T-Mobile G1
(Credit: Corinne Schulze/CNET Networks)
I'm a month-to-month T-Mobile customer with a Nokia 6133 that is on its lest leg. I want to get a phone with a full Internet browser and I'm deciding between the iPhone and the T-Mobile G1. I'd also like access for my Yahoo mail, but I don't need my work e-mail. Which do you recommend? Also, I don't own an iPod or use iTunes (I usually use Amazon to purchase music), so I'm concerned about moving to an all-iTunes environment.
- EJ
That's a a very good question, EJ, and the answer depends on your individual needs and desires. Though the iPhone is the better overall device (at least right now) a person in your situation should seriously consider the G1. Here is why.
I always tell people who are considering purchasing an iPhone 3G that there are three reasons to buy one. Forget the slick design and the flashy and user-friendly interface; I recommend buying the iPhone for its Web browser, its media player, and (to a somewhat lesser extent) its support for third-party applications. These three areas are where the iPhone performs very well, so I advise basing your decision on a comparison of those points. Sure, the design and interface are important, but I'd treat them and the e-mail integration as secondary motivators. And of course, I wouldn't base my decision on call quality alone, as the iPhone 3G still suffers in that area.
When boiled down to those three points, the G1 offers a compelling alternative to the iPhone. It also has a Web browser and media player and it supports third-party apps. While those apps are limited for now, more will come in the future. And as Bonnie Cha and Nicole Lee reported in their G1 review, the media player and browser offered satisfying performance. Sure, they may not be as good as on the iPhone, but they may be good enough for you. And here's another advantage for you: the G1's integration with the Amazon MP3 store means you wouldn't have to switch over to iTunes. And on a similar note, the G1 would enable you to stay with T-Mobile if you're happy with its service.
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Sexy, isn't she?
(Credit: CNET UK)It's an accepted (albeit begrudgingly) fact at Crave that our fellow Cravers in Singapore and the United Kingdom get all the flashy cell phones before we do. The iPhone was an exception to this rule and we couldn't help but tease our colleagues that finally, we were getting something first.
Unfortunately, after our brief moment in the sun things got back to normal quickly. The most recent example is the LG KU990 Viewty. No, we don't get the name either, but in a world of Fuziqs, Marbls, and Upstages, we've come to expect wacky handset names. In any case, CNET UK's Andrew Lim has finished his review of the Viewty after first telling us about the 5-megapixel camera phone last month.
It's a camera! It's a phone! No, it's a camera phone!
(Credit: CNET UK)The Viewty, aka the YouTube phone, earned an "excellent" rating of 8.2 out of 10. Lim praised the phone's touch-screen interface, fantastic camera, HSDPA (3.5G) support, and its ability to upload videos straight to YouTube. He wasn't fond of its lack of Wi-Fi and a camera-lens cover, and he said the camera-mode switch is a little tough to move. But on the whole he called it "one of LG's best phones yet." If that's not a solid endorsement, I don't know what is.
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