The G1, the first phone based on Android, the mobile operating system developed by Google, has arrived in US T-Mobile stores to compete with the iPhone, the absolute leader in the high-end sector, with more than ten million units sold in so far this year.
The new mobile phone, with a price of 179 dollars (about 139 euros) and a minimum two-year contract, is the first to attract so much attention since the appearance of the Apple phone, although it has a tough road ahead.
The climate of economic crisis that is being experienced in the United States and the upcoming launch of Storm, the first model of the ubiquitous BlackBerry with a touch screen, among other new competitors, could tarnish the premiere of this mobile phone.
At the moment, although there have been queues at a large number of T-Mobile stores in different cities in the United States, the masses of people sleeping on the street since the previous night have not been seen as they were with the iPhone.
Android: open source
The main attraction of the G1, manufactured by HTC, is that its operating system, called Android and developed by Google, is open source and, therefore, anyone can develop new applications and improvements for the device without the restrictions it imposes. Apple on the iPhone.
However, precisely that same virtue could turn against it, since it is expected that other devices also developed with that operating system will soon hit the market.
Furthermore, while Apple's mobile phone is sold exclusively linked to AT&T, the G1 comes from T-Mobile, whose 3G technology coverage (which allows access to data and Internet browsing from the mobile phone with high bandwidth) It is not as complete as that of its competitor.
Potential buyers are also awaiting the latest news about the next BlackBerry touch, which was presented on October 8 by the third operator in contention, Verizon, although it is not yet known when it will go on sale.
Since Apple launched the iPhone in July 2007 and fascinated consumers around the world with its touch screen, numerous manufacturers have tried to compete, but analysts believe that so far none has matched it in design or technical performance.
In the first hours of marketing in stores, and after about a month of receiving orders, it can be seen that at least among the defenders of the FOSS, enthusiasts of Google's philosophy and lovers of cutting-edge electronic devices has garnered good ratings.