You can stop holding your breath; as of the 31st October the T-Mobile G1 went on sale in the UK. Unfortunately, it’s exclusive to T-Mobile (we’re sure that will change in the future - it’s not like Google to be tied to one distributor). The G1 is available for free on T-Mobile Combi and Flext tariffs which start at £40 a month. This tariff includes unlimited mobile internet browsing so this should appeal to many of you.

The G1 includes Google Maps, allowing users to view maps, satellite imagery and get driving directions. A really nice feature of the G1 is that Google Maps synchs with the built-in compass - 360 degree navigation made simple. There are currently 50 applications that users can download for free at Android Market (it’s a sort of App Store clone) but expect to see a growing list of goodies as developers jump onto the Android bandwagon.

It’s looks like the G1 is off to a good start; free apps, a reasonable tariff and some pretty interesting features built into the Android OS should entice many users over to the way of Google. How will Apple respond to this?

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