Google says the Nexus One from HTC, which is the next device based on Google's Android 2.1 operating system, can't even be contained in the word "smartphone". The company says it's a "superphone".

No matter which word you call it, T-Mobile customers on Tuesday now have the chance to buy it for $179 with a two-year contract.

One of the first features you should notice is its speed. Its 1-gigahertz processor from Qualcomm means you should see better multitasking, Google's Eric Tseng told reporters on Tuesday at its Mountain View, Calif. headquarters.

Google employees were the first to get their hands on it three weeks ago. The new device has been eagerly anticipated ever since.

While the iPhone 3G S is generally known as a swift phone in terms of its processing power, software slowdowns have been widely experienced on the popular Palm Pre for Sprint.

Processor speed is an increasingly important element of a smartphone as its users demand more functionality from the full-featured devices.

The Nexus One also has a 5-megapixel camera with an LED flash, a 3.7-inch display and it's only 11.5 millimeters thick. That equates to 0.45 of an inch, which nears even the thinnest handset on our slim cell phone list. It's a bit thinner than the iPhone 3G S, which is 0.48 of an inch thick.

Surprisingly, the Nexus One only comes with a 4-gigabyte microSD card, but it's expandable to 32 gigabytes. It also has a light sensor, accelerometer (i.e. so the screen flips with you when you rotate it) and proximity sensor.

If you're interested in the Nexus One but you're not at T-Mobile, you have two other options. It's available now in unlocked form for a pricey $529. This means it's not tied to a certain carrier and can be used where you have service.

Google also says the Nexus One will be available this spring at a discounted price with a Verizon Wireless contract. Engadget published the first official review of the Nexus One on Jan. 2, 2009, which says the Nexus One "is not very different than the Motorola DROID in any substantial way".

A few minutes could save you up to 26 percent on your monthly cell phone bill without buying or signing up for anything new.

But how? This new article reveals the simple secret of the corporate cell phone discount.

Are you already saving money every month on your cell phone bill because of a corporate discount? Did you recently get this discount activated? Tell us how much money you're saving in our poll below!

Text messaging has dramatically changed how we use mobile phones. Texting has even noticeably reduced the amount of voice minutes we use.

But cell phone etiquette comes into play with text messaging, too.

While some people use texting for a back-and-forth conversation that could go on for dozens of short messages, others feel the exchange should only last for a few from each side.

How many total text messages need to be sent per conversation until it's time to pick up the phone and talk it out by voice? Share your opinion in the new About.com poll below! You can take more About.com cell phone polls here.

GPS is now heavily integrated into cell phones and smartphones.

For the mobile user, the global satellites can now give us turn-by-turn driving directions and are utilized by a wide array of location-based smartphone applications.

We want to know how often you use GPS and if you have any stories of when the technology was particularly useful to you. Share your answer here and be published on About.com!