The Samsung Galaxy Note 3 works with a variety of next-generation abilities, most of them based in its unique S Pen technology – one thing it doesn’t have (but almost did) is a fingerprint scanner. Currently rolling out with the iPhone 5s with Touch ID and quite likely appearing on the HTC One Max, the […]
When Motorola launched its Webtop concept alongside the original Atrix 4G, it had grand visions of replacing our PCs with a smartphone, a Lapdock and some optimism for a mobile-focused future. Most of us don’t appear to have shared that rose-tinted view, as Motorola has confirmed that devices from the Photon Q 4G LTE and Droid RAZR M onward don’t carry Webtop and won’t get it in the future. The firm is blunt in explaining the cut and says that “adoption has not been strong enough” — we just weren’t buying those desktop- and laptop-oriented docks in the large numbers Motorola would need to devote further attention. As CNET explains, the move isn’t surprising in light of Google’s cost cutting as well as an initial $500 Lapdock price that likely chilled any momentum, even after prices dropped to as little as $200 in the Atrix 2 era. We’d also point to a market that still favors budget laptops and tablets: when $400 will get you an entirely separate Transformer Pad TF300, albeit without a keyboard, it’s hard to justify buying what amounts to an empty shell. At least we’ll still have our PadFone to keep us company while you read the full statement below.
Motorola’s Webtop app helps users extend their smartphone experience to larger screens. While consumers around the world have adopted Webtop and the concept spurred a lot of innovation in the industry, the adoption has not been strong enough to justify continued resources being allocated to developing Webtop on future devices. We have also seen development of the Android operating system focus on the inclusion of more desktoplike features. Beginning with Photon Q and Droid Razr M/Droid Razr HD/Droid Razr Maxx HD, we will no longer be including Webtop on our products moving forward.
Filed under: Cellphones, Peripherals, Mobile, Google
Motorola phases out Webtop, points to a Lapdock-shy world originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 07 Oct 2012 13:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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If you’re the owner of the Motorola Atrix 4G smartphone who has been counting the days until you get your hands on the promised Android 4.0 update, you’re out of luck. Motorola had previously indicated that owners of the smartphone would get the Ice Cream Sandwich update. A newly revised upgrade chart has been published that clearly shows no upgrade in the works.
According to the new chart, the Atrix 4G will remain on Android 2.3 Gingerbread. Combine the fact that Motorola has no plans to upgrade the operating system for Atrix 4G owners past Gingerbread and the fact that the boot loader is reportedly locked for users who applied a previous update, and you have a recipe for unhappy Motorola owners. Motorola previously said the Atrix 4G would be receiving Android 4.0 in Q3 of this year.
Motorola has a history of eliminating operating system updates on Android devices at around the two-year mark. In the past, at around two years from release Motorola decided not to offer ICS updates to a pair of smartphones launched in 2010 – the Droid 2 and Droid X.
Never having offered the ICS upgrade for your smartphone might be irritating. However, having your smartphone pegged for an upgrade and then having a company back out on that upgrade is a different animal altogether. Android users will have to start looking at the upgrade list with a dubious eye.
[via ArsTechnica]
Motorola Atrix 4G owners won’t get Android 4.0 update after all is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
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Smartphones: the future of wartime communication? That is the goal of the US Army through the development of its portable wireless network, dubbed Warfighter Information Network-Tactical or WIN-T. The Army hopes to leverage WIN-T to bring near-instant digital communication to the battlefield by outfitting soldiers with Motorola Atrix handsets running a heavily modified version of Android. An exposé by Wired explains that the system’s main goal is information and intelligence sharing; between both soldiers and central command. Friendly troop positions, suspicious vehicles or persons and surveillance video from unmanned areal vehicles (UAVs) can all be mapped and shared with servicemen and women in the field. It’s been a dream of the Pentagon since the mid-nineties, but has only recently become monetarily and technologically feasible due to advances in smartphone processing power. It’s nerdy, it’s fascinating… and this is the stuff the Army is willing to talk about. Hit the source link for the full write-up.
Android Army: US soldiers to leverage portable battlefield network and smartphones originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 30 Jun 2012 01:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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