Android powered ‘OPhone’ to be launched in China

China has emerged as the world’s largest wireless market. What could be a better opportunity for HTC and Android ? That’s the reason, HTC is planning to launch the latest Android powered device, HTC Magic, but by a different name, the OPhone, in China, as per a report by the Wall Street Journal.

The phone will be provided by the career, China Mobile and will have customized software from the mobile career (read it as Open Mobile System, the name for China Mobile’s customized version of Google’s mobile operating system).

The price of the device has not been confirmed yet. But, the WSJ suggests the price would be somewhere around 5,000 yuan, or about $730. The OPhone will probably be launched in China next month.

This launch will probably pave the way for Android to explore the other Asian markets. HTC is hoping to double its sales in China this year. May be, Android will make HTC’s dreams come true. And, the Asian customers, who have been anxiously waiting to get a hold of the Android devices have some reason to rejoice.

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Sony Ericsson planning to embrace Android

Sony Ericsson die hard fans now have a chance to rejoice. The mobile phone giant is planning to launch an Android powered phone. It has plans to launch the device powered with Android 2.0 aka the Donut.

A few days back we had published a news about the next version of Android, Donut. But, nothing has yet been said or heard about its release date. So, nothing can be said about the release date of the phone.

But why is Sony Ericsson waiting for the next version of Android to be released ? May be because the Donut is expected to provide much better multimedia experience. And, Sony Ericsson always had the reputation of providing one of the best multimedia phones in the market, in the form of its Walkman range.

“It does require a lot of evaluation, as well as a lot of testing, a lot of acceptance from a consumer viewpoint, and there is still some time to go,” CEO Hideki Komiyama said about the Linux-based OS. “Looking ahead, I think that we see this as one of the important operating systems, there is no doubt.”

Android does offer multimedia experience in the form of youtube, etc. But its no where even near what Sony Ericsson provides in its Walkman range phone. And, the biggest complaint I personally had with Android, is its speaker volume and quality.

So, lets hope that a device with the great sound quality of Sony Ericsson devices, combined with the funcionalities of an open-source Operating System, is in the making.

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Koolu planning to launch Android powered smartphone in mid-july

Koolu, a Toronto based open-source soecialist, reported that it is going to ship the developer versions of Neo FreeRunner mobile phone running Google’s open-source Android 1.5 “Cupcake” operating system in two week’s time. Possibly, the consumer versions will be available in mid-July.

At this week’s Cloud Expo Europe conference in London, Koolu Chief Technology Officer Jon Hall reported to Zdnet UK, “We’re targeting businesses that want functionality in their phone that they can’t get from Apple, RIM, or any of the proprietary companies”. He also said that they are aiming at small and mid size business classes and the developing countries.

For more details from the interview, click here.

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Official Android 1.5 Cupcake update now available for the G1 users in the US ?

It seems, it has become a norm that there will be some update on the Android 1.5 Cupcake, every other day. Today, the report is that some G1 users are receiving the official Android 1.5 cupcake update.

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Acer confirms the launch an Android powered phone by the year end

About a month back, we had got some speculation that Acer is planning to launch an Android powered phone by the year end. Today, Acer confirmed the news.

As per reports, the company plans to sell 10 models of smartphones this year, with all BUT ONE using Microsoft’s Windows Mobile software. Acer’s Aymar de Lencquesaing said at the Global Technology Summit in Paris, “Late 2009, we’re releasing a smartphone… full touch, at the price of feature phones today”.

There are many other companies, like HP, Samsung, Motorola, etc. who are planning to launch Android powered devices. So, the competition in the Android market seems to be quite happening. But, it still remains to be seen, who wins the race.

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