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Sprint To Release Google-Powered Smartphone

Posted on: Friday, 4 September 2009, 06:10 CDT

Teaming-up with Taiwanese cell phone manufacturer HTC Corp, US wireless carrier Sprint Nextel has announced that it will become the second wireless carrier to use Google’s Android software on a touch-screen mobile phone.

The HTC Hero, due to hit stores in October, will provide another wedge for Internet behemoth Google in the brutally competitive smartphone market.  Sprint has said that the phone will retail for $180 with a two-year service contract.

T-Mobile was the first carrier to join forces with Google when it released the T-Mobile G1 (aka, “the Google Phone”) in autumn of last year.

In a highly crowded smartphone market, however, the new Google-powered gadget will by no means be a sure-fire success.  It will have to jostle for its place in consumers’ technology-loving hearts with a vast array of other hi-tech gadgets like Apple’s iPhone, the well-established Blackberry and even Sprint’s own Palm Pre that was released this spring.

And as if the variety of devices themselves didn’t make competition tough enough, Microsoft also announced this week that its cell phone partners around the globe will be offering the new upgraded version of its Windows Mobile operating system starting this fall.

One powerful advantage that the HTC Hero will have over competitors, however, is that it will come pre-loaded with an array of virulently popular Google services including, Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail and access to YouTube.  The phone will also be equipped with a 5.0-megapixel camera, a camcorder, built-in GPS and Wi-Fi capability, making it a veritable hand-held communications command center.

“Android provides to consumers the same Internet services they have become accustomed to on their desktop PC,” hyped VP of Google’s mobile platforms, Andy Rubin.

“The arrival of HTC Hero and the Android platform to Sprint’s network is an important milestone for our customers and the US wireless industry,” added Kevin Packingham, Sprint’s senior VP of product development.

“With the dependability and coverage of Sprint’s 3G network, HTC Hero users will appreciate a much better experience than is possible now with any other Android phone operating in the United States,” he added.

Google executives are crossing their fingers that the popularity of the Android software will continue to spread amongst consumers, encouraging other smartphone manufacturers and carriers to eventually integrate it into their headsets.

Motorola has already announced that they will be releasing an Android-powered phone by the end of the year.

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On the Net:

• HTC Hero
• Sprint Nextel
• Google Android

Source: redOrbit Staff & Wire Reports

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