Droid Bionic benchmark reports PowerVR GPU, new SOC inside?

Droid Bionic Benchmark

A very strange thing popped up on mobile graphic benchmarking site NenaMark the other day — an entry for the Droid Bionic. Now, it would be very easy to fake this test, and you’d be right to be skeptical given the incomplete score and the fact that it’s reporting PowerVR’s SGX 540 GPU, instead of the Tegra 2 we saw at CES. But, let’s not be too hasty — we heard back in April that NVIDIA’s mobile chip wasn’t playing nice with Verizon’s LTE. Perhaps when Motorola said it was delaying the Bionic to incorporate “several enhancements” it really meant “rebuilding the phone with a more LTE friendly CPU.” Both Samsung and Texas Instruments use the SGX 540, and Moto has previously turned to TI’s OMAP for the Droid, Droid 2, and Droid X. Then again, a single, suspiciously low benchmark score isn’t the most convincing basis for a rumor.

Droid Bionic benchmark reports PowerVR GPU, new SOC inside? originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 29 May 2011 05:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Droid Life  |  sourceNenaMark  | Email this | Comments

Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th (update: in some stores on 19th)

Motorola and Verizon have finally stopped teasing us and have made the Droid X2 official. This is a 4.3-inch Android (2.2, to be upgraded to 2.3) smartphone with a qHD screen resolution and a dual-core 1GHz processor. An 8 megapixel camera with continuous autofocus and HD video recording graces the back. The X2 will cost the usual $200 on contract and will be available to buy online tomorrow, May 19th, before making its way out to stores a week later, on May 26th. Leap past the break for the full PR.

Interestingly, we’ve also spotted the close proximity of the USB and HDMI ports on the side of the new X2. That arrangement is reminiscent of the one on Motorola’s Atrix, where the two connectors served to hook that handset up to its laptop and multimedia docks. We don’t know whether the Droid X2 will fit into the accessories designed for the Atrix, but it looks sure to be strapping itself into a dock of some description in the near future.

Update: NVIDIA has confirmed that its Tegra 2 chip is the heretofore unnamed 1GHz dual-core chip inside the Droid X2, which just happens to be Verizon’s first dual-core smartphone.

Update 2: A little birdie tells us you may be able to pick up this bad boy in person in some stores as soon as tomorrow (May 19th). Your mileage may vary, but let us know in the comments if you manage to buy one.

Continue reading Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th (update: in some stores on 19th)

Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th (update: in some stores on 19th) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 May 2011 20:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Music Beta invites now flying to Xoom owners, Google’s server farms seen weeping in the distance

After 5000 music-lovin’ I/O attendees warmed up Google’s servers, it appears that the company has now finished its presumed installation of four zillion exabytes of new hard drive capacity. We’re exaggerating, obviously, but probably not by much — we’ve received a flood of tips today (as well as an invite amongst ourselves) noting that Music Beta is finally being opened up to Earthlings in the “real world.” Specifically, Motorola Xoom owners. In case you’ve forgotten, that entitles you to free (for now) access to a cloud storage locker where 20,000 of your hits can be saved and streamed. Curious to know if it’s worth the time to upload? Have a peek at our in-depth preview right here, and be sure to let us know if your invitation has come through in comments below.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Music Beta invites now flying to Xoom owners, Google’s server farms seen weeping in the distance originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 May 2011 18:53:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th

Motorola and Verizon have finally stopped teasing us and have made the Droid X2 official. This is a 4.3-inch Android (2.2, to be upgraded to 2.3) smartphone with a qHD screen resolution and a dual-core 1GHz processor. An 8 megapixel camera with continuous autofocus and HD video recording graces the back. The X2 will cost the usual $200 on contract and will be available to buy online tomorrow, May 19th, before making its way out to stores a week later, on May 26th. Leap past the break for the full PR.

Interestingly, we’ve also spotted the close proximity of the USB and HDMI ports on the side of the new X2. That arrangement is reminiscent of the one on Motorola’s Atrix, where the two connectors served to hook that handset up to its laptop and multimedia docks. We don’t know whether the Droid X2 will fit into the accessories designed for the Atrix, but it looks sure to be strapping itself into a dock of some description in the near future.

Continue reading Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th

Motorola Droid X2 official at $200: launching online May 19th, in stores May 26th originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 May 2011 08:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Droid X 2 turns up on Moto and Verizon sites, confirms qHD screen and 1GHz dual-core processor

Hey Motorola, your unannounced phone is showing. The Droid X 2 is spending this morning hanging out on the bright and airy support pages of motorola.com, though you may also spot it sneakily listed alongside some compatible accessories on vzw.com as well. Yes, the leaks are now happening from official sources, too, indicating an imminent landing for what we’ve confirmed to be a dual-core 1GHz Android smartphone with qHD resolution on a 4.3-inch display. Those long-rumored specs were revealed by the Droid X 2’s user guide, which Moto has kindly provided at the link below. So thoughtful!

[Thanks, 3vil]

Continue reading Motorola Droid X 2 turns up on Moto and Verizon sites, confirms qHD screen and 1GHz dual-core processor

Motorola Droid X 2 turns up on Moto and Verizon sites, confirms qHD screen and 1GHz dual-core processor originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 17 May 2011 02:17:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola promises more Atrix-like laptop docks for future phones

Motorola’s Atrix 4G laptop dock was a seriously sweet concept, which is why we were so disappointed when it failed to pan out. Sounds like Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha is ready to give it another try, though — on the company’s earnings results call this past week, he told investors that Moto is planning a whole series of Lapdock devices in the second half of the year:

You will see multiple devices from us in the second half launching with these capabilities, and we will expand the range of our Lapdock devices so we cover a broader price point, addressing both the enterprise premium tier as well as more consumer tiers.

“We plan on introducing successive iterations of our Webtop software and accessories that incorporate improved productivity tools and multiple price points,” he also said, echoing previous promises to include Webtop in all high-end smartphones starting this summer. Perhaps those closely spaced I/O ports on the Droid Bionic and Targa won’t go to waste after all? If you simply can’t wait, Sanjay claims there’s also an official price drop inbound for the Atrix 4G — AT&T will offer a bundle with the Lapdock and phone for $400 later this month.

Motorola promises more Atrix-like laptop docks for future phones originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 01 May 2011 18:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceMotorola Mobility  | Email this | Comments

Sprint starts selling Motorola Xoom WiFi (not WiMAX) May 8th for $600

We’ve gotten multiple clandestine clues that Sprint would sell the Xoom — a calendar entry here, an accessory there — but there was nary a confirming peep from the Now Network itself. Until today, when it announced that it would join the legion of retailers peddling the Wi-Fi version of Motorola’s tablet for $599.99 on May 8th. That’s right, the carrier will start selling folks the sweet Honeycomb slate soon enough, but a Xoom sans Sprint cellular data is a bit of a letdown. One question, Mr. Hesse, when will we get one with WiMAX? PR’s after the break.

Continue reading Sprint starts selling Motorola Xoom WiFi (not WiMAX) May 8th for $600

Sprint starts selling Motorola Xoom WiFi (not WiMAX) May 8th for $600 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 28 Apr 2011 21:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola promises unlocked bootloaders for future Android phones? (update)

Android users have spoken, and maybe, just maybe, Motorola actually heard — AusDroid claims to have a statement direct from the mobile phone manufacturer promising unlocked bootloaders later this year:

We completely understand the operator requirement for security to the end user, and as well, want to support the developer communities desire to use these products as a development platform. It is our intention to enable the unlockable/relockable bootloader currently found on Motorola XOOM across our portfolio of devices starting in late 2011, where carriers and operators will allow it.

Wonderfully corporate of them to pass the buck to the carriers, no? This quote comes by way of a gentleman who petitioned Moto for just such a thing, mind you, so please take it with a grain of salt, and you’ll be the first to know if we get confirmation from Motorola itself.

Update: AusDroid managed to get in touch with Motorola North Asia, and it sounds like we’re looking at the truth — let’s see if Sanjay Jha agrees when he wakes up tomorrow morning.

Motorola promises unlocked bootloaders for future Android phones? (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Apr 2011 22:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Motorola Xoom UK pricing official at £580 for 3G and £480 for WiFi-only

Motorola has now confirmed that the latest round of prices the Carphone Warehouse, PC World and other UK retailers are listing for its Xoom tablet are indeed the officially sanctioned price points for the Honeycomb slate. After being listed at £600 for the 3G model and £500 for the WiFi-only version initially, the 32GB-equipped 10-incher is now mercifully £20 cheaper, at £580 and £480 for each variant. A quick glance at Apple’s online store tells us that those levies match up exactly to what a corresponding 32GB version of the iPad 2 will cost you, signaling Motorola’s intent to at least be on par in terms of pricing. Stores are still showing the Xoom under a pre-order status for now, but that should be changing swiftly if Motorola wishes to live up to its promise of availability this very week.

Motorola Xoom UK pricing official at £580 for 3G and £480 for WiFi-only originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 15:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  sourceCarphone Warehouse (3G), PC World (WiFi)  | Email this | Comments

Motorola’s SocialTV app will turn your Xoom or Atrix into a communicative couch companion

Whether you look at stats or your own limitless experience, you know very well that humanity spends too much time staring at tubes, screens, and other unnatural visualizers. Motorola isn’t really here to fix that ailment, but at least it’s converging the uses of some of those device classes with its introduction of a SocialTV Companion Service. Designed to turn your smartphone, tablet or laptop into a, you guessed it, TV companion device, this new software serves up social networking, complimentary content, real-time chat, TV show ratings, and interactive (as opposed to what, non-interactive?) games. Basically, since you spend your TV-watching time idly browsing away on your Xoom anyway, why not fuse the two things together and “generate some incremental revenue” for your service provider in the process? We presume the new SocialTV stuff will be rolled out in app form, Moto doesn’t dish up those details or give us a launch date. If only we had an app to tell us when to expect new apps to arrive.

Continue reading Motorola’s SocialTV app will turn your Xoom or Atrix into a communicative couch companion

Motorola’s SocialTV app will turn your Xoom or Atrix into a communicative couch companion originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 08 Apr 2011 06:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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