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T-Mobile: Android Handsets Coming By Year's End

A T-Mobile executive has confirmed that the carrier will be releasing more than one mobile phone based on Google's Android platform before the end of 2008. What's more, the exec said he was "impressed" with the platform. But which company will be building these handsets?

The exec didn't say. Many believe that the event being held by HTC next month in London will be its grand introduction of a new Android phone. HTC's CEO has, on more than one occasion, confirmed that the company will produce at least one Android handset in 2008. I wouldn't put it past HTC to be the first to market with such a device, and T-Mobile, a member of the Open Handset Alliance, is the right carrier to launch it.

Joe Sims, VP and general manager of T-Mobile broadband, recently said at a conference that he had seen early versions of the forthcoming Android-based phone. He said that T-Mobile is on track to ship them by the fourth quarter of this year. "I'm impressed," he said. "We will have more than one product." He also said the open platform will spur innovation everywhere, not just on the Android phones.

The pace of innovation already is moving forward by leaps and bounds. The appearance of the iPhone has catalyzed the developer community, and more and more mobile apps are being developed each day. With both Apple and Google encouraging (and even rewarding) developers to create applications for their respective platforms, there is no doubt that we'll soon begin to see the real power of mobile phones emerge.

Watching which platform or platforms emerge as the most successful will be interesting to witness. Is openness the path to success?

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