Motorola Sholes Android phone headed for Verizon?
By Joseph L. Flatley 
posted Jul 30th 2009 11:32AM
posted Jul 30th 2009 11:32AM
On the lookout for the Motorola / Android / Verizon trifecta, we dug up some handset renders over at motofan.ru that seem to fit the bill quite well, thank you. According to the site, "Sholes" is a 3.7-inch (480 x 854) touchscreen device that will make its debut in the U.S. in October, featuring: 512MB storage, 256MB RAM, support for microSD / microSDHC up to 16 GB (an 8GB microSD ships with the phone), a 5 megapixel camera with autofocus, GPS, and the expected connectivity (USB, Bluetooth 2.0, WiFi), audio, and video formats. And if the translation wasn't hopelessly garbled, the source is also saying that this bad boy will support both CDMA and EVDO Rev A . No word on a price yet, but if this phone does make it to the realm of the real it'll be nice to see a Moto / Android device that doesn't look like it belongs in the hands of a tweenage girl (yeah, we said it, Morrison). See for yourself after the break.
Holy Sh!t !!!!!!!!!!
Totally awesome reminds me of ROKR ZN50
It really is awesome.
Who would have thought the first awesome looking Android phone would come from Motorola...
@Jonathan:
This phone is very nice with its design, keyboard, Android, camera, and memory being shipped with it but SE Xperia X3 was leaked first so I think thats the first polished Android phone. It will be very interesting to see if Motorola has done anything with the UI and what kind of processor this thing is packing.
So far the X3 and this phone are perfect; X3 with a better camera and larger screen but no keyboard, Moto with its keyboard. One of these two phones would meet anyones needs.
dude are u kidding me the keyboard is the same exact material as the q9c, which i own and say is absofuckinlutely terrible.
i like winmo but the motorola hardware is a major downfall. i will never buy another motorola product again.
@koraytanriverdi, "I disagree, it's a very good game, but i think Donkey Kong is the best game ever."
Well hopefully Verizon doesn't cripple the hardware like it did with the HTC Touch Pro...
@koray..
Yeah, I've seen SE's offering and it is very nice, but also very plain physically. This is the first handset that makes me stop and stare, something all of HTC's offerings have failed to do.
Looks tasty! Here's hoping they don't ruin it by slathering "weak sauce" all over it...and removing key ingredients like wifi.
Moto.....no thanks.
So close. Where's the flash?
this is such a welcome change in design from moto, i prayed for the design team to be fired for a long time, hope this was done with that happening though, cool looking phone, way to go
still have to wait n watch what it packs and can handle!
Verizon, no thanks. They'll find a way to ruin any phone that comes to them.
@Nicu
To be fair, typically Verizon's only problems were screwing with GPS software and WiFi, and they've promised to include WiFi on all future phones so i'm hopeful. This is _almost_ too good to be true, I guess I'll believe it when I see real photos.
@jon
I think the main verizon's problem is screwing with the UI and implementing that hideous red
@sean
they don't force their UI on smartphones.
@Monkey
That white bar next to the lens might be the flash.
Flash or no flash, I WANT THIS!!!!1!!1!
impressive. most impressive.
I liked it better when it was call the Aholes
as long as this thing is $400 unsubsidized, looks like I can finally ditch my Curve 8330
Well considering it's going to Verizon, I wouldn't hold your breath.
I would expect $199-$299 subsidized, at least at first. Which puts it at $400+ without.
welcome back moto!
its about time to make nice lookin phones again
finally a non win phone on verizone id take it if price not typical for verizone smarts
This Moto > iphone
agreed
VERY nice looking phone.
I'd consider it.... 4 sure
I can assure you, there will be no death of WinMo ANYTIME soon... If you think it will, then either you're stupid or trying to be funny.. Which isn't working.
You shouldn't trust the Russians.
Bryndzové halušky!
I'm not sure how I fell about this thing, it looks both super svelte and at the same time kinda ugly. Weirdest thing ever...
I'd consider it if the "GPS" worked without flashing the ROM or buying more Verizon services.
Most new Verizon Wireless smartphones are using Qualcomm's 7-series chipsets which support dual-mode GPS operation. In plain English, this means outdoor GPS operation should work unlocked with any app, though indoor will be limited to branded apps like VZNavigator (unless the app developer supports wifi-assisted location.)
Considering you can use BB maps/google maps on all blackberries without VZNav, and you can do the same with newer WINMO phones, I don't see why Android would be any different.
Verizon stopped locking down GPS with the Storm (on smartphones).
Actually my pearl was unlocked well before the storm was even released.
Looking good. Can it be converted to run WinMo?
Why... just why? If you want WinMo you'd probably be better off buying a WinMo phone.
Looks like not much effort was put into the design.
Why does everybody keep putting the d-pad on the right side of the phone? Really, I want to know.
I'm guessing they think most people are right-handed (unlike me) and would want to navigate with their right thumb... Not sure though.
Probably because 90% of the world is right handed. Sucks for lefties though, I feel sorry for you guys. But hey, at least you do better at bowling(the right side of bowling lanes lose a lot more of the oil than the left side because more people are right handed).
The hiptop has the d-pad on the left side...
I'm right handed, but spent 3/4 of my childhood with NES/Genesis/SNES gamepads in my hands. Using my left thumb to navigate seems only natural.
Why is the d-pad not on the front, you have to open it to use it, this is a fail for me.
Exactly!
Moto: put the dpad on the left where it belongs! How do you not see the physical relationship between landscape phone and a gamepad?????
N97 d-pad is on the left, and we know everyone at engadget loves that
This is like the LG ENVY 1 but smarter and even more brick like, Imagine that!!! A 400$ brick, used to shove up a vagina. Come LG, 3.7 inch? thats wayyy toooo big.
I wish the T-Mobile branded Motorola Morrison would look like this.
I know, right? Again it happens. Verizon or AT&T get the sleek sexy phone and T-Mobile gets a dumbed down version for 12 yr. olds. What's wrong with T-Mobile?! Just because it's the 4th largest carrier doesn't mean it can't have nice phones.
@Bo Vaughn: Well they did get the first android phone with specs better than the iPhone 3G(3GS has better specs but then it JUST came out)... things like these come in waves.
Well, like I said, "sleek and sexy"...was the G1 any of those things?
well i don't care because knowing verizon this will be heavily locked down so another wasted phone...
@Bo - I happened to really like the G1, I also like the Hero, and looks-wise this is cool too - too bad its Moto
not LG, Motorola***
Nice specs, but i dont like the look. Also im not a fan of Verizon anymore. No dice.
Motorola and Verizon ... and a high-end, un-crippled, decent looking Android phone?
Dare I say this is *way* too good to be true...but here's to hoping.
Man, if this phone is everything that I hope it will be, it might be time to kiss T-mobile goodbye and trash my G1.
Am I the only one who missed the Verizon logo ? I hope this is real, I'd love for Motorola to come out with a non-crap phone.
yes you did you can see the verizon check on the bottom non-chin part
i would switch to VZ if this thing has a decent CPU
Moto/Verizon, can you PWEASE have this phone out sooner than October? I'm still stuck with the nearly unusable Storm but I refuse to trade it in on a crappy pseudo-smartphone. Verizon has a worthless selection of smartphones, unless you like Winblows Mobile. Bring on the Android/Rev A love!!!
Snapdragon/Tegra please.
hey thats pretty good looking
That D-pad under the slider looks totally useless, like the one on the N97
+1
Sholes? really stupid name lol. But I love the look of this phone. I was hoping for some serious internal storage though, like around 32 GB. MicroSD makes up for it though.
"The first practical typewriter was invented by Christopher Latham Sholes"
"The QWERTY design was patented by Christopher Sholes in 1874"
"Christopher La•tham Pronunciation: (lā'thum, -&thslash;um), [key] 1819–90, U.S. inventor of the typewriter."
Wonder if that's where it came from...
That's probably just the internal codename, not the final name
Hey GUYS! It looks like it has a huge screen on the 2nd picture, But if you look at the 1st pic, the lighting gives away the fact that the screen doesnt go all teh way to teh edges, So if this things was actually "3.7" inches, then....wonder what the dimensions of the device would be?
If its this big, I would a 1ghz on this, with tegra. Then we can talk
"the source is also saying that this bad boy will support both CDMA and EVDO Rev A"
Umm...EVDO Rev A IS CDMA. And isn't it a give in that any phone like this going to vzw will be EVDO?
The real news show be Motorla Sholes coming to Verizon with wifi not CDMA & Evdo REV A
WTH! what with the D-pad alongside the keyboard? what use is it for that you cant control with the touch screen. A trackball below d screen wont be bad or better still a optical trackpad/trackball
Fake. Take a closer look at the home and back and app? buttons on the first picture. Why are they bulging out so weird?
Because they are not part of the touch screen... I don't think that is a reason to call fake...
If it has WiFi and IF it is NOT locked down by stupid Verizon forced software, this could be the next biggest phone.... I see major potential... but from past experiences with Verizon and Motorola... I am not getting my expectations up.
Android is a smartphone OS, meaning the only "locking down" will be the inclusion of VZNav and Verizon's App store (if it launches)
Considering that newer blackberries are all going to be shipping with Wifi, and WINMO phones do as well, I don't see why it wouldn't have wifi.
You can still use the GPS for things like google maps, and download any Motorola/Android app store that launches if you prefer not to use Verizon's OS.
Honestly the only thing that makes me nervous about this is the Motorola tag. They seem to really struggle with CDMA phones.
All good points... not clear on the last point though... what part about CDMA does Motorola struggle with? Did you mean SmartPhones? Just didn't know Motorola made better GSM phones than CDMA phones...thought pretty much the phones were about the same just with different technology making them work.
Their phones that they make for verizon seem to all have the same build issues:
-Poor battery life (the battery will die on your after about a year)
-Sluggish processors (they are more prone to memory leaks/locks ups than similar LG phones)
-Build quality is always a bit on the cheap side.
They used to be the standard for cellphones, but their recent releases are a disappointments.
The phones are similar across networks, but they arn't always the same.
Another good example is LG. On verizon's network, they seem to have the best all around phones, but with ATT and some other carriers, they have the reputation of being cheap/KIRF-style phones. Sometimes the tower technology does make a pretty big difference.
With Android though, Moto only needs to worry about the hardware... No specialized OS or any of that. Just hardware.
Sign me up....with anticipation of it being fake....
From all my conversations with my Verizon friends....there is no hint of Android coming to VZW anytime soon.
I expect to see the iphone on V before android...sadly.
"From all my conversations with my Verizon friends....there is no hint of Android coming to VZW anytime soon."
Completely contradicting all the press and coverage about there being VZ Android by the end of this year? Is your Verizon friend a janitor, salesperson or someone else not in the know?
I have been burned by promising Moto handsets to many times....I'll have to wait until I get the thing in my hand....(that's what she said)
I'm waiting for the "Aholes" version...
Glad I'm not the only one who did a double take at the name!
That looks beautiful!
What ever happened to the Moto Calgary?
http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/16/motorola-apparently-planning-another-year-of-existence-with-clai/
I never liked the look of the keyboard on that one.
that thing is disgusting
sweet looking phone!!! very excited!!!
Sexy design.
I can imagine how the Motorola and Verizon reps are pronouncing it.
"You'll really want to play with and put these 'S-Holes' in your face."
Two questions:
1. Capacitive Touchscreen?
2. No "...With Google" silk screening so does that mean Motorola is going to attempt to make their own UI? Oh great...
This phone seems pretty awesome. I don't know about saying its an Iphone killer, but it seems pretty interesting. I'd like to see how the software and apps run before crowning it as amazing but it looks promising. Something that interested me more than the blackberry tour.
This is the future.
I hope the interface is easy and fun like the iPhone, because I want to get rid of iTunes. I hate iTunes.
Not to shabby, looks like a grown ups Sidekick. Love the specs
Cool phone.
Specs are awesome !
Not a bad looking fone...for a Moto...
me like
This phone actually looks promising...
If that thing has a 3.7inch and the screen has that big of a border around it, plus it being a slider with a keyboard, this phone will be GARGANTUAN.
BGR has the dimensions
http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2009/07/30/renders-of-android-powered-motorola-sholes-fly-in-from-mother-russia/
then go to to compare dimensions with other things