HTC’s Android-powered G1 handset, to be exclusively available in the US, from the 22nd of this month, has sold a staggering 1.5 million, in terms of pre-orders. Initially, it was thought that the G1 will sell around 400,000 units, before years-end.

Well, the number of pre-orders has trounced that figure, and there’s still two and a half months to go, until years end. It seems, despite not having the most impresive spec sheet, punters are taken in by the open source nature of Android, and the G1.

What with LG and Samsung announcing they’re working on Android-based handsets, as well as Motorola, the competition between Android handsets will be hotting up next year for sure.