gPhone G1 - Android Is Here - Review - Joe The Plumber Would Love This

Walt Mossberg has a detailed review on the Android gPhone.  This past weekend Loren Feldman had a review.  These two reviews cut across the spectrum from Loren to Walt.

Here is Walt Mossberg’s review

Here is Loren Feldman’s review

Some text hightlights…

I have been testing the G1 extensively, in multiple cities and in multiple scenarios. In general, I like it and consider it a worthy competitor to the iPhone. Both devices run on fast 3G phone networks and include Wi-Fi. Both have smart-touch interfaces and robust Web browsers. Both have the ability to easily download third-party apps, or programs.

But the two devices have different strengths and weaknesses, and are likely to attract different types of users.

If you’ve been lusting after the iPhone’s functionality, but didn’t like its virtual keyboard or its user interface or its U.S. carrier, AT&T, the G1 may be just the ticket for you. But it does have some significant downsides.

By far, the G1’s biggest differentiator is that it has a physical keyboard, which is revealed by sliding open the screen. The keyboard proved only fair in my tests, with keys that are too flat and that can be hard to see in bright light, and with a bulge in the body on the right side that you have to reach over to type.

The G1 has a slick, clever touch interface to go along with its keyboard, and it includes a powerful new operating system. The touch interface is fast and smooth. It’s also much easier to place a phone call on the G1 than on the iPhone. In my battery tests, the G1 lasted through the day, but I had to charge it every night. The built-in download store for third-party programs, called Market, worked well in my tests. The G1 is tightly tied to Google’s online services.  I found the G1’s user interface inferior to the iPhone’s. It lacks the iPhone’s ability to flick between multiple pictures and Web pages, or to zoom in and zoom out of a photo or Web page by simply using two fingers to “pinch” or expand the image.

Loren’s video review

Walt’s video review