European consumers will have an unprecedented array of choice in mobile phones this Christmas as handset makers and mobile phone operators sharpen up their offerings to rival Apple’s new iPhone handset.

Mobile phone operators without the iPhone on their portfolios are expected to heavily promote Sony Ericsson’s new Walkman music phones, a new 8 megabyte version of Nokia’s N95 music and internet phone, and Samsung’s F-700, which has a large touch-screen similar to that of the iPhone.