Toshiba's TG01 stepping out in London on July 9th

It's already out in Japan and a few select countries in Europe, now Toshiba's skinny TG01 is hitting London on Thursday, July 9th. Presumably the invite will be met with an official UK launch of Tosh's deftly skinned Snapdragon handset with a Windows Mobile 6.1 core. Then again, it could be a lot of tech reporters eating mini triangular sandwiches slathered with pickle spread discussing the HTC Hero for four hours. We'll let you know next week.

[FreeFloMonkeyMeat @ Jul 1st 2009 7:42AM]

"Then again, it could be a lot of tech reporters eating mini triangular sandwiches slathered with pickle spread discussing the HTC Hero for four hours."

Once again, pot shots at anything non-Apple much?

[adrian @ Jul 1st 2009 7:47AM]

"Once again, pot shots at anything non-Apple much?"

I don't see it.

[jakem @ Jul 1st 2009 8:21AM]

Then you're being willfully ignorant.

This is the first Snapdragon-based smartphone on the market but this guy reckons that people will ignore it because it's running WinMo. Only an idiot would ignore the fastest smartphone on the market because of an anti-MS bias.

[adrian @ Jul 1st 2009 3:18PM]

@jakem

Maybe your right, But why bring Apple into it. This is a MS / Toshiba issue.

[christopher.clinton @ Jul 1st 2009 8:00AM]

Any coincidence between this "skinny" release and the upcoming release of the new Zune HD, also on the thin side? Didn't Toshiba manufacture the earlier Zunes? Could pave the way for future MS phones???

[Carl @ Jul 1st 2009 8:00AM]

Other than winmo 6.1 this looks like a very sexy device.

[DarKlar @ Jul 1st 2009 8:00AM]

Want.

Does anyone have any idea how Snapdragon phones will compare to Tegra?

[WindowsFTW @ Jul 1st 2009 9:55AM]

That's the million dollar question, well, at least the $500 question :)

Still waiting for the first Tegra based WinMo smartphones to hit the market before making a decision.

I have a feeling Tegra will be better suited to delivering a better graphical experience while also contributing to superior battery life.

In terms of raw power, I'd love to see some benchmarks comparing the two SOC's (Systems On a Chip).

[DarKlar @ Jul 1st 2009 10:06AM]

Absolutely agree, cannot wait for the S v T showdown :o)

[iDavey @ Jul 1st 2009 11:14AM]

I prefer Snapdragon over Tegra simply for the higher processor speeds and more focus on preserving power

[amb9800 @ Jul 1st 2009 1:40PM]

Well, Snapdragon's CPU is similar to the ARM Cortex A8 chips (apparently a bit faster than A8 clock-for-clock). The Cortex A8 cores are around 2x the speed of ARM11 CPUs clock-for-clock.

Tegra's CPU is an ARM11 core (typically at 600 MHz for mobile), so Snapdragon (especially at 1 GHz) will completely destroy it for general processing (3-4x faster).

Tegra's strength is in its GPU. Snapdragon's GPU is some iteration of ATI's Imageon line (which Qualcomm purchased from ATI), so it should be an interesting comparison on the GPU side...

[DarKlar @ Jul 1st 2009 4:17PM]

Thank you all.

@amb9800 So it's Snapdragon CPU v Tegra GPU... with battery life on Tegras side...

*Ding Ding*

ROUND ONE!!!

[Christian @ Jul 1st 2009 8:07AM]

Of all the amusements in the ongoing circus of gadgetry, nothing is more amusing to me than this strange idea companies other than Apple and Nintendo have that by sending out media announcements about forthcoming product launches, they too can somehow garner front-page coverage in the international media with their flavor-of-the-month gadgets.

There are a select few companies that pull off hype well. Apple and Nintendo are obvious examples, and the latter-day Palm might reasonably be a third. But honestly, Toshiba, a glitzy announcement for *yawn* another Windows Mobile-based device? It's probably a fine device that many people will love, but it's hardly worthy of front-page-yearning desire.

Playing the "game-change new device unveiling media circus!" card too many times creates a boy-who-cried-wolf scenario. Save it for when you truly have a product that will inspire angst and awe, sell millions of unit and be in chronic short supply, and have people who don't even know what it is talking about it. Whatever virtues this handset has, it surely won't be checking off any of those criteria.

The Engadget author Thomas Ricker cuts it down nicely to size with his "then again, it could be a lot of tech reporters eating mini triangular sandwiches slathered with pickle spread" comment.

[Orinjz @ Jul 1st 2009 8:12AM]

I just had a call from 'The Rest of the Tech Industry Other than Apple or Nintendo Ltd' and they said that your comment made them very sad. They've decided not to bother with press conferences and advertising to garner any kind of attention in the press, whether it's the mainstream media or specialised tech media because they realise the sheer futility of going up against the two great hype machines even in markets they don't compete in.

I hope you're happy now.

[Charles Knight @ Jul 1st 2009 8:20AM]

Indeed, I'm a wm 6.5 user, so appreciate the benefits of the OS but "Look we've done our own skin over a really old looking GUI" is not game-changing in the slightest.

[iDavey @ Jul 1st 2009 8:21AM]

Right.

Because Apple is the king of every market they are in...
And Nintendo was never in 3rd place.
And there's no such thing as press releases in the land of Ninty or Apple.
-_-

Do you think before you type?

And as far as "amazing" factor

It's the thinnest smartphone yet
4' screen
1Ghz processor (which will help WinMo out VERY much. One of the main problems with WinMo is that it takes a nice little processor with a good set of RAM to make it run smoothly)
And also using 30% less power while giving 30% more.

I'd say that would qualify for any business person...who uses WinMo...would like a fresh UI, fast experience, big screen, yet slim device.

Not EVERYONE is "awed" by the simple things in life.
Some people still do like the complicated.

(and 20 million handsets sold does not lie)

[darkmax @ Jul 1st 2009 8:45AM]

soon enough we will have the processing power of current desktops fitted in the sweaty nerdy palms of our hands and we will no longer need the screen-box-keyboard-mouse combo.

[bjay @ Jul 1st 2009 8:52AM]

You ll be happy when the world stop making/announcing products leaving only Apple and Nintendo to do the honors? I dont think i should bother detailing the things this mobile phone delivers (earlier comments have done justice to that)........I hope u look at this announcement as a paradigm shift as how better/faster processor make smartphones do more.

The market do not need the TG01 to be mainstream but it needs to herald new kind of speed/memory war......i.e the way Apple totally revolutionize the U.I market

[boe @ Jul 1st 2009 9:06AM]

This is without a doubt the first WinMo phone I've really really really wanted. I don't ever want to have to own another HTC device but I'm on Sprint so I'm stuck for devices. I tried the palm - not great but it shows some potential - possibly with the pre 2.0 in a year or so.

The TG01 has almost twice the processing power of most upcoming HTC devices. It is about 50% thinner than about any upcoming HTC devices. It has a larger screen than just about any upcoming HTC devices. I doubt it has as much battery life issues of any HTC device. And having used and supported HTC WinMo phones for about 5 or more years now, I can't imagine it having as sucky of a BT as any HTC device.

Having owned an HTC phone since the first HTC phone was offered on Sprint many years ago - I can say due to my past and present experience with HTC phones I'd rather take my chances on a brand I've never used for a pda phone before than use another HTC device. I already know the same issues that are released on the Sprint phones year after year after year with HTC.

[wywywywy @ Jul 1st 2009 9:20AM]

You might be unhappy with your previous HTC phones, but you'll be glad you have never had a Toshiba WinMo phone!
The G900 was LOADED with hardware and firmware problems, and they gave up on the device very shortly after releasing it.

Oh and if you aren't from the UK, your local Toshiba service centre will also likely refuse your requests of upgrading the firmware!!

I know HTC is bad, but seriously, Toshiba/Eten/Samsung aren't much better either.
In fact I would say HTC is the "least bad" out of all the WinMo phone manufacturers.

[boe @ Jul 1st 2009 9:49AM]

wywywywy - I believe you've had bad luck with Toshiba. It may very well be true but as for someone who can't wait 6-12 months for HTC to fix just some of the firmware issues (as they won't ever fix hardware issues) I use ppcgeeks or xdadevelopers for all of my current and previous HTC phone firmware. HTC firmware sucks as well so you are always better off using something made by someone you don't even know than from HTC or Sprint direct.

There are no local HTC service centers so I'm not worried about problems with my local Toshiba service center.

Sprint's local and national service center has earned it a top 10 worst customer service award many years running so I'm not looking to them for help either.

The Toshibas may be bad but I already know what the issues will be with the next HTC phone to be released on Sprint before they are released as EVERY HTC phone Sprint has ever offered have the same issue time after time after time. I don't know if they just fire the engineers who worked on the last phone every 6 months or if HTC engineers just hate Sprint users but how can you have the same issues being discussed time after time on each new HTC phone?

[tmarks11 @ Jul 1st 2009 1:41PM]

I had a Toshiba e310 PPC, and it was a great PDA. I had a Verizon VZ6601 (made by HTC), and it was horrible. The flash and glitz of WinMo has suckered me in repeatedly, but I always ended up going back to PalmOS. Currently I rely on an Everun UMPC.

This phone makes me think it might be time to give WinMo another shot...

[Art @ Jul 1st 2009 9:23AM]

1GHz phone-the new way to say,"I can stuff more useless tech in my phone than you can!"

[Verythrax @ Jul 1st 2009 9:43AM]

How big is that thing? 4.1 screen, wow. Comparison shots, please.

[Skyper @ Jul 1st 2009 9:46AM]

Put WinMo 6.5 or 7.0 on it!!! It's gonna be awesome device. If this one gets Android, I'll buy in a heartbeat.

[WindowsFTW @ Jul 1st 2009 10:01AM]

WM 6.5 upgrade for free.
Or you can just head over to XDA-Devs / PPCGeeks for your WM 6.5 fix.
Alternatively, slap SPB Mobile Shell 3 on it and call it a day.

[JamesBond @ Jul 1st 2009 9:48AM]

This is a real tease, great form factor, great screen but why

- WinMo 6.1
- horrible colour scheme on home screen
- only 3.2 MP camera with no flash
- crappy video recording

[boe @ Jul 1st 2009 9:54AM]

JamesBond - I would love a flash on all WM phones. I could care less about taking crappy pictures but having a flash that can be used as a flashlight is VERY handy for me. One of my old HTC sucky phones had a horrible camera I never used but someone made an app that turned the flash on that I used a lot as a handy flashlight when I didn't have a real flashlight with me. The LED could stay on for an hour without really effecting the battery. The BT was probably as much or more of a drain on the battery than the LED.

If I had a choice between a camera and an LED I would gladly get the LED.

[iDavey @ Jul 1st 2009 11:28AM]

The color scheme on this can be changed.
And I'm sure, just like HTC allows, you can disable their UI and stick to WinMo's or a shell.

[Phil Knall @ Jul 1st 2009 10:22AM]

It looks awesome, but I felt it was a bit too wide when I played with it at Bic Camera in Tokyo the other day. Maybe my hands are just too small? It is damn thin though.
As for comparison, the screen is almost exactly the dimensions of my iphone.

[Rob @ Jul 1st 2009 10:37AM]

I'm an avid iPhone user, I've had mine for about 10 months and I love it...
However I had a serious nerd-gasm when I saw this handset :-D I think it's a beautiful piece of hardware.

I've never used WinMo so I'm kind of curious as to what it's like... Just not curious enough to go spending money on another phone.

[iDavey @ Jul 1st 2009 11:25AM]

Well as a user of every OS...

WinMo is a tricky little beast.
Some will tell you it's completely useless (which is a downright lie).

But here are the main losses when migrating from iPhone to WinMo

1.) No 50,000 App Store
2.) No iTunes integration
3.) No "pretty" UI (which is subjective because it's all based on what you think is pretty)
4.) No capacitive screen

No where there is "bad" there is also good. First...some counters to the "bad"

1.) There is now a Windows Marketplace for Mobile. And on top of that...there are thousands upon thousands of apps online that you can simply pull a .CAB and install.
2.) Every XP/Vista/Windows 7 computer has a Mobile Device Center (name may vary) that will sync everything on your phone to your computer.
3.) Toshiba has it's on UI. And WinMo being WinMo, there are plenty of shells, skins, themes to deck out your phone with. And 6.5 (when available) isn't too bad on the eyes either
4.) Resistive is as good as the handset manufacturer makes it. So if Toshiba did a good job...you'd feel like you're handling a capacitive, but with the ability to have multiple input choices (i.e. stylus)

Also some other pluses...

Skyfire...LOL. All I must say. The best browser and it includes flash. It's only available for WinMo, Symbian (S60 only I believe), and RIM. So that gives you a Flash enabled experience ahead of us Android and iPhone users.

Freedom of ANY stand alone mobile browser on top of Skyfire (but with Skyfire, you need it not, LOL)

The Snapdragon and Tegra chipsets are made only for WinMo and Android. And the power of Snapdragon behind WinMo makes for a snappy experience. The power of Tegra behind WinMo makes for a nice graphical experience.

Just like every OS, there are good and bad. WinMo is archaic in UI (which can be remedied so easily). But the abilities and choices are surpassed by only Symbian and Android in my eyes.

[John @ Jul 1st 2009 11:10AM]

Just watched the video posted, that touch screen needs some serious work, how many times does that guy press the screen and get no response. The processor might be impressive, but from that glance, the screen blows.

[sarah conner @ Jul 1st 2009 1:00PM]

How difficult would it be to install winmo7 or android on this phone?

[victorvalkov @ Jul 1st 2009 2:58PM]

WinMo 7 would be pretty difficult to install, since it doesn't exist yet.

[victorvalkov @ Jul 1st 2009 1:33PM]

WinMo is like a disease that makes powerful mobile processors struggle with screen transitions...

[Cornelius @ Jul 1st 2009 2:49PM]

You've never used Mobile Shell.

[SpaceQ @ Jul 2nd 2009 5:09AM]

"with pickle spread discussing the HTC Hero for four hours"

strange comment ... if it would be true then reporters didnt do their homework to learn about new product.

Get and try all 7 full web browsers available for Windows Mobile on this new 1GHZ "Mobile" and report back to us

P.S>: dont forget to test full flash pages and flash video speed from youtube HQ