Three things we'd like to see from new Motorola Droid
The Motorola Droid certainly hasn't been an "iPhone killer," but it has become a solid alternative to the iPhone for Verizon customers who don't want to switch their carriers.
The Motorola Droid certainly hasn't been an "iPhone killer," but it has become a solid alternative to the iPhone for Verizon customers who don't want to switch their carriers.
Yesterday's statement from Palm's CEO, lamenting how Motorola's Droid beat the Palm Pre into Verizon stores, I was reminded of a famous Marlon Brando line from "On the Waterfront." Many people know the words, even of they don't know they come from a 1954 motion picture.
Motorola can add one more item onto its list of Droid slogans: Droid does have more expensive hardware than the Nexus One. But only by a small margin.
Google's pretty good at keeping its Web and search developments secret, but it's quickly learning that hardware's a different beast, as details on the <a href="http://www.pcworld.com/article/184555/googles_nexus_one_test_phone_details_emerge.html">Nexus One, a.k.a. the Google Phone</a>, are leaking all over the Internet.
Motorola's Droid has been the subject of much furor lately, fueled in-part by a series of ad spots, including Verizon's controversial campaign.
It's apparently not common knowledge that there are actually two Droids: the Motorola Droid and the HTC Droid Eris. They're both Android-based phones, but significantly different in form and firmware. The Motorola Droid is a slider phone with a large screen and a physical keyboard that runs Android 2.0. The Droid Eris is cheaper, with a slower CPU and no dedicated GPU, but it's also far slicker than the Motorola Droid.
There is no piece of technological wizardry that I want so much as a Droid. Yet, I have decided to hold onto my iPhone. Why? Because the iPhone is the PC of smartphones.
The new Droid slider smartphone by Motorola Inc., running on the Verizon Wireless network, is clearly not an iPhone killer. But it is still pretty cool, with multitasking abilities and Google Inc.'s touches, such as quick access to Google Maps for turn-by-turn navigation with GPS.
If you are buying your first smartphone, which should it be: Droid or the iPhone? Both are revolutionary devices, but which revolution is for you? It is not (yet) a coin toss.
Ever since Verizon Wireless used Motorola's Droid to diss the iPhone, it's been nothing short of Droid hysteria in the tech world, and it's only getting crazier with today's reveal of the HTC Droid Eris. What can I say? We love a good fight. But let's not let flame wars get in the way of solid information, which may prove valuable if you're planning to pick up either the Motorola Droid or the HTC Droid Eris on launch day, Friday. Here's what you need to know:
There are only three days until Verizon joins the Android invasion. T-Mobile was first to embrace the open source Google operating system, but with the addition of Sprint, and now Verizon, Android is mounting a quiet revolution that could see it squash the iPhone OS and rise to a dominant position among mobile operating systems.
Motorola's Droid has a tough game of catch-up to play, but not as tough as what faces Palm's Pre as both challenge Apple's iPhone. Longer term, this may be a two horse race, with Android winning in the end and BlackBerry still chugging along.
With its new focus on Android-based handsets like Droid and Cliq, Motorola may finally be getting back its handset groove back.
Too much, as least so early, is being made of the Motorola Droid's supposedly magical powers. Can a single handset "save" Motorola, launch a new operating system, and smite the evil Steve Jobs?
The countdown is underway to the Droid invasion. Verizon has unveiled the official specs and contract details, and pre-orders are already underway at Best Buy. By this time next week the Motorola Droid will be unleashed and we will find out if the reality can come close to the hype.