T-Mobile Android-based Pulse Goes On Sale

Under-pressure Mobile operator T-Mobile has start selling UK's first (and only) Pay as you go Google-Android based mobile phone, the Huawei Pulse.

You can grab the phone, other known as the 8220, from the operator - which is set to be absorbed by Orange in 2010 - for as little as £176 on PAYG and for as little as £20 per month on a 24 month contract.

On Combi 15 for example, you will get 100 minutes per month, unlimited texts and mobile internet. If you want a shorter contract, then for £23 per month for 18 month, T-Mobile's Combi 20 provides with 200 minutes and 200 texts.

The Pulse appears to be significantly better than most phones currently available for this price (see 4 Reasons Why The T-Mobile Pulse Will Makes Android Mainstream). It has a 3.5-inch touchscreen display (with a screen resolution of480x320) with built-in accelerometer, a 3.2-megapixel camera, 2GB microSD card, support for 3G, integrated A-GPS, WiFi and much more.

Then, there's the whole array of Google services that comes with Android including Google Maps, Gmail, Google search plus one month's Telenav Satnav turn-by-turn service and even exchange for Microsoft Exchange.

T-Mobile has been a proponent of Google's platform since the beginning, having introduced the HTC G1 last year and the HTC Hero and Magic in 2009. The Pulse will be exclusively available on T-Mobile for now and its arrival could well sparked the much-awaited wave of Android-based smartphones.