European handheld users loathe Toshiba for its standfast refusal of releasing a Windows Mobile 2003 upgrade for its then-current e740 handheld, which would have urgently needed it due to the XSCALE CPU’s issues with WM2002. This forced the company out of the German handheld market almost completely, leaving them struggling along with a few low-end devices.
However, the boys want to get back in the game – their entire MWC booth was dedicated to the TG01:
Toshiba’s TG01 will become available in black and white, and is an extremely large and thin device. An XPERIA X1 has the same screen resolution, but looks tiny in comparison:
Toshiba unfortunately couldn’t resist the temptation to roll its own user interface. I am pretty sure that the Windows Mobile world doesn’t need another custom home screen, but post the picture below anyways:
A task manager is included to emphasize the device’s multitasking capabilities:
Which are unfortunately restricted due to extreme lack of RAM. My sample had a total of 133MB, with less than 50MB free after a reset:
The following mock-ups were exhibited as samples of possible future form factors:
BTW: my “press attaché” went batshit when he heard me remark the low amount of memory and my dislike for yet another home screen. Even though he remained professional, the stress he was suffering at this moment is clearly visible. This IMHO proves that Toshiba considers the TG01 a “make-or-break” device…
In the end, the TG01 left me impressed. Users who know what they are doing will definitely be able to work their way around the limited RAM – while this is an unfortunate limitation due to the fast processor, it nevertheless is manageable.
I personally think that potential troubles are not to be sought in the device design, but rather in the company. I have never seen a press guy as agitated/stressed out as our friend pictured above, which definitely isn’t a good sign…
