The myTouch 3G, which will be available in early August for $199with a 2-year agreement, is actually the same device as the Google Ionphone that was given to everyone who attended the Google I/O conferencea few weeks ago. And technically, both are really the HTC Magic, whichwas released a few months ago in Europe, and more recently in Canada.But for the myTouch 3G, T-Mobile is offering some other bells andwhistles to differentiate it.

The biggest thing T-Mobile is trumpeting for this device is a deeplevel of customization. Users will be able to customize the menus,wallpapers, icons and a range of other things on the device with theuse of themes and skins. This is a sharp break from a device like theiPhone which has a completely un-customizable look and feel.

And the device itself will come in three colors: black, white andwhat it calls the “distinctive” merlot. But there will also be the option to completely customizethe shell of your phone too.

The other key point T-Mobile is touting for the myTouch is something called Sherpa, which T-Mobile worked with startup Geodelicto create. Basically, Sherpa is an application that claims to learnfrom a user’s actions. So, for example, if you’re searching a lot ofThai food, Sherpa should recognize that as something that you like inthe future. And it uses your location information to give you tailoredresults for what it believes you will want based on what you’re around.

The Hardware

But how does the actual hardware of the myTouch stack up against the G1? Very well.

The first thing you’ll notice is that it’s substantially smaller than that G1. This is all thanks to the removal of the physical keyboard.Because myTouch uses the Android 1.5 “Cupcake” software, it utilizes avirtual keyboard. While this will undoubtedly annoy some users, from adesign perspective, it was a very good move. It allows for a devicethat is not only smaller, and lighter (it’s about an ounce and a halflighter), but it looks a lot nicer too.

And it’s gotten a little bump in its specs. While it features thesame processor, the myTouch has double the internal memory of the G1(now 512 MB), which makes applications load and run much more smoothly.

The screen size and resolution remain the same (3.2-inch TFT-LCD 320x 480). And, unfortunately, while the display is capacitive, it stilldoes not support multi-touch which is a key feature of the iPhone andthe new Palm Pre.

The myTouch also has the same 3.2 megapixel camera with autofocusthat the G1 had. And the device also comes pre-installed with a 4GBmicroSD card, but this is user-upgradable to any size.

But the most noticeable difference has to be the battery life. In myexperience, the G1 had very poor battery life. The myTouch offers ahuge improvement in that regard. How much? Well just in everyday usewith a couple applications running in the background, my G1 batterywould be gone in a few hours. The myTouch battery easily lasts all dayin the same environment.

The iPhone

Whilethis device trumps the G1 in every way, the comparison that more peoplemay be interested in for the myTouch is likely how it stacks up againstthe iPhone. With the removal of the physical keyboard, the devices aremore similar now.

Before I get to that, I will say that the biggest factor for whichone you’re likely to enjoy more will be if you’re a bigger fan of themore open Android platform, or the more tightly controlled approachApple is taking with the iPhone OS.

In terms of hardware, there is still no question in my mind that theiPhone is still much nicer. HTC managed many solid improvements overthe G1, but when holding the two hand in hand, the myTouch still feelsplasticky, and as a result, cheap, compared to the iPhone.

If you have the original iPhone or the iPhone 3G, you’ll appreciatethe 3.2 megapixel camera and the ability to shoot video with themyTouch, but the just-released iPhone 3G S matches both of those features now.

In terms of speed, it’s a bit hard to compare the two since theplatforms run different applications. The myTouch, like the G1,features a 528 MHz processor which is a faster processor than theoriginal iPhone and the iPhone 3G had. But again, the new iPhone 3G Smeets that speed and even pushes past it, in terms of raw processingpower.

I’ve only played with the iPhone 3G S for a few days, but I thinkit’s safe to say that for day to day use of any application andbrowsing the web, the new iPhone blows past the myTouch in terms ofspeed. But again, the myTouch seems noticably faster in many regardsthen the original iPhone and the iPhone 3G.

That’s not the say that the myTouch has no advantages against theiPhone. It has a huge one: It can run third-party applications in thebackground. Apple has been toying around with the idea,but the Android phones have done this since day one. And as I notedabove, while this severely hurt the G1’s battery performance, themyPhone performs much better even with applications running in thebackground.

Price

But in a move that still isn’t being talked about all that much,Apple may have dropped a bomb on devices like the myPhone 3G not withthe iPhone 3G S as much as with the $99 iPhone 3G. At $199, the myTouchis the same price point as the entry-level iPhone 3G S, but I can see alot of new smartphone buyers opting for the older iPhone for $100cheaper.

Pre-orders for the myTouch will take place for existing T-Mobilecustomers on July 8. The device will be $199 with a 2-year agreement,and generally availability is set for early August.