Motorola working on Android products

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 2nd October 2008
Comments (3) Stumble
Motorola working on Android products

With a bit of luck the next Android-based handset to hit the market could be a bit more stylish than the T-Mobile G1.

If you're hungering for an Android 'phone but don't fancy the look of T-Mobile's offering – even assuming you can get your hands on one – keep an eye on Motorola.

According to BetaNews, the company has confirmed that it is currently developing a series of products based around Google's open-source mobile platform, and is allegedly boosting its Android department from 50 to 350 developers to achieve its goals.

A Motorola spokesperson has said that the company is “excited about the innovation possibilities on Android,” and that it “[looks] forward to delivering great products in partnership with Google and the Open Handset Alliance.”

While this certainly bodes well for the platform, they company has stopped short of actually detailing any future products – not even so much as a pre-rendered picture of a concept Android 'phone, sadly. With Motorola a founding member of the Open Handset Alliance, and then-CEO Ed Zander's comments at the launch regarding the company being “an advocate of open software for mobile platforms [...] [we plan] to leverage the Android platform to enable seamless, connected services and rich consumer experiences in future Motorola products,” it's hard to imagine that the company isn't going full-steam ahead with development – especially as it has been embarrassingly beaten to the punch by rival HTC, creator of the Dream handset that later became the T-Mobile G1.

Would you be tempted by an Android 'phone with a similar form factor to Motorola's successful Razr series, or does the platform need a QWERTY keyboard as seen on the G1 in order to be fully utilised? Share your thoughts over in the forums.
Quote ParaHelix.org 2nd October 2008, 16:51
Linux Mobile please.
Quote pendragon 2nd October 2008, 18:03
i'm glad they're going this route.. I don't think I'd want a RAZOR over the HTC phone though.. Let's hope they come out with some good stuff :)
Quote B3CK 3rd October 2008, 03:02
I think that using or even pushing the 'Android' os to the phones such as the razor will definatly help push the services/offerings of the phone providers. Even if you can't type as easy, or even have a touch screen on a razor, it will definatly help the users of such providers as metropcs. That currently have no 'smart' phones available to use on their service. Even though I have heard of some people changing firmware on some of the smart phones to work on these smaller providers, the functionality is very limited.
I can only hope that I will be able to use a fully functional smart phone on metropcs isp, by using a nice 'Android' phone. The way I see it, if you can get an 'Android' razor to work on any service, then the phone model itself will cease to be an issue with any provider.
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