T-Mobile exec praises Android, attacks Windows

Comments from a Deutsche Telekom executive suggest the operator favours Google's Android mobile operating system over Windows Mobile because of flexibility and power management issues.

Reinhard Clemens, chief executive of Deutsche Telekom subsidiary T-Systems, is quoted in Fierce Wireless as saying Android is "the first OS that enables the development of cellphone software without the need to change the code to support specific handsets", and claiming "Windows Mobile devours simply too much energy, and the user needs to be close to a power socket if they intend to use a Windows Mobile handset with the OS for any length of time".

Android's one real-world implementation thus far - the T-Mobile G1 - is no long-distance runner itself, needing a fresh charge after a day or less. Nonetheless, the flexibility of the system for operators is undeniable.

If proper Exchange functionality can be implemented on Android, then it will be a proper competitor to Windows Mobile in the enterprise market. Until then, however, Google's OS may find itself a consumer-only proposition.