First photo of Google Phone: Nexus One by HTC Corp.

A Photo of the Google phone Nexus One - which Google employees are currently testing out and will be available for customers next year - has been released on Twitter.

On Saturday, Google posted a message on its Mobile Blog referring ambiguously to a new mobile phone 'concept' device that Google's employees had been given to test.

This new device, called Nexus One, combines innovative hardware from a partner with software that runs on Android to experiment with new mobile features and capabilities, Mario Queiroz, a Google vice president of product management wrote in the post.

The image (above) was posted on Saturday on Twitter by Cory O'Brien, an account manager at a San Francisco Bay Area marketing agency that does not list Google as a client.

O'Brien tweeted Google Phone = iPhone + a little extra screen and a scroll wheel. Great touch screen, and Android.

The Nexus One, according to the Wall Street Journal, is manufactured by HTC Corp. and runs on Android, Google's operating system for mobile phones.

The difference between this Android phone and others already out there in the market, is that Google designed the entire software experience behind the phone, the source said. This includes the applications that run on the phone to the look and feel of each screen.

According to TechCrunch, the device looks to be coming out in January.

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