myTouch 3G

The MYTOUCH 3G is the second T-Mobile smartphone to run Google’s Android mobile operating system. The $200 phone has much going for it, a lightweight design, gorgeous screen, and the 1,5 update to Android, but its not without flaws.

Sleek and elegantly curved, the myTouch 3G measures 4.6 by 2.2 by 0.5 inches and weighs 4.1 ounces, a pocktable size. Nice design touches include the well-cut, light-up navigation buttons under the screen and the deep well around the navigation trackball. And you can access the microSD Card slot without removing the battery. However, the device is prone to showing fingerprints, especially on its screen.

Some critical buttons are unduly small and close together. Often i inadvertently hit the power instead of the back button. Another miss is the on-screen touch keyboard. The more i used the myTouch, the more i longed for a phisical keyboard, as on the G1. Yes, i could do some limited typing with one hand, and i liked the haptic feedback as i pressed a key, but overall i thought the keyboard was too tightly packed. Going back to fix typos was harder that o would have liked, also.

The phone now has integrated universal search, on the Web or within individual application. Android 1.5 can record and upload video and pictures to Youtube and Picasa, and play video on MP4 and 3 GP formats. You can also add widgets to the home screen.

Android 1.5 also has stereo Bluetooth support, and lets you copy and paste from within the browser. You get integrated Google Voice Search, too, but i found its accuracy haphazard.

The myTouch 3G has a lot to like, but i can’t help its lack of a physical keyboard. The software keyboard just doesn’t cut it for long messages and e-mail.