Mobile goals:
- Real web access.
- Reduce number of gadgets if possible (combine with camera and/or music player)
Limitations:
- Still have a year left with T-Mobile.
- Not thrilled about AT&T, but resistance is softening.
- No phone in existence has the camera capability I want.
Options:
- Back in early summer I was looking at the Shadow or Wing from T-Mobile. Windows Mobile, so I could put Opera Mobile on it. Not 3G, don’t think they have WiFi, so they’d be slow. G1 sort of makes them obsolete (see below).
- iPhone. Safari and 3rd-party apps. High speed: both 3G-capable and WiFi-capable. Requires switching to AT&T. Not quite big enough to replace my iPod yet (I’ll look again when they hit 32 GB). $200 + $130/month for the cheapest 2-phone plan, plus my wife would need a new phone whether she wanted it or not.
- iPod Touch. Basically an iPhone without the phone. Big enough to replace my current iPod, plus give me Safari, but only at WiFi hotspots. (Would be perfect for Comic-Con!) But I’d need the 32 GB model, which is $500.
- G1 from T-Mobile. Comparable to what I’d actually use on the iPhone, won’t require switching providers. Again, 3G and WiFi — and it looks like 3G coverage where we live is better than the standard coverage. AM is expandable via MicroSD card. Music player is MP3 only. $180 + $75/month (assuming I can just add a $25 data plan to our current 2-line plan.
That G1 is looking pretty good. I’m not prepared to be an early adopter, but it might be worth taking a serious look at it in a few months.