2012 was quite a huge year for Android. We saw the jump from Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, and then to version 4.2. Ice Cream Sandwich was a solid operating system, but Jelly Bean made it even better, adding new features like Google Now, better notifications, and even Photo Sphere. However, the software was merely just a vehicle for the hardware to ride on — the devices themselves were what really shined this year.
At the start of 2012 the folks at Google were seeing their beloved Android mobile operating system being used on more iPhone clones than we’d care to discuss – near the turn-over to 2013, big manufacturers like Samsung and HTC have made their own hero lines the likes of which Android has never known. What we saw in 2012 was recognition of the model that has worked for Apple extremely well since all the way back in 2007 – a focus on the ecosystem rather than on the individual specifications of any one device. This will continue in a very big way through 2013 with manufacturers holding up a single torch – like the Motorola RAZR brand – to keep themselves lit up brightly.
A few details have been leaked by an anonymous tipster as to what the next-generation DROID RAZR M will be, building on the greatness of the already fabulous palm-sized beast. We had our first look at the original DROID RAZR M earlier this year in NYC, the reveal event also playing host to one of the first public showings of a newly minted Google-owned Motorola, complete with Google-minded software choices for Android - like on-screen buttons, for example. Here we're seeing the logical next step for the DROID RAZR M with an "HD" name addition, but the specifications we're seeing aren't quite as solid as we'd hope - not logically, that is.
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Motorola is really pushing their DROID RAZR series pretty hard, and while they’re only exclusive to Verizon customers, the company has been slowly migrating their RAZR lineup to other carriers by making some minor changes to the design and branding. US Cellular already has a few Motorola devices in its arsenal, one of which is the new Electrify M, the equivalent to Verizon’s DROID RAZR M, which we took a look at a few months ago. It’s available now exclusively on US Cellular at a price of $99 ($149 if you don’t have the carrier’s 4G LTE in your area). The phone is classified as a mid-range handset, but it proves that big things can come in small packages. However, let’s find out if US Cellular’s latest Motorola device is worth your time — and more importantly — your money.
Welcome to Friday evening everyone. Depending on who you choose to believe, today was the day it was all supposed to come crashing down, but since that doesn't seem like it'll be happening, let's recap the news from the day and then jump into the weekend, shall we? Today was a historic day aside from being the rumored end of the world, as Psy's ridiculously popular hit Gangnam Style topped 1 billion views on YouTube, officially becoming the first video to do so and beating Justin Bieber to the punch. We had a new Acer-related leak today, with benchmarks for the rumored V350 flagship phone surfacing, as well as images for the ASUS ME172V tablet.
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As Google continues it work with now-owned Motorola to bring about a more vanilla (read: Google-only Android) universe, it’s become apparent this afternoon that they may be going full-tilt with a smartphone code-named “X Phone”. This tip comes from the Wall Street Journal where they’ve got an internal leakster saying the marquee handset will be up and ready sooner than later. This development effort has been said to be underway already here in 2012 and will likely be up for action before the end of 2013.
The Google/Arris Motorola Home swap was a big gain on both sides, with Google scoring a large stake in the company and Arris landing a significant quantity of patents and licenses. Many had questions regarding the TiVo lawsuit issue, however, wondering what went on behind closed doors that would prompt Arris to take on the burden of potentially astronomical fees in damages for infringement. As it turns out, Arris won't be dealing with most of the financial burden from the TiVo debacle, with Google capping the company's liability.
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If you’ve been watching Google over the past few months (or years if you watched closely), you’ve been seeing them move closer and closer to a fully armed and operational battle station made to take on the smartphone universe top to bottom. What we’ve just seen this evening here in the USA is a trade (though they call it a sale) between Google and the broadband media technology company known as Arris with “Motorola Home” being given to Arris in exchange for $300 million in Arris shares and a seemingly much more significant monetary lump sum ($2.05 billion) – but hear this: Google will own about 15.7% of Arris at the close of this transaction: this could potentially be much more important than the TV Set-top business they’ve just sold.
It would appear that one of the many titanic battles in the patent universe is coming to fisticuffs for Motorola and Microsoft as they duel between one another over how much the latter owes the former for patented technology used in the Xbox. The trial at hand was held on November 13th through the 20th down in the Western District of Washington in a federal court designed to settle on how much Microsoft owes Motorola for two of its standard, essential patents used in the Xbox gaming console as well as products such as Windows 7. Now the talks have hit monetary amounts with suggested sums equalling out to be millions of dollars apart from one another.
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Welcome to Friday evening everyone. The weekend will be underway soon, but before we jump in, let's recap the news from the afternoon. We found out today that Google Maps on iOS might not be around for very long, so enjoy it while it lasts, while Motorola Atrix HD users are now getting a long-awaited update to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean. Google is leaving Sync support in the dust starting on January 30, 2013, and there were launch events for the iPhone 5 in 33 different countries today.
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We learned back in October what devices Motorola was and wasn't going to support with an Android 4.1 Jelly Bean update. The ATRIX HD was one of the handsets that was promised such an update, and now AT&T has announced that it's finally coming to ATRIX HD owners and should be rolling out now.
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Google is weighing two bids for its unwanted Motorola set-top box business, insiders claim, with Pace and Arris Group believed to have emerged as primary suitors. The bidding - unspecified, but Google was believed to be looking for roughly $2bn back in August - could be complicated by certain restrictions Google wishes to implement, Bloomberg reports, such as maintaining a portion of the equity and the STB unit's patents.
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