I just got back from vacation and there it was on my doorstep, saweetA! My special thanks goes out to T-Mobile for getting this pre-order to me 2 days before they were supposed to. I’ve only spent a few hours with this beauty so far, but I’m in geek heaven. We have some photos after the jump.

I never really coded much in java, but the elegance of the Android framework is really making me want to sink my teeth into it and see what I can come up with. I’m very impressed with this first commercial packaging of the Android framework, and can’t wait to continue updating this handset as the community adds more polish, and ever sweeter apps to it!

First of all, this is NOT an iPhone, so if you’ve wanted that handset, I would still recommend getting one of those: there are very specific features to the iPhone that are very unique, and set it apart from the rest, such as the elegant browsing and zooming features for the web, and the automatic screen rotation when you turn the unit. The G1 does not have this, but I’m still ecstatic over this gadget, I’m confident that as I learn more about its capabilities, I’ll be happy with it despite its small lack of features that the iPhone does have. Mostly, it’s the open framework aspect of it that I like, and that the framework doesn’t have to be tied to the device, hence the name ‘Open Handset Alliance’ that the Android project falls under. So that being said, and me having gushed about Android, let’s get into the actual features of the handset.

The foldout screen and full Qwerty board was a big selling point for me. The trackball mouse is also very well done, and can get you places quickly, as well as help you with editing text. The combination of buttons and touchscreen is also very well done, and I think this is what sets this unit apart from the iPhone. One thing I never liked about Mac products is the idiotic mentality of, well, they only need one button, or no buttons at all. I’m a pc guy, I right click… and I like my buttons. I do use the touchscreen on this handset a lot however I also use it in combination with the buttons, and that’s just slick.

As far as memory is concerned, this is where the handset falls flat on its face. First of all, no internal flash memory? For $300, I should be getting at least a few gigs, 4 would be nice. This is a huge improvement suggestion for the next unit. Also, the microSD card is annoying, and hard to get to. I have 4 regular sized SD cards totaling 8GB of memory that I’d really like to use with this handset, but no dice. The one positive aspect of this is that flash memory is always getting cheaper, so I should be able to pick up a 4GB microSD card for about $30-$50.

The back of the unit comes off easily for battery replacement, and SIM card access… so no complaints there. The phone also comes with a full stereo headset, which I was so happy to have right out of the box. It also uses the micro USB port, which is great, as this opens up the device to be used with many other products that use this connector.

As you also might have guessed, the unit comes with bluetooth capability, and I’ve also already got it reading from my wireless network at home, setup was very easy. My next mission is to find out how to get skype running on this beast!

Check out the perdy packaging it comes in below: