Widely circulated reports have placed a $199 price tag on T-Mobile's
HTC Dream, the first Google Android-powered phone.  T-Mo and Google are
holding a big shindig next Tuesday morning in New York City to launch
the device, and according to TechCrunch
(and many others), the phone will sport a "Same as iPhone 3G" $199
launch price - $199, of course, being the price with a new two-year
T-Mobile contract.  There's no word on what the device may cost without
contract or with a contract extension for current customers, though
Crunch's source "did say that T-Mobile's subsidization wasn't very
large."  That could indicate a relatively low off-contract price, which
could make Dream the new best friend of phone geeks everywhere.

We're
also hearing either Friday, October 17 or Monday, October 20 as the
"Come 'n get it!" date when Dream will be made available to T-Mobile
customers.  That would give T-Mo a few weeks past the reported early October nationwide 3G
network rollout.  You'd best believe that 3G network needs to be in
place and noticeably more stable than the AT&T/iPhone 3G mess of
the past few months in order ot make Google happy.

Be sure to stop by next Tuesday morning starting at 10:30 ET for PhoneDog's coverage of the T-Mobile/Google press event.