Toshiba TG01 smartphone review

Steep learning curve

We're not interested in bashing phones for the sake of it. Indeed, we truly did hope that the TG01 would prove delightful.

While it's not the worst smartphone we've ever handled, the frustrations more than outweigh the benefits, meaning many business users - who are interested in more than just the multimedia gems on offer - will want to look at it, perhaps play with it a bit and then move on.

But there is hope. A software update or upgrade to Windows Mobile 6.5 may help improve things and we'd certainly be willing to give it another try to find out if that proves to be the case.

If the TG01 is just the foundation of things to come and Toshiba learns from experience, we're looking forward to its next generation smartphone. One hopes it will be ever so slightly smaller but ever so much better.

Verdict

At the end of our review period, we're still a bit puzzled. The phone has lots of great, nay quirky, features included. The screen is more than ample and the materials used pretty classy. But despite mixing all these ingredients together, the result is a smartphone that leaves a bitter after taste. We'd like to blame it all on Windows Mobile, but somehow, that doesn't seem fair...

Connectivity: GPRS, HSDPA, 802.11b/g Display: 4.1in (800x480 pixels) Storage: 32GB, microSD card slot Camera: 3.2-megapixel Battery: 1000 mAh Dimensions: (WxDxH) 70x9.9x130mm Weight: 129g