So here is my ramble – it’s got a fabulous 5 megapixel camera with a dual led flash (I loved the camera and features),  32 gigs of internal storage. 1 gig of application memory, up to 16 GB of additional storage with a microSD card, a slide out keyboard (you can use an onscreen one in lieu of or in addition to) , a huge touch screen interface, all the bells and whistles of an iPhone, and it runs Linux. LINUX. Maemo 5 to be exact. This is the phone for the hackers and geeks.

Want to add whatever applications and functionality that you want? You can. Want to use an app style store? You can (Ovi Store). Want to SSH in or out of your phone? Yeah, you can. Want to dual boot your phone with Android? Go right ahead! Want to compile code? Not a problem.  Want to hack your phone without violating a terms of service or add functionality without being sneaky about it? You can (maybe not on AT&T, I hear that they like to force phones to comply with approved install sources for apps).

The downfall is that the product needs more developers. Everyone seems to be forgetting about the platform and going gaga over Android and iPhone. It’s a shame really because this is just so much better. This is freedom. Are you a Linux developer? Get a crackin’ and push some of your eye candy this way!

What else can I say about this little gem? It’s from Nokia – which holds a lot of weight for me. I do love Nokia – I like the ability (even on my little candy bar XpressMusic) to add jar file apps. The platform is stable and the hardware is tough and reliable.

Other things I loved about the hardware:

• TV out
• Non-proprietary headphone jack
• Easy peasy setup of Exchange, Gmail and Flickr
• No tears for lost address books – popped in my SIM and off I went
• Ability to add icons for not just apps but contacts right on the home screen
• FM transmitter – played my tunes & podcasts through my radio with no additional hardware
• Bluetooth
• GPS
• Wifi and 3G
• Widgets (and anything else you want) on the home screen (four of them!!)
• Dashboard interface to see what you have running on all your screens
• System notifications are superb.
• “Lens cap” for the camera – the sliding cap activates and deactivates the camera without needing to push any buttons.
• Skype works amazingly well
• Ogg support

Get one. You’ll fall in love with it. Want to read more? Check out the review at Engadget.

Wired is reporting that according to an unofficial T-Mobile blog:

“…the first version of the multimedia Google Phone will be released by HTC starting on September 17 for one week, for T-Mobile customers only. This offer will be immediately followed by a general release a week later. It will be called, ostensibly, the G1.”

T-Mobile offering a special early release to their current customers, with or without discount, would play perfectly into their customer base who tend to be faithful and loyal to the cellular provider.

While some may be wary of being an early adopter for a brand new mobile interface, I for one look at the potential of being able to work with something that isn’t locked down and closed source as the iPhone is. At least I won’t have to modify firmware to make it work.

Regardless as how it plays out, I am saving my lunch money in anticipation for the Android phone. Now I can stop scouring the market for an old beat up, overpriced iPhone to jailbreak & unlock while I wait for T-Mobile to release something better than their current Sidekick 2008 dud.

Google’s first mobile phone will run a Linux operating system on a Texas Instruments “Edge” chipset, and will likely ship to T-Mobile and Orange customers in the Spring of 2008, according to unconfirmed reports. “GPhone” call minutes and text messages reportedly will be funded by mobile advertising.

News of the so-called “GPhone” or “G-Phone” broke quietly about two weeks ago in the island nation of Singapore, where Jennifer Tan of Reuters subsidiary Anian Research filed a report on July 12.

Tan cited “industry sources,” “U.S. sources,” and “manufacturing and component supply chain sources” in backing her assertion that after year-long delays finding a manufacturer, Google contracted Taiwan-based smartphone maker High Tech Computer (HTC) to design its phone hardware. HTC is best-known for its Windows Mobile smartphones, however, and Tan offered no conjecture about who might supply the phone’s Linux-based operating system. 

Read the rest of the details at LinuxDevices.com