Huawei Plans Android Handsets for 2009

The major Chinese equipment provider has jumped on board with Google for as many as three new phones this year.

Of all the manufacturers expected to debut Android handsets at this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, the Chinese manufacturer Huawei may have been one of the least expected. Nonetheless, the relatively little-known (but enormous) company worked its way to prominence on Monday by showing off a prototype of its upcoming Android handset.

The slate-like phone on display drew obvious inspiration from the iPhone in its external styling, but Huawei offered very few details on what’s inside. The company, which offers its handsets directly to cell carriers who often brand them as their own, says it plans to launch two to three Android handsets this year. The as-of-yet-unnamed one on display at MWC should be commercially available by the third quarter of 2009.

Supposedly, the company has also partnered with an “established design consultancy” to tweak and refine the Android interface. No details on pricing, or which carriers will be carrying the handsets, have yet been announced.