Here’s the TG01 right on schedule, the latest Toshiba mobile device from Orange

Orange has announced release details for the Toshiba TG01 mobile device. Currently on an exclusive with Orange, the Windows Mobile smartphone hit the UK today, as promised. It was launched first in France last week, and Orange has announced the next markets to see it will be Switzerland and Romania. Orange seems particularly pleased about this “pan-European” launch.

First off, the phone:

It is a pretty rockin’ phone, really. It’s got an extremely high-def touch-screen, a truly huge mobile processor (thanks, Qualcomm), great storage capacity (thanks, SD), GPS, a decent camera… the works. It’s got great specs, is what I’m saying. It’s also got all the web functionality we’ve come to expect from smartphones. Social networking and mobile Internet browsing are a given, but Orange has also been integrating it’s Orange Portal heavily with the device. Homescreen icons will take users to Orange branded services like its Applications Store, Maps and TV services.

The actual device will be “free” on the Orange UK plan. You just need to sign a two-year contract for roughly £40 a month. Which is by no means a bad price.

From the release:

Olaf Swantee, SEVP of Orange’s global mobile business: “At Orange, it is our ambition to help every Orange customer get more out of their mobile. Over 3.2 million customers per month browse the Orange World portal in the UK, and in France we have over 800,000 mobile TV subscribers per month. If the experience is good, people want to try new things on their phone. With the TG01’s advanced capabilities, Orange customers can further harness PC-like power in their hands for the best possible access to multimedia services.”

Kosei Okamoto, President, Toshiba Mobile Communications Company: “The TG01 is the future, a truly mobile entertainment device that satisfies consumer demand for total connectivity. As a pioneer in making mobility, and now mobile multimedia, into a mass market phenomenon, Orange is the ideal partner to bring the Toshiba TG01 across Europe and into the UK for the first time.  The combination of Orange Signature and Toshiba innovation defines a whole new category of high-end entertainment in a mobile.“

What we think?

Ok, so the stat sheet for this phone is really nice. However, it’s not the specs that usually impress me with a phone. It’s what you can do with it that really counts. And I’m really not convinced that the Orange Portal is the best place for this beast of a phone. I just feel that such a powerful device could work better with access to a larger selection of apps and services.