MyTouch 4G Initial review

As you might have seen by an earlier post from Firefly, I took the plunge and switched to the new MyTouch 4G on the T-Mobile network. After using this phone for almost a week, I am very pleased with it. It took a little getting used to it, not so much in the UI, although that was an adjustment from physical keyboard to screen based keyboard, but in ensuring that everything was set-up as I wanted. Especially because of the broad integration with social networks, which impacts some results on the phone. For example, the Contacts function has a link to Facebook, and fills the "Me" record with Facebook profile information. However, the Facebook account that I use the most and wanted to link to, uses a nickname which I did not want in the Me record. I found that by resetting the phone, editing the Me record and THEN linking to Facebook, I was able to get the desired result.

One of the key functions that influenced my choice was T-Mobile's decision to make WiFi calling available on their Android phones, especially the MT 4G. After a small glitch during set-up, which was quickly resolved by calling Customer Care I was up and running. This feature is important at home as none of the major networks have very good reception in my area, specifically inside the house. In fact for out AT&T phones I am running their Micro-Cell. T-mobile does not need a microcell as WiFi calling uses any existing WiFi network to makes calls, for texting and of course for data. In addition, I am heading overseas for a business trip shortly and will be able to make calls from the other side of the world, without messing with SIM cards, unlocking the phone, etc.

In the first few days I was a little concerned about battery life, as I seemed to need to recharge quite frequently. While exploring the Settings function, I discovered a listing of power usage. This showed that over 50% of the battery power goes to the screen. in other words, the more you play with the phone, the quicker the battery will run down. If I just do my normal usage, without constantly viewing the screen, the phone easily lasts all day, including regular email and Facebook synching, as well as a number of phone calls.

I also just found out that Dish network have released an Adroid app which allows remote access to my DVRs, AND also streams the Slingbox that I have attached to one. This is a free app, which makes my wife jealous, as she paid $30 for the one on her iPhone. Buts apps will be the subject of a future post.