G1/Andriod/t-mobile Wishlist

Overall I get mad action out of my G1 Android phone. The 4-row keyboard means typing a numbers don’t require a control key, there’s a right and left shift, and there’s even an ‘@’ key which is like 100 points each time I use it. The touchscreen is great, the UI very good, the trackball rocks, the camera has autofocus, and wonders-of-wonders I can copy and paste from anything to anything.

But there are a couple items that make me want to shake my fist. Here they are:

  1. Bluetooth is crippled to only work with headsets. T-Mobile - like AT&T - seems to think we’re all going to abandon our DSL and T1s and tether our laptops via our phone’s bluetooth and surf their G3 network all day. G3 was slow even when it was first released in Europe and I hardly find it much faster than G2 data surfing. So it’s still a last resort. And if I was using for hours at the airport or park, I’d hardly start downloading GossipGirl episodes or uploading to DropSend, so relax. All I really want to do is transfer files to my computer w/o having to use USB or emailing it to myself. Nor can I beam a file or address contact to a friend. Meanwhile T-Mobile I’m giving you $130/mo for barely faster data speeds than the $100/mo when I had unlimited data transfer on my G2 phone. Maybe iPhone users put up with it because they feel so cool even without it, but Android is all about opening portability opportunities and you’re acting like the carriers of yore, by forcing the hardware makers to hobble our devices. Lame.
  2. No video. Srsly what is the fracking deal with these new phones not supporting video. It’s not the hardware, software or processor. It’s a premeditated decision and it’s really lame.
  3. The App Marketplace is still freeware only. Very few entities can make expensive software and give it away for free. So the development of great apps is on hold until developers know they’ll be compensated. Meanwhile Google says they purposely didn’t develop all the software so as to allow for a healthy bazaar of developers … but they can open the floodgates anytime now. (That said there are some high-quality and very creative available apps, meaning there is much more to come)
  4. No headphone jack. Even a 2.5mm jack would be heaps better than having to use a mini-USB adapter jack, but really, even a full size a 3.5mm could fit too I bet. (Thx @jbsf for clarification on standards)
  5. The built in SMS software is simplistic. The free app Chomp SMS however, offers a far-superior threaded iPhone-like improvement.
  6. Voicemail is simplistic. Where’s the point and click? Actually there is new software PhoneFusion Voicemail that looks good and gives (again) iPhone-like functionality.

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