Tmobile G2 Review

   One word came to mind the first time I held the htc G2. Solid. As I removed the phone from its box I thought to myself, "where is the plastic?" Where are the cheap materials that have been used in so many T-Mobile branded Androids before? Where is the junk-ware? The answer: Not on this bad boy.

  Let's talk about looks. It seems T-Mobile and HTC finally thought things through. Basic is beautiful, and the G2 shows it. Stainless steel trim around the "top half" body, and a stainless steel battery door. The bottom half of the body, which houses the keyboard, uses a two-tone material route. The lighter gray material used is made of a hard plastic, and feels very good in the hands. One thing to keep in mind is that the steel trim looks nice, but is also prone to surface scratches. I recommend some type of body shield or case to protect it.

  For everyday usage, the keyboard design is practical. Keyboard buttons feel very comfortable and seem well spaced. The buttons give the "click" feel, so you know you didn't miss a letter. They keys are made out of a soft rubber material, and are marked clearly and visibly. The numbers share the top row of the keyboard with the letters. It's no big deal, but the fact that the numbers seem more visible than the letter in that row, might throw you off. One thing I feel that could have added is an on screen spell check as you type with the physical keyboard. Unfortunately, spell check is only available for the virtual keyboards.

  When it comes to the "hinge" that the G2 uses, it has its own good and bad. The good thing is that when the keyboard is hidden, it holds the phone together well. There is no feel that the keyboard is ready to slide out at any time. This hinge, when closed,  allows for a slim design and a solid feel. Here's the cons I noticed about the hinge. After a while, for me a few weeks, the hinge starts to feel loose. I'm not sure if that's all the G2 devices, but it is certainly the case with mine.

  The processor behind the G2 is an 800mhz second generation Snapdragon MSM 7230. The processor feels zippy and fast, and kept up with whatever we threw at it. From watching movies, to playing games, operation of the phone was smooth as silk. The second generation of Snapdragons hold their own.

  The G2 has a very good, 5 mega pixel camera with flash, and is capable of 720p video recording. The LED flash is very bright, and can be used for video recording. The high definition recording is not the greatest I have seen, but for a cell phone it does the job. Check out this SAMPLE VIDEO CLIP recorded using the G2's 720p camcorder.

  The G2 features a memory card slot capable of up to 32GB of memory. The memory card slot is located underneath the battery, so it is not hot-swappable. Built in is 4GB of memory, however this is mostly reserved for software and software updates. About 1GB is available internally.

  The body of the G2 is nearly perfect, but here are the things I feel are lacking.

• Front facing camera. Whether you use it or not, the G2 was released at a time where front facing cameras were becoming the norm.
• Internal memory. A little more internal memory would have been a nice compliment to the SD card slot.
• LED Indicator: The track pad of the G2 is also an indicator light, but it is very difficult to actually see. The white light and long intervals between flashes make the notification light feel non existent.

  The G2 is running Android 2.2 stock operating software, which was the latest version at the time. The installed apps include pretty much every application Google makes. From "Google Goggles" to "Google Skymap". Day to day operation of the system itself was stable for the most part. I had a few issues which I couldn't differentiate whether they were caused by the phone itself, or T-Mobile's network. Twice I had instances where I had to switch off "3G" in order to be able to make calls. I'm not sure if this had something to do with the hspa+ capabilities or something else.

  Speaking of hspa plus, did I mention this phone is the first T-Mobile capable device for 4G?

Well it is. My data speeds differed, but for the most part it was fast. Obviously this will depend on the area you are in, since for myself it was hit or miss. But as T-Mobile expands coverage, I think you will be happier that you chose a 4G device.

  Here are some good things that stick out to me when it comes to operation:

• Processor: The second generation Snapdragon was definitely fast enough
• 4G Speeds: Whether or not you currently have coverage, it should feel good to know that your device is ready when you do.
• Camera: 5mp with flash and HD video recording make the G2 a social friendly device
• Stock Android Software: If you want your updates when they come out, then stock is the way to go. 

  And some things that I think could have been improved:

• Battery Life: The battery on the G2 (1300mAh)  is not atrocious, but it certainly could have been better. I typically got around 8-9 hours with moderate use. It's not the worst, but it could have been better.
• Media: This is not really the fault of the phone, but more on stock Android. From the camera layout to the music player, these everyday apps are starting look dated.

  Overall, I highly recommend the HTC G2 for any Android fan, and especially the ones who won't give in to virtual keyboards. Currently the only T-Mobile phone with a physical keyboard that also 4G capable, with the hardware and software to back it up. From the bold, serious design to the speed and capabilities the phone will not disappoint. Check out the full PhoneFight VIDEO REVIEW here.