HTC on schedule to deliver Android-powered phone in 4Q

Overheard at a Verizon wireless store today:

Kid: “This phone sucks.”

Dad: “I know. But there’s not much I can do about it.”

Kid: “Why?”

Dad: “Your contract isn’t up until March and I don’t want to pay $300 for a new one.”

Kid: “Your phone is eligible for an upgrade. Let me use yours.”

Dad: “I don’t want to buy any new phone right now. There’s going to be a lot of phones coming out in the next six months and I want to see them first. All the phones here are lame duck technology.”

Kid: “Oh. Well, this phone still sucks.”

At least some relief is on the horizon for dad. High Tech Computer (HTC), a Taiwan-based maker of Microsoft Windows Mobile cell phones, announced it is on schedule to deliver by 4Q 2008 its first phones based on Google’s open source mobile operating system, Android [via DigiTimes and IntoMobile]. No other details were provided.

HTC has long been rumored to be making their HTC Dream smartphone available on the Android platform later this year, making HTC the first manufacturer to deliver an actual working model and not a prototype with promise.

It is expected that an Android-powered Google phone — along with the introduction in July of the Apple iPhone 3G — will completely shake up the U.S. cell phone/smart phone market with its touch screen and haptic feedback, a full QWERTY keypad (that slides or swivels for easy typing and texting), and Internet access, among other features.

It’s enough for dad to hold off buying a new phone for the kid.

last100 is edited by Steve O'Hear. Aside from founding last100, Steve is co-founder and CEO of Beepl and a freelance journalist who has written for numerous publications, including TechCrunch, The Guardian, ZDNet, ReadWriteWeb and Macworld, and also wrote and directed the Silicon Valley documentary, In Search of the Valley. See his full profile and disclosure of his industry affiliations.

One Response to “HTC on schedule to deliver Android-powered phone in 4Q”

  1. phone addict says:

    OMG htc… don’t get me started. I don’t think anything compares to Iphone, even
    the BB storm won’t change much

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