T-Mobile and Motorola Bring the Android Heat: the Motorola Cliq September 15, 2009

Posted by Eli Blumenthal in : Cell Phones, Google , trackback

motorola cliq 3

The Motorola Cliq

We all know of T-Mobile’s love of all things Android (I mean, they were the first to launch a device with the software– and currently sell the only 2 phones in the US with it, the G1 and myTouch 3G), so it’s not much of a big surprise when this past week they teamed up with Motorola to launch Motorola’s first Android phone– the Motorola Cliq. Think of this as a G1 and myTouch 3G mix, just one that looks and promises to be much better. What are we talking about here? Well, there’s only one way to find out.

The Operating System: MOTOBLUR

moto blur 1

Ok, so first let’s start with one of the really cool new general Android add-ons to this phone: the introduction of MOTOBLUR. What is MOTOBLUR you ask? Let’s just say it’s like HTC’s Sense just on steroids and mixed with a little bit of Palm’s webOS just for fun. Just like Sense (which is coming to the US next month with Sprint’s HTC Hero) gives Android a custom UI that’s much better than the standard one found on the G1 and myTouch 3G. Some MOTOBLUR’s great features include:

Contacts– This is not your RAZR’s phone book– this, like Palm’s Synergy on the Pre and Pixi, syncs your contacts that are on your phone AND those that are on social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, Twitter etc. And like in Synergy, when your friend changes their profile pic or updates a status, it will be automatically updated in your phone.
Messaging– This is a feature I really like– all your texts, emails, IM’s and even updates from MySpace, Facebook and Twitter are all in one in one inbox. If your not into that whole convergence thing, don’t worry– you can also choose to view each message separately in their own respective inboxes. You also have built in MySpace, Twitter and Facebook apps on the homescreen– so you can update your status and reply to message without even needing to open up different apps.

motoblur messaging

The Messaging App on the Motorola Cliq

Built in Tracking– Forgot where exactly you left your phone? Too lazy to go retrace all the recent places you’ve been to find it? No worries, MOTOBLUR has a feature called My MOTOBLUR where you just log onto the service and the phone’s GPS will automatically track it down for you. Pretty sweet– and unlike the iPhone’s MobileMe service which has a similar feature, this doesn’t look like it’s gonna cost anything. Oh, and if you ever lose your phone– you don’t need to worry about having all your info in the wrong hands– it also has a remote wipe feature (again, like MobileMe) that you delete everything on the phone right from your computer.
Homescreen– It not only has those social networking apps we mentioned above, but also other little widgets that give you things like the latest weather– right on the homescreen.

Overall, just like HTC took Android to a whole new level when they came out with Sense– I think Motorola may have something here that could definitely give it a run for it’s money as best Android customization.

You can see MOTOBLUR in action (they even got videos!) and see all the features on Motorola’s site.

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s go to the big boy– the new Motorola Cliq.

The Phone: Motorola Cliq

As you can see from some of the pix above, this is looking to be one of THE Android phones of the year. I mean, it’s just so loaded! Check it:

Nice, relatively thin design with 3.1 inch touchscreen full slide out QWERTY keyboard – This is no RAZR, but hey, for what this phone’s got (like that full slide out QWERTY keyboard) it ain’t too bad. Don’t worry it will still fit very comfortably in your pocket, as its not huge– think of it as about the size of the T-Mobile G1 (which wasn’t too bad itself thinness wise). Oh, and this phone is much better looking than the G1 in my opinion (no chin!). It also comes in “Winter White” or “Midnight Titanium” (basically a white or black finish around the screen).
T-Mobile 3G
Wi-Fi
Android with MOTOBLUR– Covered above (and don’t forget that under all the MOTOBLUR goodness is Google’s Android OS with all it’s great features like awesome Gmail, Google Maps, a real web browser and of course the Android Market which is loaded with apps).
5 Megapixel Camera with video recording– Yeah, this is WAY better than the G1, and you can also upload these photos right to your social networking sites.
myFaves support
Mp3 player with microSD card slot– Comes with 2 GB card in the box, but you can add up to 32 GB if you so chose.
GPS– With Geo Tagging for photos.

That all look good? Yeah, we think so too. But that might not even be the best part– Engadget uncovered a slip on T-Mobile’s site which listed the phone’s upcoming price as… FREE on 2 year contract. Since then T-Mobile has pulled the possible price from their site, but not before Engadget grabbed a pic. Anyways, all this for the unbeatable price of FREE? If so, then T-Mobile will looks to have a really big hit on it’s hands.

You can learn more at T-Mobile’s coming soon page here.

No final word on price and release– rumors saying October is when it will all go down– and we’ll of course keep you updated on that. But what you think– if your on T-Mobile would you get this? Even if your not on T-Mobile, if this is free as rumored, would you be willing to switch and go pick it up? Sound off in the comments.

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