It’s October 20th according to CrunchGear, who received the info from a “little birdy” who also confirmed that the phone’s official announcement would go down on September 23rd. It looks like Jason Miller’s daughter is going to get here first.
The phone, for those who haven’t heard will be the HTC Dream offered from T-Mobile. It will feature Google’s “Android” mobile platform and is expected to compete with the iPhone and RIM’s Blackberry. The price of the phone has not been made officially known, but previous reports indicate a $399 tag.
According to the Wall Street Journal, HTC expects to ship 600,000 to 700,000 units this year. Clint Boulton at Google Watch writes:
By comparison, Apple took just 74 days to sell 1 million first-generation iPhones and only a weekend to sell 1 million 3G iPhones. Google and T-Mobile obviously can’t expect that type of reception, but 500,000 to 700,00 units shipped before 2009 is nothing to laugh at.
I think the fact that only one Android phone is coming to the fore this year is smart, whether it is because of developmental delays by the other vendors, or even just a strategic move to test the waters.
The Journal also notes that if the phone is successful, it will be another way to deliver ads to users. This is very true, and is yet another indication that Google’s advertising strategies are getting more aggressive. If this thing is anywhere near as popular as the iPhone, the company should make some serious bank from it. With the phone arriving in time for the holiday season, it will truly be the gift that keeps on giving – only it will keep on giving to Google via ad revenue.
