Hasta La Gadget!

LAS VEGAS –Motorola launched its third Android smartphone, an attractive, compact device with some surprising hardware innovations and a user interface that aggregates social networking feeds, email and contacts.

The phone called Backflip has a 3.1-inch touchscreen, a QWERTY physical keyboard that opens up in an unexpected way, a touch sensitive navigation panel on the back and a nifty mode that allows it to be postioned on the table top to act like an alarm clock.

The device is expected to hit the market in the first quarter of the year  but the company did not disclose pricing or a telecom partner for the device.

“This is a phone with a great keyboard, a big screen and integration with social networking,” says Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha.

Since Google debuted the open source Android operating system in October 2008, Android devices have flooded the market. More than ten Android handsets are currently available with more waiting to burst into the spotlight. AT&T announced Wednesday that it will offer  five new Android smartphones this year. On Tuesday, Google introduced its own Android handset, the HTC designed Nexus One running the latest version of the Android OS, Android 2.0

Motorola is trying to stay a step ahead, says Ross Rubin, an analyst with The NPD Group.  ”We have seen a lot of Android models appear quickly on the market,” he says. “So it’s starting to become more important for manufacturers to differentiate themselves.”

An eye-catching phone

Like the Motorola Droid, the Backflip has a physical keyboard and a touchscreen. But Motorola seems to have listened to complaints about the Droid’s difficult to use keypad.

The Backflip’s keypad feels solid and has generously spaced buttons that ensure you don’t end up hitting the wrong keys. The keyboard also opens up differently.

“Most people are used to a forward flipping keyboard or an upward slider,” says Paul Nicholson, global marketing director for Motorola. “The Backflip’s keyboard opens up in the reverse direction.”

That allows the phone to fold up and sit on a table top like a horizontally placed picture frame. In that mode, the Backflip displays a clock, turning it into a bedside timepiece.

Another interesting innovation is a one-inch touch sensitive swatch on the back of the phone. That trackpad supports gestures such as swipe and double-tap. So users can browse the internet or flip through the device’s seven home screens by touching the back of the phone.

The idea works well enough and it won’t be long before other handset manufacturers offer the feature.

Beyond that, the Backflip has all the usual features–Wi-Fi connectivity, 3G, a 5-megapixel camera and a video recorder.

Motorola did not disclose what kind of processor is powering the phone. With the 1 GHz Snapdragon processor–included in the Google Nexus One–setting the standard for speed, much will depend on how powerful the innards of the Backflip turn out to be.

Chaneling the Cliq

When it comes to the user interface, the Backflip is identical to Motorola’s first Android phone, the Cliq. The Backflip has Motorola’s custom skin called MotoBlur that combines information from social networking feeds such as Twitter, and Facebook with email contacts and the phone address book. It also offers free online backup of the data on the device and a find-my-phone service for lost devices.

Models of the Backflip at the Motorola  event were running Android 1.6 but the company says it hasn’t decided which version it will ultimately ship with.

Overall, the Backflip is a gorgeous piece of hardware and cements Motorola’s position as a handset manufacturer that can create phones strong enough to stand out from the clutter.

Though Motorola hasn’t announced the pricing for the Backflip, NPD’s Rubin says it could cost about the same as a Cliq–$100 with a two-year contract. And being a GSM phone, it is likely this device could end up on AT&T.

See Also:

• Review: Motorola Cliq
• Motorola’s First Android Phone Takes Aim at Social Networks
• Review: Motorola Droid
• Hands On: Motorola’s New Android Phone Nails Design

And what do we have here? HTC’s Russian contingent has been rather forthcoming with its Windows Mobile 7 plans this morning, which will please HD2 owners but disappoint many others. The good news is that HTC’s flagship WinMo handset is assured of getting Microsoft’s finest when it comes out, but the bad news is that the rest of the line will remain stuck at version 6.5 or below. Here’s the tweet in the Queen’s own tongue:

For Diamond 2 firmware is not planned. Of the existing communicators on the market, only the HD2 firmware to get WM7.

Keep in mind it’s still possible, though not altogether probable, that this statement refers only to the Russian market. In either case, if you were holding out hope for your Touch Pro 2 or Snap to keep updating all the way to 7, it seems the odds are now officially stacked against you.

HTC Russia says HD2 will get Windows Mobile 7 upgrade, but other ‘communicators’ won’t originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 30 Dec 2009 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Let’s face it: Chrome OS has been snagging all of the attention in the OS world here lately, but let us not forget about Jolicloud. The Linux-based system, which was designed to be installed onto existing netbooks without much of a fuss, has finally reached its public pre-beta stage. In other words, the 600MB .exe file is now out for you and yours to download and try, and according to our good pals over at Download Squad, it’s well worth the effort. They seemed to have no issues whatsoever installing it as a second OS on their machine, and they went ahead and deemed it superior to Chrome OS’ earliest build due to its ability to support “both native and web-based applications equally well.” Their own tests found it to boot in just 15 seconds on an Eee PC netbook, but if you’re still curious if dipping your toes is the best move, hop on past the break for a lengthy walkthrough video.

Continue reading Jolicloud pre-beta now available to download, walkthrough now available for viewing

Jolicloud pre-beta now available to download, walkthrough now available for viewing originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Dec 2009 09:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s somewhat hard to believe that we’re already talking about Windows 8 given that Windows 7 just hit the shelves two months ago, but you know the engineers at Microsoft are already planning ahead. According to a roadmap constructed over at Microsoft Kitchen — based around whispers heard through the grapevine on the eventual release of the next Windows Server — the next iteration of Windows is tentatively pegged for release in the year 2012. Of course, a three-year window between Windows 7 and the next version is totally believable, but we wouldn’t go planning your end of the world party with the assumption that a new OS will be the main attraction. Or you could, but then you might be disappointed, which would be a sucky way to go out.

Microsoft roadmap pegs Windows 8 release for 2012, or just after the world’s end originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 21 Nov 2009 12:10:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’re sitting in a very small, very colorful meeting room where Google’s just minutes of away from giving us a glimpse at Chrome OS and announcing some launch details. Stay tuned!

Update: It’s over! Thanks for hanging out with us, and be sure to check out Google’s videos in our summary post.

Continue reading Live from Google’s Chrome OS project announcement

Live from Google’s Chrome OS project announcement originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 12:55:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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