T-mobile HTC G2 for only $99

Smartphones are typically priced at $199 or higher, especially for high end smartphones.  Not anymore, although not anywhere yet, Amazon is offering T-mobile's HTC G2 for only $99, shipping is free!  The caveat?  A 2-year contract with T-mobile, which is typical and you really can't get away from it from any wireless carrier, unless you opt for a prepaid plan.  But prepaid plans and high end smartphones are really two different camps that don't mingle together.

How good is the T-mo HTC G2?  Let's compare it with Sprint's Epic 4G.  We can see many similarities, as well as a few differences aside from them being two different manufacturers and carriers.

Download speeds are essentially the same, which was to be expected.  Both smartphones have all the features you’d expect for an Android smartphone, but below we’ll highlight what you usually don’t see in feature spec details…processor speed tests and their results.

The tests were performed by apps from the Android Market. Those apps are;

• Speed Pi – installed on both phones to calculate the speed the phone can calculate the  value of Pi to 1 million digits
• Quadrant – more granular benchmark tests including 2D and 3D video and CPU clocking.

After testing, the G2 came out on top with an average of 25% better results than the Epic 4G (Galaxy S). Something to mention however is the 4 inch AMOLED screen on the Epic 4G and the much more appealing, true color display as opposed to the 3.7 inch LCD screen on the G2.  Both graphics tests finished great, but you can see the difference with the naked eye.

Best of all, G2 normally costs $199 at almost anywhere, but Amazon currently offers it for only $99 with FREE shipping.