First Google Android phone fails to ignite mobile users

Android has had a lukewarm reception

The first handset based on Google’s Android platform has hit the UK streets today, but the majority of mobile users are not planning to splash out on a T-Mobile G1, according to the results of a new vnunet.com poll.

The G1 went on sale in T-Mobile shops across the UK this morning, following its US launch last week.

Of the 1,347 respondents to the vnunet.com poll, almost a third said they were not interested in purchasing a G1. The main barrier to purchase was price.

Just over a third of respondents, 464 in all, said the £40 per month contract was too expensive; a further 330 respondents (24 per cent) said they preferred the Apple iPhone or a different smartphone; while another four per cent said they would not purchase the G1 as it was unsuitable for business use.

Only 19 per cent of respondents said they were planning on signing up to the current T-Mobile G1 contract option.

However, the poll results are not all gloomy for Google’s open-source mobile platform, as 18 per cent of respondents said they would be interested in an Android handset once their current mobile operator releases a handset.