Verizon Wireless is expected this week to show off several devices powered by Google Inc. software for its new 4G network, underscoring the importance of the two companies’ relationship even as speculation mounts that Verizon will get to offer the iPhone this year.

On Thursday, at the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the country’s largest wireless carrier plans to demonstrate products including smartphones made by Samsung Electronics Co., Motorola Inc., HTC Corp. and LG Electronics Co. and at least one tablet computer, according to a person familiar with the plans. They would be the first 4G phones from Verizon. The new products are expected to run on Google’s Android operating system, this person said.

Verizon Wireless, which is jointly owned by Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, has aggressively marketed Google-powered phones, as the two companies have sought to counter AT&T Inc.’s exclusive hold on Apple Inc.’s market-leading iPhone.

In December, Verizon said in a Twitter message that Android and its new 4G service are like “peanut butter and chocolate.” The new fourth-generation wireless technology promises super-fast broadband service, aiming to make it easier to watch mobile video, among other things.

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