Images of HTC's upcoming G2 mobile handset have been released on the internet, displayed by gadget and mobile phone site Gizmodo. Like the G1 - the first handset to be based on Google's open source Android operating system - the G2 is manufactured by HTC and will be available from network operator T-Mobile.
However, unlike the first handset, the G2 does not feature a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. Instead, it will sport a touchscreen, much like the hugely successful iPhone. Other details revealed by the images indicate that the G2, also known as 'Sapphire 2.0', will come with a 3.2 mega pixel camera and will feature an interface that is similar to the G1.
According to Gizmodo's source, the handset is likely to be released in mid-May this year. The news comes just as several other mobile phone manufacturers are gearing up towards released their own Android handset. In December, for example, Samsung announced that it would launch its own Android device in North America in the second quarter.
This phone is also expected to be launched on T-Mobile in the USA, as well as rival network operator Sprint. At the time, an unnamed spokesperson for Samsung said: "We are accelerating the development process for Google phone in order to meet the specific need of local carriers." However, with the release of HTC and T-Mobile's G2 images, Samsung may be stepping up its operations at an even faster rate than first anticipated.
The G1 has so far enjoyed popularity in the USA and UK. At the end of last year, HTC increased its sales forecast for the handset from 600,000 units to one million.
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