September 23rd, 2008
First Google phone announced by T-Mobile (updated 2x)
T-Mobile today announced the first mobile phone to run the Google Android operating system, which is largely considered to be the first real competitor to the iPhone. The T-Mobile G1 (a re-badged HTC Dream) will launch on 22 October 2008:
Hardware features: 
- 480×320 screen
- 3.1MP camera
- 5hrs talk time
- 1GB MicroSD card pre-installed
- GPS
- Accelerometer
- Wi-Fi
- 3G
- Bluetooth
- Slide-out hardware QWERTY keyboard
Software features:
- Google Maps
- Android Market
- YouTube
- Amazon mobile music store
- Word, PDF and Excel reader
- GMail push email
- IMAP pull email
iPhone owners should note that the G1 will be SIM-locked to T-Mobile (US$179 with a required two-year contract), so that’s a push. Pick your poison T-Mobile or AT&T. There’s no tethering option either – like the iPhone.
The G1’s kicktail and arc slider screen make it a tad portly at 5.6 ounces, where the iPhone weighs in at 4.8 ounces. The dimensions of the G1 are 4.6 x 2.16 x 0.62 inches (6.16 cu. in.) whereas the iPhone is 4.5 x 2.4 x 0.46 inches (6.03 cu. in.). There’s also no support for Microsoft Exchange, which will hurt the G1 in the enterprise, (advantage Apple) but this may eventually come from third parties.
Do we finally have a true iPhone killer?
Loading ...Update: Walt Mossberg weighs in with his first impressions and Boy Genius has posted a ton of screen shots.
Update 2: CrunchGear adds some detail on the “kicktail” has the complete technical specs on the G1 handset:
First off, that “chin” that’s got everyone talking is allegedly called a “kicktail” and the slide mechanism is considered an “arc slider screen“. How that works isn’t clear yet, but we want to see it in action.
* 528Mhz Qualcomm 7201 processor
* Data kit for USB connectivity in the box
* 64MB Internal RAM
* 128MB Internal ROM
* 1GB MicroSD card
* 5 Row QWERTY keypad
* Trackball
* Dedicated camera button
* 3.1MP camera (no flash) 2048 x 1536
* Video playback files - H.264, streaming, 3GPP, MPEG4, and Codec 3GP
* Dedicated YouTube Player
* Audio playback files - MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA, MPEG4, WAV, MIDI, REAL AUDIO, OGG
* Wallpaper supports JPG, BMP, PNG, and GIF
* Speakerphone (mono, natch)
* Ringtones (MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA)
* HTTP, WAP Push, xHTML
* Bluetooth (class 1)
* Picture Caller ID
* SMS and MMS support (Take that Apple!)
* POP, IMAP, and SMTP, AOL, and GMAIL email
* AIM, MSN, YAHOO, and GTALK messaging
* Quad Band (850, 900, 1800, 1900)
* 3G
* 802.11b & 802.11g
* UMTS (1,4), HSDPA, SUPL
* 1150mAh battery
* Screen size is 3.17″ with HVGA (480 x 320)
* Handset 117 x 55 x 16mm
* 5.6 oz weight
* Sync capable with Google Calendar
* Downloadable content via Android Marketplace
* Google Streetview with built-in compass
Jason D. O'Grady is the editor of PowerPage.org, which has been publishing daily mobile technology news since December 1995. For disclosures on Jason's industry affiliations, click here or to view Jason's full profile click here.
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