Answer My Query

Only two years ago T-Mobile, Google and HTC instigated the Android revolution by launching the T-Mobile G1.

The G1 was the first handset to run on Google’s operating system and was distributed exclusively on mobile network, T-Mobile.

Now, it has been revealed that the G1 has a successor. A T-Mobile G2 teaser site (http://g2.t-mobile.com/) has been revealed for the Android-powered G2 model and though there is little given away in terms of specs, the micro-site tells us that the device will be the first to operate on T-Mobile’s 4G HSPA+ network in the US. Maybe this will mean the G2 won’t make it over to the UK but we’ll have to wait and see…

As you will see the image on the site doesn’t give a whole lot away either, but rumour has it the G2 will come equipped with a 1Ghz processor, 3.7” AMOLED touchscreen, 5 megapixel camera and 720p HD video capture. Also, based on past experience, we expect HTC will again lend a hand in manufacturing the G2 device.

Expected to go on sale on September 29th in the USA. Check back for more information.

(Edit: This upcoming phone shouldn’t be confused with the T-mobile G2 touch which is currently available in the UK and is the t-mobile version of the HTC Hero. )

Courtesy of Richard at  Sim Basics a really great site with loads of great deals on Sims and other bits.

Want to do a guest post for Androidbloke?  We love to hear perspectives from all sorts of people.  We don’t do this for money but just because we love mobile. If you have something to say or share- then please feel free to get in touch by Contact Androidbloke link above we may publish it, if we think our audience will enjoy it. 

Related posts:

1. WordPress Mobile for android made this post
2. Htc ACE could be the GSM version of Evo 4G
3. What Android Phone? August 2010 edition

After a tweet for help from Steoreilly  asking for some Android phone buying advice, Androidbloke has come into the rescue.  I have posted up some of my thoughts on what the best in breed android phones are around today.  From the news being released on our friends at Expansys blog, you are not the only one getting an android phone as it is currently taking the market by storm.

Well Steve, if you need a phone today- then great news, there are a load of really great Android phones to choose from- some of which will leave you wondering why you didn’t get on the Android bandwagon sooner.

If you are going to be showing off your android phone then you are going to want something that has a large size screen  and is really clear.  You also want something that has built in multi-touch, so you can show off the full power of the platform.   If you are going to be carrying it around with you to show clients then you also need something that’s portable. 

If I was picking out a phone right now I would choose one of the following.

1. HTC Desire- HTC’s flagship device now comes equipped with the latest Android 2.2 and is a veritable superphone.  With a  great SLCD/AMOLED screen and a super fast 1GHz Snapdragon processor the phone looks great and is really snappy and responsive.  HTC’s Sense Custom user interface on top of Android adds some great features such as App Sharing via Twitter, email and facebook as well as upgraded sync to itunes and 720p HD Video recording.  Links: HTC Desire Homepage/ Comparison of latest HTC Desire Deals
2. Google Nexus One – Google worked closely with HTC to make this Android reference Handset.  Similar in looks to the HTC Desire but sports the standard Android 2.2 interface.  Because this is a Google reference design, it is most likely to get the latest versions of Android first.  In addition it also has a dock connector, and noise cancelling microphone at the back to improve call quality.  Links: Google Nexus One Homepage/ Comparison of latest Google Nexus One Deals )
3. Samsung Galaxy S- This is the latest and greatest from the Samsung crowd, which has the largest (4inch) screen and uses the latest in Samsung’s SUPER AMOLED screen technology. Its called super, that is an understatement as the screen is amazing.  Like the other phones it also sports a fast processor but is also able to act as a media sharing device to your telly via DLNA.  Sadly the only drawback is that the phone is still running Android 2.1, although Samsung have promised an upgrade as early as September. Links: Samsung Galaxy S Homepage / Comparison of latest Samsung Galaxy S Deals

If you aren’t Stephen and are wondering what the best phone for you is get in touch- but here is a brief summary of what’s around on the market:

• Best For business- Motorola Milestone- Also known as the famous Droid in the USA, it  has a fast processor and is a really stable and good platform. Also comes with built in support for exchange and a slide out keyboard to help make the transition from your blackberry to Android seamless. Links: Motorola Milestone Homepage / Comparison of Latest Motorola Milestone deals)
• Best For Students- HTC Hero or HTC Legend-  These are smaller form factor phones that will fit perfectly into your jeans pocket whilst you are in a lecture or in the pub drinking (or both at the same time!) They all give you access to the market and apps and also aren’t quite as pricey as the other handsets.  The Legend is the latest version of the HTC Hero and has a better screen and processor, but both phones will more than fit your needs.  Links: HTC Hero Homepage/ Comparison of Latest HTC Hero Deals . HTC Legend Homepage / Comparison of latest HTC Legend Deals
• Best for Budget/ Size- HTC Wildfire- Matching the same specs as HTC Hero, it is the smallest and thinnest phone in the HTC Android range.  It comes standard with a slightly smaller capacitive screen than the other handsets but still has all the main apps present on its market.  Its real strength is in the small size of the phone- and its pure pocketable power.   Links HTC Wildfire Homepage/ Comparison of latest HTC Wildfire phone deals available.

There are some other great Android phones around at the moment, hopefully I will be able to have a review of them and tell you what I personally think of them.  The phones listed above are my personal favourites that I can recommend based on my own use and can vouch for them.  With next month set to have some more great phone launches- I am really looking forward to writing my next month’s edition already.

Related posts:

1. Android Help: What Phone: HTC Desire, HTC Legend or wait? asks Iphone user
2. HTC official ETA for Android 2.2 for HTC Desire, Legend and Wildfire
3. Offical: HTC Desire getting out Froyo this weekend

I am very excited to see that the HTC invitation for something on September 15 has really sparked the world interest.  Luckily I too have a friend who is good with Photoshop and have managed to come up cropper with the following news complete speculation on our part.  Here is what we can see:

Phone 1: HTC Desire HD

Firstly there is in fact a really great outline of an HTC  Logo with what looks like the a similar design style to the HTC Legend, showing what I hope looks like an engineered aluminium shell.  I am hoping that this is in fact the HTC Desire HD. Rumoured to have an 8 MP, zenon flash and 720p HD recording.  I am hoping that equally with the jump up with these other specs we will have a good jump up with the battery life and display technology to push it past the Iphone 4 spec.   I am assuming that, like the Desire this will be a HTC Sense ( HTC’s custom User interface) and will hopefully be with us for October/ November.

Phone 2: HTC Blaze G1/ HTC Desire Z ( and potentially T-mobile G2)

with the picture above you can clearly see that there is a second handset transposed behind it which appears to be in portrait mode.  Its subtle curves for me , definitely show some similarity with HTC Blaze G1 . (Image to the right)   Further there appears to be some squarish- marks along the base which could just be artefacts from the photo- or more likely are artefacts generated by a blurred keyboard.  ( highlighted in magic marker yellow)  The fact the wording says “dreamt up” also points towards it being a follow up the HTC Dream ( aka the first google phone, the T-mobile G1) .  If this is going to be the follow up to the G1, then there has been some speculation by the twitterers that it will be the next “google experience” phone to come out since the HTC Nexus One came out in January. 

Phone 3: HTC Mozart- HTC Legend HD or something else?

The best bit is it if you look at the top of the screen there is a 3rd phone outline that is clearly shown that has a similar Zenon flash to the HTC desire HD.  It even has what looks like a large lettered- HTC down the edge of it.  Purely speculating I am guessing its a HTC Legend followup, which originally was released around the same time as HTC Desire.  I think it might be a bit early for the HTC Mozart ( ie the latest Windows mobile 7 ) to hit and would guess that something else is probably the best place to bet. 

I personally wouldn’t hold my breath that any of these phones will launch with the new version of Android 3.0 ( dubbed Gingerbread) as that isn’t expected till December 2010.  Most probably because the spec for Gingerbread has already been outed, I am sure that these new phones will see the latest version of Android (at least one way or another!)

What do you think it is?  speculation is welcome on this!

What features would you love to see in the next Android Phones to come out?

Here is the original Picture below- with out my expertly crafted lines:

Invitation credit- HTC

Photo of T-mobile G1 Blaze- from Engadget

Related posts:

1. Android Help: What Phone: HTC Desire, HTC Legend or wait? asks Iphone user
2. HTC official ETA for Android 2.2 for HTC Desire, Legend and Wildfire
3. HTC Wildfire – Mini HTC Desire coming Q3 2010

I just had a  chuckle at the University of Penn’s research which has gone to lengths exploring how hackable Android is using the humble smudge.

Basically it states that by looking at the glass, a user is able to accurately replicate your phone unlock pattern and get to your phone.

My response to this is… YOU DIDN’T KNOW? The amazing thing about this is that anyone who has had an android phone knows that the pattern unlock can be replicated. Good tips are to make sure you regularly wipe your screen, or if you have Froyo ( android 2.2) on your phone, you use a secret pin number to lock your phone instead.

Note to Google, personally I think that pattern unlocking will really  become useful, if Android allows you to overwrite a connection, ie let you go over the same connection twice or three times to make sure that the smudges cannot be replicated.

The best way to protect your phone is to invest in an app like Wavesecure, which can remote lock and wipe your phone if its ever stolen. ( you can currently get a 20% discount voucher to it by listing your top 5 apps in our forum section here)

If you ever lose your phone, make sure you have take note of your imei number so you can report it to your network/ police.

If you want to find your IMEI , you can press *#06# on your phone, or download an IMEI app from Google market.

Touchscreens open to smudge attacks | Security | News | PC Pro.

Related posts:

1. Best Android Apps: Wavesecure

Remember that post a few weeks back about a possible large screen device heading for the UK under the name of  HTC ACE? Well it turns out it will mostly likely be called Htc Desire HD (following traditional Htc progression) and will have a very similar form factor to the Evo 4G.

What we have learned is that there is the usual 8mp camera, 1ghz processor, 4.3inch WVGA touchscreen, 4gb built in storage, shipping with froyo, etc; all normal features you would expect to find in a new HTC Android device, but sadly it is lacking the front-facing camera of the Evo. This mythical beast is expected to launch in October – and we for one are very excited to see it.

UPDATE:

This video of the HTC Desire HD has just surfaced and it is indisputable proof that this phone is very much real, and likely to be launching soon. For the first time we are able to see the back of the device as well as the front in clear resolution;  resembling the HD2 more than anything else, this phone is as HTC as they come.

Related posts:

1. Htc ACE could be the GSM version of Evo 4G
2. Android Help: What Phone: HTC Desire, HTC Legend or wait? asks Iphone user
3. Offical: HTC Desire getting out Froyo this weekend