Round Robin: TiPb vs. Google Android G1 Q&A!
[This is an official Smartphone Experts Round Robin post! Every day you reply here, you're automatically entered for a chance to win an iPhone 3G, Case-Mate Naked Case, and Motorola H9 Bluetooth Headset! Full contest rules here!]
You had Google Android G1 questions, we'll try to provide answers. Unfortunately, we already shipped the Android G1 off to TreoCentral's Jennifer and we're moving on to the Palm Treo Pro, so we won't be able to answer anything we didn't already find out last week, but for the most part, we'll try our best to give you an iPhone look at Google handset.
See our answers, after the jump!
Jason asks: in what user-friendly ways does the G1 shine? I know the open OS is a big deal for developers, but what about the average user?
If you're in a Google world, with Gmail and gCal, then the G1 is awesome with it's login/activation setting up Google push at the same time. I still maintained Google Contacts is an embarrassment, however, and needs work pronto. I'm not sure how well Google Docs work, if at all, as I didn't test those.
For users, the open OS means the potential for a wider range of more innovative software, but it will depending on developers being interested and able enough to produce it, of course.
Fassy asks: What are the major differences between Android’s WebKit browser and Mobile Safari? Do sites render differently, and, if so, how? Can/does the G1 use iphone-optimized versions of sites? Is the G1’s browser any more (or less) stable than Mobile Safari?
The major difference between MobileSafari and "Chrome-lite" (is that what the cool kids are calling it?) is that Chrome lacks multi-touch, which was a huge negative coming from the iPhone mindset. Multi-touch just kills on moving around the space.
Sites rendered similarly, since the engine is the same, but Chrome didn't resize pages and text flow the way Safari does, so it required extra zoom-out steps all the time. I didn't see any iPhone-optimized pages pop up on the G1 either, though I did notice when I tried to login to the MobileMe website, it told me to use the built in iPhone apps instead, so Apple was obviously miss-identifying Chrome as Safari.
Chrome was much more stable than MobileSafari 2.1. It didn't crash once the whole week. So far, MobileSafari 2.2 hasn't crashed on me either, so maybe things would be more even now.
cherryhead25 asks: Obviously their apps are tied into Google but have you found the phone productive at all? I mean is there a document/spreadsheet editor, or alarms for tasks? What are the calendar views like compared to the iPhones PIM? What about foreign language support like the iPhone has built in, specifically Asian languages. These are deal breakers for me so please elaborate on the productivity side of things.
The learning curve definitely impacted my productivity, especially the dismal contacts. I didn't try docs, but I didn't see any way to view or edit them built in. Calendar had a week view, which is lacking on the iPhone. Didn't see foreign languages, but remember this is a localized to T-Mobile in the US phone. I'd bet when it goes international, like the iPhone 3G did, we'll see that. I think Android Market will need to enable paid apps before we see the big productivity tools show up as well.
It's still very much early day with this phone. Just imagine the omni-pesent Google "beta" tag being on the phone.
Dimietriev asks: How easy is it to buy and download apps from the android store. With the iphone, you can do it fairly quickly, especially from the phone.
Very easy! I was very impressed with the download and install on Android Market, and the notification of what services each and every app would use (i.e. GPS, network, etc.) Update notices also popped up right when I launched an app, so no having to rely on an App Store-like badge.
Dimietriev asks: Also, how do you think the swinging hinge will hold over time(long term)? You refer to the word ‘creaky’.
In my experience, each added level of complexity and mechanics is an increase in the chance (read: certainty) of breakdown. Whether it lasts as long as you plan to keep the phone, however, is a question. I'm guessing many people would upgrade handsets before wear-and-tear sets in. But, yeah, definitely "creaky" and not my preference.
Leanna asks: Is the touch screen just as nice and responsive? Or do you need to push harder or hold your finger down for longer?
It's good, being capacitive like the iPhone, but not quite as buttery smooth (but what is?). Also, not being a glass screen, it didn't "feel" as nice. Also, having to switch input methods ruined the sheer joy of the experience. I like touch screen. I don't want to have to change to keyboard and back, track-ball and back. When the virtual keyboard launches, I'm hoping this goes away.
Keil Miller asks: Will android be on other phones and allow for less confusing methods of input?
My guess is yes, there may well be all keyboard, all touch, etc. versions of Android, similar to what we see with WinMo and BlackBerry now. However, on the flip side this will make development as difficult as those platforms since lack of unified hardware means never knowing what input end users will have available. Every iPhone/iPod Touch works the same, which is a huge plus for developers.
Dimietriev asks: Also, what are the options, if any, if you want to back-up the device?
Didn't see any. iPhone backs up via iTunes when you tether it, and the G1 you really don't have to tether, which I love. I'm guessing there's some sort of backup in place, but I didn't stumble across it. If the iPhone goes completely tether-less eventually as well, I wonder if we'll see a Time Machine-like option?
Lead asks: Is there a software keyboard?
Not yet, but I understand it's coming. In my opinion, it would greatly enhance usability in portrait mode especially
James asks: is there any way for you to type up messages an emails while still in portrait mode?
Not yet! See above!
jhunt4231 asks: Does the G1 run flash?
Also not yet, but also coming if we're to believe the demo at the recent Adobe MAX conference.
Deathscaller asks: Whats the internet speed like compared to the Iphone and(if it has WiFi) how does that compare.
The G1 has WiFi and while I didn't run any speed tests (d'oh!) I found them both to be snappy.
Luis asks: is there anyway to change the icons on the G1? how customizable is the whole android os?
In theory, it's ultimately customizable by carriers, manufacturers, and users. According to Ryan Block of GDGT, while there's no skinning process yet in place, all the UI files are standard image and XML, so anyone could either replace or rewrite them, or create a framework to more easily do so.
Firas asks: but I wonder if my 3 year old nephew would enjoy using it as much as my iPhone.
At the age of 2 1/2, my godson could use the iPhone. By 3 he could use it well. He can unlock it, return the home screen, switch home screens, find the apps he likes, launch them, quit them, play games, look at the photos, etc.
About the only thing he could do with the G1 was launch in at my head and demand the iPhone back. (I joke only slightly).
Alex Radu asks: How’s the camera on the G1? Both in terms of quality and features and options…
I'd say better than the iPhone but when really discussing mobile cameras, we're discussing the difference between horrible and terrible. It's not as bad as an iPhone, but not as good as an N95. The iPhone's camera is greatly restricted by the thinness of the device. It lacks the space for mechanisms. The G1, however, is much thicker, even if part of that is taken up by slider action. Everything is compromise.
royk asks: what’s one thing the g1 does better than the iphone? what’s one thing the g1 could learn from the iphone?
Aside from the more open SDK, Gmail is much better. User experience could learn tons from the iPhone.
Eric asks: Do you like the physical keyboard better than the iPhones virtual one?
Not for me, but then I've never liked physical keyboards on small devices. Going back to the Palm 600, I've found them hard to use. I vastly prefer the iPhone-style keyboard. I'd recommend asking Crackberry Kevin or Dieter this question, as they live with hard keyboards while I -- frankly -- have freed myself from the tic tac-tiles
Thanks everyone for sending in your questions!
There are 41 comments. Add yours.
Excellent questions and answers.
Gives a really good personal point of view of the phone.
@amani
yea you are right. it gives a nice layout of what this phone is best and worst at.
I think we can all agree g1 is sucky, and has failed along with the storm to kill the iphone. end of story (:
Great!!! Question and answer I didn't ralize until recently that people don't like email on the iPhone I was just wondering what it is about iPhone mail that people don't like.
How does the price tag scaner work on the g1?
Nice! Thx for answering all our questions. You did a very nice job reviewing the G1.
Yea, I was wondering about the tag scanner thing too. I saw that in a commercial the other day. I wonder if the google iPhone app will be getting that, or was that a 3rd party thing?
once again iphone rules my world...my small small world
Great post. I like seeing two very knowledgeable knock heads over gadgets. Entertaining and enlightening.
When are they getting flash?
Good job on the Round Robin Rene. I hope the iPhone gets flash soon though, cause then it will solidify the iPhone as the best device on any carrier.
This could have been a great phone, (maybe it still will be) but the Iphone has been around far longer and therefor has a bigger following, and alot more hype, I have never seen any advertisements for the G1 on tv, but I see 1 or 2 for the Iphone every time I watch tv. If google really wants to compete they have to step up the advertising I think. I wouldn't mind trying this out, but I'm not sure I would give up my Iphone just yet.
Thanks! That was great follow up. Can't wait for the coming coverage.
This has been a lot of fun. It's not easy to make professional reviews of tech products and make it enjoyable at the same time. Thanks a lot. It was very informative and entertaining. You did a great job.
why does the iPhone updates have to be so big 200 megs, eventually the updates will be taking over the hard drive space.
Hey lets combine the two phones and make one great wonderful Super Duper Phone! We'll call it the GiPhone. Catchy...
Thanks for answering our questions Rene!
Rene, if you shipped the G1 to Jennifer, why is she asking questions about the Bold at Crackberry?
Since you are familiar with MobileMe, do you think the Google features on the G1 are a workable substitute?
Hehe, the comment about your godson is cute. But haven't you considered that it might significantly shorten the life of your iPhone? Auto insurance rates tend to be higher for younger drivers ;p
comment about child shows why g1 is better because it's not for kids xD
Great post. It's always nice to hear an iphone users opinion of a different handset. I'm anxious to hear your thoughts on the Treo Pro since it's a much different type of phone.
Due to the fact that this is a personal review, and more importantly, the review of a competitor is on a website called "theiphoneblog.com", I have quickly dismissed this as highly biased and uninformative for individuals seeking objective information.
This 'review' does nothing than to reinforce iPhone user's sense of smug superiority.
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@ Isaac
This review pretty much matches every other review of the storm out there. This one just has the detailed information that an iPhone user would be looking for. Besides, it's a BLOG. It's not like we're sending the results off to NASA or anything.
Not sure what NASA would do with iPhone vs Storm results anyway, I'm just sayin... ;)
Great post. iPhone rules!!
Awesome Q&A on the Round Robin Rene. It be nice if the iphone have flash since the update firmware becoming larger and larger
I <3 iPhone 3G
Great questions, great answers. My good friend has theG1 Android and I have the 3G iPhone. We both have complants but we also both agree that the iPhone is at the very least 40% better. First off......the G1 keyboard sucks. It's just clunky to flip out and not half as easy to type on as the iPhone. Also....The overall appearance of the G1 says "prototype" all over it. It just seems really crude. It's a first gen phone so I'm sure they'll follow the iPhones lead on the keyboard front. Big flip out phones are just bad. Open source? Who runs Linux? Who writes app's? The average user doesn't. We could go on and on but I wanna slam the iPhone really quick. The iPhone doesn't have a search function for the email app. That's totally lame! An easy software fix but I haven't seen it yet. That's my main complaint about the iPhone. Other than that, it's every bit as good as their computers. Those who haven't switched, will. It's like comparing the Zune thing to the iPod. There's no comparing the two.
Oh! The storage. I have 20 gigs on my mobile me account which expands my iPhone storage to 36gigs! What does the G1 have? 200megs? SAD.
Poor T-Mobile. Look at google maps on the iPhone. It's obvious that google is way more in love with Apple. Everything on the stupid Apple is way sexier than on my G1. When T-Mobile carries the iPhone I'll switch but I have a problem with AT&T. Until then, I'm going to hope T-Mo finds a way to make my G1 as good or better than the iPhone. I know they can. Watch out iPhone!
The G1 can always get better with time... but then again, so can the iphone!
The G1 has a ways to go for it to be put in a fair competition. It is a contender though and that side of the fence things can only get better.
As for Android vs. OSX. The iphone 3G has the refinement of the iphone v1.0 + OSX on the laptops -- and the classic Apple testing lifecycle--if it's intuitive-repetitive to the non-computer savvy user, it's added to the Apple user experience. And it works 3/5th of the time. Give Apple credit for OSX. Android has pretty much Google Apps as a baseline experience and the web in general--not always intuitive, but ultimately flexible.
Android actually has more flexibility if one chooses to learn all the features, but the it's not as simple. There are features in the device that have yet to be discovered/unlocked. A lot of the Apple appstore apps are already ported to the G1 and... they're FREE. Only enterprise apps need payment at this time. Google is looking at the software as a service model--free apps, you pay for service (either via free ads or subscription). That's why they went with t-mobile's WCDMA vs UTMS (both HSP*A, but t-moblies is classified as 3.5G) more geared for intensive networking. Of course, t-mobile fails since coverage is a HUGE issue.
As for h/w, the 2 are pretty much even. The 3G iphone has gotten "cheaper" and the G1 is at that same level. The G1 does have the potential to run faster (OS + firmware updates). And face it, typing on a keyboard with 2 digits and a trackball button is going to be more efficient/faster than juggling a [slippery] one action entry touchscreen. Also, as for the 'proprietary' headphone jack--as of Nov 2008, it's an ExtUSB with a normal 3.5 extension for headphones! Can't argue that against the G1 anymore. 1 month and they are already pushing out improvements like that (as well as better slider mechanism, sound, firmware upgrades, faster performance, better battery life--all within a month!). Also, with WiFi and t-mobile expanding, and replaceable 16GB micro SD cards + GDrive (50GB anyone?) AND 1350mah batteries, I think iphone buyers will be waiting for the nextgen $$$ model while the rest of us just do a basic s/w update. And AGPS appears to be quicker, but eats up more battery than the iphone...
Also, anyone try Google Maps Street View with the digital compass? Or 3-axis motion apps? It's available on the G1.
go iphone
firmware upgrades, faster performance, better battery life–all within a month!). Also, with WiFi and t-mobile expanding, and replaceable 16GB micro SD cards + GDrive (50GB anyone?) AND 1350mah batteries, I think iphone buyers will be waiting for the nextgen $$$ model while the rest of us just do a basic s/w update. And AGPS appears to be quicker, but eats up more battery than the iphone…
Also, anyone try Google Maps Street View with the digital compass? Or 3-axis motion apps? It’s available on the G1.
Having played with the G1 for 5 days now, I’m comfortable to say that G1 works better for me than iphone.
Points I like over the iphone: 1, the physical keyboard, despite a steep learning curve on the use of tiny keys and the poor contrast of letters on the white and bronze model, I give it 8 over 4 for iphone. I do agree that on-screen touchboard should be offered as an option for quick single-hand inputs, preferably via a small touch button, much like the home screen slider for applications, this way it avoids the severe loss of screen space if the virtual keyboard pops up everytime there’s an inputbox, the big no no for me on the iphone. 2, Gmail is my main app, and it’s a bliss o the G1. Yahoo mail is my spam-rich second app, easily setup in the POP mail app. 10 over iphone’s 5 (10 if I use mobilme, purely subjective here). 3, webbrowsing is much better for me, because I happen to like the fact that the pages are displayed in a readable fontsize and zoom level by default, and occasionally, the page is formatted messy due to odd placement of the ads, it’s easy to find the right part of the page via the on screen zoom tools. This is important as most people would go straight to reflex whining “where’s multitouch”, the fact is that although multitouch is a brilliant invention and it works well with two hands, it most definitely “requires” two hands, android’s setup is clearly a result of IP, but it’s also an intelligent design, because I can browse much easier using only one hand to swipe/scroll/move the view window around, and most time without zooming. On the iphone the pages openup in the lowest zoom level, I guess intended to show the whole page, but makes it a pain to read nytimes or newyorker, because you’ll be forced to zoom in everytime. G1 8, iphone 6, both need Flash and full JAVA app support to be ideal. 4, the trackball on G1 is a great addition, most useful for selecting tiny weblinks in pages like Yahoo financial, nytimes, and most link-dense pages. Again I dislike constant zoom in and outs on the iphone. G1 8, iphone 6. 5, in additon to the major usability issues listed above, I like the width od G1, as it allows for easier handling using one hand (I’m a righty, but found myself holding the phone lefthanded a lot, and enjoying the single hand browsing); generic usb/charging port is great, as I realize that I can use all my old Moto charging cords/car charger on the G1; battery can be changed and cheap on ebay; the white G1 is beautiful, however if the white iphone has white front I might have bypassed the Tmobil store, truth is I was on my way to the applestore to buy the white iphone, but the curiosity induced by online reviews got me in the t mobil store and I realised that most of the reviews did not do the G1 justice. G1 8, iphone 6.
Things I don’t like but can be inproved via app download or software updates: 1, on screen keyboard should be offered to enhance single hand operation. Iphone 9, G1 0. 2, accelerometer should be activated for the web display. Iphone 10, G1 0. 3, web browser should add a couple more onscreen controls in addition to zoom, how about “back” and “forward” with multilevel dropdown menu if hold at the navigationsoftkeys? The use of “menu” hard button is fine, but some of the basic functions are buried too deep. Iphone 8, G1 5.
Things I don’t like but can only hope for future hardwares: 1, reduced weight and thickness, not to the point that the phone can be served with cheese and dips though. The Jay Leno like chin can be made flat on the front and a weebit smaller. 2, headphone jack or stereo BT headphone support (software update?) Will help a little, but I would never waste battery juice on music, no way would I ditch my ipod nano over this.
That about it. And I think people should go play with the device for a hour or two to form an educated opinion, and evaluate based on individual needs. The G1 offers so much more than the factory first open base model, if you spend some time to customize it towards your own needs. Iphone and G1 should co-exist to force competition and evolve together. I love my G1, for the look, the feel, and the functionality. Oh, it’s cheaper too long term.
Love the Gmap streetview with Compass Mode, really smart use for the Accelerometer!!! Wonder if Google will try keeping it away from iPhone
phone is better
Hmm I suppose it would be hard to fully transition to a physical keyboard from the iphone. I do say though I see great promise for android
When the G1 reaches it's potential its gonna be an amazing device.
It's just not there yet.
Does anyone know anything about the G2?
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