Ulf Waschbusch, a former Google Mobile Product Manager and current MySpace mobile employee, says, in so many words, that the HTC-made, Google Android-powered T-Mobile G1 is far from an iPhone killer — in fact, it’s just downright disappointing:
The reason many people see the G1 as ugly and old-fashioned is simply… because it IS! It’s a design unchanged for a while (it’s now available in Zune-brown along with white and black). The hardware itself though went through many iterations I am sure, as it’s top-notch (3G on AWS, GPS, 3MP autofocus camera etc.).
Waschbusch writes that he’s a fan of how the hardware works and Android OS, but that “the G1 Hardware is somewhat…well…dated” in looks, paling to HTC’s own Touch or Touch HD. “I just don’t like the design/looks of the device,” he writes.
Which, for a mass-market product aimed at consumers, might be a big problem. After all, what family truly cares about the ins and outs of Android? They just care about making calls, checking e-mail, taking photos — the typical package. Doesn’t matter who’s behind it or how “groundbreaking” we all say it is.
Gizmodo reports that Waschbusch also expressed his frustrations with other aspects of the G1 in his Facebook status:
Ulf is disappointed but not surprised about the ‘G1′. Where’s the cheap data plan? Where do I plug in my headphones? No video player? How do I get contacts in it?
Precisely my concerns, too, when I played with the device first-hand at the launch event (same goes for Josh). And if consumers don’t really take to it, who cares what us tech-inclined people think?
The reason many people see the G1 as ugly and old-fashioned is simply… because it IS! It’s a design unchanged for a while (it’s now available in Zune-brown along with white and black). The hardware itself though went through many iterations I am sure, as it’s top-notch (3G on AWS, GPS, 3MP autofocus camera etc.).
Waschbusch writes that he’s a fan of how the hardware works and Android OS, but that “the G1 Hardware is somewhat…well…dated” in looks, paling to HTC’s own Touch or Touch HD. “I just don’t like the design/looks of the device,” he writes.
Which, for a mass-market product aimed at consumers, might be a big problem. After all, what family truly cares about the ins and outs of Android? They just care about making calls, checking e-mail, taking photos — the typical package. Doesn’t matter who’s behind it or how “groundbreaking” we all say it is.
Gizmodo reports that Waschbusch also expressed his frustrations with other aspects of the G1 in his Facebook status:
Ulf is disappointed but not surprised about the ‘G1′. Where’s the cheap data plan? Where do I plug in my headphones? No video player? How do I get contacts in it?
Precisely my concerns, too, when I played with the device first-hand at the launch event (same goes for Josh). And if consumers don’t really take to it, who cares what us tech-inclined people think?
