Yesterday evening, a Google Android workshop took place in Lahore, Pakistan where I got a chance to play with the HTC G1.

Even though, I’m not an Android developer or Java programmer,  I was lucky enough to get invited by Badar Khushnood, Google Pakistan Country Consultant, to attend the two hour session delivered by Omar Shakil, a Software Engineer at Google.

I got my hands on the G1 for only 10 minutes, but was worth it! G1 is the only touchscreen handset I’ve tried after the iPhone 3G. HTC has always been known as the premier Windows Mobile smartphone manufacturer which uses high-quality hardware and comes with the least glitches and problems as compared to other manufacturers and G1 is one such example!

The first thing I was introduced to was the unique screen lock interface in Android. Using the connecting dots, I made the ‘G’ pattern and unlocked the screen. Then came the main standy-by screen (desktop, as you can call) which I slid right and left to see the Google search box. Then tried some of its built-in applications and later on played a game, PapiJump, which according to Omar Shakil, was his personal favorite.

HTC G1 uses the latest mobile technology with a number of features in it. It has a hinged touchscreen that slides up to reveal a QWERTY keyboard. Typing on it was easy, but an on-screen keyboard could have been more useful because I’m sure no one wants to open the keyboard every now and then just to type a few characters.

It has a very speedy user interface, and during my ten-minutes of G1 playing,  I did not notice any application switching lag as some people reported on its release. It has a large 3.2 inch display screen (320 x 480) and browsing the web on its full HTML browser was a nice experience.

Now, winding up the review, I would go through the things I DID NOT like in Android OS and G1. The first reaction I had after holding the G1 was that it was heavy as a brick. Too bulky, even for the pockets. The build quality is also not that good as expected, becuase you can hear various weird noises from the slider.

And as for the OS, the Settings, Dialer, Contacts UI is not user-friendly and needs some polishing. There is always room for improvements!

Omar Khalid Explaining Features of Android