The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the G1 Google Phone and Android – Part 1
A one-prevent manual for the Great Intelligence T-Mobile G1 cellphone, jogging Google’s Android cellular working device. Android is an open-supply assignment designed especially to make it clean for developers, experts, and newbies to create programs that get the right to enter every part of the smartphone’s hardware.
Interim Update (beginning fifth of February)
From Android Talk (third of February):
“To make sure a wonderful revel in with the T-Mobile G1 with Google, customers with those devices will get hold of an Over the Air (OTA) update to their gadgets between February 5 and February 15. This OTA will encompass new machine enhancements, including saving pictures or files from documenting by lengthy-pressing an object, checking for gadget updates, and using the Google Voice Search characteristic. The OTA may even restore several known problems. New G1 activations will receive the OTA up to three days after the provider has been activated.”
This Update seems to be quite a good deal, as listed above, adding the potential to keep pics and files with a long press, fixing some minor insects (none of which I’ve personally skilled, however, that have been bothering different people), and including Voice Search (which is seemingly quite cool). It’s come to a group of clients inside the US, but there is no longer a lot more in phrases of records about it, likely because it’s alternatively basic. There seem to be a few situations in which Voice Search is turning into a business within the UK – reputedly, it has a hassle with our accessory! This can also delay or alter the United Kingdom’s release.
If you do not need to look ahead to the frenzy from T-Mobile, there may be a trick that allows you to pressure the G1 to test for updates, courtesy of a poster on the Android Talk boards. You’ll need Any cut mounted from the Market. Now, lengthy-press in a clean space to your screen, and pick out Shortcut/Any cut/Activity/Device info. When you tap this shortcut, it will take you to a display screen with a range of interesting machine records. Scroll to the bottom; there is a button to check for updates. If you click on it and it just says “CHECKIN_SUCCESS,” there may be no replacement.
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Coming Update – Cupcake
A primary replacement, or series of updates, is coming in the first half of 2009 for the G1 and other Android telephones. It comes from the improvement branch, called Cupcake, and will consist of some fixes and improvements. It will upload many capabilities for your telephone. It must download immediately on your G1 over the air and replace effortlessly.
The reliable Google function is still geared up while it is ready, but it was centered in the front of the first region in 2009. We recognize that a very early version was released to application builders around January 16. T-Mobile has noticed the flood of emails and calls about the problem and is seeking to push this ahead as fast as possible from their end.
Some anticipated capabilities for this replacement are:
* Option to store pix and attachments from textual content messages
* Ability to copy and paste the text inside the browser
* Search-inside-text for the browser
* Improved video support – video recording, better playback, and thumbnails
* Stereo Bluetooth aid
* Onscreen keyboard, so you can kind on the display screen as opposed to having to slide the keyboard open
* A reduction in battery drain, mainly through the greater green use of processing power.
* Latitude, a geo-conscious touch machine
The smooth keyboard is one of Cupcake’s most eagerly awaited functions—the potential to enter text via an onscreen keyboard without having to open the slide at the G1. This feature is now provided using a third-party application—dot phone. Org’s Soft keyboard is available on the Market now. I’ll give extra details and a few data on using it (the capability isn’t immediately apparent) in my second article on Applications.
Features: What works, what does not, and a way to repair it
Headsets
Bluetooth headsets seem to work exceptionally. However, the tool does not help stereo over Bluetooth, so audio playback may be the most effective mono sound. This might be fixed with the Cupcake update. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the G1 Google Phone and Android – Part 1
The stressed headset that incorporates the G1 gives proper sounds. Still, the hassle of the telephone is that it would not have a regular headphone/earphone socket, so for stressed accessories, you have to shop for the ones specifically designed to be like-minded with the cellphone.
However, inside the US, the G1 now ships with an adaptor that lets you plug in a regular three.5mm headset. This isn’t the case in the UK; however, T-Mobile has advised me that if they obtain sufficient comments, they can nicely change this policy and even deliver adaptors to existing customers. If you’re a UK G1 purchaser, visit T-Mobile’s Contact Us page, scroll down to “send us an electronic mail,” and fill in the form to let T-Mobile recognize their clients want this accessory!
I got a reaction to my very own form, telling me that T-Mobile has no plans to make this alteration within the UK. In that essential manner, they haven’t had sufficient criticism emails/calls to make this a difficulty – permit get on this, human beings!
File Transfer
However, disappointingly, Android does not support record transfer between the telephone and your computer with Bluetooth. This needs to be addressed with the Cupcake replacement in mid-January. Because this selection is truly lacking from the operating system’s underlying structure, it’s nearly impossible for anyone else to add it (via downloaded software, for instance) until the Update.
File transfer over the USB cable works first-rate, even though the method has changed from the Quick Start Guide that comes with the cell phone, confusing a few human beings (me covered). When you plug the USB cable in, a set-off will come upon the G1’s notifications region (the close on the top of the display screen), pronouncing “USB Connected – pick out to copy documents to/out of your pc.” Tap the message, and when the next container pops up on the screen, pick out “Mount.” After that, your pc will see the G1’s SD card as an outside force, much like a Flash power.
Everything the phone has stored on your SD card is organized pretty virtually, and your digital photos are below the folder known as “dim.” You can reproduce your tracks, pics, etc., into any folder, and the G1’s software has to discover them.
Synchronizing With Your Applications
The G1 is designed to synchronize seamlessly and constantly with Google’s own solutions for the calendar, contacts, email, and so on. Therefore, Google is unlikely to provide direct answers on How to sync your G1 with your Windows, Linux, or Mac laptop over Bluetooth or a cable.
However, there are several approaches to sync Google’s online offerings with your laptop, giving stage answers. I’m no longer going to enter them here because I sense they are outside the scope of this newsletter, but they may be nicely documented on Google’s personal help pages and the web.
Using Your G1 As a Modem (“Tethering”)
Hooking up your G1 to a pc or computer laptop so that the machine can get entry to the telephone’s net connection: Again, this is not yet directly supported by using the operating device. However, a workaround may help you do it, so long as you do not tweak a few settings. “Tetherbot” with the aid of Graham – a manual to tethering your G1 as a USB modem. Note: The easiest way to factor Firefox into the proxy is to use the Foxyproxy plugin.
It’s experimental and problematic; however, now that it has proved feasible, a person will no doubt make a friendlier, smoother-to-use solution very soon. When there’s one, I’ll submit it here right away.
June Fabrics is in the early stages of developing a tethering solution for Android phones, and the Android model of WMWifiRouter is likewise improving. Both can be industrial (but less costly) solutions to the trouble, and (if they work like both groups’ previous releases) will efficaciously flip your G1 right into a wifi hotspot without needing some other software program set up, making them like-minded with any laptop operating device.
Audio Playback and Recording
At the moment, Android can play audio in the following formats: AAC, AAC, AMR-NB, MIDI, MP3, Ogg, WMA, and WMV. In my experience, playback is quite good and strong. See my subsequent post on programs for extra facts. Other formats may be introduced with future working gadget updates, or new applications may expand that list.
The G1 can record audio, and some applications already use the capability.
Video Playback and Recording, and Flash
Currently, Android only supports video in MP4 format and from YouTube (not via the browser, however, through dedicated programs that grab MP4 versions of YouTube movies), and it must be in a pretty limited layout. You can use any video converter well suited for the iPod Touch or iPhone to make movies on Android—Videora is very good.
Other video codecs may watch for a running machine update, although someone may devise a way to add formats with software. The flash guide is coming rapidly, with Adobe promising to operate intently with the Android group. We could have Flash in January. When it comes out, I’ll Permit you to understand!
Although Android does not officially support video recording, third-party software does now offer this feature. This is precisely why an open-source smartphone is an interesting proposition—the capability for unofficial 0.33-party projects to fill the gaps within the available capabilities!
Dotphone.Org’s Video Recorder/Video Camera, now available on the Market, records video on the SD card and plays back some performance. It’s nonestillbeta and a little flaky; however, it works quite nicely for me – e— though it will drain the battery in minutes. Battery
The huge failing of the G1 is battery lifestyles. Between the big screen, a couple of wifi connections, and heavy processor use from the constantly jogging background programs, the installed 1150mAh battery does not close long.
The current word from T-Mobile is that they have no plans to launch a stepped-forward battery for the G1 inside the UK. Some G1 users inside the US have been shipped replacement batteries. An internal memo has seemingly informed their helpline advisors to achieve this in response to proceedings, which increases battery lifestyles by 22% without increasing the phone’s scale.
If you’re a UK G1 owner, I advise going to T-Mobile’s Contact Us web page, scrolling right down to “ship us an email,” and filling in the form to allow T-Mobile to recognize their client’s need for this service. With enough customers pitching in, we can call for a higher device for our money.
Managing your wireless features can help. The Power Manager software from the Market allows you to manipulate Bluetooth, wifi, GPS, and cell area on one screen and turn from 3G to 2G, increasing the battery’s price.
The big drain is the 3G – the G1 wastes electricity, searching for a 3G connection when one is not to be had (hopefully, this could be progressed with the Cupcake launch). I’d advocate turning it off while you’re not browsing/downloading – your electronic mail. It will still sync simply quality, and if you get notified that, for example, a podcast is downloading in Podweasel, you can turn it on. This delivered almost 50% to my battery life right now.
Many users can also improve matters by calibrating the G1’s Lithium-Ion battery. Li-ion batteries seem to have inner electronics that hold tune in their price level, but they occasionally need calibrating. The G1’s battery frequently doesn’t deliver ready-calibrated.
To calibrate your battery, let the G1 run all the manner down, past the warning messages with approximately low battery fee, until it turns itself off. You can also want to show it on again in a couple of instances – maintain going until it does not power up. Then, recharge to complete and leave on the fee for at least a couple of greater hours. It would help if you discovered a large development in battery lifestyles. However, this may also need repeating every month or not doing it too regularly, as biking the battery is more put on (mostly due to warmness).
