After the main announcement, Android Community went to check out the T-Mobile G1 itself; you’ve seen the photo gallery, now it’s time for the video demos. The first is a tour of the G1 with Android project manager Erick Tseng, covering everything from the innovative unlock system, through the menu structure, the browser and the QWERTY keyboard.
In the hand, the G1 feels sturdy and well-made. It’s plastic, not metal, but HTC have obviously spent some money on decent materials; the slider-hinge is reassuring and the slightly-arched path the screen takes is a neat visual. There are certainly plenty of ways to control the G1 – touchscreen, keyboard, trackball – but while it can be distracting initially, it seems likely that with time you’d develop your own familiar way of using the handset. The capacitive touchscreen doesn’t support iPhone-style multitouch, but is responsive and smoother in use than HTC’s resistive touchscreens for Windows Mobile devices.
The second video details the Android Market. One of the key points from this morning’s G1 launch was that T-Mobile, HTC and Google are encouraging developers to code for the Android platform. Indeed, if users want certain functionality – Exchange support, for instance – they’ll have to hope that developers work on it; out of the box, the G1 doesn’t support it. That makes the Android Market all the more important; it’s something owners will likely be making heavy use of.
When we tried the Android Market, it worked just as you’d expect. Browsing was simple, as you’ll see in the video below, and the app downloaded instantly over 3G (or WiFi, if available) and was offered in the main app menu straight after.
T-Mobile G1 Demo:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POI1n0v-GDA[/youtube]
Android Market:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD8eoMp-dnM[/youtube]
