T-Mobile started off the week with word of its first Samsung phone with Android. The Behold II has graduated from a feature phone to a full smartphone and carries the full Google suite of apps as well as Android Market for third-party apps. Unlike the Galaxy it's based on, though, the Behold II is Samsung's first phone to bring its TouchWiz interface and not only has the widget sidebar but a 3D cube menu that provides shortcuts to common tasks like media, the web and the Amazon MP3 online store. Microsoft Exchange sync also adds to what Google would bring itself.

The hardware is T-Mobile's first to use an AMOLED (active matrix organic light-emitting diode) touchscreen and gets much more vivid color in most lighting conditions without impacting battery life. Native support is in place for T-Mobile's 3G network, and a 5-megapixel camera, GPS and Wi-Fi come aboard. Most storage is supplied through microSDHC cards.

Unusually, T-Mobile won't say when the Behold II will ship or commit to a price, although the Android handset is expected before the end of this year.