Samsung launches first Android phone

Samsung has released its first Android-powered handset in Europe with the UK release set for the third quarter of this year.

It has hit the market in Germany just ahead of the HTC Magic, due to be released in the UK next week.

The i7500 is exclusive to Telefonica and is now available in Germany through O2, but a spokesperson from the company confirmed a third quarter release date for the UK.

A spokesperson from O2 told IT Pro: "As always we want to offer our customers the best range of devices and services, and those that provide the best customer experience. We will therefore take a view on all handsets incorporating the Google Android system based on these criteria."

The Cupcake-powered phone will have a five megapixel camera with flash, a 3.2 megapixel AMOLED touchscreen, 8GB of internal memory with the capability for a 32GB micro SD card and will only be 11.9mm thick, like its main rivals the G1 and iPhone.

Samsung Mobile Display predicted last week that smartphones growth will beat the recession, now let's see if the company can prove it.

Jennifer Scott is a former freelance journalist and currently political reporter for Sky News. She has a varied writing history, having started her career at Dennis Publishing, working in various roles across its business technology titles, including ITPro. Jennifer has specialised in a number of areas over the years and has produced a wealth of content for ITPro, focusing largely on data storage, networking, cloud computing, and telecommunications.

Most recently Jennifer has turned her skills to the political sphere and broadcast journalism, where she has worked for the BBC as a political reporter, before moving to Sky News.