By This reminds me of the time when the MyTouch 3G Slide still didn’t officially exist. Now, shots of HTC’s latest rumored device for T-Mobile – the HTC Vision – have cropped up and it looks to be the high-end beast that everyone expects it to be. There’s one very elegant way to sum the device up if you’re just going from these shots: it’s an HTC Droid Incredible with a freakin’ slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
I didn’t mean that in a negative way, either: any jaded T-Mobile customers waiting for a high-end HTC handset (the Samsung Vibrant filled that high-end gap this past July 15th) won’t have to look any further as we expect T-Mobile to officially unveil this puppy sometime in August (with a release imminent at least before September’s over). Engadget‘s source also suggests that it won’t be called the HTC Vision – a name that is said to be reserved for the device’s European counterpart. Instead, T-Mobile could be reviving the G1 brand calling it the T-Mobile G1 Blaze. Like it or don’t, it won’t change the fact that this will be one attractive device whenever HTC and T-Mobile’s ready to spill the beans.
Makes me wish I held off on getting the slide :/
Every sites is talking about this story like its new but Androidguys talked to two people on their podcast two weeks ago and both people said this phone was coming to T-mobile and that it would be called the G1 Blaze. It was the first time anybody had ever called it the G1 Blaze so maybe Quentyn should mention that? Of course I don’t expect him to he never does when I point out stuff like that to him.
Quentyn Kennemer and incomplete reporting FTW?
Come on old G1, hold out a little bit longer…
@jdog I’m sorry, I must’ve missed it the first time you pointed it out. I’m not sure if you noted that in the comments section or if you sent in a phantip. Unfortunately, I don’t have time to listen to podcasts alongside our normal reporting routine so I wouldn’t have picked up on it in that avenue, either.
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I’m not sure if it’s fair to point me out as being incomplete in my reporting. As you’ve just pointed out yourself, every other site was “late” on reporting the story. It’s to be expected since Engadget is a much bigger site and a story posted there naturally spreads like wildfire. I’d love to be able to say that I’m 100% on top of news the moment it drops from every single source of Android-related news out there, but it’s just not realistically possible.
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Again, we check our tips inbox every hour of every day, and I have not seen any mention of the G1 Blaze (and a search turned up no results as I keep all of my emails). If it was in the comments section I may have missed it. I do read comments, but sometimes I can’t read them thoroughly enough (depending on various factors) and I might not read all of them fully on a discussion-heavy post. To be thorough, I’ve also searched our comments section for the terms “G1 Blaze” and “Blaze”, as well as pulled up the list of comments made by you in the past. I was unable to find any content where you’d tipped us off to the existence of a device named the G1 Blaze.
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The best way to get in contact with us regarding news is through our tips form: http://phandroid.com/tips/
nice looking, but without a dedicated row for numbers, it’s a nonstarter for me. I realize it saves space, but having to press shift to get numbers on a phone seems counter-intuitive to me. Plus since smartphones have web access as one of their primary features and virtually every website requiring a password with at least 1 number in it, it makes even less sense.
this looks great im looking for something to replace my g1. i was gonna switch to sprint and get the evo but now i might not have to. but this phone looks like it have a kinda cheap feel, but its hard to tell from a blurry picture. also i hope to god its stock android 2.2, 3.0, whatever. sense would be alright, but i really dont want the weird-ass ui they put on the mytouch slide
@ Jason D…. Ditto!
I can’t wait til we can get some specs on this. With the fact of a physical keyboard being present, if this thing has a camera flash it will be the deciding factor to pass on the Vibrant.
I’m with Jason. I’ve had Sidekicks and the G1, and five rows is a requirement. A physical keyboard doesn’t work if numbers require a double keypress. And what happens to all the symbols carried on the number keys? Between the symbols on the top row of letters that get displaced by the numbers and the symbols that were on the number keys, that’s 20 alt characters looking for a new home, and those wil probably end up needing three keypresses.
I’m willing to carry the extra size and weight of a physical keyboard because it makes typing easy. If I have to jump through the same hoops I do on a virtual keyboard, I may just jump to Sprint and buy an Evo.
Damn. I love T-Mobile but their coverage where I live leaves a lot to be desired. I was forced to switch to Verizon, who now has excellent coverage in my town. I love my Droid but really do not like Verizon’s high prices.
As soon as T-Mobile gets better coverage around where I live I will be jumping over to their side of the yard to play.
Meh. I just don’t see how this is going to compete with the Vibrant. Rumored to have the snapdragon (we got excited for that back in January, by now it’s old tech) and a 3.7 inch screen. Sure it will make the physical keyboard lovers happy, but is there really need for them anymore? In using Swype for about 2-3 days, I can “type” faster on that than I can with my G1 keyboard.
Besides, slider phones wear out a lot quicker as the slider mechanism is being worked to death most of it’s life. Not to mention it makes the phone that much thicker.
all these crybabys have to have their number row on the keyboard stop crying if you dont want the phone dont get it i on the other hand will trade up from my mytouch 3G for this bad boy since t-mobile will never update my os even though my phone wont be left behind supposedly
I too am glad I haven’t upgraded yet.. my G1 is still pushing hard but working. Next stop… G1 ‘blaze’… I hope they come up with a better name.
Ive got to say it looks SOOO much nicer in this picture in the ones before.
Jumping ship. Was going to get the vibrant. But, saw the Spint ep ic. Now that is a nice phone. 5 row qwerty, awesome camera with flash, front camera, fastest processor and bestcolor screen. Sorry tmobile and G1 but tmobile keeps watering everything down. Slide 600 mhz vibrant no front camera. This vison no 5 rows. Bye in August
I just noticed that one of the alt keys was the Euro symbol… does that mean this is going to be the European version of the Vision? Will there be any differences (or will the US version simply not exist?)
I really hope this is real and that is launching soon. I’m still rocking a G1 and this looks like the perfect replacement.
@mt3g: Its a fairly significant omission. Pointing out that its left off is far short of “crying.”
The keyboard is making me drool, but I already got my Vibrant, and the 4″ is amazing. I can’t go back to anything with a smaller screen.
Can we be clear on this? I just want to be certain of what I am reading because to say that I have been excited about this phone is a sever understatement.
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So far the rumor mill has spit out a lot of impressive specification that where posted earlier this month-
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“The device in question would have a 4.3-inch touchscreen, an 800MHz dual-core processor, Android 3.0, an 8-megapixel camera, and more. The device would be called the HTC Vision and it’s believed that this will almost certainly be what everyone’s referring to as “Project Emerald”.”
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It would be nice if we can confirm that the specs wont change any because the screen on this image looks smaller than 4.3
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Or am I getting confused, if so then someone feel free to set me straight.
Agree on the dedicated number row for the keyboard. I’m not “crying” about it, but seriously, why bother with a physical keyboard and then half-ass it?
I’ve been really tempted on the Vibrant since I went in and played with one in the store (freakin’ gorgeous), but have been holding out to see if the next offering would have a keyboard comparable to my G1. If this is it, I’ll be going with the Vibrant or switching to Sprint for the Epic.. which might be the best of both worlds since I think I recall it having a 5 row keyboard.
Either way, I’m glad to see more high end devices coming into play. I don’t expect every single one of them to be the perfect fit for me.
Nice phone but I’ll stock with my vibrant. Galaxy s is the new black!
IMHO, a physical keyboard is far superior to being stuck with only an on screen keyboard. One of the primary advantages of the physical keyboard is that your keyboard is not covering the screen, allowing you to see your input, etc.
Regardless of the numerous obvious reasons why I believe physical keyboards are superior, it can be an issue of personal preference and it’s great that there are devices with or without the options that suit individual consumers.
I prefer a physical keyboard, if it isn’t cheaply done, is professional looking and arranged for ease of use. I prefer a dedicated number row. I love the G1 keyboard but wish the keys were a tad larger and more domed.
I loved the G1 the whole 18 months I used it. Unfortunately T-Mobile still has yet to offer 3G in my city so finally tired of waiting I jumped ship to Sprint and got the Evo. I thought I’d miss the physical keyboard but the Evo’s screen is so large that typing is a breeze.
Side note – Using the Evo’s hotspot option I can still connect my G1 to the internet. Man, I loved that phone.
I agree with previous comments. The 5 row Qwerty on the G1 with dedicated number row is the best. I would love to upgrade my phone but I’ll wait for another 5 row Qwerty to be available from Tmobile.
yeah, 5 keyboard or die… the mytouch slide and ‘G1 Blaze’ fall short without out it. – both phones are sexy… but I’d rather stick to my G1, or make my wife give me her Moment and switch to sprint.