T-Mobile MyTouch 4G Bluetooth swivel dock review

By Jerry Hildenbrand
last updated

The myTouch 4G is T-Mobile's top-of-the-line Android phone, so it was a given that you would want a great media docking and charging station for it.  They delivered. True to its name, the dock swivels so you can use the device horizontally as well as vertically, and the Bluetooth connection when combined with the 3.5mm audio output from the dock itself make for the perfect desktop media center.

Usage is simple -- slide your myTouch 4G into the dock, making sure that the micro USB connector is aligned, plug the dock into a power supply via its own micro USB connector, and go.  The fit is good, and the non-slip surface on the inside of the recessed area makes sure that your myTouch 4G won't slip out.  It's also designed to be used with the standard USB to micro USB cable and connect to your computer, making for easy syncing and charging at the same time, and any audio accessories that use a 3.5 mm jack can be connected for great sound.

The dock itself is well built, with a weighted non-slip base, and comes in a glossy black finish that looks great as long as you keep your fingerprints off of it.  The swivel feature is actually pretty useful, as well.  I went into it figuring it was a gimmick, but being able to have your phone horizontal to watch video or surf the web, and vertical to use for calling and messaging is handy after all.  If you have a myTouch 4G, it's something you should have a look at, and to me is well worth the investment.  Hit the break for some more pictures.

Jerry Hildenbrand
Jerry Hildenbrand
Senior Editor — Google Ecosystem

Jerry is an amateur woodworker and struggling shade tree mechanic. There's nothing he can't take apart, but many things he can't reassemble. You'll find him writing and speaking his loud opinion on Android Central and occasionally on Twitter.

24 Comments
  • FIRST POST!! Now that is an awesome looking dock! Looks real sleek.
  • Why the hell doesn't this dock utilize the Nexus One type metal contacts that are on the side of the MT4G?! Why'd they bother putting them there?
  • Exactly what I was thinking. USB jack in a dock is bad enough, but an off center one is just begging for problems. Nexus One has flush pins for Docking. No fiddly USB connector to align, or break.
  • Jerry... One of the forum participants made a big deal about the fit being to snug and the dock denting and making marks on the rubber part of the sides and back. Any such occurance with your dock? I would like to get one of these for my desk at work, but on the other hand, I don't want to do any damage to the phone.
  • Every phone call results in a hurried attempt to remove it from the dock to pick it up and answer. That is bound to cause problems sooner or later. So unless you want to sit at your desk with a bluetooth head set on, actually using the phone AS A Phone with this device seems problematic at best.
  • Very possible that I haven't used it long enough to see this, but the only marks I see in the rubber edge of the phone are the little scuffs that were already there. It is a friction style fit, so it's going to rub on the way in and out.
  • I also have the Nexus One and the desk top dock that goes with it utilizing the 3 brass connectors, the MyTouch 4G also has this and that is what I thought the 3 pins were for. I bought the MyTouch 4g thinking the same kind of set up was going to be for that phone. I just don't want to mark up my phone by slipping it into a friction type fit. Does the MyTouch 4G get marked up by slipping it into the dock? Maybe I'm just anal about my phones but my Nexus One still looks and works like new as well as my MyTouch 4G.
  • Where can we purchase this?
  • This is speaking from not yet trying the dock, but it does sound like it would be annoying to have to line up the usb connector and having to do this every time a phone call is made or received would get real old. I agree with the others, what is the point of having the three connectors if they aren't going to be used for this purpose? Seeing as this is the official dock, does it look like there will be a chance a good dock for the MT4G that only utilizes the connectors will be available?
  • "The myTouch 4G is T-Mobile's top-of-the-line Android phone" Obviously the author never heard of the G2 or the Nexus S
  • And you're dead wrong, as I've had (or still have) all three.
  • MyTouch 4G is T-Mobile's best device, better then the G2 and the only thing the Nexus S has over it is the Gingerbread OS. Hardware, MyTouch 4G is lights ahead over Nexus S. I have had all the phones, including the G2. My Nexus One is still my favorite phone but the MyTouch 4G is a better device then the Nexus One but nothing feels as good as the Nexus One in your hand. I keep reaching for the Nexus One as my daily phone.I switch back and forth switching sim cards but as I said the Nexus One will always be the premier device. Just my Opinion.
  • Its been asked, but I'll ask again: Where can you buy this darn thing? T-mo stores dont carry it...
  • Heh. Good luck, I had to have another writer for the site pick this one up in Phoenix and ship it over -- all the stores in the DC metro area were sold out.
  • The lack of 3-pin connection is a big turn off. For about $8 I "made" my own. Looks meh, but works great :) If I had some tools I could probably ditch the hooks and incorporate the USB cable in the base of the easel. http://deadplasmacell.imgur.com/simple_dock
  • Isn't that HTC Peep's twitter notification icon?
  • I stopped by a T-Mobile store in Atlanta right before Christmas to look at the dock. Nice dock, but I found it was way too tricky to line up the connectors. It certainly didn't slip in easily like I would have expected. It took me numerous times to get it to slip in correctly and I was worried I was going to bend the connectors. No thanks - Santa took a big pass on it. I think I prefer DeadPlasmaCell's easel instead!
  • Anybody checked out this dock that seems to use the contacts and can charge an extra battery: http://www.igonemobile.com/product.aspx?p=26982 EDIT: On closer inspection, it looks as if uses the micro usb port as well... darn
  • OK. I just got this dock, and I can't believe it doesn't let the headset take calls. What a stupid system. It only allows the headset to get "media audio" NOT PHONE AUDIO. Now I understand why someone above mentioned lifting it out of the dock. Who designs these things? It's about as bad as the mic that came with my MT3G--two inches off the phone. I wear my phone on my belt. Do they think my pants talk? Or worse? So, to be perfectly clear, the dock only provides audio for listening to music. If you want to answer the phone, you have to remove it from the dock. I've never imagined a more absurd design. Can anyone explain this to me or tell me how I am somehow mistaken???
  • So I agree that it's a joke to remove the phone on a desk to take a call....... ......so I took one and strapped it into my car bracket with cable ties.
    Works perfect through the aux port (via bluetooth) and take calls via a bluetooth headset..... AWESOME cradle for a car!!!!! click it in and away you go.....try it.
  • I love to get accessories, but this one sounds misbegotten. Can't answer the phone in the dock... doesn't use the 3 pin contacts... and doesn't permit the use of an external keyboard. Or does it? What bluetooth protocols does it include? SPP? HID? or neither?
  • My friend, welcome to the club. I dunno if it's relevant anymore, however, I've tried KeyPro, BlueInput, BlueTooth Keyboard EasyConnect, and BlueKeyboard JP; none of which helped. I still have my MyTouch 4G, though, going on 3 years now. I thought that if I had purchased an apple keyboard (which may or may not generate a random passcode and instead use the typical "0000") I might get it to connect. My only problem would come when having to enter the passcode. The phone just doesn't display the random passcode I have to enter, so aside from guessing, the only way I'd have a chance is with a keyboard that has a "0000" passcode. I've been able to pair, but not connect bluetooth keyboards to my HTC Android 2.3.4 Tmobile MyTouch 4G (Glacier). The following is an HTC community forum that also answered my question about if my MyTouch could use a bluetooth keyboard. And this link is information about the phone I have, and could be useful for other phones: This link did shed some light, but did not ultimately help resolve the issue: I ran into this page first, but I could not get any apps to work, because of course, I do not have SPP, or HID on my phone, or iPod touch for that matter. This YouTube video was somewhat helpful/not:
  • BTW, I found a nice easel by repurposing an old calculator stand.
  • IMO this would be best (for me) used to hold the phone and charge it on my night stand and function as the alarm clock. I used the charging cradle with my old mytouch3g and the kaloer clock app and now that I've got the 4g, something like this or the one that gone mobile is selling that charges a 2nd battery would be nice.