T-Mobiles G1 has a truly open source operating system - Google's Android. This was a big step, not only for Google, but for T-Mobile as well. The combination of Smartphone technologies and open source OS, gives consumers full control over their experience with the G1. With the G1 consumers can truly work and / or play from anywhere! The 3.2-inch TFT LCD 320 x 480-pixel touch-sensitive screen is breath taking. Users simply tap or slide a finger to maneuver through the phone, and with every screen, experience pure clarity.
A simple slide-up, of the display, will reveal a full QWERTY keyboard. Typing messages (email, instant, or even text), along with manipulating documents, is just as easy as if you were sitting in front of a computer. Knowing that Google developed the operating system, it should be no surprise that many of the default applications are also Google. (Applications like Gmail, Google Maps, Talk, and Calendar.) However, there are other applications like Windows Live and Yahoo Messenger, which are standard on the G1. Through the collaboration on Android Market, many other applications are also available. It is the operating system that puts the G1 a little above other phones in its category.
One difference between humans and computers lies in the relative strengths in their respective abilities to understand symbolic relationships and to learn facts. A computer can remember billions of facts with extreme precision, whereas we are hard pressed to remember more than a handful of phone numbers. On the other hand, we can read a novel and understand and manipulate the subtle relationships between the characters—something that computers have yet to demonstrate an ability to do. We often use our ability to understand and recall relationships as an aid in remembering simple things, as when we remember names by means of our past associations with each name and when we remember phone numbers in terms of geometric or numeric patterns they make. We thus use a very complex process to accomplish a very simple task, but it is the only process we have for the job. Computers have been weak in their ability to understand and process information that contains abstractions and complex webs of relationships, but they are improving.
—Raymond Kurzweil, U. S. scientist, engineer. The Age of Intelligent Machines, ch. 1, MIT Press (1990)
The G1 is the first phone that allows consumers to create their own applications, for their own personal use, on their phone. In addition, they have a community - Android Market - in which they can share their creations and use others' creations. The G1 has 3G and Wi-Fi connectivity. The combination of the two allows consumers to experience "always-on" connectivity. The phone will automatically switch between networks, as necessary, which goes completely unnoticed by users. The multitudes of features, available on the G1, are endless.
To name just a few, you have one-touch Google search, instant messaging, web browsing, GPS, and even a 3.2-megapixel camera. The camera, on the G1, is nothing to write home about. While it does have auto-zoom functionality, which works great, the overall picture quality is very poor. The G1 is not a phone you can depend on for decent pictures. There are a number of quirks, on the G1.
leaving the page of the book carelessly open,
something unsaid, the phone off the hook
and the love, whatever it was, an infection.
—Anne Sexton (1928–1974)
They are planning a release, towards the end of January 2009, which will hopefully fix some of the major issues. However, there is still no date as to when a new battery - with sufficient power - will be released. Other missing features, like on-screen keyboard, video recording, and stereo Bluetooth, may be fixed in a later release of the phone itself. You can purchase the G1 for around $179.99 (with a new or extended contract through T-Mobile). With the numerous features and additional bonuses - on the G1 - this is an incredible price. T-Mobile and Google have worked diligently to bring you a phone that you can truly experience on a personal level.
The G1 fits that bill.