Comparo: T-Mobile G1 Android v. Apple iPhone 3G

Published September 23, 2008

Google's first smartphone, the T-Mobile G1, made its official debut Tuesday morning in New York. The $179 device, which is manufactured by HTC, is the first phone to use Google's open source Android operating system. Like Apple's iPhone 3G, the G1 has full touch-screen functionality and works on both Wi-Fi and 3G networks. But does this new smartphone pack enough muscle to topple Apple's iPhone? Below is a rundown of the G1's specs and how they compare to the iPhone 3G.

T-Mobile G1 vs iPhone 3G, winning feature in BOLD

	T-Mobile G1	Apple iPhone 3G

Price	$179	$199
Weight	5.6 ounces	4.7 ounces
Data Plans	$25/mo Unlimited Web + 400 msgs; $35/mo Unlimited Web & msgs	$30/mo unlimited data
Width (at thickest)	15.7 mm	12.3 mm
Screen	3.17" 480x320	3.5" 480x320
Camera	3MP	2MP
Audio/Video/Photo	MP3, AAC, WMA, WAV, Ogg Vorbis	AAC, Protected AAC, MP3, Apple Lossless, WAV, H.264, MP4, JPEG
Wireless	802.11g, 3G	802.11g, 3G
Web Browser	Chrome Lite	Safari
Storage	1GB (via bundled microSD card)	8GB (built-in)
Expandability	Up to 8GB (via microSD)	None
Bluetooth	Yes	Yes
QWERTY Keyboard	Slide-out	On-screen
Headphone Jack	No	Yes
Stores Supported	Android Market, Amazon MP3	Apple iTunes Store
Rated Battery Life	5 hours talk, 130 hours standby	5 hours talk, 300 hours standby

On the hardware front, the G1 lacks some of the iPhone's sophistication. It has a bulkier footprint, weighs more, and packs a smaller screen than its competition. In addition, the G1 only comes with a paltry 1GB of memory (although you can expand it). Fortunately, the phone makes up for those shortcomings with a built-in five-row QWERTY keyboard that slides out from underneath the device's touch screen.

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