Finally, a Second Android Phone. And a Good One.
By Harry McCracken | Sunday, June 21, 2009 at 10:53 pm
It’s finally official: T-Mobile has announced it’ll ship the myTouch 3G in early August. It’s the phone that’s also known as the HTC Magic–the second phone based on Google’s Android OS, and the first one that looks to be an impressive handset rather than an intriguing proof of concept. (The G1, the first Android phone is pretty clunky from a hardware standpoint, with battery life that’s iffy at best.)
T-Mobile is playing up the idea that the myTouch will be more customizable than the iPhone, via skins, widgets, and other interface tweaks. I haven’t seen any of these features, but they sound like a logical enough to the question “So remind me again why I should buy this instead of an iPhone?” Which is a query which every non-Apple smartphone must answer explicitly or implicitly. Palm’s Pre does so in part through having a strikingly different form factor than the iPhone; the myTouch looks a bit like a chunkier iPhone (it has a removable battery) with a smaller screen and more buttons and a trackball.
Like TechCrunch’s M.G. Siegler, I’ve been playing with a phone that’s essentially identical to the myTouch from a hardware standpoint–the Google Ion, which Google distributed at its I/O developer conference last month. It’s a pleasing phone that looks good and fits well in the hand–one of HTC’s nicest industrial designs. I still think that Android is a promising platform that’s still in search of major unique benefits to consumers, but perhaps T-Mobile’s customization options will help. In any event, it’s good to see a second Android device come out, even though the OS will only live up to its potential once there are lots of Android phones.
The myTouch will sell for $199 with a two-year T-Mobile contract; that’s the same price as the Pre and the 16GB iPhone 3G S.
Here’s a quick photo of the iPhone 3G S and the Ion–the Ion is black, but the myTouch will come in black, white, or “Merlot.”
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MyTouch هاتف اندرويد الثاني من HTC | تيدوز Says:
June 22nd, 2009 at 5:10 am[…] [ Technologizer ] addthis_url = […]
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[technologize] T-Mobile myTouch a.k.a. G2 to some - Overclock.net - Overclocking.net Says:
June 23rd, 2009 at 5:58 pm[…] about this phone for sometimes, it was referenced most frequently as the G2. Behold the myTouch. Link. […]
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Should Original iPhone Owners Ditch Apple for a Pre? | Technologizer Says:
June 26th, 2009 at 12:10 pm[…] buy a 3GS. And unhappy ones should look at the Pre, at least. (As well as other contenders such as T-Mobile’s upcoming myTouch 3G and the BlackBerry Bold; the latter is probably the best smartphone AT&T sells that isn’t […]
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July 13th, 2009 at 12:01 pm[…] it’s calling myTouch with SmartSolutions (not to be confused with T-Mobile’s myTouch 3G phone)–for quite different purposes than HP’s. The Lexmark printers, unlike […]
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Building an Android-Based iPhone Killer: Doable? | Oh Wow ... a Blog Says:
August 17th, 2009 at 3:54 pm[…] to do that–Android phones are getting better, as shown by the significant improvement that T-Mobile’s myTouch 3G represents over the first-generation G1. And some Android phones sport better specs in certain […]
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January 6th, 2010 at 12:09 am[…] Android back, menu, home, and search buttons, plus a trackball similar to the one in phones such as T-Mobile’s MyTouch. (The trackball lights up, thereby serving as a status light for notifications such as the arrival […]
June 22nd, 2009 at 7:59 am
The Palm Pre is $299. The $199 price you mention is after rebate. Big difference.
June 22nd, 2009 at 8:37 am
What about touch gestures like pinch etc. Is Google still timid?
June 22nd, 2009 at 12:00 pm
Can I have it? Now that I’ve unlocked my iPhone, I’m thinking of moving to T-Mo.
June 22nd, 2009 at 4:51 pm
I’d like to amend my comment. Can I have it *for two weeks? I’m reliable. 🙂
June 23rd, 2009 at 10:02 pm
no Qwerty?!? that will be a problem and i heard it doesnt have flash for the camera!! sounds pretty dissapointing to me
June 24th, 2009 at 1:34 pm
I cnt wait til this come out….I’m 222222222222 thirsty!!!!!! I got THE BEHOLD and its WEAK!!!!!
June 24th, 2009 at 6:31 pm
I love what I have heard so far. AT&T’s service is terrible despite it’s commercials trying to convince everyone otherwise. I really like the iPhone but as long as it’s paired with AT&T I won’t have one. What’s frustrating about myTouch 3G is the lack of information other than the 10 items they are promoting. What languages does it support? Any issues with unlocking for European (or world) travel? What type of apps make it appealing? Is battery life really better? How are the pictures if it really has no flash? Video? It’s very hard to determine if you should buy a “smartphone” that is expensive and requires a 2 yr contract if they don’t provide more realistic information to make the buying decision. That is more frustrating than the long wait between hype and release. As painful as the wait for the Cupcake upddate for G1 users.
June 24th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
I am VERY upset that this phone doesn’t have a Qwerty keyboard! Why leave that out??!! The least that T mobile could do is also offer its customers the chance to upgrade their G1’s for this model WITH THE KEYBOARD! When they do- I will be the first in line
June 24th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
For all of you who are worried about there being no qwerty keyboard, their are applications that you can download from the market such as “Better Keyboard” which allow you to use a QWERTY and T9 keyboard. Though that should already be included in the phone.
June 25th, 2009 at 1:36 am
I have been waiting to upgrade my phone when Tmobile would come out with something better than the G1. Im nnot sure the My Touch has anything more advance than the G1.Not enough imformation on the G3.Didnt make since to leave out the Qwerty keyboard. I guess Ill wait.
June 25th, 2009 at 6:05 am
My touch don’t sound too appealing…no qwerty sux, but good to know that the G2 is coming out soon, as well as the WING 2…I’ll just wait til then cuz this “My touch” looks nice, but lacks a lot…my advise…(WAIT)
June 25th, 2009 at 8:25 am
Uh, this is basically the G2. And you don’t need to download a keyboard app, the newest android software includes it.
June 25th, 2009 at 8:35 am
will this phone be hotspot capable?
June 25th, 2009 at 8:47 am
Qwerty is overrated. I’ve had several blackberries and one iphone. I also had the G1. I think I liked the iphone virtual keyboard at least as much as the blackberry curve qwerty keyboard.
The Android UI is very nice but the G1 qwerty keyboard just SUCKED. The phone is just chunky and awkward. The keys aren’t very responsive. That chin was obstructive when I was trying to type. If the MyTouch virtual keyboard is as good as the iPhone’s then sign me up….
June 25th, 2009 at 9:05 am
if the new htc phone has adobe flash ill buy it but if not then its still a piece of sh** iphone has it….
June 25th, 2009 at 10:07 am
Flash support is not a function of the phone, but a function of the OS. Like any NON-physical feature, video, soft keyboard… etc, it will be the same. What I wanted to see on the new android phone was a headphone jack. Until there are more usb compatible accessories for the phone, it just doesn’t make any sense to substitute the jacks. I’d imagine the processor on this phone is better than the G1. Not to mention a bigger screen.
June 25th, 2009 at 10:16 am
I beleive in order for the consumer to make a good decision, they should have factual information from which to base their choice. No one has money to drop on a product that isn’t what they’re looking for.
I think that T-Mobile (long time customer) should produce a fact sheet that explains all the features before the sales begin. I totally understand the marketing hype, because it boost sales, but let’s be real….our economy hasn’t finished wiping it’s ass from all the s_ _ _, that we experienced due to the last adminsitration and we’re all trying to spend money that we don’t have.
Just don’t check your brains at the library, when this items hits the stores/online. Keep your money in your pocket, I’m sure that a bill will come with this one.
June 25th, 2009 at 10:34 am
Will the price also be $199 for those already in a contract w/ T-Mobile?
June 25th, 2009 at 11:12 am
i hear many people complaining about the missing keyboard. this is 2 make it much lighter than the g1. it will instead have a virtual keyboard on the screen. what im more curious about (this is probably a stupid question) is will the my touch need one of those expensive data plans? i cant afford an extra $30 a month and that sucks cause this is a sick fone!!!
July 5th, 2009 at 7:50 pm
I agree the keyboard on the G1 could be better however its not bad by any means. The angled end of the phone helps keep the screen from getting scratched if you lay the phone down on its face. I like an actual keyboard instead of a virtual one on the screen which is slow and often selects wrong key.