Android phone is a good iPhone alternative

Suzanne Choney • E-mail

The first thing I noticed about the T-Mobile G1 Android phone right out of the box is that it pretty much looks like all the other black-slab, touchscreen phones that are trying to emulate Apple’s iPhone.

But it’s what’s under that black slab that really counts. And Google, the force behind the Android software that powers the phone, has done a good job of making it one of the easier-to-maneuver touchscreen smartphones I’ve seen.

It’s not as fluid and simple to use as the iPhone. But it’s going to be a popular alternative for those who don’t like Apple’s device and/or who don’t want AT&T as their wireless carrier. (The company is the only one in the United States that sells the iPhone.)

The T-Mobile G1 goes on sale Oct. 22. At $179 (with a two-year contract), it’s $20 less than the lowest-priced iPhone. That cost is in the ballpark for smartphones, which represent a growing share of the cell phone market.

There are two basic data plans. The first is $35 for unlimited use, including text messages; the other is $25 a month, and includes 400 text messages.

T-Mobile’s least expensive voice plan is $29.99 for 300 minutes, so if you choose the budget route, you’re looking at about $55 a month for the phone. AT&T users pay a minimum of $69.99 a month, including 450 voice minutes, for their iPhones, and text messages are extra.

T-Mobile won’t be the only wireless carrier to have phones running Android, but right now it’s the first.

Google's everywhere
The G1 is a good option for a non-business user, who doesn’t need the complexity and intensity of either the Windows Mobile operating system or Research In Motion's BlackBerry. (Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

T-Mobile The G1's slide-out keyboard is used in conjunction with touchscreen icons, as well as a trackball, shown between the button icons at the base of the phone.

There’s no mistaking Google's presence on the phone, which includes Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail e-mail, Google Calendar, and YouTube (which Google owns).

Google Talk for instant messaging is there, too, but so are AIM, Windows Live Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger. Instant messaging is responsive and easy on the phone,

While the G1 has a handy “Gmail” icon on its home screen, ready to go — and easy to set up — it doesn’t include Microsoft Exchange Active Sync software, which synchronizes with a PC for e-mail, calendar and contact info. That’s something Apple added to the iPhone in recent months.

T-Mobile senior product manager Randy Meyerson says Active Sync is likely to be added down the road, offered by a third-party software developer in the Android Market. The market is Google’s rendition of the iPhone’s App Store, which lets users download software programs, from games to location-based services, directly to their phones. (More on that later.)

“Based on the amount of interest in Microsoft Exchange Active Sync, we have some expectation that someone will be meeting that need in the not-too-distant future,” Meyerson said.

Web browsing is pleasant
In the meantime, he said, there’s Outlook Web access. And Web access in general on the G1 is pleasant and relatively fast, even on a 2G, or second-generation, wireless network.

T-Mobile is still building its 3G, or third-generation, network, which can more quickly and easily handle larger applications like Web surfing and video. The company says it will have 3G in 28 metropolitan areas by the end of the year. (To learn more about the phone and which areas have 3G coverage, check T-Mobile's G1 Web site.)

Even on a 2G network, the Web-browsing experience — as one would expect with Google behind the effort — is quite attractive on the G1’s 3.2-inch screen (the iPhone has a 3.5-inch display). Web pages are rendered realistically and quickly.

It’s not as good a quality as on the iPhone, but it’s much better than some other fine smartphones, including the Samsung Instinct and the new HTC Touch Diamond, a smaller slab phone with a touchscreen.

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