Brits can now pre-order the sophomore Google smartphone - the Google Nexus S. It will be the first ever phone to run Android 2.3 Gingerbread and Google has its eye on the future with this one with NFC built-in and a unique curved display.

The Google Nexus S starts off with an excellent technology base (the Samsung Galaxy S) and builds on top of that - the specs sound great on paper and it got positive nods in early previews.

But all that gadget power is sure heavy on the wallet - UK’s Carphone Warehouse offers a SIM-free Nexus S for £550 (€657, $870). Of course, you have the option to get it for free on a two-year contract for £35-a-month.

The Google Nexus S should ship by the end of December (the initial estimate was December 20) and it's available for all major UK operators with plenty of plans to choose from. The only little perk is that it's exclusively sold by Carphone Warehouse.

Still, the price seems a bit steep - as a comparison the Samsung Galaxy S costs £415 SIM-free and is very close feature-wise to the Nexus S. Samsung is still undecided on whether the Galaxy S will get a Gingerbread update but at least it has a proper microSD card slot and HD video recording, which the Nexus S strangely lacks.

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