The G1 phone runs Android, an operating system that is designed to bring the desktop computing experience to mobile devices, by allowing people to surf the internet and carry out everyday tasks on the move.
The G1 gives one-touch access to popular Google online services, such as its email service, Gmail, the video-sharing website YouTube, instant-messaging via Google Talk, and its maps service, Google Maps.
Users can instantly share photos taken on the three megapixel camera, and post them to the web. Google Maps includes Street View, which overlays roads with real-world street-level photographs.
The G1 is the first phone to have a compass built into it in addition to motion-sensing technology, meaning users can navigate using Google Maps just by rotating the phone in their hand.
The phone has a 3.2in touchscreen, like Apple’s hugely popular iPhone, as well as a slide-out Qwerty keyboard. It offers high-speed internet access via the 3G phone network, as well as via Wi-Fi.
US users of the G1 will have one-click access to Amazon MP3, a music download service, expected to be launched in the UK later this year. The G1 comes with 2GB of memory built into the device, which is enough to store up to 500 songs, but this can be expanded to 8GB using an additional memory card.
The launch of the "Google phone", which is made by the Taiwanese manufacturer HTC, will pit Google in direct competition with the likes of Apple, makers of the iPhone, as well as RIM, who produce the popular BlackBerry mobile email device.
The G1 will also compete with other existing mobile phone operating systems, such as Microsoft’s Windows Mobile, and Symbian, which is widely used by Nokia, the world’s biggest mobile phone maker.
Owners of the G1 will be able to download additional software and programs onto their device. The Android Market will be similar to Apple’s Application Store for iPhone owners, which allows them to add extra software to their iPhones.
"Because the Android platform is open, we think Android is future-proof," said Andy Rubin, Google’s senior director of mobile platforms.
Google, which already dominates the online advertising and search industries, is looking for ways to replicate its success on mobile devices. By putting its own web browser at the heart of the Android operating system, it has the potential to deliver its content and applications to a ready-made target audience.
Larry Page, Google’s co-founder, hailed the power and potential of the G1, and said it was as powerful as some of the desktop computers in use until just a few years ago.
Analysts are sceptical whether the G1 can make an instant dent in the iPhone’s market dominance, but predict that the platform has plenty of future potential.
"Google is playing the long game with Android," said Geoff Blaber, an analyst with CCS Insight. "The G1 represents a promising start and Google has pockets deep enough to outspend and compete with its competitors."
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