Motorola DROID: First Google Android 2.0 Handset Available on Nov. 6, 2009 for $199

Android, which is Google's mobile operating system, has already powered smartphones like the T-Mobile myTouch 3G and T-Mobile G1 (also known as the HTC Dream).

We now have two new Android firsts with a handset called the Motorola DROID: the first smartphone based on the upgraded Android 2.0 operating system and the first Android device for Verizon Wireless rather than T-Mobile.

Verizon Wireless announced on Wednesday that the Motorola DROID will debut on Nov. 6, 2009 for $199 with a new two-year contract and after a $100 mail-in rebate. The T-Mobile myTouch 3G went on sale for $199 on Aug. 5, 2009.

The 6-ounce DROID is designed to rival the iPhone 3G S for AT&T and the Palm Pre for Sprint.

The new 3G phone has a 3.7-inch touch screen, is one of the thinnest (0.5 of an inch) full-QWERTY sliders, has access to apps (currently about 12,000) on the Android Market, a 5-megapixel camera with a dual-LED flash, 16 gigabytes of storage space and a 6.4-hour battery.

Google has promised to release at least 18 handsets based on Android by the end of 2009, according to the New York Times.