G1, Week 1: @#$!%&*

OK, OK, maybe the G1 isn't quite that bad; but when your phone causes you to whisper under your breath, "I hate you!" while trying to figure out for the umpteenth time how to sync your contacts the way you want to, it's not a good thing.

To be fair, there are things I like about the G1. The screen is big and clear and pretty, I like being able to assign my MP3 music as ringtones to my callers (although I think I have to reset all of those now because I moved my files to a bigger SD card), the games are good, the calendar is good. Having Gmail on my phone is just OK; I could live with or without it. Installing applications from the Android Market is very easy. Moving music files on and off my phone was easy until whatever happened with the bloody firmware upgrade today, and now it is a bit of a pain. I think I also finally managed to get it to recognize my photos that I transferred.

As you can see, I'm not really raving about anything yet ... but all of those items up there pale in comparison to the utter frustration of getting my contacts to transfer to my phone. The Funambol client just doesn't quite get it right, losing information (like any more than 3 phone number per contact) and not knowing what to do with other information (like contacts that are businesses but don't have individual names). I tried a program called gSyncit last night, but its interface on my computer doesn't have the level of control that I need to make sure that GMail doesn't sync all of my "suggested contacts" - everyone I've ever emailed from my GMail account. This list has its usefulness - it is how GMail susggests email recipients when you start typing in the recipient fields - but of course I don't want all those people in my address book. In order to try and test gSyncit, I had to deleted all of those suggested contacts, unless I wanted all 554 of them in my Outlook contacts list; which now means that GMail doesn't auto-fill addresses anymore. Isn't that awesome?

So I am now on my third program to try and sync contacts to my G1; the most expensive, at $29.95. I suppose it's proof that you get what you pay for, but given that I'm already spending nearly $200 on my phone, I didn't expect to have to spend another $30 just to get it to function the way I need it to. That frustration makes it hard to be enthusiastic about any of the other features of the phone that I do enjoy. It's Maslow's hierarchy of needs: I can't get excited about frills when the basics aren't there.

My message to the developers at Google, Android and their partners at T-Mobile: I am willing to use the Google services to sync my information; while I'm not 100% on board with having to update everything via the wireless connection, I'll still go with it. However, if you want me to use those services - especially if you're going to require me to use those services - then I expect them to be compatible with common expectations and practices. The contacts program in GMail is not the worst, but I have no idea how anyone testing the contacts sync didn't realize that the suggested contacts would be an issue, and then fix it. Also, why on earth would you not build in the synchronization with Outlook? Blah, blah, blah, want to promote Google services; but I assure you that if i can't transition smoothly from what I already use to what you want me to use, I am far less likely to feel positive about the new services being offered. iCal and iPhone had to figure this out, and Google figured it out for Calendar - which is why I was able to start using it, and why I am so pleased with that aspect of my phone's function.

Other basic PIM functions are also missing - notes, tasks. Again, these are common features that even my Motorola RAZR had, so it boggles my mind that the G1 wouldn't have them right out of the box. The Android Market for applications has some options for both of these, but I don't think I should have to look to a third party for this kind of basic feature. It would be one thing if the basic apps existed on the phone, and then the Market included applications that enhanced the basics; those are the kind of apps offered by Handango for the Windows Mobile, Palm or Blackberry platforms. But all those platforms have well-developed PIM applications that are standard in the OS, and in use by millions of people. Given the way that the G1 works, I can only assume that they either a) didn't expect users of these other types of PDAs to be interested in the product, or b) actively decided that they didn't care to attract them.

At any rate, I'm obviously rather irritated. And to top it all off, I'm pretty sure I got ripped off by the eBay seller from whom I bought the AT&T Tilt, so now not only do I have to start proceedings to get my money back, I also don't have an alternate phone to test. Why, oh why, did my 8125 break? I miss it so much, especially now that I see what a hassle it is to find a phone worthy to replace it. :-(