Showing posts with label Motorola. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Motorola. Show all posts

Saturday, December 17, 2011

Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 Review

The Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 finally lands in the US, after being released in Europe last month as the Motorola Zoom 2 Media Edition. We don’t know why the name is different, but the hardware is almost identical. I say almost because this version is powered by Verizon’s 4G LTE network, which has no equivalent in Europe. Beyond its mobile broadband capabilities, Motorola pitches this device as being “tough”, praising its materials as “a force field of protection”. But this is not an armored tablet: it weighs 0.85lbs (13.75oz) and is equipped with an IPS LCD display and virtual surround sound, says Motorola. This sounds good, but I’m going to tell you how it feels to use one in the real world… ready?

Technical highlights

8.2” LCD IPS display, 1280×800, 16M colors
Android 3.2 (Honeycomb)
Dual core, 1.2GHz, TI OMAP 4430
1GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage
5 Megapixel camera with LED flash (back), 1.3MP camera (front)
216 x 139 x 8.9 mm, 13.62 oz (386 g)
3960 mAh battery
micro-USB 2.0
4G LTE (Verizon), WIFI A/B/G/N

Context

We all perceive the gadgets usefulness differently depending on our lifestyle, so let me tell you where I come from. Most of my (computing) time is spent using a powerful desktop computer (a PC) with large displays. If I need to get some real work done outside of the office, I use a laptop (Macbook Pro + Win7). On the go, I keep track of emails with a smartphone, but I tend to reply only moderately from it because typing long emails is a bit painful on a touchscreen. With the tablet, I check news websites and social networks a lot, and I often use a laptop or tablet on my couch.
Because tablets have such a long battery life, I have been searching for ways to use them as laptop replacement in some situations like trade shows and meetings where I don’t do anything drastic like programming or video-editing.

Design (very good)

Droid Xyboard 8.2 ReviewThe Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 has a clean design which feels substantially less bulky than the original Motorola Zoom, not only in terms if screen diagonal, which is obvious – but also in terms of thickness and display bezel. The front is pretty much all-glass, but the back is a mix of (what seems to be) magnesium with a rubber paint, and metal. Interestingly, Motorola has decided to go “all in” with the “tough” look, showing metallic screws in the back and all. This gives the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 a solid look, which is a nice differentiation form the Galaxy Tab series, which chose to aim for thin and light.
On the back, you can also find the Power and volume buttons, along with the HD camera module, complete with an LED flash. From the buttons placement, I tend to think of this device as a “portrait” device that will be used vertically, but you can use it in landscape mode without a problem too.
Overall the build quality is solid and I may even suggest that the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 is a tablet that has a “professional” look. Motorola is actually promoting the fact that this is a splash & scratch resistant design. We haven’t put that claim to the test, but we haven’t heard any competitor talking about their product in this way, so keep that in mind.


Display


In a relatively dim environment, the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 IPS LCD display is great. the colors are well reproduced, it is very bright and using it on the couch or in a place is going to be a pleasure. On a sunny day, things are a bit different, and I find the screen to be a little shinier than the average high-end tablet.
This is a trade-off that is commonly seen in laptops: shiny screens make the image “pop” a bit more while indoors, but this also exacerbates reflections outside. You can crank up the backlight to compensate for that, but it affects battery life.
If you take the train, subway or use it indoors, it’s all good, but if you plan on using this outside on a construction area, or as a realtor, you may want to take a few seconds to think about it. To be fair, most tablets will have this issue to some extent, but the Motorola display looks shinier than most.

Software

Motorola is known to put a lot of efforts on the software customization of their Android devices, and recently, I really like the Motorola Smart Actions of the Droid Razr. On this tablet, the offering is more nimble, and Motocast and Motopack are the main apps that stick out.
MotoCast is the new name for ZumoCast, a Motorola app that lets you access content from your computer over the web. Each computer that you want to access needs to have a small MotoCast client installed. From there, your Motorola mobile devices (smartphones, tablets…) can access the files over the internet. Of course, you need a password and Motorola has made things as secure as it could.
This can be particularly useful for small businesses that have someone “in the field” with the tablet, and some else at the office who either collaborates, or updates the information from the office computer. You can image other situations like this, but given that the Droid Xyboard 8.2 is a 4G LTE device, it will not have much troubles with the network speed.
Motopack is a Motorola App Store of sorts. It contains apps that Motorola has tested and certified to run well on the Droid Xyboard 8.2. You can probably find the same apps on the Android market, but it is possible that from time to time, Motorola works with a developer to get something special for their hardware. I like the visual design of Motopack which is very graphic. They can because the “pack” contains about 30 apps, so Motorola does not have to take discoverability into account.
Ice Cream Sandwich upgradeable: while it does not ship with ICS, aka Android 4.0, the Droid Xyboard 8.2 can be upgraded to Google’s latest Android. Now, it’s not clear when the upgrade will happen, but at least we know that it is technically possible to upgrade.

Killer Apps

Droid Xyboard 8.2 Review
Email: the email app looks very much like the normal Android 3.x email app, and although I found minor differences in terms of design, the only functionality that comes in addition to the regular email app is Motoprint. As its name indicates, Motoprint lets you print emails, Microsoft Office documents, photos or web pages on your PC printer via WiFi. It seems like a small thing, but when you need to print something, it’s not always fun to be a tablet owner.
In terms of connectivity, most email service and Microsoft Exchange are supported, so this could be used for personal and professional purposes. If there’s an IT department, you may want to check with them as they may require additional security measures such as a virtual private network connection (VPN).
Skype: Skype works both in audio and video mode. Overall, the quality is quite acceptable for a mobile device, but laptops will perform better. The audio is usually good enough so that I don’t have to worry about it. It would be nice if Skype, chip vendors and tablet makers could come up with a way to hardware-accelerate the Skype video compression.
Browser: No problem here, the web browser performs well, and the sites that we tried were rendered properly without any issues. Of course, there is still Flash support and you can visit Flash-powered sites like wechosethemoon.org, which is a Flash-site about the Apollo lunar landing.
Droid Xyboard 8.2 Review
I've pre-loaded San Francisco to the local storage. No more tile downloads for a while
Maps: In terms of mapping, Android remains the best overall platform because Google has put more efforts and features into Google Maps for Android. Because the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 is an 4G-LTE device, you can expect maps to load very quickly as both latency and peak download speed have been improved over 3G and non-LTE “4G” networks such as HSPA+. Note that although this unit works on the Verizon network, AT&T is also deploying its LTE solution, and Sprint has wowed to launch its own.
My favorite features of Google Maps is one of the “Labs” experiment: you can preload a 10-mile square on the internal memory and browse maps without downloading tiles over the network again. This is great because most people often use maps within the same city on a daily basis. This should be a permanent feature if you ask me.
xyboard 8.2 review
Facebook: At the moment, the Facebook app on Android is still designed for smartphones, so you get a stretched view that is not optimum for Tablets. That said, the Facebook app gets the job done.

Entertainment

Movie playback: I copied some 1080p movies (.MP4) to the Droid Xyboard 8.2 and they all played without any problem. One is the Gran Turismo 5 trailer, and the other is the latest Starcraft trailer. this basically means that the tablet can decode very decent video (1080p 5Mbps+) that is usually above and beyond what you will find in streaming services like Netflix, or the Android Market.
Droid Xyboard 8.2 Review
Gaming (very good): the Droid Xyboard 8.2 is not really the fastest tablet when it comes to gaming. Graphics benchmark Nenamark 2 show that while it is comparable to Samsung’s offerings with a score of about 20 Megapixels per second, it is far from the astounding 51 Megapixel/sec that the Asus Transformer Prime achieves with its Tegra 3 chip.
That said, 20 Megapixel/sec is still equivalent to graphics performance that was considered “cutting-edge” just last summer. For example, Shadowgun runs well, and it’s completely playable, but you won’t get the 60 frames per second super-smooth frame rate. Instead, you will get 30 fps, which is still very good. (note: I’m eyeballing all the FPS numbers as there are no in-game counters)
Droid Xyboard 8.2 Review
Speakers (impressive): I’m impressed by the sound quality – It is known that having the speakers on the side can produce very nice sound and it is a technique commonly used on smartphones from several brands. However, it is easy to mask the speaker with the palm of your hand in landscape mode, so you’ll have to be careful about that. If you are, the sound is very good, especially if you take into account the size of the device. I think that this is the best sound that I have experienced form a tablet. Good job Motorola!

Camera (good)

xyboard 8.2 review
Photo taken with the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2
xyboard 8.2 review
The Xyboard has a tendency to have a tint that is a bit off
xyboard 8.2 review
The Camera of the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 is very decent and does well in most photos. However, I have noticed that out of the box, the tint is slightly off and the camera has a tendency to pick up the dominant color of the scene. Below are two examples: first, the Droid Xyboard colors go towards blue/green, probably because of that door and wall on the left. On the second photo, it picks up too much yellow. You can tell because in both photos, the concrete is supposed to be gray. I don’t know why it does that, and many people won’t notice, but I think that Motorola could tweak this.
The video recording is good, and I’m satisfied with the overall quality as it is very decent. However, it won’t equal or beat the iPhone 4S. If you want to compare different devices for yourself, we have made the original photos available on our Ubergizmo Flickr account. Check them out in their full glory, no resizing involved.

Performance (very good)

Xyboard 8.2 Benchmark
Antutu tries to measure broad system performance
Nenamark 2 is somewhat representative of a game
Performance-wise, the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 does well for a current-generation tablet. As you can see, it is slightly faster than its nemesis, the Galaxy Tab 8.9 but not as fast as the Galaxy S2 (with OMAP4). However, when you factor the upcoming (Dec 19) Asus Transformer Prime, things get tougher. Because it is powered by a next-gen Tegra 3 quad-core processor, the Transformer Prime easily wins in both benchmarks.
Yet, there is currently no 8” tablet that offers that kind of performance, so for the time being, the Droid Xyboard 8.2 is the fastest tablet in that category. It will be up to you to decide if you like the 8” form-factor, or the absolute performance better.
When not using extreme performance applications like games or imaging, the difference in terms of user experience isn’t so noticeable. In the grand scheme of things, the Droid Xyboard 8.2 is very good, but the scale for “excellent” has just been raised.

Battery life (below average)

In a standard video playback test, the Motorola Droid Xyboard gets about 5 hours of video, which is “OK”, but far from the 10 hours that the iPad 2 or the Transformer Prime would get. While we could blame that on the smaller form-factor, we keep in mind that tablets like the Playbook or the Galaxy Tab 7+ get 7hrs or so, so in the grand scheme of things, this could be better.
I consider the video test as some sort of “worst-case” scenario that can be applied to most tasks because the display (one of the most power-hungry element) is ON at all times. Even if video-decoding is not considered to be “intensive” (it’s mainly done by a small co-processor), it still is more intensive than email, and many other things that you may do.
Only gaming and image processing remain a special category of apps that can deplete the battery much faster than this, and how fast really depends on the application, but polygonal 3D is expensive.

Conclusion (competitive in the 7″to 8” category)

xyboard 8.2 review
In its own 8” category, the Motorola Droid Xyboard is a great competitor to the Galaxy Tab 8.9. Both share a comparable footprint, and both can differentiate themselves: the Droid Xyboard feels more solid and is a bit more compact and fast. The Tab 8.9 feels lighter and thinner but also feels a bit “plastic”.
Now, if you omit the size, it is clear that the Asus Transformer Prime is much faster, but unfortunately, it does not have a 4G LTE option despite customers clamoring for at least a 3G option. If you ask me, this comes down to the form factor. If you really care about compactness, then Droid Xyboard 8.2 is a very good option.
If a 10.1” tablet works for you, it becomes a matter of needing mobile broadband or not. If you need fast broadband, a Droid Xyboard 10.1 or a Galaxy Tab 10.1 LTE will get the job done. If 3G/4G is not needed, getting a Transformer Prime is a no-brainer. Some would say that WiFi can be a good alternative to mobile broadband but I disagree: in my experience, there’s almost never a hotspot when I *really* need one.
I hope that this review has given you an idea of how it feels to use the Motorola Droid Xyboard 8.2 [product page]. If you have questions that I have not covered, please drop a comment, and I’ll try to address them ASAP. If you find this review to be useful, please “like it”, share it or drop a comment. We’re here to help.

[Via: Ubergizmo]

Motorola Droid Xyboard 10.1 Review

When the Motorola Xoom was launched with Honeycomb, I was slightly disappointed by its hardware design and the below average quality of the display. Consequently, I was happily surprised when I saw the Motorola Droid Xyboard 10.1 for the first time, the chassis design is sleek and elegant and the IPS display offers high contrast and great color accuracy.
The Droid Xyboard 10.1, known as Xoom 2 outside of the US, has the advantage to offer Verizon 4G LTE connectivity, a convenient feature for road warriors who are tired to look for WiFi hotspots while on-the-go. With a 2-year contract, you will be able to purchase the 16 GB version for $529.99 and the 32 GB version for $629.99.
Now, let’s see what the Droid Xyboard 10.1 has to offer in terms of design, software and performance.

Specifications

Processor: OMAP 4 Dual Core 1.2 GHz
OS: Android 3.2 software (Honeycomb)
Display: 10.1” 1280 x 800, IPS LCD capacitive touch screen, pinch to zoom, light responsive, with stylus support
Connectivity: 4G LTE, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, Micro USB, HDMIout, 3.5 mm jack – data transmission rate: USB 2.0
Multiple Networks: WCDMA 900/2100, CDMA 850/1900, GSM 850/900/1800/1900, 4G LTE Band 13, HSDPA 21.1 Mbps (Category 14), CDMA EV-DO Release B/LTE, EDGE Class 12, HSUPA 5.76 Mbps
Camera: backside 5 MP camera AF with LED flash and digital zoom– frontside 1.3 MP camera (webcam)
Video: 720p HD video capture – 1080p full HD video playback – playable formats: AAC, H.263, H.264, MP3, eAAC+, OGG, MIDI, AMR NB, AAC+
Flash support: Adobe Flash Player
Memory: 16 / 32 / 64 GB built-in, 1GB RAM
Sensors: accelerometer, gyro, compass, barometer, ambient light, AGPS (autonomous)
Battery: 7000 mAh Li Ion
Battery Life (manufacturer estimates): browsing over WiFi, aprox 10 hours – Video Playback
Weight: 603 grams
Size: 253.9 x 173.6 x 8.8 mm
Thinness comparison: Xoom 1: 12.9 mm – iPad 2: 8.8 mm – Galaxy Tab 10.1: 8.6 mm – Asus Transformer Prime: 8.3mm
Weight comparison: Xoom 1: 730 grams/1.6 lbs – iPad 1: 680 grams/1.5 lbs – iPad 2: 590 grams/1.3 lbs – Asus Transformer Prime: 586 grams

Context

We always have a hard time ensuring objectivity in our reviews, since different people use electronic devices in drastically different ways depending on their needs and lifestyle. By telling you how I use a tablet, it will be easier for you to decide which aspects of this review will be useful for you to help make up your mind. I have used the Motorola Droid Xyboard 10.1 for a few days as an additional device to my desktop computer, my MacBook Pro (running Windows), my Macbook Air (running Windows) and my Smartphone. Since I have bought the Macbook Air, I do not use a tablet for meetings as much any more, it has become more of an entertainment device from which I watch movies in my bed or in the plane, read news and books, play with apps (ie Angry Birds, Music Sreaming apps), Skype/chat with friends, check Facebook updates, play music on a mini Bluetooth speaker.

External design (good)

Motorola Droid Xyboard backside
I am pleased to see how well the second 10-inch tablet from Motorola has been improved compared to the first bulky Xoom, the device features the same thinness as the iPad 2.
The chassis looks sleek and elegant and gets a unique design with its angled corners, offering a refreshing differentiation in a world full of black flat screens under 9 mm thick. Overall the built quality is solid and
The start screen’s preloaded wall paper is easy on the eyes and consistent with the robotic-inspired graphic style of the Droid branding. The Droid Xyboard 10.1 is narrower and a hair wider than the iPad2 for a comparable weight, it features similar proportions as the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1.
Personally, I am not a big fan of the back cover made of two different materials, in the center, a gray brushed metal rectangle with rounded corners is encased in rubberized edges. The rubberized outer rim offers a good grip and a soft touch, which feels good in the hand, however the color combination is not very elegant. The design attempt of combining two different textures and colors is better done on the Droid Xyboard 8.2-inch version because the shapes are symmetrical.

Display (very good)

This time, Motorola got it right on the display side, the company has surely learn its lesson from the first Xoom which featured a super reflective and below average display, an unfortunate design decision knowing that tablets are primarily content consumption devices.
The touch LCD delivers high contrasts, accurate and bright colors, similarly to top tablets on the market such as the iPad and the Samsung Galaxy Tab. However, it is a little bit more reflective than other high-end tablets in direct sunlight, which could be annoying when you watch dark background screens while outdoors. To be fair, most tablets will have this issue to some extent, but the Motorola display looks shinier than most.

Audio (very good)

The two speakers are located at the rear of the device close to the top. When I played the first video, i was instantly surprised by the good audio quality compared to other high-end tablets. The sound is more powerful and clearer than on the Samsung Galaxy Tabs or the iPad. I tested all devices with the volume set to the maximum. We have noticed that Motorola usually delivers good audio quality on its mobile devices.

Software / OS (good)

Android 3.2 and Motorola design customizations
Motorola Droid Xyboard Quick Access
The Quick Access is the original from Android, only the font has been customized
The Droid Xyboard 10.1 runs Android 3.2 and features a few design customizations on the OS side. The Browser, Email, Contacts, calendar, Gallery,Camera and Settings icons has been redesigned to be consistent with the ones found in the Motorola smartphones. The system icons (bottom left corner), and the Apps icon on the action bar (top right corner) have been redesigned as well.
The Tron-style typeface and icons seem to be highly disliked by design team across the industry, just like Samsung did, Motorola has replaced it by a more neutral font. Other than that, the quick access panel that pops up at the bottom left corner with settings access and notifications looks to be the original one featured in Honeycomb.
In case you would like to know more about the Android 3.2 update, read the official page on the Android site.
No Pre-loaded Task Manager
I wish a task manager would have been pre-loaded. Samsung offers in its Galaxy Tab tablets, it is accessible from its TouchWiz Mini App tray, the ability to close the apps from the Recent Apps tray is not available on Android 3.2, Asus made the customization in its Transformer Prime. (comparison picture). I advise you to download a free task manager app from the Android Market, we usually like to get Advanced Task Killer from Rechild.
Motorola and Verizon Custom Software
Motorola is well known for its software customization of Android, which genrally add great features on the user experience side, think Motoblur or the most recent Motorola Smart Actions developed for the Droid Razr.
On the Droid Xyboard 10.1, custom software has been kept to a minimum with the MotoCast and the MotoPack applications.
MotoCast is the new name for ZumoCast, a Motorola app that lets you remote access content on your computer over the web. Each computer that you want to access needs to have a small MotoCast client installed, and you need to create an account (a MotoCast ID) with password protection. From there, your Motorola mobile devices (smartphones, tablets…) can access the files over the internet. This would be particularly convenient for road warriors or small businesses with employees dispatched in the field with 4G-connected tablets.
When I tried the application I had issues to make it work on the tablet, I was able to successfully install the PC client and register my account on the website. I will have to take a second look and I will update the review.
Motorola Droid Xyboard MotoPack
Motopack appstore with beautifully designed user interface - it could be more responsive
MotoPack is the Motorola app store that features a very small number of applications certified by Motorola. The user interface is graphically beautiful although a bit slow. The app store is supposed to hsot 30 apps, but it looked like my version displayed only six. (to verify)
Verizon V CAST Apps: The Droid Xyboard 10.1 is a Verizon 4G LTE tablet, and the carrier could not resist to pre-load its own app store as well. You will find it as a shopping cart icon labeled “Apps” in the app section, oddly, when the splash screen launches, the complete app store name is V CAST Apps. I like the user interface a lot, it is graphically appealing and makes it easy to search a few applications by category. Similarly to the Motorola app store, all the apps featured in V CAST Apps can be found in the Android market, Verizon made it easier for regular people to get the most useful and well developed ones. The application is slow and the user interface is not fluid.
Other Verizon applications: Verizon Media Manager and VZ Navigator
Pre-loaded applications
It is always interesting to look at the pre-loaded application list, since people might rely on the manufacturer and its good judgement to select the most useful software for its users.
Preloaded apps list include: Amazon Kindle, BlockBuster, Dijit (universal digital remote control), Evernote, Fuze meeting, Citrix receiver, GoToMeeting, Netflix, Polycom (porfessional video conferencing), Quickoffice HD, Skitch (photo editing), VideoSurf (video discovery) and SlingBox.
Games: Let’s golf 2 and Madden NFL 12.
Google Apps: Talk, Books, Music, Maps, Navigation (beta), Latitude, Places, Voice Search.

Vital Applications

Motorola Droid Xyboard emaill application
Emaill application with MOTOPrint - in the blue nav bar, see the printer icon
Email
The email application look similar to any other Android 3.x email app, and it now features search (it was not the case at Honeycomb launch). The nice addition offered by Motorola is the ability to print via MOTOPrint and compatible shared printers over a WiFi network or Ethernet with a WiFi access point. MOTOPrint lets you print other documents stored in your tablets such as Office docs, photos, web pages and more…
Most email services are supported, and setting up Exchange is quite easy when you know all your account specifications (domain name, user name, password).
Virtual Keyboard
The Android keyboard is the default input method, and the Droid Xyboard 10.1 comes with Swiftkey Tablet X and Swype directly available in the settings. Personally, I like the easy access to Swiftkey since this particular keybaord application deliver awesome predictive capabilities, can learn your typing habits from your Facebook, and Twitter updates, and above all features, can handle simultaneously three languages, a most needed feature for me.
Stylus
The Droid Xyboard comes with a stylus, I have not had the time to try it yet, I will update this paragraph when I do.
Skype
Video calling is possible with Skype for Android 3.x, and the quality is acceptable for a mobile device, the application delivers better result on a desktop or a laptop computer. When it comes to video calling on Android you can try alternative application such as Tango.Hopefully the video quality for mobile calling will be enhanced in the near future.
Motorola Droid Xyboard browser
Browser
As you may know, I have a slight preference for the Chrome-based browser featured in Honeycomb over Safari in the iPad, thanks to its handy tabs and its sleek interface. On the performance side, the websites I tried loaded pretty rapidly, with a comparable speed as any high-end tablet we tried. Flash is still supported, so if you are a fan of the conquest of space you can visit Flash-powered sites like wechosethemoon.org and play with Apollo.
Maps
The Google Maps app on Android devices packs more features than on iOS, which is understandable on a business angle, Google is pushing its own mobile platform. The user interface is very responsive as well as moving the map around.
The layers feature is great, it allows it adds tons of information on top of the map including traffic, terrain, transit lines and Wikipedia information. When you click a Wikipedia icon on the map, you get a pop up window with a description and additional information about the of the point of interest and you can get access to Street view or directions from your current location at the click of a button.
Facebook
The Facebook app for Android is the smartphone version and has not been optimized for tablets yet. It get the job done, but honestly, using it is not fun. The user interface, the aesthetics and the navigation could be a lot better.

Entertainment

Movies
I played some 1080p movies (.MP4) that I have stored on the Droid Xyboard 10.1, and the video playback was fluid with a great audio quality. One is the Gran Turismo 5 trailer, and the other is the latest Starcraft trailer. This basically means that the tablet can decode very decent video (1080p 5Mbps+) that is usually above and beyond what you will find in streaming services like Netflix, or the Android Market. Additionally, it is important to note that the display offers good color restitution and high contrast for the video playback.
Netflix
Netflix comes pre-loaded in the Droid Xyboard 10.1, which is a good idea knowing that 10-inch tablets are perfect for watching video. I tested it over WiFi, although you can try it over 4G, it is recommended to use WiFi, depending on your plan and the bandwidth limitation per month.
Netflix delivers a fluid HD video experience overall with a good image and audio quality.
YouTube
The YouTube application was revamped for the Honeycomb launch on the Motorola Xoom in April 2011, I have described it in the review and you can check out our video demo. To make sure the Xyboard 10.1 would play well HD video from YouTube, I tried it with the Avatar HD trialer and the result was perfect. Again, the audio quality and the display high contrast makes the experience enjoyable.
Games
The Droid Xyboard 10.1 is not really the fastest tablet when it comes to gaming. Graphics benchmark Nenamark 2 show that while it is comparable to Samsung’s offerings with a score of about 20 Megapixels per second, it is far from the astounding 51 Megapixel/sec that the Asus Transformer Prime achieves with its Tegra 3 chip.
However the gaming experience tested with a 3D game is fine, we tried it with ShadowGun, the rendering is fast at 30 fps, but upcoming tablets like the transformer Prime can reach 60 fps.

Camera (good)

Motorola Droid Xyboard Camera
The backside 5 MP camera with AF and LED flash of the Motorola Droid Xyboard 10.1 is very decent and does well in most photos.
The video recording is good, and I’m satisfied with the overall quality as it is very decent. However, it won’t equal or beat the iPhone 4S, and the Galaxy S2.

Photo taken with the Droid Xyboard 10.1

Photo taken with the Droid Xyboard 10.1


Performance (very good)


Antutu tries to measure broad system performance


Nenamark 2 is somewhat representative of a game
Performance-wise, the Motorola Droid Xyboard does well for a current-generation tablet. As you can see, it is slightly faster than the Galaxy Tab 10.1 but not as fast as the Galaxy S2 (with OMAP). However, when you compare to the upcoming (Dec 19) Asus Transformer Prime, things get tougher. Because it is powered by a next-gen Tegra 3 processor, the Transformer Prime easily wins both benchmarks.
When not using extreme performance applications like games or imaging, the difference in terms of user experience isn’t so noticeable. In the grand scheme of things, the Droid Xyboard 10.1 is very good, but the scale for “excellent” has just been raised.

Battery life (average)

Charging time (long)
The charging time is similar to what is available on high end thin tablets, after two hours the Xybard was charged at 40% which is equivalent to the Samsung Galaxy Tab’s charging time (10.1 and 8,9 versions). The iPad also requires a long charging time.
Battery life (average)
I still need to test the battery life further, we expect it to be 7 hours of video playback,.

Conclusion (good)

What’s good
- 4G LTE
- Delivers good video playback experience and decent gaming experience
- Overall performance is very good
- Custom design of the default wallpaper with the Droid-style, it looks great
- Custom design of the Android apps and system icons
- Build quality is great, the rubberized edges feel good
- Audio quality is very good
- IPS display quality is good, with bright colors and high contrasts, which is a nice upgrade from the previous Motorola tablet
- WiFi printing capability with MOTOPrint
- Remote control of your home or office computer via MOTOCast
What could be better
- the display could be a bit less reflective
- the Motorola applications and the Verizon app store could be more responsive
- a pre-loaded task manager would be great

[Via: Ubergizmo]

Browser Face-Off: iPhone 4S, Galaxy Nexus, Rezound, Razr and Galaxy S II Compared [Videos]

As a long time Android user since the G1 days, I have to say having a choppy browser has been one of the areas that has really irked me about Android devices. Watching all those smug iPhone users with their super fluid browser, scrolling up and down, in and out, I have to admit — I was jealous. Now, with this new generation of dual-core superphones, you would expect all the browsers, across all devices to be nice, smooth and silky, right? Wrong.
If you’re sitting on an upgrade, on the fence about which new device to get, maybe this collection of videos from our very own Android Forums member, Medion, will help push you over the edge. Who comes out on top? Who’s cuisine reigns supreme? As a reference, we’re including the iPhone 4S because… c’mon — it’s damn smooth.
Apple iPhone 4S


Galaxy Nexus



Samsung Galaxy S II



Motorola Droid RAZR



HTC Rezound


After watching these videos, have they possibly changed your mind at all on a future purchase? Granted, there are other factors that influence value like camera and manufacturer UI’s. But when it comes to browsers, I can tell you I’m seeing things in a whole new light. I’m talking to you, Rezound. Get your choppiness together.
[Via AndroidForums]

Motorola XOOM graced with Android 4.0.3 build

We just saw Android 4.0.2 officially roll out to the Samsung Galaxy Nexus today, and even confirmed what would be in the Android 4.0.3 update to come. Well it seems the latest AOSP build has been pushed and supports the Nexus S and Motorola XOOM [WiFi]. Even better, the guys at XDA Developers have a bootable version of the ROM up and running for the XOOM.


Many features such as the camera are still broken, and there are a load of bugs that will need to be fixed – but that’s normal when taking an AOSP source. This is more of an extremely early Beta (or more appropriately an Alpha) of ICS for the Motorola XOOM, but their developmental community is strong, and this push should offer a great start. Of course, Motorola will eventually update the XOOM themselves; even if development starts to slow down.




From the clip you can see the obvious glitches when transitioning from screen to screen, but it’s extremely smooth. Even debatably smoother than the XOOM’s initial Honeycomb release. It’s great not having one universal OS to rule them all, and I have a feeling the developers are going to love it.
[via The Verge]

Motorola DROID RAZR Maxx appears in Verizon System

We’ve heard the name Maxx before and now it appears that the RAZR Maxx is indeed real and coming, we just don’t know when. The RAZR Maxx name was first spotted earlier this month and could be one of the many different variants of the RAZR we’ve seen online. Today it has appeared again giving it even more mystery.


According to some new screenshots from Verizon we now have even more confirmation that the device does exist and Verizon is getting prepped. The image below is the name clearly being added into the Verizon system at some point yesterday. If we see another RAZR before the end of the year I wouldn’t be surprised. If it’s better than the DROID RAZR I have a feeling there will be some angry people with buyers remorse.

For now we mostly just have rumored specs but being MAXX it would need to be better than the original you’d think. We’ve heard a few reports of a larger display with a 1280 x 720p HD display and that huge 13MP camera like China’s model of the RAZR. For now the RAZR Maxx has been bumped up above the “rumor” category but that is as far as we’ll take it until we get further details.
[via Droid-Life]

Wednesday, December 14, 2011

Sony Tablet P vs Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition

Sony's Tablet P is nothing if not unique. The device's form factor and design has split opinion widely since it first surfaced a few weeks ago and now it's here with us we're still unsure what to make of the enigmatic little device.
Its opponent in our comparison is another small tablet with plenty to offer, and we're aiming to find out whether the novel Tablet P can hold its own against then equally small, but more traditional Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition.

Screen
The Sony Tablet P features dual 5.5-inch TFT screens which operate at a resolution of 1024 x 480 and boast a pixel density of 206PPI.
The dual-screen arrangement works well for the device and when closed the device is super portable, which is something that cannot be said for other devices that offer over 10-inches of screen space.
The Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition has an 8.2-inch HD TFT which operates at a resolution of 800 x 1280 and has a more than acceptable pixel density of 184PPI.
Motorola has done well with the Xoom 2 ME, managing to strike a nice balance between portability and screen quality, and the display responds well and offers excellent quality visuals.
The novelty of the Tablet P is something that we feel will wear off fast. Its displays are good, but no one in their right mind would rather browse the Web on something akin to the giant Nintendo DS-XL when they could choose a nice, single piece of glass.
Winner - Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition

Software
Android is the order of the day for both tablets here and they both thrive as a result of the software's fast, stable core.
The version in use on both devices, Honeycomb (3.2), is customised for tablet use and offers re-designed core apps, a new user interface and plenty of other refinements to make it both easy to use and powerful.
As has been said before, the Android Market, for all its virtues, does lack support for tablets, with a minimal amount of featured content developed with bigger screened devices in mind. This is changing, but not very rapidly. If you're after tablet-centric apps then you'll have to look elsewhere or be very patient.
That aside, the Android OS allows both of our contenders to shine. They're both fast, easy to navigate and offer full flash browsing, which is a great selling point in a market dominated by iPad's.
Winner - Draw

Camera
Sony's Tablet P features a primary 5-megapixel camera with autofocus, touch focus, image stabilisation, geo-tagging and face & smile detection, as well as 720P video capture.
The device also offers a secondary VGA camera, for video calling and the like.
Performance is good with the primary camera, though the device would benefit from an LED flash to enhance darker environments.
The Xoom 2 Media Edition benefits from a 5-megapixel camera with LED flash and geo-tagging, as well as 720P movie capture.
The primary camera performs well but, as you'd expect, it won't replace your compact or SLR. Shots can appear a little bit noisy at times, and the shutter speed might be a concern to some.
Motorola has also given the Xoom 2 Media Edition a 1.3-megapixel secondary camera for video-calling which performs really well, even in lower light areas.
Winner - Sony Tablet P


Form & Build
Sony Tablet P - 180 x 158 x 14 mm (open) & 180 x 79 x 28 mm (closed), 372g
Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition - 216 x 139 x 9 mm, 386g
Sony has done a good job designing the Tablet P. The device is compact, comfortable to use and feels robust without ever feeling cumbersome. The dual-screen layout is okay, but does feel like a sacrifice when you consider that playable media is limited to the top screen, which is not much bigger than a smartphone display.
Motorola has a good reputation for building durable, good looking devices and the Xoom 2 Media Edition will certainly enhance that. It's slim, comfortable to hold and operate and comes in at a great size, ideal for those that cart their tech around all day.
Winner - Motorola Xoom 2 Tablet Edition

Power
The Sony Tablet P is driven by a 1GHz dual-core CPU and ULP GeForce GPU, giving it plenty of power for things that matter. The device also offers 1GB RAM and support for micro SD cards up to 32GB in size, which you'll be using a lot as it only offers 4GB of on-board storage space.
Gaming on the Tablet P is fast and visually rewarding. but we feel it owes its nous in that area to its Nintedo-esque form factor, browsing is snappy and the overall performance was pleasing though, as has been widely reported, the device does suffer from dreadful WiFi signal issues.
The Motorola Xoom 2 has the same chipset as the Sony Tablet P but Motorola has chosen to clock the device up to 1.2GHz, milking a decent performance boost out of the hardware. The ULP GeForce GPU offers the same gaming performance, which is nice, and the device also offers up 1GB RAM.
Storage is an issue in the Xoom 2 Media Edition though, as it fails to offer support for external memory cards and only comes with 16GB built-in, which you'll soon use up.

Winner - Draw
Motorola's Xoom 2 Media Edition has seen off today's challenge admirably.
The device is small, fast and fun to use and the solid build-quality and Razr-esque design do it no harm either. If you're after a super-portable tablet then the Xoom 2 Media Edition should definitely make your shortlist.
The Tablet P, for all its weirdness and charm, lacks certain fundamentals that make a tablet a rewarding device to use. It's chunky when folded, the split-screen hinders consumption of certain media dreadfully and the WiFi signal is dreadful at best, something that we're hoping Sony will iron out with a future software update.
For now though, the Tablet P is an expensive attempt at originality that has gone wide of the mark.


Verizon’s white DROID RAZR on sale tomorrow, mum’s the word on the Galaxy Nexus

If you’ve been holding on to your three hundred bones, waiting on the prospect of chillier version of the Motorola DROID RAZR to land in time for Christmas, you needn’t wait much longer. Verizon announced availability for the white variant via press release, just one day shy of its December 15th debut. Speed freaks and fashionistas can pick one up tomorrow at the regular $299 on-contract price.


There’s also the deal for a select group of consumers who want both a Verizon 4G LTE smartphone and tablet: buy a new DROID RAZR and you can take an extra hundred dollars off the price of a DROID XYBOARD tablet. Since the cheapest 8.2-inch XYBOARD is $429.99, that makes for an attractive offer – but only if you really want two multi-year contracts. 

Motorola Milestone (DROID) brand new and unlocked for $189

We could call this a good deal right? The original Motorola DROID also known as the Milestone brings back some good ol Android memories for many. This device may be a dying breed with all the 4.0″ screens and dual-core processors these days but if you love some original DROID and a keyboard this is a pretty solid deal and worth a quick shout if you ask me.


This here is a brand new, fully unlocked and contract free Motorola Milestone for only $189. If I saw this deal about 18 months ago I would have lost it and bought three. In today’s high-powered Android smartphone world this is more of a novelty device than anything. I know there are still thousands of users still rocking the OG DROID — and many are probably finally ready for an upgrade and are awaiting that Galaxy Nexus.
This is a bit different than the original DROID from Verizon. The Milestone is the GSM packing European brother to the Verizon edition but is basically identical. So no, you can’t buy this and hope to use it here in the states on Verizon but for all others this is actually a fairly decent deal — I suppose. If a 600 MHz single-core processor, 512MB of RAM, QWERTY keyboard and a Motorola phone absent of their “Blur” UI interests you then this would make a perfect phone. Get in while the deal is still available. Have fun!

Monday, December 12, 2011

European Union slams the breaks on Google-Motorola antitrust review

Excited at the prospect of Google having its own in-house hardware branch? Prepare to curb your enthusiasm: Bloomberg reports that antitrust proceedings for Google’s acquisition of Motorola in the European Union will take even longer than normal, after the European Commission has halted its investigation to allow for more discovery. The Commission is requesting “certain documents that are essential to its evaluation of the transaction”, with no ETA on the continuing process.

This sort of thing isn’t entirely unexpected from the European Commission, but it does serve as a considerable roadblock for Google’s high-profile purchase of Motorola’s hardware division. While the EU couldn’t actually stop the two American companies from merging, it could essentially bar them from operating in its member nations, meaning that the merger almost certainly will not be finalized without the EU’s consent. Dedicated followers of technology news will recognize the pattern: the EU has a long history of strict regulation on large American tech companies.
A Google spokesperson in Brussels notes that the request is routine, and doesn’t expect it to seriously impede the merger, now expected to complete some time next year. “We’re confident the commission will conclude that this acquisition is good for competition and we’ll be working closely and cooperatively with them as they continue their review.” said Al Verney, in an email with Bloomberg. Motorola’s stockholders have already approved the merger, so approval form regulatory organizations is now the biggest hurdle for the two companies to overcome.

Friday, December 9, 2011

Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime vs Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition


We take a look at the Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime to see how it stacks up against Motorola’s new Xoom 2 Media Edition.

Form
Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime - 263x180.8x8.3mm, 586g
Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition - 216x139x9mm, 386g
The Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime is one good-looking device. The chassis is made from spun aluminium, giving it an interesting texture and the build quality is second to none.
Other elements which are pleasing to the eye include the nicely sized and spaced bezel around the screen, elegantly shaped corners and a svelte 8.3mm thin profile.
Overall it’s very minimalist in style which goes well with the futuristic-looking metallic finish. The attachable keyboard dock is as thin as the main tablet and equally stylish.
Motorola’s new generation of Xoom tablets have had a complete redesign, which is quite striking to behold. Instead of the usual rectangular shape Motorola has echoed the design of its Razr smartphone handset with angular and tapered edges and corners.
Again the bezel space around the screen is a flattering size and aluminium has been used for the construction of the outer shell, though not quite as extensively as on the Asus.
The Xoom 2 Media Edition is extremely light and thin coming in at 386g and 9mm thick – that’s an 8.2-inch tablet which is lighter than many 7-inch tablets.
We think both devices, despite being very different, have fantastic design elements and are very appealing to look at.
However, the Xoom 2 Media Edition is just that bit more eye-catching with some very individual styling.
Winner – Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition

Display
The Xoom 2 Media Edition has an unusually sized display at 8.2-inches – the first of its kind. It’s a TFT capacitive touchscreen with multi-touch and made from toughened Gorilla Glass.
The resolution clocks in at 1280x800 pixels giving a pixel density of 184 pixels-per-inch (ppi).
The Transformer Prime has a larger screen at 10.1-inches and uses a Super IPS + LCD technology, which results in a much brighter display.
It’s a capacitive multi-touch screen, again made from reinforced Gorilla Glass, with the same 1280x800 pixel resolution at a lower pixel density than its rival at 149ppi.
The Motorola’s display may be smaller, though not by much, but it’s got a much sharper picture and higher pixel density making it our choice this round.
Winner - Motorola Xoom 2 Media Edition

Storage
Motorola’s tablet is a little limited on storage space, especially with a name like 'Media Edition.' At 16GB and no card support there's not much to play with here.
So what's a user to do? Simple: use Motorola’s MOTOBLUR cloud service to stream content directly from your home computer, which supposedly works even if you’re miles away (we're talking a different country here), to the slate.
We understand the logic: everyone needs to flock to the cloud. But what if you're not bothered about the cloud? Surely it'd be better to give consumers the best of both worlds, like Apple does with its iPad and iCloud?
Apart from the internal storage, the Xoom 2 Media Edition is also packing 1GB of RAM to assist the processor in its duties.
Asus’ Transformer Prime is much more handsomely equipped on internal storage with options for 32GB or 64GB onboard. It also has 1GB of RAM like its opponent but unlike the Motorola it has a card slot with support for microSD up to 32GB.
We have to side with Asus on this one.
Winner - Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime


Processor Both devices use ARM Cortex-A9 processors but they’re getting very different results thanks to distinctly varying configurations.
Motorola’s Media Edition Xoom 2 is equipped with a dual core processor clocked at 1.2GHz running NVidia’s Tegra 2 T20 ‘Turbo’ chipset and ULP GeForce graphics processing unit (GPU).
With the Transformer Prime, Asus has ramped things up a bit, it’s still using NVidia technology but this time it’s the new Tegra 3 ‘Kal El’ chipset, which means a quad core processor clocked slightly faster at 1.3GHz.
The GPU is the same as the one found in the Xoom 2 Media Edition.
The end result is that both are very slick customers and can run whatever you throw at them with a good degree of finesse.
However, having seen the Transformer Prime and Xoom 2 running side-by-side we have to say the Transformer Prime really is on a completely different level.
It is just so quick delivering silky smooth performance for multi-tasking, viewing media, gaming and navigating the Android interface.
The Xoom 2 Media Edition is no slow coach but the lightning fast Transformer Prime leaves it standing. In fact we’d go so far as to say the Transformer Prime is easily the best performing Android tablet to date.
Winner – Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime

Operating System
These are both Android tablets and each ships with Honeycomb 3.2 – the most up-to-date version of the tablet-specific build.
The Asus Transformer Prime will be receiving the Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) 4.0 update in early 2012, which should add plenty of new functionality and features.
It’s currently unknown whether Motorola’s Xoom 2 Media Edition will get the same treatment but with a launch so close to the release of ICS we’d be pretty surprised if Motorola hadn’t planned ahead.
With both tablets using the same operating system there’s nothing to distinguish between them here.
Winner - Draw

Camera
Motorola’s Xoom 2 Media Edition has a 5-megapixel rear-facing camera, just like its larger cousin, at a resolution of 2592Ñ…1944 pixels with 720p quality video recording.
Features include LED flash, autofocus, digital zoom and geo-tagging, along with a 1.3-metapixel secondary camera.
It’s actually a very nice camera for mid-range shots but gets a bit fuzzy when you zoom in with the digital zoom.
The Transformer Prime’s main camera is rated at 8-megapixels and a resolution of 3264x2448 pixels. Video capture is 1080p and the Asus features an LED flash, touch focus, autofocus, geo-tagging and a 1.2-megapixel secondary camera.
The Xoom 2 Media Edition makes a good go of things but the Asus Transformer Prime wins out here.
Winner – Asus Eee Pad Transformer Prime

Final Thoughts
The Xoom 2 Media Edition is a decent offering and if you want to keep your music, films and other data on a PC to access remotely you’ve got a very slick, purpose-built device with Motorola’s 8.2-inch tablet.
However, in terms of both overall performance, versatility and longevity the Asus Transformer Prime really does come out miles ahead of the Motorola and indeed much of the competition.


Confirmed: DROID Xyboard Tablets Will Be in Stores December 12th; Already Available Online

Verizon’s confirmed what we’ve all been hearing regarding the DROID Xyboard’s release date. As we saw yesterday, they became available for purchase online. Usually when Verizon does an online only release, an in-store launch follows just three days later. In a press release today, they have confirmed that the device will indeed be available for purchasein stores on December 12th, just as rumors have said.

While Verizon refers to the DROID Xyboard as if it’s just one tablet, there are actually several different configurations to choose from in both size and storage. You can get 8.2 inch models with either 16GB or 32GB of data, while 10.1 inch models will be available with 16GB, 32GB or 64GB of storage, bringing the total amount of configurations to five.
  • The DROID XYBOARD 10.1 will be available in three models: 16 GB for $529.99 and 32 GB for $629.99. The 64 GB model will be available online for $729.99. All three with a new two-year customer agreement.
  • The DROID XYBOARD 8.2 will be available in two models: 16 GB for $429.99 and 32 GB for $529.99, both with a new two-year customer agreement.
All models are equipped with Verizon’s 4G LTE radios alongside some other common specs. We’re looking at a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of RAM, Android 3.2 (Android 4.0 coming later) and more. Read on for more details and consider purchasing one online if you can’t wait until Monday to check one out in stores.
DROID XYBOARD Tablets Available Today from Verizon Wireless

12/09/2011

The DROID XYBOARD 10.1 and DROID XYBOARD 8.2 by Motorola are available online starting today at www.verizonwireless.com. Both tablets will be in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores on Monday, Dec. 12. For a limited time only, customers can take advantage of a special promotion and receive $100 off a DROID XYBOARD tablet with the purchase of a DROID RAZR™ by Motorola with a new two-year customer agreement.

Lighter than a paperback book and thinner than an AAA battery, the DROID XYBOARD tablets feature Android™ 3.2 Honeycomb, the blazing speeds of Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network, enterprise-grade security and the power of dual-core 1.2 GHz processors. Both tablets will be upgraded to Android™ 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Plus, they are equipped with MotoCast™ for remote access to non DRM-protected music, pictures, videos and documents stored on work or home computers’ hard drives. DROID XYBOARD 10.1 and 8.2 customers can soar through the Web at blazing download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps within 4G LTE Mobile Broadband coverage areas.
Pricing:
  • The DROID XYBOARD 10.1 will be available in three models: 16 GB for $529.99 and 32 GB for $629.99. The 64 GB model will be available online for $729.99. All three with a new two-year customer agreement.
  • The DROID XYBOARD 8.2 will be available in two models: 16 GB for $429.99 and 32 GB for $529.99, both with a new two-year customer agreement.
  • Customers that purchase a DROID XYBOARD tablet will need to subscribe to a Verizon Wireless Mobile Broadband data plan starting at $30 monthly access for 2 GB of data.
Customers can visit www.droiddoes.com/xyboard for information about the DROID XYBOARD tablets by Motorola. For more information on Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go towww.verizonwireless.com.

Quid pro quo: Motorola granted injunction against Apple in Germany

There are all sorts of appropriately snarky comments one could place here. But we’ll stick to the facts, ma’am, just the facts: FOSS Patents reports that Motorola Mobility has been granted a preliminary sales injunction against Apple in Germany, based on one of its wireless communications patents. Unless Apple can get the ruling overturned or stayed, it may face a sales ban on the iPhone and iPad in that country.

It isn’t overly likely that the ban will be put into place. For one, Motorola would need to post a 100 million Euro bond if it wants to hold up the sales injunction. Moreover, these decisions are often overturned on appeal, as we saw with Apple’s case against Samsung in Australia. But weaknesses in Apple’s historically crack legal team are starting to show: the sales injunction against Samsung in Australia was overturned, the company failed to secure an injunction against the same company in the US, and now Motorola’s found a weakness in their patent portfolio in Germany, where a sales ban on the Galaxy Tab 10.1 is still in place. When Samsung introduced a revised Galaxy 10.1N model, specifically designed to avoid infringement on Apple’s patents, Apple promptly filed suit on the new version.
I’m a die-hard Android fanboy, but that doesn’t mean I want Germans, or anyone for that matter, to be denied the choice of Apple products. The worldwide patent wars are getting ridiculous – IPCom, considered a patent troll even by corporate standards, has won a preliminary injunction against HTC that could force the company to exit Germany completely. There’s clearly something rotten in Deutschland when it comes to the world of intellectual property, and in the end consumers get the raw deal. If anything positive comes out of all this, it’ll be that Apple begins to think twice about firing patent lawsuits from the hip. It’s likely that if they can’t get today’s German ruling overturned, the case will be settled with Apple licensing the relevant patent from Motorola for lots (and lots and lots) of money.
[via SlashGear]

Motorola DROID XYBOARD to go on sale tomorrow

While we won’t be getting the Samsung Galaxy Nexus tomorrow, it looks like we’ll be treated with some larger devices instead. According to reports online, the Motorola DROID XYBOARD will make its debut at Verizon outlets starting December 9th, with live units going up for demonstration purposes and units available for purchase.
The DROID XYBOARD is the sequel to the XOOM and will feature dual-core 1.2GHz processors, 1GB of RAM, 5-megapixel rear camera, 1.3-megapixel front facing camera, Gorilla Glass-protected displays, Android 3.2 Honeycomb, and 4G LTE connectivity. The tablet will be available in two sizes – 8.2″ and 10.1″, with memory capacity starting at 16GB going all the way to 64GB for the 10.1″ version.
Prices start at $429.99 for the 8.2″ 16GB version. Anybody plan to pick up this tablet tomorrow?

Motorola DROID Bionic bugfix update coming soon

I have some great news for all of the DROID Bionic owners around these parts. Remember that huge list of bugs that Verizon acknowledged and said they’d be fixing in a future update? Well it’s finally ready and should be rolling out extremely soon. We recently heard it would be released before the end of the year, and it looks like Verizon will hold true to their word because they’ve just informed us that it’s ready and will be rolling out soon.


The image above is the update documents provided directly from Verizon Wireless Support and the full version will be posted below so you can read all the new features in the update. The last we’ve heard of this update was when Motorola started asking for beta testers almost a month ago. Everything went ok because the update is slated to start any day now.
The list is huge so I wont go over everything and instead mention a few of the big ones:
– faster autofocus and general camera improvements
– fixed reliability and power cycle issues
– improved 3G/4G connectivity and switching
– fixed data lockup issues
– increased hotspot limit to 8 devices
– more
Those are just a few of the biggest issues that most will be happy to see. I for one know the camera is quite dreadful and users should be extremely happy to see an update on that front. The list of improvements and fixes is quite extensive and the update is being listed at around 54MB in size — so it’s fair to say they have a lot of fixes coming so get excited Bionic users. Usually when these official documents land on Verizon the update is pushed within a few days but could take up to 2 weeks. I’d be hitting that check for updates button starting tomorrow night if I had a Bionic.
Bionic Update Details
P1070433 bionic-update