LAS VEGAS -- Google announced its new smartphone NexusOne this morning, and Microsoft tries to one-up with some news about ... zzzzzz ... Office 2010 pricing.

To be fair, lot of people do use Microsoft Word, Excel and Powerpoint. In fact, the company's announcement by Office General Manager Rachel Bondi gamely mentions an NPD group statistic that Office Home and Student was the bestselling software the week of Black Friday after Thanksgiving last year. Microsoft also reports that 2 million people have downloaded the Office 2010 beta.

The prices are below. The announcement did not mention a release date, but the company says it will start selling in 2010.

Boxed copies:
Office Home and Student, $149
Office Home and Business, $279
Office Professional, $499
Office Professional Academic, $99

Product key cards:
Office Home and Student, $119
Office Home and Business, $199
Office Professional, $349

I'm typing this up from the Starbucks in the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas, where it's like working from inside a "Guitar Hero" game. The soundtrack for this particular blog item is "November Rain," by Guns N' Roses.

I am in Vegas to report on the Consumer Electronics Show, which officially starts Thursday.