Moto X's unique design choice earns a 7 out of 10 repairability score

Teardown specialist iFixit had their hands full on Friday as Motorola’s latest smartphone – the Moto X – finally hit retail. First impressions were generally good as the team found the device to be slightly smaller than the Galaxy S 4 and they were impressed with the contoured back shell although a defect next to the SIM card tray is hopefully an isolated incident.

Getting inside the Moto X proved a bit difficult as Motorola not only clipped the rear shell in place, they also used a bit of adhesive. Multiple steps (and tools) later, the team finally breached the interior only to find Motorola’s X8 Mobile Computing System front and center. The brains of the phone, this bundle includes a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, a natural language processor and a contextual computing processor.

This Friday Droid Razr HD Might Release

Droid Razr HD Release Date might be coming Friday

Motorola seems to be playing games and creating a mystery as well as hype. We could see something weird on Motorola’s official Face book page. But with those statements we could find out that Motorola Droid Razr HD release date is quite near.

On Tuesday we saw this, “Let’s play a game, Guess the Smartphone. We’ll give a clue each day all week and make the big reveal on Friday. I have the power of 4G LTE. Which Smartphone am I?”

On Wednesday we came across this statement, “Guess the Smartphone: I’m really fast! I browse the Web, multitask and power through emails with my 1.5 GHz dual-core processor. And just a note, I’m in market in the U.S. from Motorola already. Which Smartphone am I?”

On Thursday we saw, “Guess the Smartphone: Protected by DuPont™ KEVLAR® fiber, Corning® Gorilla® Glass and water repellent nano coating, I am super strong. I’m currently in market in theU.S.I’m stylish and I’m thin to boot. Which Smartphone am I?”

Now, while such mysteries and hypes are being created by Motorola, we could anticipate that it should be perhaps for Motorola Droid Razr HD only. This is because, this is the only Motorola phone which has a release date very much near. Also, the specs that the above puzzles are talking about might be the features of Droid Razr HD. Even the company is aware that there was loads of hype in relation to Motorola Droid Razr HD release date.

We have seen so many rumor rounds ups for Droid Razr HD aka Droid fighter and now when the release date seems to be so near, it is really quite thrilling and exciting. So, do let us know are you going to buy Droid Razr HD for its unique and much hyped features? Do let us know your views.

By the way, here’s the facebook official page for Motorola:http://www.facebook.com/motorola

Atrix HD accidentally posted early on Motorola's website

A blunder by Motorola has revealed detailed information and product photos of the upcoming Atrix HD smartphone. Astute observers noticed the phone on Motorola’s website, although the product page has since been pulled from the site. Of course, the specifications and pics were all copied before anyone at Motorola noticed the error.





According to the product page, the Atrix HD packs a 4.5-inch HD display with ColorBoost and onscreen navigation keys, a dual-core 1.5GHz processor, 1GB of system memory, 8GB of internal storage with up to 32GB via expandable storage using a microSD card and an 8MP rear camera with 1.3MP front cam. The rear camera is capable of recording 1080p video at 30 frames per second.

The phone will ship with Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, a 1780mAh battery and is said to measure 8.4mm thick. A 4G LTE radio will ensure a high-speed data connection. The rear casing is constructed of DuPont Kevlar fiber to increase rigidity and strength while the 4.5-inch screen is coated with Corning Gorilla Glass.

The original Atrix 4G was introduced at the 2011 CES and made available in the first quarter. The handset featured a dual-core Tegra 2 processor but it was most famous for its docking ability. The Atrix could essentially be turned into a computer of sorts using what most considered an overpriced notebook-sized expansion dock.

Consumers can expect to see the Atrix HD launch on AT&T in the US and possibly other carriers, although pricing and a release date were not mentioned.

Google to release branded tablet within six months

Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt has announced that his company will begin marketing a tablet to rival Apple and all others. Said tablet could be ready within the next six months, although any specific details regarding the device were left to the imagination.

In an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sea, Schmidt praised the late Steve Jobs, pointing out that he realized the revolutionary potential of the tablet beyond vertical and enterprise markets by bringing it to the consumer level. He even called the iPad an amazing product but of course was quick to remind readers that the two companies are competitors and that Google plans to market a tablet in the next six months “of the highest quality.”

What we don’t know yet is if the new tablet would be a Google-branded product or if they plan to work with another manufacturer on a rebranded launch. We’ve seen a few Google-badged smartphones over the years so that route wouldn’t be unheard of.

But perhaps the underlying story here could be Google’s announcement to buy Motorola’s mobility unit back inAugust for $12.5 billion. Andy Rubin, senior vice president of mobile at Google, stated a few months later that the company had no plans to get into the handset manufacturing business as a result of the planned acquisition, but would those same rules apply to the tablet industry?

Motorola recently dropped two new tablets, the Droid Xyboard 10.1 and 8.2 as a follow-up to the original Xoom early this year, perhaps meaning a Tegra 3 tablet by the middle of next year would be right on track.a

Google chairman says it will not favor Motorola during Asian tour

During his visit to South Korea as part of his Asian tour, Google's executive chairman Eric Schmidt took the opportunity to play down concerns that the search giant would give preferential treatment to Motorola once its planned purchase is completed.

South Korea is home to the world's biggest Android phone vendor, Samsung Electronics Co, which is in patent disputes with Apple as the iPhone maker seeks to curb Android's strong growth.

"In general, with all of our partners, we told them that the Motorola deal will close and we will run it sufficiently and independently, that it will not violate the openness of Android...we're not going to change in any material way the way we operate," Schmidt told reporters during his visit on Tuesday.

His comments will likely reassure HTC and Samsung, as well as other Android-based handset manufacturers, especially given that the two firms are locked in bitter disputes over patents that Apple say infringe their designs. When asked about the criticism given by the late Steve Jobs, that Android phones ripped off Apple's flagship phone Schmidt said, "the Android effort started before the iPhone effort."

"I've decided not to comment on what's been written on a book after his death. Steve is a fantastic human being and someone who I miss very dearly. As a general comment, I think most people would agree that Google is a great innovator and I would also point out that the Android effort started before the iPhone effort," Schmidt said.

His comments were in response to Steve Jobs' biography released last month, where he vowed to 'destroy' Android: "I will spend my last dying breath if I need to...to right this wrong. I'm going to destroy Android, because it's a stolen product. I'm willing to go to thermonuclear war on this."

During his visit, he met with executives from Samsung and LG Electronics, as well as cell carriers SK Telecom, KT Corp and LG Uplus. He also met with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and announced that Google is to open a YouTube channel dedicated to Korean pop music.

Motorola Droid RAZR hands-on impressions

While we work on the full written review of the Motorola DROID RAZR, I thought I'd at least share some of my gut feelings and impressions of the device, now that I've been using it for a short while.

To start with, Motorola really hit it out of the park with the hardware. The 7.1mm thick body is super tough thanks to its Kevlar back cover, Gorilla Glass up front, and a steel internal frame. You might lament the lack of a user replaceable battery, but you'll love the qHD resolution Super AMOLED display, speedy dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and fine 1080p-capable 8 megapixel camera. You simply can't argue with the results.

The software is surprisingly good, too. The Motorola user interface is mostly unobtrusive and workable, and the new Smart Actions system on the phone can really make the DROID RAZR seem self-aware at times.

I pretty much love everything about the phone. Pretty much. I'm certainly thankful for the high data rates offered by Verizon's LTE network, but the DROID RAZR is every bit a battery hog because of its LTE support. Even with a 1780mAh battery, this device struggles to get through a full day under relatively light duty. With some tweaks of the battery settings, of which there are many, and some clever Smart Actions, you might be able to extend its life. But out of the box, the Motorola DROID RAZR still wants for juice, and it runs excessively hot while it sucks down those milliwatt-hours.

In the end, if LTE is what you are after, there simply is no other device on the market that can package it up as slickly at the Motorola DROID RAZR.

The Motorola DROID RAZR will go on sale on November 11, 2011 ("11-11-11") for $299.99 with a two-year contract. For a limited time, Verizon is offering double the normal amount of data on its monthly data plans for 4G LTE smartphones. As such, a $30 monthly data plan will net a DROID RAZR user 4GB of data monthly.

Motorola building its own mobile OS

Over the past nine months, Motorola Mobility has been hiring engineering talent that is well-suited to create a new mobile operating system. The company has picked up a number of experienced mobile and Web engineers from Apple and Adobe to develop a Web-based mobile operating system, according to a source familiar with the matter quoted by InformationWeek. Officially, Motorola did not confirm or deny the existence of the project but did reaffirm its commitment to Android.

While Motorola has made quite a comeback in the mobile industry thanks to Android, one could argue that putting all your eggs in one basket is never a good idea. As a result, Motorola is trying to see how it could differentiate itself from other OEMs that are also embracing Android. It wants to keep its options open, just in case, instead of relying solely on Google.

Motorola isn't the first company to push for a Web-based operating system. Palm developed the powerful webOS before the company was acquired by Hewlett Packard for $1.2 billion. HP is now pushing forward with webOS: it released version 2.0 along with new devices in October 2010 and plans to put version 3.0 on all of its PCs next year.

Motorola isn't as big as HP and definitely doesn't have the same sized pockets. As a result, it would be very difficult for the company to offer its own OS and actually gain significant share.