KEY POINTS:
Telecom is looking at mobile phones using Google's Android OS.
US mobile phone carrier T-Mobile is set to release the first handset running Google's new Android mobile operating system.
The open source Android OS was seen on prototypes at this year's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
T-Mobile's handset will be the first production device to run Android, and will be a version of HTC's Dream, which will be rebadged in the US as G1.
While no official pictures of the Dream are available, early information indicates it will feature a full QWERTY keypad which either slides or swivels out from the body of the device. It will have a touchscreen with internet navigation controls set below.
Telecom sells re-branded HTC phones in New Zealand under the name Okta.
"We are currently investigating devices that run the Android operating system including the Dream," said Telecom spokeswoman Rebecca Earl.
"The Android platform is a newly developed, open source environment that is in its infancy, and we will closely monitor its uptake and stability with customers before we launch devices. We look forward to more handset manufacturers launching devices with this as their primary operation system."
T-Mobile's launch event will take place on September 23, but insiders believe it will be mid to late October before the handsets are actually available.
Android is entering a highly competitive handset market, taking on Nokia's Symbian, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile and Apple's iPhone, but its open source nature has already gained an enthusiastic following.
An industry body called the Open Handset Alliance, which includes 30 tech companies, was responsible for Android's development.
