T-Mobile’s flagship device to use its next-generation HSPA+ mobile data network is now available for pre-order, and that means we now know for sure what its price will be: $199.99.
The G2 will come pre-installed with the latest version of Android, known as 2.2 or “Froyo,” which is news enough on its own. But the bigger news is that it will officially cut the ribbon on T-Mobile’s new high-speed wireless network that lets users access content anytime, anywhere at blistering 4G speeds.
T-Mobile was the only mobile provider anyone was talking about when Android first came out. Its G1 phone was the only phone running on Google’s platform for months. But after Android began to grow legs, T-Mobile was left back in the dust. Verizon’s Droid, Sprint’s Evo, and AT&T’s Motorola devices with Motoblur have all stolen thunder away from T-Mobile, leaving it without a killer Android phone.
That all changes with the G2, appropriately titled as the successor to the game-changing G1 handset. T-Mobile says its HSPA+ network is already established in markets that reach nearly 100 million people.
Best Buy has gained a lot of traction as the penultimate mobile phone retailer. Consumers have been flocking there instead of the traditional phone stores because Best Buy applies rebates instantly at check-out. T-Mobile, Verizon, Sprint, and AT&T stores require customers to mail in a form and wait weeks before receiving money back. In some cities it even operates standalone Best Buy Mobile storefronts.
