Continuing our newest feature, Ask Android Central, where you guys ask the question and we provide the answer, we have a question from Antoinette regarding the T-Mobile G1’s availability across the pond!
Antoinette asks “I really like the G1. It is a little costly. Do you think it is possible for me to buy one for the UK?”
Check out Android Central’s answer after the break!
To quickly and succinctly answer your question before we delve into the deeper issues such as price concerns, Yes, the T-Mobile G1 is available for the UK! It was released on October 30th, 2008 for FREE if you sign up for a £40/month plan. Worried that the £40/month was too steep (it roughly translates to $62)?
No worries! After a recent price drop in the UK, the T-Mobile G1 is NOW available for FREE if you sign up to a £30/month ($46) on a 18-month contract which includes “700 minutes, 1400 texts, or any mix you use”. We at Android Central aren’t exactly sure what “any mix you use” actually means, but we’re sure you UK folks might be more familiar with it. To sweeten the deal even more, T-Mobile UK is throwing in an 8GB microSD card!
Compared to the US, where we pay $179 for the phone, $55+ for a service plan, and only a 1GB microSD card included—it can almost be considered a steal! The UK version is also ALL white. Unlike the two-tone silver backing of the US version, the White UK G1 looks clean as a whistle!
Now for the greater concern. Is the G1 priced too high? We can’t speak for the UK pricing strategy since we’re not all too familiar with the phone climate across the pond, but here in the United States we think the G1 is definitely priced on the low end of the smartphone spectrum. At the very least, it’s the most competitive pricing of any smartphone in the Smartphone Round Robin.
Let’s take a look:
Obviously, this is an admittedly rough chart that doesn’t take into consideration A LOT of different factors. Like quality of the service, 3G networks, amount of minutes, text messages, etc. This is a very, very rough comparison of pricing you’d find on the carrier’s websites. But either way, the T-Mobile G1 is hands down the cheapest smartphone you can buy out the door.
We at Android Central won’t go as far to consider the G1’s price to be “cheap” but it surely is competitive. I think T-Mobile, Google, and HTC did a fair job in pricing it at a point where they could profit from hardware sales but still allow the consumer to save some money. In all, we think the G1 represents great value—you get a desktop-class OS with a burgeoning app selection, instant access to the internet, and well the knowledge of being cool to Google fans everywhere.
Did we get anything wrong? Tell us so in the comments! And if you have a question to ask Android Central, feel free to contact us via our Contacts Form and your question just might be featured in the next Ask Android Central!