Telstra to launch an Android phone

EXCLUSIVE - Telstra is poised to announce its first Android-based mobile phone tomorrow at a press conference at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.

Linked gallery: Photos: A sneak peek at Telstra's first Android Phone

Telstra, which has not carried an Android-powered phone to date, is scheduled to hold a press conference with mobile vendor HTC in Barcelona tomorrow, just two hours after HTC is expected to announce a new generation of Android-based phones.

A source close to the announcement told iTnews that the HTC Android phone Telstra has chosen to carry will be "comparable in spec to Google's much-hyped Nexus One".

Of the HTC designs already leaked on the internet, the most comparable to the Nexus One is the HTC Bravo, which unconfirmed reports suggest will be based on Android 2.1 and feature a 3.7-inch screen, 800-480 pixel resolution and a 5-megapixel camera.

Earlier today, Telstra was named as Australian launch partner for Microsoft's new Windows Phone 7.

iTnews has learned that the new HTC Android device is likely to be released well before Microsoft's new effort - once again derailing the software vendor's attempts to gain traction in the mobile market.