IntoMobile » Motorola

Deal Alert: $99 Motorola Droid, FREE HTC Droid Eris from Wirefly.com

Will Park — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 01:46:08 +0000

If you’ve been resisting the urge to run out and buy a Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid at a Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless store, we’ve got some good news for you. Wirlefly.com is rewarding your patience with a seriously hot deal on a brand new Droid. How hot, you ask? Wirefly is offering the Droid for $99.99 with new 2-year contract (or contract extension). They also have the HTC Droid Eris on deck for FREE, if the HTC Sense UI is more your style.

For about $100, Wirefly.com will ship a newly activated Droid to your door. There’s no mail-in rebate to deal with and FedEx shipping is included, free of charge. The promotional ad makes it look like the $100 Droid requires new activation on Verizon’s $59.99 monthly rate plan, so we went through the checkout process with Verizon’s lowest-tier $39.99/month rate plan selected. We stopped short of processing payment information, but everything looked good to go with the cheaper rate plan.

The FREE HTC Droid Eris offer seems to be more limited. You’ll have to have an existing Verizon Wireless account and be willing to extend your contract for another two years. And, it seems the contract extension only applies to rate plans of $59.99 or more. On the upside, shipping is free via FedEx.

If you can wait a couple days for your new Droid hardware, you’re going to have a hard time beating these two deals.

$100 Motorola Droid
FREE HTC Droid Eris

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Google promotes the Moto Droid on its homepage

Dusan Belic — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:59:19 +0000

We do know Motorola (NYSE: MOT) and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) have worked together on the Droid, but still we haven’t thought we’ll see the search giant promoting the smartphone on its homepage, which is known for not carrying any ads at all. There are no doubts in my mind, Google bets heavily on Android and I’m guessing this is their way to show the true iPhone killer is now available, sporting the latest version of Google’s mobile OS – Android 2.0. We’re also unaware whether some cash was exchanged in the process, and considering Verizon (NYSE: VZ) has spent a small fortune for Droid promotion, that also sounds like a viable option.

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Motorola Milestone coming to Brazil, too

Dusan Belic — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:58:00 +0000

Motorola (NYSE: MOT) announced that “B” of the BRIC countries will get their Android 2.0-powered Droid. We’re talking about Brazil, of course, and since the carrier is TIM, it’s the GSM version of the phone called Milestone that will be available to interested users. The price is unknown and but the good news is that the version TIM will sell comes with the multi-touch display, which is very useful for zooming all around the web, maps and so on.

Again you know the specs, but let me shortly repeat them nonetheless – the display measures 3.7 inches, there’s a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, HSPA connectivity, GPS, WiFi, 3.5mm headset jack and a 1400 mAh battery.

[Via: Unwired View]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Proof that Motorola Droid Hype was built by the media

Stefan Constantinescu — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:15:49 +0000

Read this Tech Crunch piece in its entirety.

I walked up the Verizon (NYSE: VZ) store no later than 6:20 AM, forty minutes before the 7:00 AM opening time (three hours earlier than usual in light of the big day). But no sooner had I arrived than I began to question my still-groggy mental state. The Verizon sign was directly above my head. There were five or six employees buzzing around the well-lit store, two of whom were decked out in bizarre Droid-branded outfits, complete with black leather vests. But the street could not have been more empty.

The door cracked open. One of the employees, perhaps concerned by my confused expression or excited that someone had actually shown up, had come to talk to me.

A few minutes later I was joined by two new Droid fans. Unfortunately, my excitement over my new friends was rather shortlived — the newcomers turned down my offer of free TechCrunch T-shirts, and informed me that they weren’t actually waiting in line, but had come to witness it for themselves too. As it turned out, they were members of the Android team, who were also apparently let down by the sad turn out.

Droid. Does. Fail.

Update: Some further clarification as to why I posted the above snippet from Tech Crunch. Remember the Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Pre? Remember how everyone fell in love with it in January, and we all eagerly waited for it to come out? First in the USA on Sprint (NYSE: S), then in Germany and the UK on O2 (NYSE: TEF). Look where the Palm Pre is now in November. Hell, look where Palm is right now. The amount of attention the Palm Pre received was outstanding, yet how many Palm Pres do you see out in the wild?

There is no doubt that the Droid is an awesome device. Everyone who has reviewed one has said that it’s the best version of Android to date. The camera sucks, but the polished UI, and let us not forget Google Maps Navigation, are compelling enough reasons to say that the Droid is better than the iPhone. But what actually happened? All the press, from hyper enthusiast gadget sites like us, Engadget and Gizmodo, to main stream coverage from places such as The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, all amounted to nothing.

No big lines, no big parade, nada, zip. Think we’re going to be talking about the Droid in 6 months? No. We’ll be up to our eye balls in Android 2.0 devices, and in 6 months we may even see a new, better, more hyped up version of Android from either HTC or Motorola (NYSE: MOT).

The reason I posted the snippet above was to point out, and make fun of, people who said the Droid was going to change the status quo. Android is still not awesome enough to be accepted by the masses, but it’s getting there.

Update 2: One more thing, how long do you think it will take for Motorola, or Verizon, to issue a press release saying 1 million units have been sold? How many do you think will be sold over the weekend?

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Droid Day: Where to Get a Motorola DROID and for How Much

Simon Sage — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:59:04 +0000

Droid Day has arrived, and there are a lot of people waiting in line to pick up their shiny new Verizon Motorola droid. If you don’t feel like taking to the battlefield, here are some handy links to help you order one online, but even if you’re intent on picking one up today, maybe there’s a brick and mortar store in the list you haven’t checked yet…

Verizon (NYSE: VZ) – $149.99 if upgrading
Wal Mart – $149.99
Best Buy – $199.99
Wirefly -$149.99
LetsTalk – $149.99
Sears – $149.99

Anywhere else y’all have managed to find the droids you were looking for?

P.S.: Most online retailers are providing the $100 mail-in rebate instantly, but be sure to double-check with a live agent to make sure you know what the deal is.

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Verizon offers Internet tethering on Motorola Droid, for a price

Will Park — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:19:31 +0000

There’s more to the Droid than its high-end spec-sheet and Android 2.0 OS. Turns out, Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless is going to let Droid owners use their new smartphone as a 3G modem. But, it’ll cost ‘ya.

In return for allowing you to connect your laptop to your Droid and use its 3G data connection to hop online (tethering), Verizon will ask that you hand over an additional $30 per month – that’s on top of the $30/month data plan that gives you 5GB of data per monthly billing cycle. The tethering option basically doubles the cost ($60) of the Droid data plan, which gives you a total 10GB of data allowance.

The cost might be a bit prohibitive, but at least it’s an option on the Droid. Unlike some other smartphones that we won’t mention by name.

[Via: EngadgetMobile]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

The DROID is live!

Will Park — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 17:55:13 +0000

The Motorola Droid is live on Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless! Following weeks of hype and impressive TV ads, the highly anticipated Android phone from Motorola (NYSE: MOT) has landed on US shores. Verizon Wireless stores across the country opened for business bright and early this morning to accommodate the masses of Droid hopefuls yearning to be the first of their friends with Verizon’s new smartphone. The midnight launch in Manhattan saw something like 100 people waiting in line for a Droid. The store in Palo Alto, California, said they had a line of about 10 people when they swung their doors open at 7am, and has since been seeing a steady flow of customers coming in with Droid on the brain.

The crowds aren’t bad right now. VZW stores are staffed and ready to serve. It’s not clear how Verizon Wireless will keep up with Droid demand over the weekend, but if it were us, we wouldn’t risk not getting into a store ASAP.

[Update]
Just a quick reminder for all you in NYC considering a Droid purchase today: Verizon Wireless is celebrating its Droid launch with a secret Yeah Yeah Yeahs concert in Manhattan. Droid customers get free tickets today!

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Verizon to celebrate Motorola Droid launch with secret NYC concert by Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Will Park — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 23:05:18 +0000

So you like the Motorola Droid, do you? And you say you live in or close to New York City? Well, if you also happen to be a fan of the “Yeah Yeah Yeahs,” or you just like free concerts, you’re going to want to follow the Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s @vcastmusic Twitter feed over the next few days. Verizon Wireless will be celebrating the launch of their Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid with a secret “Yeah Yeah Yeahs” concert somewhere in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, and they’ll be giving away tickets via the Twitter feed.

Verizon will also be tweeting the locations of their New York Street Teams, where you can meet up with Droid-wielding reps and play with the Motorola Droid in person. Should you decide to pick up a Droid of your own on Nov. 6, you automatically get tickets to the secret Manhattan concert.

Straight from the official press release:

You can be one of the first to experience the brand new Droid by Motorola – the world’s first smartphone with Android 2.0 – available exclusively on the Verizon Wireless network. Follow Verizon Wireless’ New York Street Teams at Twitter.com/vcastmusic to find out where they will be so you can be one of the first to try the Droid out for yourself and win tickets to attend an exclusive celebration in Manhattan’s Lower East Side featuring a performance by Yeah Yeah Yeahs and mingle with celebrity guests including Adrian Grenier, Kim Delaney, Katrina Bowden and more.

Anyone who purchases a Droid on November 6 will also win tickets to attend the event.

For more information visit Twitter.com/vcastmusic

[Via: PhoneDog]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Verizon’s Motorola Droid supports Microsoft Exchange, but only if you pay $15 more per month

Will Park — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 07:46:03 +0000

The Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid is going to be a big deal when it launches Nov. 6. It’s got the right style and the right features to make a name for itself in the Android game, but it’s also going to be the first handset to sport the new Android 2.0 (Eclair) mobile operating system. That’s important because Android 2.0 will finally support Microsoft Exchange email. But, for Motorola Droid hopefuls who use Exchange email, it’s going to come at a price. $15, to be exact.

Verizon (NYSE: VZ) customers looking to get a Motorola Droid will have to sign up for one of three unlimited data plans on top of their voice plan. For $30, you’ll get unlimited data without Exchange support. If you need Exchange email support (and you’re a VZW business customer), your data plan will cost $45. Or, for $50, you can use the Droid as a data-only device, including Exchange support. For corporate Droid users, it’s going to cost $15 more to use their Exchange email.

The extra cost probably won’t affect a large majority of Verizon’s Motorola Droid customers, but that’s not going to console Exchange users slapped with the extra fee. Is it right to charge for the Droid’s Exchange feature? Will the extra $15 per month for Exchange support sway your decision to buy a Droid? Sound off below!

Oh, and if you want to get the low-down on the Droid, check out our coverage here, here and here.

[Update]
Turns out, Verizon business customers (those with corporate/business accounts) will be slapped with the higher-priced data plan. Consumers will get unlimited data and Exchange support on their Droid for $30, while business users will have to pay $45 for the same service. That should clear things up a bit.

[Via: PCWorld]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Video: Leaked Motorola DROID Commercial Drops Bombs

Simon Sage — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:03:10 +0000

Imagine, if you will, a squadron of stealth bombers on a grim mission to bomb their homeland with sexy, sexy, smartphones. That is the extremely awesome premise of Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s upcoming Motorola (NYSE: MOT) droid commercial, seen here. Enjoy!

[via BGR]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Motorola CLIQ goes live on T-Mobile USA

Will Park — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:57:10 +0000

The Motorola CLIQ is hailed as Motorola (NYSE: MOT)’s first stab at reclaiming some of their lost mobile phone market share, and it just might be able to live up to expectations. Motorola and T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) announced the CLIQ a little over a month ago, showing off the Android phone’s innovative MOTOBLUR interface and its ability to magically update its homescreen widgets with information from your social networks and news feeds. Today, T-Mobile has gone all official with the Motorola CLIQ in the US. No more pre-order, folks – the CLIQ is live!

T-Mobile’s CLIQ has the distinction of being Motorola’s first comeback handset as well as the company’s first Android phone to hit market. The CLIQ is decidedly more curvy than its evil brother, the Motorola DROID, but it packs a cutesy-punch. The CLIQ sports a 3.1-inch capacitive touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera, slide-out QWERTY keyboard, GPS, WiFi, 3G data, 3.5mm headphone jack and microSD card slot. But, the CLIQ’s highlight feature is its MOTOBLUR UI. Motorola created its custom MOTOBLUR Android UI to work with special MOTOBLUR servers to constantly monitor your social networks and news feeds. When something new happens or someone posts an interesting (sometimes not so interesting) tidbit to their profile, MOTOBLUR pushes that information to one of your homescreen widgets. Social butterflies, take note, MOTOBLUR will help you stay connected!

And, to help celebrate the Motorola CLIQ’s launch, Motorola and T-Mobile have announced a contest for college students. The college to sign-up the most Facebook fans to T-Mobile’s fan page will win a free campus concert by Weezer, and up to $25,000 for their school. Even better, you don’t even have to buy a CLIQ to enter the contest! Find out more here.

Fans of Motorola’s curvy Android phone can walk into any T-Mobile USA retail store or go online to nab their very own Motorola CLIQ for $199.99 with new 2-year contract and mail-in rebate. The CLIQ comes in your choice of White or Titanium color schemes.

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Motorola CLIQ gets official for T-Mobile USA

Will Park — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:32:03 +0000

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Sholes and Sholes Tablet for T-Mobile Spotted on Motorola Site

Simon Sage — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:33:59 +0000

Some snooping around Motorola (NYSE: MOT)’s internal product page for the recently-unveiled droid has revealed hints of a tablet version (alongside the vanilla UMTS model) coming to T-Mobile (NYSE: DT) as the Sholes. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen some name-shuffling with the droid, and considering Verizon (NYSE: VZ) has an iron grip on the “droid Does” campaign, it makes sense T-Mobile would want to stay differentiated (or Moto might just be sticking with the original codename). Besides that, we don’t know if or for how long VZ has exclusivity of this hot handset and its apparently upcoming tablet brother, but based on earlier rumours, we could be seeing the tablet as early as Q1 2010, and the regular Sholes before the new year.

[via TMoNews]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Motorola Droid challenges iPhone 3GS on the TCO battlefield

Will Park — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 19:32:03 +0000

When considering your next smartphone acquisition, it sometimes makes sense to take into account the “total cost of ownership” (TCO) associated with your hardware. One phone may cost less at the checkout counter, but may end up costing you more through monthly rate plans and data services. The difference can sometimes add up to a decent chunk of change over the course of a couple years. What about Motorola Droid from Verizon Wireless, and how does it measure up against the iPhone 3GS? According to the cost comparison gurus at BillShrink.com, Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid costs about the same as the iPhone 3GS.

As you can see in BillShrink.com’s handy-dandy comparison chart, the Droid goes round-for-round with the iPhone 3GS. Both phones boast almost identical feature sets (although iPhone multi-tasking is sadly missing), identical pricing structures and average rate plan costs. Taking all that into account, both the iPhone 3GS and Motorola Droid will end up costing the average customer $2,830 over the course of a 24-month contract.

It’s clear that Motorola has the Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) iPhone 3GS squarely in its sights. The Droid isn’t just going up against the iPhone 3GS with high-end features, it’s taking the fight to the TCO battlefield. The Droid has higher-end hardware (better display and camera), but the iPhone 3GS has the iPhone AppStore. Which will you choose?

Check out our Motorola Droid hands-on video here.

[Via: BillShrink]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Video: Motorola Milestone (GSM Droid) found again, this time in Russia

Stefan Constantinescu — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 10:14:42 +0000

Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid fever has hit the team at IntoMobile, and our readers, ridiculously hard. We’re all enamored with the Motorola Droid for different reasons; some like the new Navigation application, some like the fact that it is running a more mature looking Android 2.0, the hard core among us know that it is the first ARM Cortex A8 powered Android device, but whatever reason you have for liking the Droid, we can all admit that it’s the first time in a long time anyone has actually paid attention to Motorola.

Late last night Will discovered that the name of the GSM Motorola Droid is “Milestone”. A bit too long, a bit too much ego, but it suits the device just right. I first spotted Milestone last Wednesday in Vietnam, and another video has hit the net this morning, courtesy of @eldarmurtazin from Mobile-Review, showing the Milestone one more time:

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Want a GSM Motorola DROID? Say ‘hi’ to the Motorola MILESTONE!

Will Park — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:11:20 +0000

The Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid is all the rage right now. It’s chock full of Android 2.0 goodies like Google Maps Navigation and enough smartphone hardware to satisfy even the hardest core of mobile enthusiasts – all wrapped in a slim, yet masculine, package. But, Motorola is going to have to look beyond Verizon (NYSE: VZ)’s CDMA network to go truly global. In fact, Motorola’s already got O2 (NYSE: TEF) Germany in its sights. Yup, O2 will soon launch the GSM version of the Motorola Droid/Sholes as the Motorola MILESTONE.

O2 lists the price [PDF link] of the MILESTONE at €404.20 ($595), but that number should get a nice little price-chop after some carrier subsidies. The O2 website shows the Motorola MILESTONE looking every bit the GSM Droid we expected it to be, which is a good sign that German’s won’t have to wait too long before picking up their MILESTONE.

We’ve already seen the GSM Droid pass through the FCC and pop up in Vietnam, so it’s not surprising to see it going official in Europe. The only question is, when will Motorola release a US-spec GSM Droid?

[Via: BGR]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Brief: Droid? Developer? Read On!

Ben Robinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 00:27:08 +0000

Yep the hype machine is in full swing with Droid – everyone is talking about it, and I’d bet an increasing number of people are wanting it!

Well Moto have pinged me an email to say that Developers should be excited by Droid too, and Moto are there to help them – they are suggesting in fact to get your App ready for Droid! How? Well, hit up the link below and start your eyeballs off with a page of specs…

Click here to see the Motodev pages on Droid.

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Samsung Q3 results: Not too shabby

Will Park — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 23:10:31 +0000

Motorola (NYSE: MOT) surprise Q3 profit report isn’t alone today. Samsung has reported a profitable Q3 2009, with the electronics giant’s mobile phone division shipping 60.2 million mobile phones in the latest quarter, a 16% increase from the same period last year. That’s a new record for Samsung. And, thanks to higher demand for touchscreen handsets, Samsung reported a Q3 profit of $875 billion, a 23% year-on-year improvement.

Samsung claims 20.8% of the global mobile phone market, following only behind Finnish handset giant Nokia (NYSE: NOK). Those kinds of global sales figures haven’t been seen outside of Nokia since Motorola went to town with their RAZR in 2006. The push towards touchscreen handsets has clearly been working to Samsung’s advantage.

Samsung is also looking forward to a stronger Q4 fueled by consumers shopping for holiday gifts and emerging markets ready to adopt mobile technology. Still, competition from low- to mid-rand handsets from other manufacturers might be an issue for Samsung.

Samsung press release (PDF)

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Video: Motorola Droid gets unboxed, handled, loved

Will Park — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:42:21 +0000

The Motorola Droid is as hot as it gets in the smartphone space right now. It’s the first Android phone for Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless and it’s the first (that we’ve played with) to sport the newly announced Android 2.0 OS. It’s not just the slim-and-trim Motorola (NYSE: MOT) Droid’s impressive 3.7-inch touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera with dual-LED flash and slide-out QWERTY keyboard that make it a force to be reckoned with – the Android 2.0 OS blesses the Droid with integrated turn-by-turn GPS navigation with voice guidance and street view through the new Google Maps Navigation application.

Unfortunately, the closest you’ll be able to get to a Motorola Droid at this point is Best Buy’s pre-order. Us? Well, we’ve had the pleasure of playing with the Droid for a few days now. The Droid’s massive display is as good as it gets. The vanilla Android UI responds without any lag. Despite the huge display and full keyboard, the Droid is as comfortable in the hand and pocket as the similarly-sized iPhone 3G/3GS. And, with a respectable 5-megapixel camera and Google (NSDQ: GOOG) Maps Navigation adding icing to an already impressive handset, we have to say the Droid is living up to the hype.

So, how does it fare as a competitor to the HTC Hero and a possible candidate to unseat the iPhone as the de facto leader in the smartphone space? Check out our unboxing/hands-on video to see for yourself!

Here’s a quick rundown of the Motorola Droid’s spec sheet:

3.7-inch capacitive touchscreen at WVGA (854 x 480) resolution
Full HTML5 browser that supports Flash and will be upgradeable to Flash 10 once it becomes available
5 megapixel camera with dual LED flash; video capture at 720 x 480 resultion, 24 frames per second
16GB microSD card included
3.5 mm headphone jack
WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS
1400 mAh battery
Google’s new Google Maps Navigation application (more on that here)
60 mm x 115.8 mm x 13.7 mm; 169 grams

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this:

Verizon Wireless to open its stores at 6AM on November 6th?

Dusan Belic — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 10:30:09 +0000

File this under “rumors” but it seems Verizon (NYSE: VZ) Wireless will be opening its stores at 6AM sharp on November 6th. According to always highly informed Boy Genius, the idea is to better serve customers looking for some DROID love. At the same time, this is obviously a PR stunt, which will certainly get some media attention (check us out).

And as you know, it’s not just the Moto Droid that will start selling on November 6th – it’s also the all-touchscreen HTC Droid Eris that also gets its power from the Android platform. Those of you who hate waiting in the queue, don’t forget you can pre-order the Droid from BestBuy.

[Via: BGR]

Related News from IntoMobile:

Share this: