T-Mobile, Orange To Sell HTC Hero Android Across UK

Orange will get its first Android phone soon as it starts offering the HTC Hero from the middle of July. T-Mobile has surprisingly chosen to do an "Apple" and renamed the Hero as the G1 Touch just like the iPhone 3G S zapped the extra space to become 3GS.

This as some have speculated might caused confusion amongst prospective buyers and current G1 owners. The new G1 will have a 5-megapixel camera, a 3.2-inch touchscreen and no keyboard and is an altogether more mature product compared to the first generation G1.

T-Mobile will the exclusive network for the HTC black edition Hero and given the fact that the black iPhone 3GS has outsold the white one by a ratio of 3:1. Orange will still keep the name of HTC Hero and will receive the Graphite version (which is dark grey). Both networks will sell the HTC Hero on a two year contract worth at least £40 per month.

Richard Warmsley, Head of Internet & Entertainment Services at T-Mobile UK, said at Hero's launch that he expects that one in five T-Mobile mobile internet users will have Android-powered devices by the end of the year.

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As for Orange UK’s Director of Devices, Francois Mahieu, he revealed that the Hero will be the first of a number of Android phones to come to the network before the end of 2009.

Interestingly, it is the first time that an Android mobile phone (or indeed any iPhone competitor like the Pre, the Storm, the 5800 Xpressmusic or the N97) will have a simultaneous launch on two competing mobile phone networks.

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Our Comments
Things are now going to be rather interesting to follow. Apple has already showed its cards and unless it brings a new model before the end of 2009, it won't be able to do anything but watch the competition bring out even more handsets.

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