By Ray Nicolini
Is this the first step in combining mobile phones and laptops as one? Motorola brought a lot of firepower to the mobile smartphone world with the release of the Motorola Atrix. I've got a few cool things I want to talk about in this review so lets see if this is a score or a snore....
What’s so awesome?
Motorola is powered by Android 2.2 Operating system. Which is the most current mobile Android operating system in the Canadian market. With an awesome operating system, it is backed up by a dual core processor running on 1GB ram. (A first for any smartphone). The beefed up dual core processor not only lets you run more powerful apps, but also lets you play more graphic intense games and surfing the net just got way faster!
It has a MASSIVE 4” qHD display, first phone to be using a qHD display. I have had a chance to play around with the Atrix and it can be a sure contender with some of the other screen technology like the Super AMOLED, and Retina Display. Feels great on big hands like mine.
Another cool feature right out of the box is the Biometric fingerprint reader. No longer do you need to think about your next series of circle to thread. You can easily unlock your phone with a swipe of your finger. This is great for the tech savvy business men who decides to leave the country with sensitive information saved on their phones such as, emails, documents, and business presentations. Only you can unlock your phone.
Basic Specifications:
2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network: HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
Display: 4” qHD multi-touch display at 540x960 pixels
O/S: Android 2.2 (Froyo) with MotoBLUR
Processor: Dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor
Audio Output: 3.5mm Jack
Storage Capacity: 16GB onboard and MicroSD up to 32GB
WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA
Bluetooth: V2.1 with A2DP, EDR
Camera: VGA (front), 5MP (back)
Video Recording: 720p at 30FPS
GPS: A-GPS Support
Flash Support: Flash 10.1 player
Features: MotoBlur, Haptic Feedback, Fingerprint Reader, LapDock.
Stand-by time: up to 264hours (2G), Up to 250hours (3G)
Talk-time: up to 8 hours (2G), up to 9hours (3G)
So let me get back to my first sentence. With a cool new phone, comes cool accessories and apps. Motorola will be releasing handful of accessories on launch day and an app that revolutionizes the way mobile computing is used forever.
WebTop Application
The WebTop App is preinstalled in every Atrix handset. With the WebTop app enabled, your phone will become a computer; allowing you to browse the internet with a full screen browser on Firefox, check your cloud-based emails, create documents, folder management, Facebook and make calls. There is a lot to cover, hard to explain it in words, but watch the video below. It blows my mind how powerful this app is.
Standard Dock
The standard dock will sit your Motorola Atrix at a comfortable viewing angle so you can continue watching videos and playback your photos.
HD Multimedia Dock
The Multimedia Dock is not just any charging dock with fancy piano black. This baby automatically fires up the WebTop app when your Atrix is docked. You can connect this dock to any HDTV or LCD/LED Monitor and playback your favorite videos and photos. The Dock is connected with a HDMI port and can support up to 3 USB devices. Add a Keyboard and Mouse in the mix and you got yourself a full desktop PC experience.
Vehicle Dock
When you pair your Motorola Atrix with their vehicle dock, it will enable buttons with easy access to communication, navigation information and entertainment needs. Less time on your handset and more time on the road. What a Bonuswith driving laws in Canada these days!
Lapdock
The reason why Atrix won 10 awards in this year’s CES 2011 is all about the integration of Mobile Phones and Laptops. The Lapdock brings the best of mobile phones and laptops as one. When you pair your Atrix with the Lapdock, the WebTop application will auto load. Even if you’re on call, you can instantaneously dock your Atrix and your right back into the call seemlessly without hesitation. The LapDock is essential a docking hub that looks and feels like a laptop. I find this great for students always on the go.
Verdict
I think the innovation and the monster dual core processor blows every contender out of the park. I personally thought that MotoBLUR needs a bit of revision as it has visible lag on the operating system such as unlock key swipe key and general scrolling through the interface. The phone is backed by a plethora of apps in the Android marketplace, which I absolutely love. qHD is trying to bring sexy back, but when compared side-by-side to a SUPER AMOLED screen or a Retina Display, I find that color saturation can be washed out. Hopefully a software update will fix it up.
This phone will be exclusively for Bell in Canada. Motorola Atrix will also come pre-loaded with Bell Remote PVR, GPS Navigator, Kobo eReader as well as easy access to Bell’s Self Serve feature.
I totally recommend this to High-schoolers and Post secondary students as well as business men who fly a lot and would like to keep all his business documents in one mobile handset. Motorola is getting really serious about reining the mobile world again and I think this is the start of something good.
Innovation: 10/10
Bringing the mobile handset and Laptop closer pretty much says everything.
Hardware Design: 10/10
First ARM Cortex A9 dual core processor on a mobile handset, with 1GB ram I’d say it’s the monster of all monsters…. For now
Cosmetic Design: 8.5/10
Even though it feels like a piece of plastic, it is surprisingly well built.
Software Performance: 8/10
There are times when MotoBLUR will have it’s kinks here and there but Android is a well built operating system and nothing to shy upon.
Although my time with the Atrix was short, I was unable to get around to put my writing into video. However I got some teaser video by Motorola for some viewing pleasure =)
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