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Orange and T-Mobile to up the smartphone wars for Christmas

Exclusivity on Android handsets rumoured

Orange and T-Mobile to up the smartphone wars for Christmas
As O2's exclusivity contract with the iPhone comes to an end, Orange and T-Mobile are rumoured to have snapped up their own slice of the smartphone market with a new Google Android handset apiece.

According to The Guardian, Orange has landed the rights to Motorola's first Android-powered device, upon which the US-based manufacturer is pinning much of its hopes for survival through the recession.

In answer, T-Mobile is to bring mobile broadband dongle-manufacturer Huawei's first smartphone to market - also driven by the Android system. This handset is expected to be targeted at the cash-strapped consumer, which is the area of the mobile industry where the next smartphone battle is really expected to take place.

While Android hasn't really proven to be the iPhone killer it was positioned as, it's a serious threat to the likes of business-targeted Windows Mobile, BlackBerry and even the new Palm Pre. All it needs is some seductive hardware and a competitive price range to put a smartphone into the hands of previous mobile users, which is precisely what Orange and T-Mobile are likely to provide in time for Christmas.

Yes. Spanner's his real name. And, yes, he's heard that joke before.