The event was expected to be the announcement of a new Google Android handset, the LG-made 'Nexus 4', as well as at least one new Android tablet and, possibly, an update to the Android operating system.
The event was due to be held on the west side of Manhattan at 10am local time but with Hurricane Sandy approaching the east coast of the United States, Google has been forced to cancel the event. In a statement, it said: "We are cancelling our Monday morning event in New York due to Hurricane Sandy. We will let you know our plans as soon as we know more. Stay safe and dry, The Android Team."
The cancellation gives Micrasoft the opportunity to focus all attention on its Windows Phone 8 launch event in San Francisco this evening. Though some manufacturers have shown off Windows Phone 8 handsets already, details of the operating system have not been fully revealed. Microsoft is expected to do that this evening.
Some details of Google's planned announcements appear to have leaked over the weekend. On Friday, Carphone Warehouse published a page on its website that gave details of the Google Nexus 4 handset.
The page, which was later withdrawn, said the Nexus 4 will have a 4.7-inch screen with density of 320 pixels per inch, just shy of the iPhone 5’s 326. The handset was listed as measuring 68.7 by 133.9 by 9.1 millimetres, apparently thicker than its Apple rival’s 7.6 millimetres.
The Nexus 4 is expected to run an updated version of the current version of Android 4.1, Jelly Bean, rather than the next full-blown release, 4.2, codenamed Key Lime Pie. The incremental update appeared to be confirmed by Carphone Warehouse’s page, which said it will run Jelly Bean 4.1.2 on a quad-core 1.5GHz Snapdragon S4 processor.