Verizon Wireless announced the availability of its upcoming Motorola DROID 4 smartphone earlier today.  The DROID  4is going to launch on February 10th for $199 on a two year contract, as reported by Andrew.  However, this Friday not only marks the launch of the DROID 4, but will be the date Verizon reintroduces double the data and begins its BOGO promotion on the DROID RAZR series.

In late 2011, Verizon introduced a promotion in which individuals signing a new data contract would automatically receive double the data.  Typically, customers pay $30 for 2GB of data, but during the promotion, Verizon would double it to 4GB without any extra fees.  The same promotion applies to 5GB and 10GB doubling to 10GB and 20GB, respectively.  This is a great promotion since 2GB can be reached relatively easily if you use 4G LTE for a lot of browsing and video streaming.

In addition, the Motorola DROID RAZR in white, black, and purple will be available as a BOGO offer.  The DROID RAZR MAXX will also be eligible for this promotion.  The DROID RAZR is priced at $199 on a two year contract, while the DROID RAZR MAXX sports a $299 price tag.  If you’re looking to pick up two top notch Android smartphones for the price of one, Verizon has the deal for you.

Lastly, all of their 4G LTE tablets are said to be going on sale such that if you purchase a 4G LTE tablet and smartphone, the up front cost will be slashed by $100.

Again, these promotions will not begin until Friday, February 10.  If you are looking to sign a new contract with Verizon Wireless, you may want to consider this new promotion.

[BGR]

Motorola and Verizon have confirmed the price and launch date for the Motorola Droid 4. Set to go on sale beginning Friday, February 10, the Droid 4 will cost $199 on a two-year agreement.

The Droid 4 has access to Verizon’s 4G LTE network, so its comforting to see the company offer a premium LTE phone under the $200 mark. Verizon has also dropped the price of the Lapdock 500, which is sold separately for $299. That will be a welcome change of pace for anyone who considered getting the accessory that can turn the phone into a special laptop-like mode for browsing the web and accessing apps.

There’s plenty to like with in the Droid 4. The phone continues the original Droid concept of high-powered specs mixed with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. It basically looks like a Droid RAZR with a keyboard strapped on to it, and has:

• Verizon Wireless 4G LTE – Customers can expect fast download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps in 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage areas
• Android^™ 2.3.5 Gingerbread, to be upgraded to Android^™ 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich
• 4.0-inch qHD display with scratch and scrape resistant glass
• Government-grade encryption (FIPS 140-2) for email, calendar and contacts; preloaded with Citrix^® Receiver^™ for Android (available in webtop) for desktop virtualization and access
• 8-megapixel camera with 1080p HD video capture
• Front-facing camera for video chat
• 4G LTE Mobile Hotspot supporting up to eight Wi-Fi-enabled devices

I played with the Droid 4 at CES and had a favorable first impression. The Droid 4 has a 5-row keyboard reminiscent of previous Droids, and the buttons are spaced out nicely. I did some brief testing of my favorite phrase – “Andrew Kameka is the greatest person on the face of the Earth” – and my thumbs immediately found the right key despite not having touched a QWERTY in months.

Pickings are slim for those who want a slide-out keyboard, but the Droid 4 is probably going to be at the head of the class thanks to its specs. There are some differences from the RAZR, the most noticeable being an LCD screen instead of Super AMOLED, but most of the other key specs are all present. Head to Verizon this Friday and test it for yourself to see if it’s worth upgrading.

At CES 2012, Verizon Wireless announced several smartphones including the LG Spectrum, DROID RAZR MAXX, DROID RAZR in purple, and the Motorola DROID 4.   The first three smartphones already launched in January, so the only 4G LTE smartphone to launch at this point is the DROID 4.

The Motorola DROID 4 is essentially a RAZR packed with a revamped Slider QWERTY keyboard, a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, and Android 2.3 onboard.  Given the fact that it is a new device, it should be upgraded to Android 4.0 in the near future.  In terms of when it is going to be released, Droid-Life is citing some of their own sources that it will be released on February 9th for $199.

Verizon is moving towards the trend of pricing their high-end 4G LTE devices with only 16GB of on board storage at $199, such as the Motorola DROID RAZR.  However, the high-end devices with larger storage capacities will continue to be priced at $299.

If Verizon does indeed launch the DROID 4 on February 9th, I imagine we will have an official announcement confirming this information within the next several days.

[Droid-Life]

I’m going to skip talking about the Xyboard name for as long as I can. Ok. The name is ridiculous; I’m moving on. As Verizon’s newest tablet, the Xyboard has a lot of weight on its shoulders from the Xoom and Galaxy 10.1 debuts. Motorola has certainly impressed me recently, but can their smartphone success translate into tablet success? Is this a worthy successor to a less-than-one-year old tablet? If you’re looking for a 4G LTE tablet, absolutely, and here’s why.

Hardware

The look and feel of the Xyboard is one of Motorola’s highest efforts over the past few months. With shaved corners and a very thin exterior, the Xyboard feels almost like an 8″ tablet. Unlike the Xoom, the frame is solidly constructed throughout and it can rival the Galaxy 10.1 for thinness, though it is heavier than the Galaxy 10.1. Thanks to Motorola’s consistent foresight in adding a mini-HDMI output, you can play the Xyboard on your big screen which you can’t with the Galaxy 10.1.

The rest of the Xyboard’s exterior is minimalistic with a black/silver aluminum frame and a power and volume rocker on the back instead of the sides of the device. I do like what Motorola does with these buttons, and I definitely think this is a more natural positioning for your hand. However, the buttons are too flush with the back and don’t offer a satisfying click whenever they’re pressed so you may miss them or not press them if you’re not paying close attention.

Screen/Camera

The high-res screen is beautiful, as it should be, but I didn’t think it was anything overly spectacular. It could get very bright, but the automatic brightness wasn’t the most intelligent sensor so I was stuck with a blinding light while reading at night. Unlike the RAZR but similar to every other tablet I’ve tried, the screen can get very smudgy. I was wiping it off with a cleaner every other day just to make it look respectable. The colors and overall screen seem better than my Transformer too.

With the camera, I have been fairly impressed with Motorola’s latest offerings. You don’t expect to have the greatest camera on a tablet, but on the Xyboard it is more than serviceable.  The photos can speak for themselves:

While not the sharpest photos ever, they are some of the better I’ve taken with a tablet. I even got a little artsy with these.

Software Performance

Even coming from Ice Cream Sandwich on my phone, the Honeycomb bugs and lags are more evident than ever to me now. While these two versions of Android are very close to each other, ICS offers a host of new features that make you wonder why it wasn’t included on the Xyboard. The launch window for this tablet wasn’t rushed like the Xoom’s was, and I think Motorola could have pushed back the launch to make the Xyboard the first tablet with ICS instead of being the Xoom 2.0. All that being said, Honeycomb runs smooth on the Xyboard even with the bloatware from Motorola and Verizon.

The overall layout from Honeycomb isn’t changed by Motorola which is a blessing considering Samsung’s Touchwiz overlay, and despite the custom ROM on my Transformer and at least triple the apps, the Xyboard is faster changing through screens and doing other normal OS functions than other tablets I’ve used (Transformer, Tab, Xoom). It is a bit overclocked at 1.2Ghz, but with an OMAP processor instead of the Tegra like in the others. Still, I have to question the reasons not to add the newest Tegra 3 since they should have a good relationship with Nvidia after the Xoom opened the floodgates for multi-core processors.

App Performance

Like I mentioned, the Xyboard has a little faster processor out of the gate than my Transformer, but it by no means blew the Transformer out of the water (with a lot less installed on it too). Angry Birds and Osmos were a second or so faster than my Transformer. Games like Rock’em Sock’em Robots, Shadowgun and Osmos ran wonderfully, and I noticed very little lag when switching between all of these at the same time. I thought it was interesting that the Xyboard kept apps running in the background instead of shutting them down after a while. When I went to pull up Osmos for the second time, the Xyboard brought it straight up to the menu screen instead of starting the whole game over again. Very convenient although I don’t know if this is the Xyboard itself or my Transformer shutting down the app too quickly.

The problem with Motorola devices on Verizon, usually, is the plethora of useless bloatware because both Motorola and Verizon believe heavily in it. Motocast, V Cast, VideoSurf, Slingbox, Netflix, and Blockbuster all come pre-loaded. Will you use one of these apps? Maybe, maybe not. But you certainly won’t use two or more because they all directly compete with one another! I know each company has deals with other companies, but directly competing apps that you probably don’t want shouldn’t be on the same device.

Final Thoughts

My first thought with these devices is usually, “Who is this made for?” With the Xyboard, I really can’t decide. It’s not for early adopters because they already bought the Xoom, and it’s not for power users because the Transformer Prime has a quad-core processor. It’s a slim device but without the weightlessness of the Galaxy 10.1, and only Verizon’s LTE makes this a stand-out device. While I didn’t see many flaws with the Xyboard (great design, runs smoothly, mini-HDMI), I also don’t know what makes someone want this instead of a cheaper Xoom or even iPad from Verizon.

If the Xyboard would have been released when the Xoom was, it could have blown most of our expectations away for a first-gen Android tablet. However, it’s launch is in the middle of an Android OS upgrade and a processor power-battle. The Xyboard’s design and slimness make it a great upgrade from the Xoom, but for Motorola’s next tablet, I want them to make a device that will usher in the next generation of tablets instead of releasing the best tablet at the end of the era.

A Motorola employee infamously said that users who want to customize their phones should purchase their device from another company. Realizing the potential trouble for such a statement, Motorola quickly said that employee was wrong and promised that it would unveil a bootloader unlocking tool later.

And then it didn’t do much aside from a phone here and there.

A short while ago, Motorola finally updated plans to unlock one its premiere devices, the Motorola RAZR…Developer Edition. Yes, Motorola has so far confirmed only that it will unlock a dev edition RAZR set to go on sale soon, and only in Europe. In a blog post that has since been removed (but not before my Google Reader snatched up the message), Motorola says that the Razr DE will be a new phone version that “allows us to continue meeting our carrier and regulatory obligations, but also meets the needs being expressed by our developer community.”

As for the people who have already purchased a RAZR and wish to unlock its bootloader, that’s still a little unclear. According to the blog post, the MOTODEV site will introduce support for unlocking and relocating at will, but that was referring to the Developer Edition of the phone. It is not explicitly stated that the standard version of the phone will also be able to perform that same task.

Motorola states that it will introduce an unlockable developer device in the United States in a similar manner. It’s also mum on what, if anything, current device owners can expect.

I really hope there’s more to this story.

While all Android manufacturers have shameful moments as it relates to customization and hack-friendliness, Motorola has stood out as one of the bigger offenders. The company has every right to lock bootloaders from a business standpoint, but it’s hard to argue that users should have to purchase a special developer edition phone in order to customize their software. It’s especially hard to swallow when HTC and Sony are heading down a path that allows the vocal minority of users who want unlocked bootloaders to have their wish without running afoul of carrier agreements.

When the official blog post goes back up, I sincerely hope that Motorola has more to offer.

UPDATE:

Nope.

Remember all those times where we tried to play the guessing games about how many Motorola Xoom’s were shipped? Well, we don’t have to guess anymore because Motorola has finally told us – about 1 million.

Over ten days ago, the official Motorola website listed the DROID RAZR MAXX as an upcoming product.  Unfortunately for Verizon, Motorola decided to go ahead and publish the official launch date as January 26, 2012.  Today, Verizon Wireless issued a press release reiterating its price point and “announcing” (but really confirming) the launch date for the RAZR MAXX as January 26th.

In two days from now, interested Verizon Wireless customers can purchase the RAZR MAXX for $299 in Verizon’s retail store locations or at its online website.  Even though it is essentially the same thing as the DROID RAZR, it is particularly attractive since it offers a giant 3,300 mAh battery boasting 21 hours of straight talk time on a single charge.  One of the major pitfalls of Android smartphones — especially the 4G LTE variety — is a lackluster battery performance.

Motorola looks to improve upon the battery life with the DROID RAZR MAXX, which really should offer superior battery life, but becomes slightly bulkier at 8.99 mm thick.  Otherwise, it retains the same 1.2GHz dual-core processor, Android 2.3, 32GB of onboard storage, 4.3 inch touch screen display, 8MP rear facing camera, and a front facing HD camera.

Again, in just two days you will be able to purchase the Motorola DROID RAZR MAXX — touting a 3,300 mAh battery — for $299 on a two year contract with Verizon Wireless.

[Verizon Wireless]

The Motorola DROID MAXX was recently unveiled at this year’s CES, and while it isn’t a completely new handset, it does boast a very attractive feature.  The main difference between the DROID MAXX and the DROID RAZR is a larger battery.  In fact, the DROID MAXX’s battery will last 21 hours on straight talk time on a single charge.  Android smartphones typically get a bad rep when it comes to battery life, but the DROID MAXX aims to change that.  Granted, you will be sacrificing some thinness, but the extra juice should be worth it.

In any event, Motorola and Verizon did not announce a launch date for the DROID MAXX and simply said the device would launch in the coming weeks.  Fortunately for those anxiously waiting for the DROID MAXX, you’ll be pleased to know that the Motorola website went ahead and published January 26th as the launch date.  On the same page, you can sign up for more information.

In addition, we know that Verizon plans to charge $299 on contract for the DROID MAXX and now the January 26th launch date essentially confirms all parts of the puzzle.  Barring any unforeseen delays, we’re just thirteen days away from the DROID MAXX’s launch.

[Motorola]

After months of leaks, rumors and speculations, the Motorola Droid 4 has been finally revealed at the 2012 CES a few days ago without an official release date and pricing details however. While we still don’t know anything official for the moment, a leaked Verizon MAP (minimum advertised price) list shows us what could be the Droid 4’s asking price.

Quite expected, the Motorola Droid 4 will start at 249.99 dollars (with a two-year Verizon contract, of course), which is pretty fair, and even affordable, if you ask me. As a matter of fact, that’s just 50 bucks more than the Droid 3’s starting price and 50 bucks less than what the Motorola Razr Maxx will go for.

Unfortunately, the leaked list price doesn’t give us any pointers about the possible release date of the Droid 4, which means that we are still unsure when to expect the 4-incher on the market.

For those of you who are still unfamiliar with the upcoming Motorola smartphone, let’s quickly recap some of its most important technical specs and features. Sporting a 4-inch TFT LCD screen with 960 x 540 pixels resolution, the Droid 4 will be powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core TI OMAP 4430 processor and will feature 1 GB of RAM, as well as an 8 MPx rear-facing camera and a front-facing camera.

Set to run Android 2.3 Gingerbread at first, but scheduled to receive an Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade as well, the Motorola Droid 4 will offer 4G LTE connectivity, will feature a 5 row slider QWERTY keyboard and will come with 16 GB of internal storage space, as well as with an SD card slot for expanding the on-board memory.

Getting back to the leaked price list from Verizon, let’s not forget to mention that there are a bunch of other new phones on there as well, but that there aren’t many surprises or breakthroughs. The LG Spectrum is set to start at 199.99 dollars, while the Droid Razr in white, black and purple will go, if the list proves accurate, for $199.99 as well.

Via unwiredview.com

If you take a minute to reflect on 2011 in terms of Android smartphones, one thing that might come to mind is how many were launched.  Motorola recognizes this fact as it released many new smartphones in the calendar year as well.  The problem with releasing so many phones is that each device doesn’t get the amount of time in the spotlight that it deserves.  For instance, two months after the Motorola DROID Bionic launched, the DROID RAZR was already in the market and quickly snatched flagship status on Verizon Wireless.  Granted, the Bionic was plagued by many delay issues resulting in the close launch proximity with the DROID RAZR, but the point is made.

At a roundtable disussion at CES, Motorola CEO Sanjay Jha announced Motorola would launch fewer Andorid smartphones in 2012 to allow for longer time as the Motorola flagship device.  Interestingly, Jha remarked his decision to launch fewer phones came independently of what other smartphone manufacturers may try to do.

Personally, I agree with what Motorola is trying to do.  With too many Android smartphones flooding the market at once, consumers are going to try and wait as long as possible to choose a phone thinking something better is always just a few weeks away.  It’s also a shame a powerful device like the Bionic doesn’t get more time in the spotlight before being shoved aside to make room for the DROID RAZR and the DROID MAXX.

[AllThingsD]