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Motorola makes PEBL-ish U9 official
It's real! Motorola has made official its latest PEBL-esque device -- though there's no actual PEBL branding to be found on this one -- the U9. Think of the U9 to the original PEBL what the V8 and V9 are to the original RAZR, rocking Motorola's "CrystalTalk" noise reduction tech, microSD expansion, and a 2 megapixel camera. Media's the focus here with support for syncing with Windows Media Player 11; WMA, MP3, AAC, AAC+, and AAC+ enhanced files are all good to go, while the stereo Bluetooth support and "floating" external display with touch sensitive controls certainly don't hurt. Look for it to hit in the fourth quarter of the year in Asia, Latin America, and Europe. No North American release plans have been outed at this point, but it's a quadband GSM / EDGE phone, so we'd expect to find its way onto importers' shelves (and probably Motorola's own online store) right quick.
Come and get your love: Alltel's upcoming lineup?
With major releases like the Motorola RAZR 2 V9m and BlackBerry 8830 in its rear-view mirror, Alltel's been doing a commendable job keeping up with its larger, national rivals -- and if our intel's accurate, we can expect the trend to continue. In the smartphone department, the Palm Treo 755p should be launching pretty shortly (alright, granted, they're a little late on this one) along with the 8130 variant of the so-called Pearl 2 from RIM, a nice stablemate for the more businesslike 8830. One wildcard that we're hearing about here is the UTStarcom 6850 -- it's not clear what this device is, but given the UTStarcom branding on HTC's PPC-6800, it's conceivable to think that this could be some sort of mild refresh. Then again, it could be some totally boring low-end device sourced from a generic ODM, so we'll just have to play the waiting game on that one. From Motorola, look for two: a U5 (likely a new CDMA PEBL, given the "U" prefix on the model number) and the MOTOROKR Z6m. Not bad if it all pans out, eh?[Thanks, dizzy]
Motorola's ROKR U9, U3 and W5 pictured / detailed
While whispers and supposed shots of Motorola's ROKR U9 have been around for a tick, the PEBL-icious handset -- along with the similarly styled U9 and the W5 clamshell -- are finally getting detailed. Reportedly, the U9 will tout a 1.4-inch 160 x 128 resolution OLED (externally), two-megapixel camera, GSM / GPRS / EDGE connectivity, a 1.8-inch QVGA screen (internal), microSD expansion slot, USB, Bluetooth, and "touch sensitive keys." The U3 looks to be an entry-level sibling with a less attractive external display and a VGA camera, while the ROKR W5 will purportedly include a 1.3-megapixel camera, a 1.9-inch 220 x 176 resolution display, 20MB of internal storage, a microSD slot, 96 x 85 pixel external screen, miniUSB, Bluetooth, A2DP support, and quad-band GSM connectivity. No word on pricing or release dates just yet, but do click on for a few more pictures.Read - ROKR U9Read - ROKR W5Read - ROKR U3
Better shots of the Motorola MOTOROKR U9?
Okay, look, we know the original PEBL had its fair share of detractors -- but seriously, this thing looks pretty neat, yeah? Following up on a previous rumor and accompanying picture, we're seeing more details now on Motorola's supposedly upcoming MOTOROKR U9. Czech site iDNES.cz reports the U9 is set to sport a QVGA primary display, stereo Bluetooth, 25MB of onboard storage with microSD expansion, and a 16.4mm thick case. If we had to venture a guess, we'd figure the internals are largely based on the V8 variant of the RAZR 2 on account of its massive external touch display and alleged EDGE radio sans 3G. Sucks, yeah, but at least that means the odds are good of it rocking four honest-to-goodness bands of service. Bring it on, Moto![Via Slashphone]
The PEBL lives: Motorola to add ROKR U9
Though the original PEBL didn't get quite the love Motorola may have liked (Maria Sharapova special edition notwithstanding), it seems they're looking to give it at least one more go with the upcoming U9 model. Presumably designed to slot in alongside the RAZR 2 V8 / V9 models, Phone Scoop reports that the U9 will be ROKR branded, indicating a strong music tie-in. Other details are sketchy, though there's speculation that the "9" designation in the model number indicates that 3G is in the cards; for Motorola's sake, we hope that's true.
T-Mobile kills PEBL, slashes prices on other Motos
'Tis the changing of the guard in both T-Mobile's and Motorola's lineup, it seems. The PEBL U6, once a heavily-advertised T-Mobile exclusive, has apparently been given its walking papers to make room for the newer, more RAZR-like RIZR Z3. That's not to say the U6 is history -- far from it, in fact, with Motorola still offering it direct from its own site -- but this officially marks the end of the original PEBL's carrier availability in the US. Along with the discontinuation, several RAZRs have been deeply discounted from $50 down to $30 on contract, perhaps signaling the beginning of the end for the V3. Believe us, there's not a dry eye in the house.
Motorola PEBL U3e rocks the FCC
The PEBL design meme seems to be one of the less-loved in Moto's hallowed halls, with relatively few models released -- so far, anyway -- bearing the PEBL name. Imagine our surprise, then, to find this little gem up in the FCC's business today. The so-called "MOTOPEBL U3e," a GSM handset with EDGE, bears a rather striking resemblance not to the original V6, but to the CDMA U6c. In fact, we'd go so far to say that the U3e is the U6c's GSM counterpart, despite the bizarre model number convention here. As best we can tell, this one rocks four bands of radio (well, at least two -- 850 and 1900 -- but we're guessing there are another two packed in there) and appears to be a low-end piece likely destined as an entry-level fashion phone for various carriers around the globe. We'll personally pass, but we're not gonna fault anyone for digging it.
A quick glance at Verizon's pipeline
It looks like Verizon customers are about to have themselves a very Moto-riffic holiday season indeed, with not one, not two, but three new models coming down the pike (technically, it's two new models and a new color of an existing model -- but work with us here, folks). First up is the W315, a low-end flip with a PEBL theme to it, though the external antenna certainly isn't helping its cause. According to Verizon's sappy internal marketing materials, the W315 will make customers say things like "Rain or shine, I rely on my W315's sharp color display as I browse through my messages while waiting at the bus stop," but frankly, with a marginal 160 x 128 display to its name, we're not sure we agree. Next up is the V325i, a phone that appears to be a near twin of the W315 but with the external display flipped 90 degrees -- perhaps a nod to corporate suits who find the W315 a little too hip for their liking; it's essentially a V325 with Bluetooth tacked on. Finally from Motorola, the K1m KRZR is going to make an encore appearance, this time with a white interior and gray exterior. In other news, the LG VX9900 has apparently been christened the "enV" (huh?) and should be launching by the end of November for around $200. Follow the break for a little more eye candy of Moto's goodies![Thanks, anonymous tipster]
Motorola readying another PEBL-like phone for CDMA
As evidenced by the RAZR and its endless variants, Motorola knows a good thing when it sees one and likes to ride it into the ground -- not necessarily a bad thing, especially when you consider that they're shaping up to make a serious run at the coveted '#1 handset manufacturer' title (don't worry Nokia, we still love ya, and we don't expect you to give it up without a fight). The PEBL's been mostly content to stay in the RAZR's huge shadow since its release, but its design cues are finally starting to find their way into Motorola's CDMA stable, as first evidenced by Roc's unearthing of the W315. Now, we have this little gem that just came across the FCC wires, looking even more PEBL-like than the W315 before it with a full-out etched metal keypad and internal antenna. No word on pricing, availability, or what carrier this might be bound for -- those kinds of details aren't really the FCC's gig -- but if we had to venture a guess, we'd say "less than the K1m," "soon," and "Verizon."
W315 PEBL look alike headed to Verizon
For those who loved Motorola's styling of the infamous PEBL -- but have no desire for GSM handset, Verizon and Moto have heard your call. Well sort of. The Roc was able to sneak out some more marketing photos of what is the soon to be announced Motorola W315. Its form factor, with vertical outside display and soft touch finish, bears a striking resemblance to the PEBL -- but the similarities stop there. Other features include a 65k CSTN color display and a 1xRTT radio (yep, they left out EV-DO support on this puppy). Other details of this device such as the camera specs are not known at this time, but we have a feeling the Roc will come through with the deets soon.
Motorola intros white PEBL through contest
For some odd reason, Motorola always seems to pull off new colors of existing handsets with an amount of fanfare other manufacturers can only dream of. We don't suppose it has something to do with the Maria Sharapova tie-ins, could it? Much like the Sharapova-endorsed magenta RAZR before it, the white PEBL offers nothing its more colorful siblings don't -- except exclusivity to the tune of 50 examples in total, all of which will be won via contest. Of course, no one would be surprised to see Moto turn right around and start pumping out white PEBLs en masse just as soon as the contest ends, but they wouldn't be printed with Maria's signature, rendering them all but useless to us.[Via Yahoo Tech]
Live from CTIA: Moto goes modern
Motorola usually has a pretty nice booth, but this CTIA they've injected a couple extra ounces of fancy, being they didn't have a whole lot of new gear to show off this time around. The PEBL amongst pebbles gag got a little old, but they needed to (and did) step up their booth's aesthetic. And you know when we start going on and on about booth aesthetics, we're pretty tapped for some news, so check out the CTIA eye candy after the break.
iSync 2.2
Reader Johnny W. sent this in yesterday, but it took me a while to verify: iSync 2.2 is rolled into the 10.4.6 update, and it's quite nice. A while back I had my Motorola V60 working with iSync. See, last year when I got my "new" phone, I bought a $60 cable on ebay for $20 (along with a car and wall charger). This bundle included Moto's phone tools, so I could sync with my PC. About 8 reboots later, it worked! I somehow managed to get it to work with iSync, even if iSync really didn't know what phone it was... but only a few months later, an update killed the connection. The V60 was never listed on the compatible phones chart, and I figured, given the life of phones, it was all over. Yet Apple's official list of iSync-compatible devices has really expanded with 2.2. And there's my lowly V60, along with the PEBL. One big downside appears to be Palm support. Anything with the PalmOne brand is still fine. Anything older now needs the Mark/Space app for Palm to sync. That's so lame I can't even talk about it. What am I supposed to do with my WristPDA now?
