T-Mobile to offer first Android smartphone

(Reuters) –

Deutsche Telekom’s (DTEGn.DE) T-Mobile USA will

be the first carrier to offer a mobile phone based on Google

Inc’s (GOOG.O) Android software, the New York Times reported,

citing people briefed on the company’s plans.

The high-end phone, which will be made by the world’s top

smartphone maker High Tech Computer Corp (2498.TW), is expected

to challenge Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O) iPhone as well as other

smartphones that run software from Palm Inc (PALM.O), Research

in Motion (RIM.TO) (RIMM.O), Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) and Nokia

Oyj (NOK1V.HE).

The phone is expected to go on sale in the U.S. before

Christmas and perhaps as early as October, the paper said.

Neither Google, nor T-Mobile immediately returned calls

seeking comment.

Last November, Google introduced its highly anticipated

Android software system for designing mobile phone devices, in

a move it promised could help the cellphone industry make the

Internet work as smoothly on phones as it does on computers.

(Reporting by Tenzin Pema in Bangalore; Editing by Paul

Bolding)