Is This a $100 Google Phone? (GOOG)

Gizmodo says this is supposedly the T-Mobile G2 -- the follow-up to Google's (GOOG) G1, the first phone running its Android mobile operating system.

If so, we assume it will sell for cheap: $99, or $80 less than the G1, we think.

Why?

We don't know the specs, but it looks like it could be cheaper to make than the G1 -- no slide-out keyboard, for instance.

And we think it will have to compete with other $99 smartphones. For example, we expect Apple to offer a $99 iPhone this year. T-Mobile, HTC, and Google would be smart to keep matching (or beating) Apple's pricing.

While Google's long-term success in the mobile advertising market doesn't rely on Android, it couldn't hurt to go after a few more points of market share. A Morgan Stanley survey suggests Apple's (AAPL) iPhone outsold the G1 almost six-to-one in the U.S. last quarter.

And new competitors are on the way, such as Palm's (PALM) sexy Pre, whatever new iPhones Apple releases this year, and perhaps Android-powered phones on more U.S. carriers.

So if this is the real G2, we think it'll specifically be a cheaper alternative to the G1.

On February 28, Axel Springer, Business Insider's parent company, joined 31 other media groups and filed a $2.3 billion suit against Google in Dutch court, alleging losses suffered due to the company's advertising practices.

Is This A $100 Google Phone? (GOOG)