The HTC Hero / T-Mobile G2 Touch Android smartphone review

T-Mobile G2 Touch:

Physical Aspects:

The HTC Hero is a rather striking handset, currently available in either white or graphite color schemes in the UK, with a characteristic ‘kink' in its body, giving it a distinctive chin at the bottom. In the UK, the color you get depends on the network you choose. Orange UK are exclusively offering the graphite version, whereas T-Mobile UK are offering the white/silver version that we have, but are calling it the ‘G2 Touch'.

Being the white version, our handset has the matte white finish that is coated with Teflon to help keep it clean. However, ours had pink marks on it straight out of the box, and ones at the HTC release event were tarnished as well, so it clearly doesn't make the phone dirt-proof, just dirt resistant. The graphite version doesn't have this coating, but due to the back and bottom area being black, it doesn't actually need it. One curious side-effect of the finish on our white device is that the phone feels as if it's made of a ceramic material.

The Hero is, by today's touchscreen handset standards, a pretty average-sized phone, and measures in at 112mm x 56.2mm x 14.35mm (4.41in x 2.21in x 0.57in). It appears slimmer than it actually is, due to heavily sloped edges that also make it feel nicer in the hand. It's not exactly a lightweight, at 135g (4.76oz), but it feels quite robust. The first thing you'll notice about the HTC Hero, aside from the chin, is its 3.2″ capacitive touchscreen display that has a HVGA resolution (320 x 480 pixels). Bright sunlight legibility is pretty average with this display. Above the display is the earpiece grille, which has an ambient light sensor on one side and a notification LED on the other.

The are only six hardware buttons on the device, not including the clickable trackball or the volume rocker. The call send, home, menu, and call end buttons are all lined-up below the display on the silver fascia of the phone. The search key and back key are both contained within one larger button that resides on the chin of the phone, next to the trackball. The trackball itself is located dead centre in the chin and has the ability to illuminate for notifications, usually unleashing a barrage of flashes for a new message or incoming call.

The rear of the Hero features the lens for the device's 5 megapixel autofocus camera, although it's still missing any sort of flash, which is a shame. The rear is otherwise pretty spartan, with only a couple of holes for the loudspeaker and the lanyard fixing. At the bottom of the handset is HTC's ExtUSB/mini-USB port for charging and data, plus a microphone pinhole. Atop the device is just the 3.5mm headphone port and a small slit for removing the rear cover with a fingernail . The rear cover will need to be removed for access to the microSDHC slot that is hidden beneath. The left side of the phone features a large volume rocker that is pretty much flush with the side of the phone, and the right side is completely bare.

Google and HTC Working On a Chrome OS Tablet

Everyone is clamoring about tablets these days—ourselves included—so it's not too surprising that Google and HTC are set to join the fray. They are reportedly working together on a Chrome OS Google Tablet.

Smarthouse, an Australian publication, reports that HTC and Google have been collaborating “for the past 18 months” and have produced “several working models of a touch tablet,” including one outfitted with Google's Chrome OS. We wrote why a Google Tablet would be a good idea last month, and with the Apple Tablet discussion reaching a fever pitch, it's harder and harder to get excited about a Chrome OS netbook from Google.

Having collaborated on the Nexus One, a smart phone that impressed us with its design as well as its hardware, HTC and Google partnering on a tablet seems like a promising prospect. But will it “compete head on” with Apple's tablet as Smarthouse claims? Probably not.

From what we know, it seems like Apple is putting as much effort into their tablet's content as they are into the gadget itself. We've written extensively on how an Apple tablet could redefine newspapers, textbooks, and magazines. In the last case, we've already salivated, more than once, over concepts for how magazines might evolve in a multi-touch future. Add that to Apple's recent acquisition of Lala, a move that likely points to a cloud-based future for iTunes, and the reports that Apple is trying to secure TV show subscription packages for the iTunes store. Admittedly, not a whole lot is certain about Apple's tablet. But you start looking at all of those pieces and how they might fit together around one device, you can easily envision a gadget that is focused on streaming the stuff you read, the stuff you listen to, and the stuff you watch.

It's hard to foresee a future in which a Google Tablet tries to go head to head with Apple on the content level. That's not to say, however, that there aren't some compelling things that could be offered by a Google tablet. As the launch of Google's Chrome OS made clear, they're looking toward a future with a multitude of devices that can access the Internet quickly, cleanly, and cheaply . A Google Tablet could be just the thing to realize all of those goals. When we tried out the JooJoo tablet, we saw how a well-designed tablet for consuming web content could provide an engaging experience. A Chrome OS tablet by Google would likely work the same way, keeping typing to a minimum and offering a literal hands-on web surfing experience. [Smarthouse via Business Insider ]

Google Nexus One Available on AT&T 3G

With the Google Nexus One launch and the gadget show CES both taking place next week, it's shaping up to be a weekend of hardware rumors. The latest requires the usual cautions: It's a single anonymous source, and the parties involved have not commented publicly.

Nonetheless, BoyGeniusReport (which has a decent hit rate on its rumor reportage) claims that the Google Nexus One (aka “Google Phone“) will be made in an unlocked version compatible with AT&T's 3G network:

“…we've heard from a source that there will be an AT&T 3G-compatible version of the Google Nexus One. Our connect described it as being a 'second' unlocked model, with the T-Mobile-subsidized unit being locked to T-Mobile. Our tipster was so impressed by a Nexus One in person, they said they would 100% give up their T-Mobile BlackBerry 9700 for one when it's available.”

So little is known about Google's() deals with carriers that we'd urge caution on this until the Nexus One launch on Tuesday.