Android on T-Mobile
T-Mobile confirmed yesterday that they will be launching an Android based mobile phone by the end of the year. The new device will have a slide-out keyboard and a touch-screen. I don’t know if the screen with have the dual-contact sensitivity of the iPhone, but if it does then it really will be a serious challenge to the iPhone. Reports say that it “will have a touch screen like the iPhone”. That remains to be seen. Otherwise that particular “cool” feature will remain the jewel in the crown for Apple.
What might be more important for users of the new device is bandwidth. It will be interesting to see if T-Mobile can deliver the necessary service quality in its many market areas.
Back to the new device, I did a bit of digging into the US Federal Communications Commission documents, where HTC (the device designer) lodged legal documents. Understandably HTC requested that the main documents be kept under wraps for a while (November 10 being the date mentioned). Other less sensitive documents are visible. One of these is the “Electromagnetic Emissions Compliance Report”and it contains some interesting clues about the device that HTC have codenamed “Dream”.
Here are some of the things I found:
The earphone is a Cotron chm-311stv08002. There’s a “jog ball”, presumably a navigation control similar to that on the Blackberry. Supported comms are GSM/GPRS 850/1900, EDGE 1900 and WCDMA band IV, 802.11b/g and Bluetooth 2.0. HTC have been careful to remove any photos of the new device, but the radio emmissions tests (where the device is placed against a simulated head) contain charts that suggest the device is about the same size as the iPhone. The tested device was black, with the jog ball available in dark green, brown or “nude”. A memory card is mentioned, suggesting removable storage.
No doubt there will be leaks (accidental or otherwise) that will reveal more details as the launch date approaches. That date has not been announced, but some time before November 10 would be a good bet.
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