T-Mobile has unveiled the world’s first mobile phone powered by Android, an open-source mobile platform led by Google. T-Mobile G1 is a touch-screen mobile phone that includes a QWERTY keyboard and features applications like Google Maps with StreetView, Gmail and YouTube. The phone will be available in the U.S. beginning Oct. 22 for a price of $179 and in the United Kingdom in early November with other international launch dates scheduled throughout 2009.

Cole Brodman, chief technology and innovation officer, T-Mobile USA, said, “The Internet and the mobile phone are both indispensable tools for our hectic lives, but only a fraction of us access the Web on our phones. The T-Mobile G1 is our opportunity in the U.S. to accelerate the mass adoption of the mobile Web, by unleashing Google innovation with a unique software experience that mobilizes the Google services hundreds of millions of consumers rely on every day.”

With one-click contextual search, T-Mobile G1 customers in a flash can search for relevant information with a touch of a finger. A full HTML Web browser allows users to see any Web page the way it was designed to be seen, and then easily zoom in to expand any section by simply tapping on the screen. With built-in support for T-Mobile’s 3G and EDGE network as well as Wi-Fi, the T-Mobile G1 can connect to the best available high-speed data connection for surfing the Web and downloading information quickly and effortlessly.

The real question is just how competitive the market is going to get as a result of Google being involved. “While search won’t necessarily play the identical role in mobile it does online, it will still be a prominent part of the mobile Internet experience,” says Greg Sterling at Search Engine Land. “You can bet Google is banking on that.” Sterling also has an in depth look at said market, taking into account data from Nielsen as well as Android Co-founder Andy Rubin’s recent “future of mobile” post on the Google Blog.

With a fun and intuitive user interface and one-touch access to Google Search, the T-Mobile G1 is also the first phone to provide access to Android Market, where customers can find and download unique applications to expand and personalize their phone to fit their lifestyle.