Verizon has yet to give a firm date on when we can all get our hands on some Droids, but we know one thing’s for certain: it’ll be fully revealed for the first time one week from today, October 28. The invitation that’s been extended to the media confirms that it’ll come from Motorola (of course), it’ll be Verizon’s “must-have device of the year,” and it’s got a very close association with giant, scary, glowing eyes. A far cry from Google’s friendly green bot, isn’t it?
Because television and the internet can’t be the only media feeling the touch of the Droid’s marketing blitz, it looks like promotional mailers are being sent out. No new details or screenshots, but you can’t get enough of Motorola / Verizon’s Android device anyway, can you? A few more pics past the read link.
In one of the boldest attacks on Apple’s iPhone so far, Verizon unveiled a TV commercial and website over the weekend that touted Droid, a new smartphone from Motorola, as a device that does everything the iPhone doesn’t.
Verizon’s “iDon’t” TV commercial and website (warning: Flash-centric site) displays a series of statements aimed directly at the iPhone, such as ‘iDon’t have a real keyboard, iDon’t customize, iDon’t allow open development,” but without naming the iPhone directly. (You can watch the Droid ad on YouTube, or scroll down to see the video here.)
The ad took industry watchers and analysts by surprise.
“It is very unusual in advertising to spend most of your time talking about your rivals,” says Tero Kuittinen, a senior analyst at MKM Partners. “The downside is that people will do exactly what Verizon has advised them to, which is to make direct comparisons between the Droid and iPhone.”
But, he added, “that may not always work out in Droid’s favor.”
The Droid, formerly codenamed ‘Sholes’ and also referred to at times with the codename ‘Tao,’ is an upcoming Android-based smartphone from Motorola. Droid is expected to have a 3.7-inch screen, a 5-megapixel camera, GPS, Wi-Fi, and access to the Android app market. It will also be the first phone to use the Android 2.0 operating system, aka “Eclair.”
It’s Motorola’s second Android-based phone. Last month, the company launched Cliq, its first Android phone on T-Mobile’s network. Droid will be Verizon’s first Android device and is expected to be available at the end of next month.
Verizon’s ad campaign for the Droid is the first official mention of the phone on the company’s network. But the carrier’s move to criticize the iPhone so openly and so early has left industry watchers such as Chandan Sarkar, an analyst with Auriga, a New York-based research and trading firm, puzzled.
“Given the tone of the commercials, it might risk upsetting Apple,” Sarkar says.
Verizon could also risk disappointing consumers later with the Droid because of the high expectations that it has set.
Sarkar says that it is clear that Verizon is betting on the Android OS as a way to fight Apple’s rise in the smartphone market.
“The question for Verizon is not whether Droid will be worth it, but whether Android will be worth it,” Sarkar says. “Verizon doesn’t have to hit a home run in the first wave but they want to establish a strong beachhead against Apple.”
Droid won’t be a run-of-the-mill Android phone, the two analysts interviewed by Wired.com say. Verizon has worked closely with Google and Motorola to develop the device, Sarkar says. Verizon may also be working with Google to develop applications for its LTE network (also known as 4G), he says.
Verizon might risk damaging its relationship with Apple. Though AT&T has a five-year exclusive contract, starting June 2007, to offer the iPhone in the U.S., Verizon has been seen as trying to get the device on its network. Apple also is reportedly working on a tablet that it might launch in partnership with a telecom carrier. Verizon is one of the contenders for that device.
“Verizon wants to send a message that they are not desperate for the iPhone and they have alternatives to the iPhone,” Kuittinen says. “But this kind of in-your-face attack is more than what anyone, including Apple, may have expected.”
What a difference two months make. It’s was late July when we first saw a render and spy shot of Motorola’s “other” Android devices, the Verizon-bound Droid, a.k.a. the Artist Formerly Known as Sholes. Boy Genius Report has been teasing the handset for the better part of the week, and now it’s giving us the full monty of the hardware, including its 5 megapixel autofocus camera on the back, and various Eclair-powered screens. Boy Genius himself notes that it’s the fastest Android device he’s used — thank goodness for an authentic OMAP3 — is “slightly” thicker than an iPhone 3GS, runs that Android 2.0 we’ve been hearing so much about, and includes a desktop cradle that turns the Droid into a glanceable display with weather and the like (sounds like a miniature Hub in a way, doesn’t it?). Anyhow, you want all to see the whole show? You know just where to click.
We knew Verizon Wireless would soon be throwing caution to the wind in an effort to sway uncommitted smartphone buyers towards Big Red, and it looks like the November-bound Motorola Droid will be VZW’s anti-iPhone. The spot, which launched tonight and can be view in its entirety after the break, is a 30 second clip that begins by mocking Apple’s cutesy music and iconic font typically seen in iPhone plugs. It reels off a number of things that the iPhone can’t do, and then abruptly goes into full-on tease mode by flashing glimpses of a robot-controlled future and a tagline that simply states: “Droid Does.” No shots of the actual Motorola Droid (or Sholes, as it was known in the past) are shown, but a dedicated teaser portal has already been erected; through that, we’re told that the phone will boast Android 2.0 and a 5 megapixel camera. At this point, we’d say the gloves are definitely off — AT&T, have anything to say for yourself, or is the iPhone doing just fine on its own?
Update: See that alien counter that’s just sitting on the lower end of the teaser page? As reader Craig N. and a number of others have pointed out, a quick perusal through the page’s XML file reveals the end of that timer to be October 30th — not that we expect to be waiting that long for more Droid news, but it’s something to keep in mind.
None too long after its first headshot was posted did Motorola Droid (a.k.a. Sholes) make a covert encore appearance, only showing off this time the startup process. It provides a bit more evidence — as if we really needed any — that the phone’s bound for Verizon’s network, and any Android customizations, at least from the initial glance, are nothing to write home about. It might be running Eclair, but we really can’t say from this. One thing’s for certain: we’ll be looking for a way to turn off that “Droid” voice from speaking every time we power up the phone. Video after the break.
We really don’t need any more convincing that the Sholes is real, but what about the Torch? Oh, you don’t remember that one? Yeah, we had to look it up to refresh our memory — turns out this was the rumored market name for the Inferno, a touchscreen featurephone Moto apparently had in the works to replace the Krave on Verizon. The company has just published press shots of the battery covers of both the Sholes and the Torch — those are the names Motorola is using, though it’s not uncommon for them to refer to press shots by codename, so we wouldn’t make much of it — so if we had to guess, the Torch is still alive. Also notable is the fact that they’re showing two versions of the Sholes’ cover, one with a Verizon logo and one without, so this is a strong indicator that there’ll be a second model — most likely for overseas GSM markets. Or, you know, an unlocked US 3G version. Dare to dream, right?
Well well, it looks like the Android-powered Motorola Sholes will be out on Verizon by the holidays. That’s at least the impression we’re getting from a bunch of leaked Verizon retailer documents posted up by Boy Genius Report, which also indicate the BlackBerry Storm 2, Curve 2 and LG Chocolate Touch will hit Big Red in time for eggnog, along with an unspecified netbook — we’re guessing this Gateway number. Speaking of netbooks, a similar document from Best Buy Mobile also leaked over the weekend, and it looks like the Nokia Booklet 3G will be exclusive to Best Buy and compatible with AT&T 3G. Oh, and the Pixi is coming, but you already knew that. Here’s the real mystery, though: “There are multiple Android launches across multiple carriers, along with some new technology that doesn’t exist today.” That’s certainly open for interpretation, so we leave it to you — is Best Buy Mobile about to start selling teleporters, or what?
Read – Sam’s Club and Target Verizon docs Read – Best Buy Mobile docs
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