Samsung confirms trio of Android devices

by Stevie Smith - Apr 6 2009, 15:00

Putting persistent carrier worries behind it, South Korean consumer electronics maker Samsung has now confirmed that it plans to offer up an initial trio of new mobile phone devices running on the Android operating system before the year is out.

Created by search giant Google in partnership with the Open Handset Alliance, the open-source Android platform will grace at least two Samsung phones released for the North American market, reports Ars Technica.

“Some operators were concerned about the vision Google has [and] that affected [timing],” Samsung executive Won-Pyo Hong told Forbes magazine concerning the company’s advance. “Our commitment is more to the Android phone than the Google Experience device.”

Samsung’s announcement perhaps indicates that mobile phone carriers are finally beginning to backtrack on their reservations regarding Google’s operating system, which, in turn, will likely provide Android with increased consumer exposure as it begins appearing on more handsets than the existing G1 (a.k.a. the HTC Dream).

The G1 is presently carried in the United States by Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Mobile, while initial Android supporter Sprint has since distanced itself from the platform and the likes of Verizon and AT&T seem to be limiting themselves to merely eying it with cautious scepticism at this point.

However, with Verizon recently indicating that its exclusive attachment to LiMo isn’t as concrete as previously thought and that it’s no longer “in a position where we shun one operating system in favor over another operating system,” a more tangible market impact could be on the horizon for Android.

Want regular updates from The Tech Herald? Follow us on Twitter.

The Tech Herald: HP considering possible Netbook version of Android

The Tech Herald: Android moves quickly to kill G1 jailbreak

The Tech Herald: Canadian inventor creates advanced female A.I. android

Around the Web