Google not HTC designed the G1 Android phone

Android - design by Google?
Android - design by Google?

T-Mobile has told TechRadar that Google designers came up with the G1 Android phone and not HTC.

HTC manufactures the first phone to market with the Android OS that is backed by Google, but T-Mobile insists that the design was done collaboratively with Google rather than by the Taiwanese firm.

"It's a phone that came from a collaboration between T-Mobile and Google," T-Mobile's Richard Walmsley told TechRadar.

"The design concept came from Google and ourselves from the development process.

"We initiated this process by saying that we wanted to develop a device that was in line with the way that people communicate today like using the internet to keep in touch, and that was effectively a design brief which went to HTC as the manufacturer."

Clarification

Asked to clarify if Google had designed the phone, Walmsley – the head of internet and entertainment for T-Mobile in the UK added: "The design concept as I understand it was developed by some design experts at Google as to what they wanted from the device.

"We worked with them to create customer experience and what we wanted to offer our customers from it and then HTC manufactured the hardware."

Of course, Google getting involved in the actual design process is of major importance within the industry, but Walmsley insisted that despite its hands-on approach with the T-Mobile G1 Android phone, Google was taking a wider view.

"I wouldn't say it's a single brand phone. Google's approach is more about the breadth of that platform across a number of devices rather than being about one particular phone."

TOPICS
Patrick Goss

Patrick Goss is the ex-Editor in Chief of TechRadar. Patrick was a passionate and experienced journalist, and he has been lucky enough to work on some of the finest online properties on the planet, building audiences everywhere and establishing himself at the forefront of digital content.  After a long stint as the boss at TechRadar, Patrick has now moved on to a role with Apple, where he is the Managing Editor for the App Store in the UK.

Latest in Phones
Apple iPhone 16 Pro REVIEW
The iPhone 17 Air looks impressively slim in this new comparison image, but that just makes me more worried about the specs
Two Android phones on a green and blue background showing Google Messages
Google Messages just added a fun upgrade to one of its best chat features
Samsung Galaxy S25 on a blue deals background
Bored with your iPhone? The ‘incredible’ Samsung Galaxy S25 just hit a record-low price in the Amazon Spring Sale
Samsung Galaxy S25 from the front
The Now Bar on Samsung One UI 7 is about to get a lot more useful – and could soon match Live Activities on iOS
An iPhone running iOS 18 on a purple and blue background
iOS 18.4 could launch soon with a major upgrade to your iPhone’s notifications
Google Pixel 9a being held, from the back
The Google Pixel 9a’s mysterious delay may have just been explained
Latest in News
A young woman is working on a laptop in a relaxed office space.
I’ll admit, Microsoft’s new Windows 11 update surprised me with its usefulness, providing accessibility fixes, a gamepad keyboard layout, and PC spec cards
inZOI promotional material.
inZOI has become the most wishlisted game on Steam, but I wouldn't get too caught up in the hype
Xbox Series X and Xbox wireless controller set to a green background
Xbox Insiders are currently testing a new Game Hub feature that looks useful, but I've got mixed feelings about it
A stylized depiction of a padlocked WiFi symbol sitting in the centre of an interlocking vault.
Broadcom warns of worrying security flaws affecting VMware tools
Nespresso Vertuo Pop machine in Candy Pink with coffee drinks and capsules
My favorite Nespresso coffee maker just got a fresh new makeover, and now I love it even more
Microsoft Surface Laptop and Surface Pro devices on a table.
Hate Windows 11’s search? Microsoft is fixing it with AI, and that almost makes me want to buy a Copilot+ PC