Posted by Vince Wadhwani on Nov 04, 2008

It's been a couple of days since a few upgrade have come my way. On the mobile side my HTC G1 finally got the new r29 release. Previously, for my Nokia N73, a firmware update would required downloading the entire firmware updater application again, physically connecting the phone to a windows computer, reinstalling the USB driver for it, and finally starting the upgrade. When it was done, it would remove all in-memory applications and wipe everything else of use (e.g. contacts). In comparison, the HTC G1 is a dream.

What's incredibly cool about the HTC G1 is that the Android update came Over The Air (OTA) and did not require a restart of my phone. That being said, I'm not sure if the effects would be realized without a restart so I did it anyway. So within in minutes (thanks to T-mobile 3G) I had the new software and the only thing I had to do was acknowledge that I wanted it. Awesome stuff.. don't know if I should thank Google or T-mobile, so I'll say Good Job to all concerned.

I couldn't find any solid release notes.. I understand that a browser vulnerability has been patched. But I did notice a few things so if you're still holding out, here are some reasons to upgrade.



  • The process for mounting SD cards has changed. Previously there was an option to use the SD card for USB Storage. Now you get a notification in the window when you plug in the phone to a computer prompting you to mount. Overall I like this much better.
  • Related to the above, my 16GB micro-SD is no longer giving any trouble. In v1 of the software it would sometimes fail to mount or unmount itself. You could see how that would be a problem if you used an MP3 on your SD card as your ringtone.
  • On the MP3 side, and possibly related to the above, the MP3 player no longer skips when playing music from the SD Card.
  • Battery life has also improved dramatically. It's basically doubled for me since the firmware upgrade. I still haven't followed all the 'tips' like disabling syncing, but with WiFi and Bluetooth off and the screen set to dim I get about 2 days with moderate usage. Doesn't sound impressive compared to some Nokias, but trust me it's awesome compared to where it started.

What I'd still love to see next is the ability to have the alarm turn the phone on. That's a great little detail that Nokia got right. It means that you can set your alarm, shut off your phone, and still get woken up. No wasting battery and risking a late night phone call just for an alarm. C'mon Google, think how much of a positive environmental impact that would be!

If you aren't one of the lucky ones who has RC29, here are instructions for installing it manually.

If you've spotted any other differences/improvements, I'd love to hear about them!