Google Announces New Android Phone OS

At least for the time being, the oft-rumored 'Gphone' is going to be a phone operating system, instead of a branded hardware device. Hoping to integrate Google services into your phone handset, the G has announced the Android open source OS. Partnering with over 30 companies, Android is based on the Linux kernel, and is designed not to differentiate between the phone's core applications and third-party applications. So any application will run taking full advantage of the hardware capabilities of the handset.
Reading about this, it sounds more like a PC than a phone OS. Enabling you to use any image for the screen background, the style of the dialer, whatever application you want to view images...while undoubtedly offering you those nifty Google services you just can't live without.
Privacy alert: With Android, a software developer can "combine information from the web with data on an individual's mobile phone -- such as the user's contacts, calendar, or geographic location -- to provide a more relevant user experience." Read: advertising. Location tracking seems to be a big deal with this new OS, with the ability for developers to program interactivity with social media. Imagine your phone beeping at you when a Twitter pal is nearby, enabling you to meet up. Could be a neat feature; although applications for new technologies have a way of evolving into some creepy uses...