T-Mobile Android phone expected in August

T-Mobile has announced it will release its second Google Android-based smartphone in August, with the phone based on the HTC magic platform. 

The MyTouch 3G phone will ship in white, black and red.  The phone doesn’t have a physical keyboard, and the Android 1.5 OS will use a virtual keyboard designed for owners to type on the screen.

The phone has a 3.2-inch 320×480 touch screen,, built-in video recording, 3.2-megapixel camera, microSD slot, 3G, and built-in Wi-Fi.  The phone offers a high level of customization, with home screen widgets and access to the Android Market app store, along with several custom T-Mobile widgets.

Interested consumers will have to pay $199 with a two-year contract, and will have the ability to automatically connect to corporate e-mail servers.  The iPhone 3G S and Palm Pre smartphone are both available for $199, so the T-Mobile price point makes perfect sense for consumers.

The T-Mobile MyTouch phone will face stiff competition from the Research In Motion (RIM) BlackBerry line of smartphones and the Apple iPhone 3G S refresh.

T-Mobile, currently the No. 4 phone carrier in the United States, is relying heavily on Android, hoping the openness of the platform helps draw in new consumers.  T-Mobile has sold more than 1 million G1 phones since its launch.  Android is expected to branch out from the smartphone market and head towards the low-cost netbook market sometime  before the end of the year.