Samsung confirms claims of Android-powered Samsung handset hitting T-Mobile and Sprint
By Will Park on Monday, January 19th, 2009 at 12:49 PM PST In Android, Devices, Rumors, Samsung, Sprint, T-Mobile
We’ve been expecting Samsung to launch their own Android-powered smartphone on Sprint (NYSE: S) and T-Mobile (NYSE: DT)’s network ever since we got wind of Samsung’s Android aspirations late last year. The global cellphone maker was reported to be working on porting the Android OS to a variant of the Samsung Omnia and Samsung Instinct, in preparation for launch in the US sometime this year.
Today, we have word that Samsung has confirmed that they are indeed working on an Android-powered smartphone destined for Sprint and T-Mobile. “We are accelerating the development process for Google (NSDQ: GOOG)
phone in order to meet the specific need of local carriers,” a Samsung official said in a statement.
The report comes from NewsOXY, and cites unnamed Samsung officials as their source. Suffice it to say that this “confirmation” won’t be making it past our rumor-filter anytime soon. Still, it makes sense that Samsung is working to push out an Android phone, and it makes even more sense that the Android phone would be based on Samsung’s tried-and-true Instinct and Omnia platforms.
We’re going to keep a close eye on Samsung at Mobile World Congress 2009, stay tuned!
[Via: AndroidAuthority]
I’d like to know if the software would be available for the current owners of the Samsung Instinct.