Friday Evening Links > Google to roll out unsubsidized Android phone on T-Mobile

Google plans to sell its new phone without getting a wireless carrier to subsidize the handset. But that doesn’t mean it won’t work with a carrier: The search giant intends to launch its phone next year with the help of T-Mobile, say sources familiar with its plans.

Google (GOOG) has approached multiple carriers about supporting its new phone, which it has designed itself and will be produced by Taiwan’s HTC, sources say. But so far only T-Mobile has agreed to actively help push the phone via distribution channels and support infrastructure, I’m told.

But sources say Google’s decision to use GSM came only after Verizon Wireless (VZ), which uses the rival CDMA technology, declined to help Google push the new phone.

Google doesn’t intend to sell its new “Nexus One” phone that way, sources familiar with the company’s plans say. Instead, it envisions a scenario where customers who buy the handset are provided with a menu that lets them pick a carrier, menu-style.