This is what the HTC Dream almost looked like
Prototypes are interesting because they show us what could have been. Now, for those of us old enough to remember, the HTC Dream (also known as the T-Mobile G1) was the first Android handset to hit the market, but thanks to newly published images by Rich Miner, the co-founder of Android, we now have an idea of what the handset could have looked like.
For those who are unfamiliar, the HTC Dream/G1 was launched back in the day when phones with physical keyboards were still very much in vogue. It featured a slideout display that revealed a physical keyboard underneath, along with some side buttons for answering calls, going back to the home screen, and more.
All along we were working on 2 phones, Sooner, more blackberry-like & Dream, touchscreen based. After the iPhone launch we did cancel Sooner to focus on Dream (eventually the Google G1) but its design changed little from this rendering made 5 months before the iPhone launched. pic.twitter.com/lC8m0WolgE
— Rich Miner 🖖 (@richminer) October 31, 2022
The version that was released looked much more “serious” and business-like, while the prototype that Miner shared had a more youthful and funky vibe to it with the black and green finish and Google’s logo slapped on top of the handset. It also featured a circular ring that would have acted like a gaming controller’s D-pad for selection and could also be pushed down to help make a selection.
It’s interesting to see what could have been and also a nice glimpse of the past to see how far along we’ve come. We have to admit that to a certain extent, we do miss physical keyboards and the tactility they provide, but what about you? Anything from the good old days of the smartphone are you missing?
Source: 9to5Google