We all heard lately many rumors about the G2, the second HTC Android phone. We tried to confirm or decline some of the rumors, but “we are unable to comment on Internet rumors regarding images that are purported to reflect HTC designs” a HTC spokesperson told OHM; he added “we saw the same link, and are certainly glad to see that people are interested in HTC”. We got instead an exclusive interview with Ed Kuhner, Sr. Product Manager for GSM Devices, HTC.

Ed was one of the panelist in the latest CES 09 edition, and even if I knew that I won’t get any scoop, I wanted to thank Ed for taking the time to answer our questions.

Q1 – Almost four months since the HTC G1 was officially launched, Are your sales expectation the same (US and worldwide) ? Is there some numbers already available for 2008 ?

While we have not announced the official number of G1 units shipped to date, we are certainly pleased not only with the sales numbers, but with the positive reaction we have gotten from consumers that are currently using the G1 in their daily lives.

Q2 – We heard many positive and negative feedback about G1, what’s your next biggest challenge for the G2 ?  Design Improvements, performance, new features (I don’t think G1 missed any), battery life, storage … ?

We unfortunately cannot comment on any future products, but it is important to know that continuous improvement is a large part of the HTC culture, and we always find ways to build on even successful products like the G1.

Q3 – Until “G1″, HTC was manufacturing mostly windows-mobile based smartphones (PDA,Touch, …) How did you find the Android experience so far ?

Overall, we have found that developing products based on the Android platform to be a positive experience, and I can say that the reaction from our customers has been equally positive.

Q4 – How do you compare Open Handset Alliance (OHA) work, to other linux mobile alliances such LIMO, LIPS … ? Why you are part of OHA and not of others ?

As you note, we are not members of other mobile alliances, so we are not in a position to compare OHA against other groups. HTC strives to be a leader in the technologies in which it develops and markets products. To do this, HTC focuses its efforts on two platforms – Windows Mobile and Android. In this way, HTC is able to bring world class products to market with unique and differentiated value propositions.

Q5 – If windows still dominating the desktop market, do you think that linux and open source could conquer the mobile market ?

HTC believes that the dynamic wireless market is large enough to support many competing platforms, and that the innovation bred by this competition ultimately benefits the end consumer. At HTC, we are focused on Windows Mobile and Android, both of which offer unique benefits to consumers, and are well poised for success in the growing smartphone market.

Q6 – What will the next HTC smartphone be using : windows-mobile, Android, or other mobile platform ?

HTC is committed to bringing new Windows Mobile and Android products to market, and you can expect to see a combination of devices based on both of these platforms in 2009.

Since OHM have a UK address, we ordered the developers edition of the G1 so we could have more interesting experiments and applications for you. It’s $399 USD as announced, but the total is slightly different. First we tried to use our US address to profit from the free shipping, but unfortunately it was not accepted. We will have an extra $42.60 for shipping and handling, that’s a total of $441.6 – still acceptable.

After entering the shipping, now time to finalize order but I just noticed a different total of $527.25. There is another Tax to be paid of $85.65. So the overall price of the developer edition is $399 Tax Free, or to be more precise for US only. There will be an extra $100 or more depending on the country you are shipping to.

The case of UK for example the total will be $527 USD, I don’t know about other countries, but I think the price remain acceptable for us to get a gadget that you can use to test your android applications on real device. Selected specs for Android Dev Phone 1:

• Touch screen
• Trackball
• 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocus
• Wi-Fi
• GPS-enabled
• Bluetooth v2.0
  • Handsfree profile v1.5
  • Headset profile v1.0
• 3G WCDMA (1700/2100 MHz)
• Quad-band GSM (850/900/1800/1900 MHz)
• QWERTY slider keyboard
• Includes 1GB MicroSD card (can be replaced with up to 16GB card)

Just a reminder that the G1 Dev phone is available in 18 international markets, including the US, UK, Germany, Japan, India, Canada, France, Taiwan, Spain, Australia, Singapore, Switzerland, Netherlands, Austria, Sweden, Finland, Poland, and Hungary (free shipping in the US only).

Check android project page for more information on Devices availability for developers. Android Dev G1 could be ordered from Android market.

Update : We have information that the G1 Dev Phone cost $537 USD for France ($95 taxes and $42 shipping)!

Unwiredview posted about what it appears to be the first Google phone. According to a Forbes article mentionning some of the phone specifications, the phone is an HTC Omni Communicator which was planned for this year using Windows mobile 6, then delayed to 2008, to get Android ready on it. According to Forbes :

The phone, code-named “Dream” inside Google, looks somewhat like Apple’s iPhone: It is thin, about 3 inches wide and 5 inches long, and features a touch-sensitive, rectangular screen. Unlike the iPhone, the screen is also time-sensitive: Hold down your finger longer, and the area you’re controlling expands. The bottom end of the handset, near the navigational controls, is slightly beveled so it nestles in the palm. The screen also swivels to one side, revealing a full keyboard beneath. (The screen display changes from a vertical portrait mode to a horizontal display when someone uses the keyboard.)

First HTC Omni with a Windows key in its keyboard

Some of the known features of the HTC Omni include the 32 bit Qualcomm MSM7200 Chipset, in addition to a 800 x 480 px TFT 262 color touchscreen, and a querty keyboard 65 keys, but defintely without the Windows button. More features include :

• 256 MB ROM
• 128 RAM
• GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900, UMTS850, UMTS1900, UMTS2100 connectivity
• CSD, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA, HSUPA data support
• SDIO, microSD, TransFlash expansion slots
• USB 2.0 client, 60Mbit/s , USB Series Mini-B (mini-USB) connector
• Bluetooth 2.0
• 802.11b, 802.11g
• NMEA 0183 , 20 channels built-in GPS
• 3.1 Mpx camera with LED flash
• 640×480 VGA secondary camera
• Dimensions: 81 x 130 x 16 mm

These are the known features of the first revealed HTC Omni, but there will be probably changes before seeing the Handset in second half 2008 running with Android. Hoping to see more teasers of this new gadget, because from the current pictures only we really can’t see much.