We already knew that Acer had a phone on the way but now we know that it will come in the first quarter of 2009. The company has dabbled in mobile before but devices were released under other names… this will be a true, Acer-branded phone.

Acer purchased Taiwanese Smartphone manufacturer E-Ten earlier this year and device launch dates were said to start in Western Europe and Russia with other markets to follow. While suggested launch dates ranged from early 2009 to late 2009… er, some point in 2009… a Digitimes article suggests 1st Quarter WILL see an Acer Phone.

Details about the Acer phone? None. A name? A picture leak? Not yet. But we’re eager to get some!

Although growth in the mobile industry for 2009 looks bleek, Acer thinks that mobile can be a huge growth sector for the company:

Wang believes that the smartphone segment will me a major growth driver for the company over the next 3-5 years. Acer plans to increase staff in its smartphone division to 500 employees including 200 transfered from E-Ten’s R&D division. According to company sources, moving forward Acer will take over the reins of smartphone development, while E-Ten will focus on real-time stock tracking devices, the market segment in which E-Ten built its first success back in the late 1990s.

We’re looking forward to this. Hopefully Acer can come up with something a little more interesting than their fellow computer competitors, Dell.

[Via DigiTimes]