The T-Mobile G1 web site went up with a bunch of placeholders late last night, but it’s finally fully live after this morning’s big unveiling, and while it’s not exactly bursting with detailed info, there’s plenty of new pictures and details, including updated 3G coverage information. The first G1 ad has also surfaced — if you were tearing your hair out over Apple’s grammatically-questionable “funnest iPod ever” pitch, wait’ll you get a load of how “smarterer,” “connecteder,” and yes, “funnerer” the “most exciting phone in the history of phones” will make you. Video after the break.

[Via Pocket-lint]

Continue reading T-Mobile G1 site goes live for real, first ad appears

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Filed under: Cellphones, Handhelds, Portable Audio, Portable Video

Amazon’s always looking for creative new ways to distribute digital media — and in light of its recently-launched Video On Demand service and the decent head of steam AmazonMP3 has managed to build, it’d probably just love to shoehorn its way onto a high-profile mobile device right about now. VentureBeat is reporting a juicy rumor of a G1 that made an appearance somewhere in San Fran’s seedy underbelly over the weekend bearing an Amazon music and video app designed to dole out media for cash, suggesting that Android’s first commercial hardware might come out of the gate ready not just to lock horns with the iPhone’s WiFi App Store, but also to straight-up beat it by throwing in movie and TV download capability. Then again, no 3G network — particularly one with as small of a footprint as T-Mobile’s — is mighty enough to effectively do feature-length movie downloads over the aether, so it remains to be seen exactly how this would all play out. Get a good night’s sleep this evening, folks, because if everything goes according to plan, we’ll have some solid answers in just a few short hours.

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