Well this was an interesting tidbit I saw over at rizzn.com.  So what was interesting? 

Mark "Rizzn" Hopkins has been sitting on this ALL WEEKEND and had to wait until today but as I write this, Mark is recording his podcast and saying that it is real.  His source, speaking on conditions of anonymity, said that he was baffled at Google's apparent internal confusion on the GPhone issue - that they've actually demo'ed the thing in public before.

He said that the Google (applications) Suite is going to play a huge role in the usability of the GPhone, and the thought process behind it's functionality is less about beating the iPhone and more about beating the $100 Laptop, which provides a huge clue behind what will be the pricing structure on this.
This is my analysis based on what he told me: It'll probably be sold at a loss or sold as a loss leader to increase ad-monetized content viewing. Just a guess though.

When he was telling me about all the nuances of what he's seen the thing do, I couldn't help but audibly remark about the FCC bid for the 700mhz spectrum making a whole lot more sense. He didn't come out and say it, but I got the impression that they were gunning for the spectrum with a vengeance.
Essentially, this is a post to say that this is a solid confirmation on the GPhone - regarding the two week timetable on it's release, he said he could not confirm that part of the story. I suggested a theory that perhaps they'll show a version of the phone in two weeks (or a press conference about it), but it might not be available for American release until later, and he seemed to think that was a reasonable theory.

Other tidbits that I'm trying to recall based on questions I've received from readers:

• It's a modified Linux kernel
• There is integrated GPS and GoogleMaps
• (there were other things, I'll probably update this list once my memory is jogged by conversation during the show)

I couldn't get much more out of him than that, and he wouldn't put anything on the record, due to his unique position at the company he wasn't sure what exactly he was allowed to say, but his exuberance and confidence was quite clear when he talked about the GPhone.

So, you can listen to the show right NOW (Episode 116), and hear about all the GPhone.

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