• Reuters , Tuesday, September 16, 2008 10:30 AM

Sources say Deutsche Telekom AG's T-Mobile unit plans to introduce the first version of Google's Android -- code-named the "Dream" phone -- in New York on Sept. 23. The device is made by Taiwan's HTC Corp.

Industry insiders who have worked on the mobile operating system say it will struggle in the near term to match the consumer enthusiasm generated by Apple when its iPhone redefined the touch-screen phone market and greatly improved mobile Web surfing. "I'm not sure the consumer experience is significantly better than that of the iPhone," says Rajeev Chand, a wireless analyst at investment bank Rutberg & Co.

But Google, its partner carriers and application developers hope the Android platform will drive even more mobile Web surfing than the iPhone, which has helped Web usage rocket in comparison to other smart phones. Others hope that Google's entrance can galvanize mobile advertising, which is still in nascent stages. Unlike iPhone, Android will be open to developers to create component technologies in almost any way they can imagine.

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