Motorola is Goto Android Market?

Motorola has finally announced its bet-the-company Android handset. At GigaOM’s Mobilize 09 event in San Francisco this morning, Sanjay Jha, Motorola’s co-CEO and CEO of the company’s handset division, uncrated the CLIQ, a device it describes unremarkably as the “first phone with social skills.”

Why? Well, the CLIQ, or DEXT as it will be confusingly branded in the U.K., incorporates Motorola’s new “MotoBlur” service, which essentially corrals Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Picasa, GMail and MS Exchange activity into a single feed and presents them on your phone.

In form, the CLIQ is a sideways slider. Like the Palm (PALM) Pre, the device boasts a full touchscreen and QWERTY keyboard. It’s got a 320 x 480-pixel, 3.1-inch HVGA screen and a five-megapixel camera. The CLIQ is video-capable (play, stream and capture) and supports the broad spectrum of media formats. It runs Android 1.5 (Cupcake), and Motorola (MOT) claims a battery life of six hours.

Jha says the phone is not intended to be a single iconic device–like, say, Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone. Rather, it is the first of a broad line of handsets, all running Android and Motoblur, that will be targeted at different customer segments around the world.

A wise strategy in the current market? Who knows? But at least it’s a step in the right direction. Motorola clearly needs to do something to right itself after the past few disastrous years. Hard to believe the company controlled 16.1 percent of the global handset market just two years ago. It’s market share today? A modest 6.5 percent. The CLIQ will be sold through T-Mobile in the United States.

The device’s spec sheet below; click to enlarge.

As PCs, cell phones converge, Intel finds new rival

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) - As the market for personal computers has matured, Intel Corp. has moved into new battlegrounds for portable devices - bringing the semiconductor giant a roster of new rivals.

One of the main ones is ARM Holdings, a lesser known British technology company with a strong track record of designing low-cost, low-power chips for mobile phones.

The companies are likely to collide in a new market for portable computing devices that fall between laptop computers - a market Intel /quotes/comstock/15*!intc/quotes/nls/intc (INTC 18.71, -0.07, -0.37%) currently rules - and cell phones, which is ARM’s key market. Intel already has a strong foothold in this market with its Atom chip, which powers so-called netbooks. But a rush is on to develop new devices that can offer consumers the full computing power of PCs and the portability of a wireless phone.

“We have this hybrid market literally riding the line between the two,” analyst Dean McCarron of Mercury Research said in an interview. “All the ingredients for the collision are there.”

ARM /quotes/comstock/15*!armh/quotes/nls/armh (ARMH 6.25, +0.06, +0.97%) technology is used in millions of cell phones and other products made by companies, such as Samsung /quotes/comstock/11i!ssngy (SSNG.Y 185.67, +0.53, +0.29%) , Nokia /quotes/comstock/13*!nok/quotes/nls/nok (NOK 12.25, -0.10, -0.81%) and Palm /quotes/comstock/15*!palm/quotes/nls/palm (PALM 13.51, -0.03, -0.22%) .

On the other hand, Intel’s chips power the world’s most popular PCs made by such companies as Hewlett-Packard /quotes/comstock/13*!hpq/quotes/nls/hpq (HPQ 43.98, +0.15, +0.34%) and Dell Inc. /quotes/comstock/15*!dell/quotes/nls/dell (DELL 14.55, +0.10, +0.69%)

Intel and its allies have been pushing the netbook, the stripped down version of a notebook, and so-called MIDS, or mobile internet devices. Meanwhile, the wireless market has been moving toward smart phones such as the iPhone, BlackBerry and Palm Pre that offer Web surfing and email capabilities.

Power vs. consumption

It’s a collision where two factors could prove critical: A processor’s computing capability, and its appetite for electrical power. Intel is widely expected to have a huge advantage in performance, while ARM is seen as having the edge in power efficiency.

Bob Morris, ARM’s director of mobile computing, portrays Intel as being in a desperate position, saying the chipmaker has no choice but take on the new market because it now finds itself boxed in in the maturing PC market.

“Intel has to go after this market, as the PC market is not growing,” he said in an e-mail. “The growth market moving forward will be the mobile device market. We are closely approaching the point (if we are not there already) where people accessing the Internet from a mobile device will exceed those accessing it from a PC.”

Intel Spokesman Tom Beerman disputed that view, saying the company is moving into the new market because of opportunities in the changing cell phone market.

“Cell phones are becoming more PC-like,” he said. “There are more and more requirements for that device to be more PC-like. Our view is that Intel is very well suited to provide that technology.”

Not a household name

Despite the ubiquity of its technology, ARM, which is based in Cambridge, UK, is not a household name, like the Silicon Valley behemoth made famous by its slogan, “Intel Inside.”

“They’re very invisible,” Global Equities Research analyst Trip Chowdhry said in an interview. “You don’t see devices saying ‘ARM Inside,’ or ‘Powered by ARM.’ I don’t think they have the mass consumer awareness like Intel.”

Google Android Gets A Boost Beyond Cell Phones

In a move aimed at accelerating the use of the Android platform beyond mobile phones, MIPS Technologies said it’s making the Android platform available on its MIPS architecture.

Announced Monday, MIPS said it will make its source code publically available within 60 days for the new applications. MIPS, which provides processor architectures and cores for home entertainment communications, networking, and portable multimedia markets, envisions its software being used for DTVs, set-top boxes, digital picture frames, and mobile Internet devices.

In a move aimed at accelerating the use of the Android platform beyond mobile phones, MIPS Technologies said it’s making the Android platform available on its MIPS architecture.

Announced Monday, MIPS said it will make its source code publically available within 60 days for the new applications. MIPS, which provides processor architectures and cores for home entertainment communications, networking, and portable multimedia markets, envisions its software being used for DTVs, set-top boxes, digital picture frames, and mobile Internet devices.

In its Monday announcement, MIPS pointed out that its software stack delivers a device-agnostic application development platform.

“With the MIPS ecosystem around Android,” the MIPS announcement stated, “OEMs will be able to quickly optimize Android for their specific platforms.”

MIPS said it has forged partnerships with Embedded Alley and Viosoft to help with porting, integration, and testing in the Android effort. Both partner companies are providers of Linux software solutions.

Top Ten Mobile Phone News Stories of the Week - 23nd May

It’s that time of the week again, where we cover the mobile phone news stories you may have otherwise missed.

1.   Concept to Become Reality Shocker?

At first, it seemed as if the Motorola Nest concept phone may become reality according to this DVICE story, however closer examination of the comments section reveals an answer from the designer herself, who quashes the rumour.  What a shame, as this beautiful design is just what Motorola needs to revive its mobile business.

2.  CellphonesBox.com Launches.

If you want to easily work out which mobile tariff is the best for you, then follow the link to CellphonesBox.com, where after answering a few questions, the website compares all the available plans and provides an answer.  It can even read your online bill to see how to save money!

3.  Sony to Introduce Face Recognition for Music Selection?

They could call it SeeMe.  Sony Ericsson have applied for a patent on software which generates a music playlist based on facial expressions, something like its SensMe mood-based playlist generator, but dependent on whether you’re happy, sad or angry.  Interesting!

4.  Nokia 1100 Affair - Truth?

You may recall the story of the little Nokia 1100 reaching huge prices on the aftermarket due to a hack which made it possible to ‘clone’ other phones and thus intercept private data.  Well, it seems Ultrascan, who first uncovered the problem, have managed to recreate the exploit! While it may not directly affect many of us, it should make us more aware of the importance of securing our data.

5.  HTC Tweak Android.

HTC are well known for their TouchFLO user interface which overlays Windows Mobile on their handsets, however we considered Android to be far more finger friendly, so we didn’t expect an HTC makeover.  This video though, claims to show ‘Rosie’, the codename for HTC’s tweaked version of Android which includes several of their familiar services.  It all looks very smooth too!

6.  BlackBerry Storm Seen Not Working on Video!

The people over at Engadget Mobile show considerable restraint when their super-secret Storm 2 refuses to power up beyond the first screen.  It’s still an interesting watch though, as if it turns out to be real, then SurePress has indeed left the building and been replaced with a capacitive touchscreen.

7.  More Acer Android Speculation.

Further credibility has been added to the rumour that Acer will be releasing an Android smartphone by the end of the year.  Acer’s head of smartphones has said they are planning a summer launch of their touchscreen phone, which will be priced at feature, rather than smart phone level.

8.  Japan Gets Sharp Aquos Branded 10 MP Phone!

Wow, we love this flip phone from Sharp, especially as it has a 10 megapixel camera and a swiveling 3.3″ WVGA display which becomes the viewfinder!

9.  Nokia Open Unused Patents to Other Companies.

Here’s a good idea, Nokia have opened up their archives of unused patents for other Finnish companies to use and develop, in a bid to ignite the economy after months of decline.  Nokia are interviewing hopefuls with a view to supporting 100 final projects.

10.   Concept to Become Reality Shocker?

At first, it seemed as if the Motorola Nest concept phone may become reality according to this DVICE story, however closer examination of the comments section reveals an answer from the designer herself, who quashes the rumour.  What a shame, as this beautiful design is just what Motorola needs to revive its mobile business.

10. Nokia’s Ovi Maps Updated.

Exploring the latest Ovi Maps service is something worth doing, as it’s very impressive! Nokia have updated it to include 2D and 3D rendering, satellite and terrain maps and 3D images of landmarks, details of which have been provided by company’s like Lonely Planet, so the information is excellent. Details on how to download it for your PC or Symbian S60 device can be found here.

The Newest:Nokia E75 review

By CellphonesBox.com

The Nokia E75 started shipping a few days ago and we’ve managed to get our hands on one of the first devices. This is a full retail, check out our un-boxing for what the retail pack consists of.

The Nokia E75 is classed as a business phone and sits somewhere between the Nokia E71 and the Communicator range. Check out our review to see how whether it lives up to expectations.

The Nokia E75 is an impressive looking smartphone. It feels solid in the hand and due to its rather flat profile looks larger than the likes of the Nokia 5800, with which it shares a similar size and weight. Initial impressions of the build quality are that it’s certainly on a par with the Nokia E71 and it feels good in the hand. The 139g weight is well balanced.

Check out the Nokia E75 Tech Specs

FEATURES: When it comes to features, the screen is a standard 2.4-inch screen with 320 x 240 pixel resolution. While there is nothing special about it, it’s certainly bright and the interface is easy to navigate. The main apps run along the top of the screen and can be accessed using the omni-directional key that sits just below the screen, between the Home and Return keys.

The numeric keypad has plenty of bounce to it and instead of individual keys you’ll find each row is a strip with a sensor underneath. This works well and helps minimise dust and grime getting between the keys.

KEYBOARD: The secret trick with the Nokia E75 that is tucked away at the back of the phone. It’s a side-loading QWERTY, which splits open as soon as you put pressure on the two halves.

As soon as you slide open the QWERTY keyboard the screen rotates so you’ll be viewing it in landscape mode. This is a nice touch and only goes back to Portrait mode when you close it back up again. The benefits of this are evident, as you’ll only really open the keyboard when you want to use it.

The keyboard itself is a nice size and the weighting of the handset means you’ll need to hold it in two hands for best effect. The keys feel large enough but due to the design have a rather flat feel to them as you type, which means you’ll be double-checking you’ve hit the right key every time.

We would have liked a slightly larger Space bar, as the one fitted is a little small and you will find yourself having to look down to locate it from time-to-time.

When pressing the buttons on the left-hand side you need to hold the device firmly, otherwise you’ll find yourself sliding the phone open slightly. This isn’t a problem, more a little irksome and could have been easily resolved with a latch, as can be found on the Nokia N97.

AROUND THE SIDES: Features tucked around the sides of the phones are 3.5mm audio jack on the top, camera and media buttons on the right-hand side, charger input, which is the standard Nokia charger can be found on the bottom of the phone, will finally on the left-hand side are access ports for the microUSB and microSD slots.

CONCLUSION: So, is the Nokia E71 about to become the businessman’s new email favourite? Its early days yet and we’ve not fully got to grips with using it. However, at the moment it’s a close call. It’s a user-friendly phone and using the keyboard is nice but unless you have a real need to have a larger keyboard, such as writing full documents rather than just quick emails on the move, Nokia E71 users may well be happy with what they’re currently using.

Check out our Nokia E75 gallery: