“To make sure a splendid experience with the T-Cellular G1 with Google, customers with those devices will obtain an Over the Air (OTA) update to their devices between February five and February 15. This OTA will consist of new gadget upgrades consisting of shop pictures or documents to record via lengthy-pressing an item, test for device updates, and use the Google Voice Search function. The OTA may even repair 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 pretty a great deal as indexed above, including the capability to store pix and files with a long press, solving some minor insects (none of which I’ve for my part experienced, but which have been bothering different people), and adding Voice Seek (which is apparently quite cool). It’s come to a group of customers in the US, but there may be no longer a good deal more in phrases of data approximately it, likely because it’s an alternative basis. There appears to be approximately Voice Seek to turn into to be had in the united kingdom – seemingly, it has trouble with our accessory! This may delay or adjust the United Kingdom release.
In case you don’t need to look forward to the push from T-Mobile, there is a trick to help you pressure the G1 to check for updates, courtesy of a poster at the Android Speak boards. You’ll want Any cut set up from the Market. Now lengthy-press in a clean space for your display screen, and select Shortcut/Any cut/Hobby/Device info. Whilst you faucet this shortcut, it’s going to take you to a screen with a range of thrilling machine information. Scroll all the manner to the lowest, and there may be a button to check for updates. If you click it and it just says “CHECKIN_SUCCESS,” there may be no replacement but.
Coming update – Cupcake
There is a primary update, or collection of updates, coming in the first sector of 2009 for the G1 and different Android phones. It comes from the development branch called Cupcake and will include some fixes and improvements and add lots of capabilities to your Smartphone. It ought to download instantly for your G1 over the air and replace without difficulty.
The legitimate Google role is still geared up while It’s equipped; however, it is targeted for the first region of 2009. We understand that a completely early model turned into released to application builders across the 16th of January. T-Cell has noticed the flood of emails and calls approximately the difficulty and is looking to push this forward as rapidly as viable from their stop.
a few predicted features for this replacement are:
* Option to store photographs and attachments from textual content messages
* potential to copy and paste the textual content in the browser
* Search-within-text for the browser
* Advanced video guide – video recording, better playback, and thumbnails
* Stereo Bluetooth aid
* Onscreen keyboard, so you can kind of the screen as opposed to having to slip the keyboard open
* A discount in battery drain, mainly via the greater efficient use of processing electricity.
* Range, a geo-conscious contact gadget
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The tender keyboard is one of Cupcake’s most eagerly-awaited capabilities – the ability to enter text through an onscreen keyboard while not having to open the slide at the G1. This selection is now supplied with the aid of a 3rd celebration application – dotphone.Org’s Softkeyboard, available inside the Marketplace now. I will give greater information and a few information on how to use it (the capability isn’t always right now obvious) in my 2nd article on Programs.
features: What works, what does not, and how to fix it
Headsets
Bluetooth headsets appear to paintings the best at the complete. However, the device doesn’t yet guide stereo over Bluetooth, so any audio playback could only be mono. This may be constant with the Cupcake update.
The wired headset that incorporates the G1 offers precise sound best, but the drawback of the Telephone is that it does not have a normal headphone/earphone socket, so for stressed add-ons, you’ve got to buy the ones which can be in particular designed to be well suited with the Phone.
But, within the US, the G1 now ships with an adapter that lets you plug in an ordinary three.5mm headset. This isn’t yet the case in the united kingdom. However, T-Cellular has informed me that if they obtain enough feedback, they properly exchange this policy and even ship out adapters to existing customers. If you are a United kingdom G1 customer, go to T-Cellular’s touch Us web page, scroll all the way down to “ship us an electronic mail,” and fill inside the shape to permit T-Mobile to recognize their client’s want this accent!
I got a response to my personal form, telling me that T-Cellular has no plans to make this change in the united kingdom. That basically means they have not had sufficient grievance emails/calls to make this a difficulty – permits get on this, people!
record Switch
As yet, disappointingly, Android does not support file Switch among the Cellphone and your laptop by Bluetooth> This ought to be delivered with the Cupcake replace in mid-January. Due to the fact This feature is without a doubt missing from the underlying structure of the working gadget, It’s almost impossible for any person else to feature it (through a downloaded application, for instance) till the replacement.
File Transfer over the USB cable works best, although the technique has changed from the fast Start Manual that includes the Phone, which has stressed some human beings (me included). While you plug the USB cable in, a set-off will come upon the G1’s notifications location (the pulldown on the top of the display), pronouncing “USB Linked – pick out to copy documents to/out of your computer.” faucet the message, and whilst the subsequent box pops up on the display screen, select “Mount.” After that, your computer will see the G1’s SD card as an outside power, much like a Flash power.
The whole lot the Telephone has stored in your SD card is organized quite surely, and your digital pictures are beneath the folder referred to as “dim.” You could reproduction your music, pics, etc. Into any folder and the G1’s software need to discover them.
Synchronizing Along with your Programs
The G1 is designed to synchronize seamlessly and continuously with Google’s very own answers for the calendar, contacts, email, and so forth. Therefore there are unlikely to be direct solutions from Google to sync your G1 With your Windows, Linux, or Mac computer over Bluetooth or a cable.
However, there are some methods to sync Google’s online offerings And your computing device, giving a two-degree answer. I’m no longer going to enter them here Because I feel they may be outside the scope of this article, but they’re well documented on Google’s own help pages and the web.
The usage of Your G1 As a Modem (“Tethering”)
Hooking up your G1 to a PC or computer so that the gadget can get right of entry to the Cellphone’s net connection: Again, this is not but directly supported with the aid of the operating gadget. But, There may be a workaround to assist you in doing it, as long as you do not mind tweaking some settings. “Tetherbot” by Graham – a Manual to tethering your G1 as a USB modem. Notice: The perfect way to factor Firefox to the proxy is to install the Foxyproxy plugin.
It’s nonetheless experimental and intricate, however now It’s been proved possible, someone will no question make a friendlier clean-to-use solution very soon. whilst there may be one; I’ll post it right here proper away.
June Fabrics are in the early stages of developing a tethering answer for Android phones, and an Android version of WMWifiRouter is also in development. Both may be industrial (however less expensive) answers to the trouble, and (if they paintings like Each corporations’ previous releases) will successfully turn your G1 into a wifi hotspot with no need for every other software program installed, making them compatible with any computer running machine.
Audio Playback and Recording
In the meantime, Android can play audio in the following formats: AAC, AAC, AMR-NB, MIDI, MP3, Ogg, WMA, and WMV. Playback is pretty excellent and strong in my experience. See my next put up on Packages for greater records. Other formats may be delivered with future running gadget updates, or new Programs might also expand.
Right now, the Android-only supports video in MP4 layout and from YouTube (not thru the browser, however, through committed applications that are clearly grabbing MP4 variations of the YouTube videos). It must be in a pretty limited format. You could use any video converter like-minded with the iPod Contact or iPhone to make movies with a purpose to play in Android – Videora is very good.
Other video codecs will, in all likelihood, have to anticipate a running gadget replace, although someone can also determine out a way to feature codecs with a utility. Flash assist is stated to becoming very quickly, with Adobe promising that they’re working carefully with the Android crew. We’d even have Flash in January. While it comes out, I’ll allow you to recognize it!
Even though Android does not officially assist video recording, a 3rd birthday party software now provides this option. This is precisely why an open-source Smartphone is an exciting proposition – the capacity for unofficial 1/3 birthday celebration initiatives to fill the gaps in the to be had functions!
Dotphone.Org’s Video Recorder/Video Digicam, now available from the Market, presents video recording to the SD card and playback with some performance. It is nevertheless in beta and a little flaky; however, it works pretty well for me – even though it will drain the battery.
The Battery
The huge failing of the G1 is battery life. Between the big display screen, multiple wireless connections, and heavy processor use from the constantly strolling historical past Packages, the established 1150mAh battery does not remain long.
A modern phrase from T-Mobile is that they have no plans to release a Progressed battery for the G1 in the Uk. Some G1 customers inside the US had been shipped alternative batteries – an internal memo has reputedly told their helpline advisors to achieve this in reaction to proceedings, increasing battery lifestyles via 22% without increasing the cellphone scale.
If you are a United kingdom G1 owner, I advise going to T-Mobile’s Contact Us page, scrolling all the way down to “ship us an e-mail,” and filling inside the shape to let T-Cellular know their customers need this service. With enough customers pitching in, we can demand a better Device for our cash.
Managing your wi-fi capabilities can help. The energy Manager application from the Marketplace allows you to control Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, and cell vicinity in a single display and turn from 3G to 2G, all of which extend the rate at the battery.
The big drain is the 3G – the G1 wastes quite a few energy searching for a 3G connection while one is not available (with a bit of luck, This may be Improved with the Cupcake release). I would advise turning it off When you’re not surely browsing/downloading – your email and many others. Will still sync simply great, and In case you get notified that, as an instance, a podcast is downloading in Podweasel, You could turn it on. This delivered almost 50% to my battery lifestyles without delay.
Many users also can enhance matters utilizing calibrating the G1’s Lithium-Ion battery. Li-Ion batteries have internal electronics that maintain song in their late-stage; however, they want to calibrate. The G1’s battery frequently would not deliver prepared-calibrated.
To calibrate your battery, let the G1 run all of the manners down, past the warning messages about the low battery charge, until it turns itself off. You can need to turn it on Again multiple times – keep going till it won’t strength up in any respect. Then recharge to full and leave the rate for at least a pair of extra hours. You should find a sizable improvement in battery existence. This can want to repeat each month or don’t do it too frequently as fully cycling the battery causes greater wear (more often than not because of heat).
The Digital camera
The G1 is fitted with a 3.2-megapixel autofocus Digicam; even though, regrettably, it doesn’t have a flash. The onboard Digital camera utility is presently pretty restrained, even though it is predicted to improve with the Cupcake update. A much better Digicam app is SnapPhoto, available from the Android Marketplace – see my subsequent article on Applications for greater facts.
