Forget the hotly hyped Google Chrome browser, what I want to know is, is the long-awaited Google Phone on the verge of release? Some reports say the GPhone is supposed to debut Sept. 23, via T-Mobile. The interesting dynamic here -- far more than the phone itself (if that's possible) -- is that what we have here is a product unveiling which will instantly outpace the iPhone and put Apple on the backburner, forcing Steve Jobs to play catch-up. Big time.I have a counterintuitive take on the Google Phone. I believe it'll push the smartphone platform forward, not necessarily because it'll be that much more feature-rich than the iPhone, but simply because it'll cement the user-interface which Apple pioneered into the baseline (the absolute minimum) of what consumers will expect for a top-of-the-line smartphone.

Of course, some folks believe that Apple is already getting too much creating for bringing to market capabilities which are also available on Blackberry, Windows Mobile, and Symbian smartphones.

As one correspondent commented to me the other day:

"Coming from a tech perspective (been developing software for 17 years) the iPhone is not revolutionary in technology. My wife's Samsung Blackjack has been able to do all what the iPhone has been able to do since the beginning and more. 8-GB SD card to store music? The iPhone did revolutionize the user experience and that is what it has going for it. I can tell you this much there are phones coming out that are more powerful than the iPhone, [which] mimic the user experience and are cheaper. "

That "cheaper" part could be the deal which drives Apple into the back seat. If there are gPhone implementations (remember, there will be many GPhones, from multiple vendors) which are less expensive than the iPhone, the adoption of the former will be more expansive!

OK, so here's a video which purports to be a Google Phone from Taiwanese smartphone vendor HTC, and the betting is this might be the device due from T-Mobile soon.

Check out this video of a gPhone prototype, which look suspiciously like the iPhone, user-interface-wise.

Here's an earlier video, which I linked to in my post, Google Shows First Android GPhone Protoytpe, showing a running Google Phone demo. You can really see the similiarities to the iPhone's user interface.

What smartphone is strapped to your belt? (Excuse me, I mean, what smartphone is stashed in your purse.) Please leave a comment below, or shoot me an e-mail directly at alex@alexwolfe.net.

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