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Motorola's RAZR 2 blushes for South Korea
For better or worse, the relentless barrage of RAZR 2 variants might only be getting started. Motorola's South Korean outpost has teamed up with SK Telecom to release the RAZR 2 Pink Silver, featuring an "espresso" hued keypad teamed with a light pink case for folks who want to whisper their fashion sense, not scream it -- or, in Motorola's words, for a "confident young generation." Look for it now in SKT retailers if you happen to be in the area.[Via Unwired View]
Motorola RAZR 2 V9m in the mix for Virgin Mobile Canada
In case you hadn't noticed, Virgin Mobile rocks an ever-so-slightly higher end lineup north of the border than it does in the US, and to that end, it's just released the RAZR 2 V9m. We all know the drill here by now: 2 inch external QVGA display with music controls, 2.2 inch internal QVGA display, stereo Bluetooth, EV-DO, microSD expansion, and a 2 megapixel camera, all of which are ready to sit just above the KRZR in Virgin's stable. Grab it now for $149 CAD (about $147) on a three-year deal.[Via Mobile In Canada]
Screen grabs: David Rossi's top secret RAZR2 gets concealed
Screen grabs chronicles the uses (and misuses) of real-world gadgets in today's movies and TV. Send in your sightings (with screen grab!) to screengrabs at engadget dt com. During the first episode of the new season of Criminal Minds, FBI agent and resident neat-freak David Rossi just couldn't shake the unsolved double homicide that he never could close a score ago. Oddly enough, that wasn't the only mystery involved, as we're still scratching our heads trying to figure out what's so important on the lid of Mr. Rossi's RAZR2. Maybe a super-secret 4G icon? Tommy Tutone's most favorite dame's number? The infamous Sad Moto face? Whatever it was, we're fairly certain a highly concealed RAZR2 is superior to the lowly RAZR Derek Morgan is still getting issued. What's a man got to do to get a leg-up, anyway? %Gallery-19829%
AT&T release dates through May (hint: no Vu)
We've just received a fresh round of release dates on AT&T, and if we had to pick a single word to describe the theme here, it'd be "colors." Shades upon shades of phones -- both new and old -- will see a release on AT&T in the next couple of months, starting with the Sony Ericsson Z750a, the first 3G Sony Ericsson to be released by a carrier in the States (but not in North America -- that honor belongs to Rogers); it'll hit in your choice of gray, pink, or purple in early April. The now-ancient UTStarcom 5700 finally sees release toward the end of April more than a year after we first saw it in the FCC's business, giving a lower-end choice to the Windows Mobile faithful. Finally, May should bring about the LG CU720 Shine in black, following its initial offerings of silver and red.Oh, and it looks like the Motorola Z9 and the black Centro should be widely available pretty much any minute now -- stay tuned. Strangely missing from the list is the Vu, though that doesn't necessarily mean it won't be released by the end of May, it merely means that AT&T's not sure yet. Surprise, surprise.[Thanks, Kal]
Forget the "A" -- Motorola's MOTORZR V3s is AWS capable
At this point, we're simply running out of metaphors for the egregious ways in which Motorola is abusing the industrial design of the original RAZR. Yes, Moto, we get it, it was a game-changing phone -- in 2004. Heck, we'll even give it a free pass for 2005 and 2006. But a new one in 2008? Seriously? Sure enough, the new V3s variant rocks out with CDMA support on the 800, 1900, and 1700MHz bands, making this the first RAZR of any sort to support AWS. Cricket just launched its first AWS phone, so we wouldn't be surprised to see this one land over there, too. Oh wait, our bad, Motorola did change one thing about this phone: the "A" has been dropped from the name. The manual calls out the V3s as the "MOTORZR," possibly in preparation for a broad new marketing campaign that's virtually identical to the old, but with even fewer vowels. Your guess is as good as ours.
Keepin' it real fake, part CXIII: the Blade Runner MP4 player doesn't make calls, retire Replicants
Like peanut butter and jelly, oil and vinegar, and Benny and Joon, some things just go together. If you thought the words "Blade Runner" and the industrial design of the RAZR were always "meant to be," your day has finally come. Enter the Blade Runner MP4 player -- the PMP that looks like a phone, but acts like far, far, far less. The device has lots of familiar media player features, but let's be honest: all the information you need about this baby is up in that photo above. Own the magic today for $49.99.[Via Crave]
Pearl 8100, original RAZR on their way out of AT&T stores?
Grab your Kleenex, folks, because we've heard today that a couple of seemingly timeless pillars in AT&T's lineup might be breathing their last few breaths of in-store air. First up, the Pearl 8100 is due for replacement on all the networks that still offer it, with the 8110 and 8120 models taking their place depending on individual carriers' dispositions toward WiFi, and we're hearing that AT&T will be phasing out the older units this month in preparation for an April launch of the GPS-equipped 8110.Next -- and here's a shocker -- rumor has it that AT&T is also starting to close the door on the original Motorola RAZR V3. Not to worry; naturally, you'll still be able to get those great circa-2004 looks by picking up a V3xx, but the old-skool units appear to be on the verge of overstaying their welcome. Frankly, the writing's been on the wall there for a year, if not longer, so we're not sure that this is much more than a formality. We'll keep you updated on this one as soon as we here more.[Thanks, Kal and Matthew]
Fido wakes up, remembers to offer Motorola RAZR 2 V9
Hello, Fido! Welcome to, oh, about two months ago. We know that you live in Rogers' ginormous shadow, but let's try to be more on the ball, k? From the looks of your RAZR 2 product page, you're still a little sleepy, too: "Cristal [sic] Talk" isn't how Moto spells it -- and as curious as we are about "pear to peer gaming," we're pretty sure you meant "peer to peer." Anyhoo, unlike Rogers' V9, it looks like Fido is getting the same pinkish color scheme that AT&T is rocking -- for better or for worse -- and features the usual V9 goodness: HSDPA, A2DP, a 2 megapixel cam, microSD expansion, and so on. Speaking of microSD, Fido throws a 2GB card into the deal, but being a couple months behind the bleeding edge doesn't come cheap -- it'll run $150 on a three-year contract after $125 rebate.[Via Mobile In Canada]
AT&T's Motorola Z9, updated V9 due in January?
Alright, Motorola faithful, listen up: AT&T's got a few goodies in store for you. Nothing we didn't already know about, really, but in light of the recent upheaval, it's a little reassuring to hear that stuff is still on track. It turns out that the Z9 -- a phone we heard about merely once before returning to the ether to mature for many, many more months -- is apparently on track for a January release alongside the updated V9 that will bring GPS and Video Share to the RAZR 2 formula. Oh, and that V365 replacement we'd mentioned a while back? Yep, it's still cookin' (with the code name "Hurricane," we hear) and may be billed as a higher end handset with crazy signal strength and some sort of industrial-grade metal housing. Anyone getting excited about that one?[Thanks, anonymous tipster]
Telus gets the Motorola RAZR 2, too
Seriously, are there any North American carriers left at this point that don't carry the RAZR 2? Yeah, we know there are a few that still don't, but wow, we've gotta admit we're impressed with Motorola's ability to seal the deal here. Telus' version of the V9m appears identical to Alltel's, featuring a dark blue shell, GPS, EV-DO, microSD expansion, and a 2 megapixel cam. Telus naturally bundles its full suite of ARPU-enhancing goodies like Telus Mobile Radio and Mobile TV -- so if you think the $249.99 CAD (about $265) you're paying upfront on a three-year contract is the only way Telus is going to make some coin off of ya, you're dead wrong.[Via Mobile In Canada]
Rogers Wireless introduces RAZR 2 V9
Since AT&T's already had its moment in the spotlight with the Motorola V9, Rogers decided a me too moment was appropriate and has earmarked this fella for Canada. Like its AT&T sibling, the Canadian V9 packs quad-band GSM and dual-band HSDPA, Bluetooth, and 128 MB of memory, but unlike it's US twin, also rocks video calling. Pricing starts at $399 on 1 year to $299 on a 3 year term or $199 on 3 years if you opt for a Vision video calling plan. The Motorola V9 is still listed as "coming soon" on the Rogers page, but we expect that'll change real soon now.[Thanks, Treatz]
T-Mobile releases Motorola RAZR 2 V8
Right on time, T-Mobile has announced retail availability today of the Motorola RAZR 2 V8. Unlike its V9 brethren on AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon, T-Mobile's version rocks out with 2GB of integrated storage -- perfect for making use of the media player via that glorious two-inch external display. Other goodies include a 2 megapixel cam, myFaves support (naturally), and a subdued color scheme that should see a few more fans than AT&T's wild "mahogany" version. Conspicuously missing is any support for 3G, but hey, it's T-Mobile, whatdya expect? Grab it today for $250 on contract after rebates.
Motorola dresses up RAZR 2, christens it "Luxury Edition"
We still think it's a little early in the RAZR 2's life to be changing up colors and trimmings and turning it into a special edition, but what do we know? As expected, Motorola's announced the "Luxury Edition" of the EDGE-only RAZR 2 V8, trimming the phone with 18 and 24 karat gold accents, a black "vacuum metal" finish, etched sides and nav wheel, and a soft-touch posterior endowed with a snakeskin pattern. A bundled H680 Bluetooth headset (trimmed with 18 karat gold, naturally) and a leather carrying case round out the package, fit for the aspiring Vertu owner who hasn't quite yet reached a Vertu salary. Look for it to start showing up in "select regions" -- the US included, we suspect -- before the year's out.
The Boy Genius Report: Motorola RAZR 2 V8 confirmed for T-Mobile on October 15!
Field tidbits from Engadget's mobile insider, The Boy Genius.Can you feel the excitement? Following up on previous intel, we've now been able to confirm that T-Mobile will be launching its version of Moto's RAZR 2 -- the EDGE-only V8 -- on October 15. That's good news for customers of the network; yeah, it sucks that 3G goes to the wayside (not like you're getting it on T-Mobile anyway), but in exchange you get the Linux-based JUIX platform underhood in place of the V9's old-skool Synergy. The carrier's documentation indicates that it's positioning the V8 to sell to "young and aspirational, social" peeps between 18 and 30 who are "willing to pay a premium to get the latest and greatest." Just how much of a premium, you ask? Look for it to drop in most markets for $250 on a two-year contract after rebates, $400 contract-free.
Hands-on with the Motorola RAZR 2 V9m for Sprint
If you had to pick a runner-up for the title of Most Anticipated Phone of 2007, the RAZR 2 series might be it. Not because there's anything particularly revolutionary about it -- there's not -- but simply because it's the follow-on to the RAZR, the phone that singlehandedly challenged manufacturers to make handsets impossibly thin, vaulted mobiles from mere tools to status symbols, and brought Motorola out of a death spiral. Ironically, Moto finds itself right back in the same pickle today, having spent far too long riding the original RAZR's success into the ground. It needs a hit, and it needs one now. If the RAZR 2 doesn't deliver that hit, though, it won't be for lack of carrier interest -- all four US carriers have launched or will launch (T-Mobile, we're looking at you) one version or another of the device, each with its own strengths and weaknesses. Here, we take a quick look at Sprint's version, the V9m. Is it the savior Motorola so desperately needs?%Gallery-7707%
T-Mobile's Motorola RAZR 2 V8 launching October 15?
It has been beaten out by the three other national carriers and Alltel at this point (how humiliating!), but that's not stopping T-Mobile from getting around to launching its very own rendition of the Motorola RAZR 2 next month. According to Boy Genius Report, we can look specifically toward October 15 to get our V8 on through T-Mobile stores. Yep, that's right, we said "V8" -- meaning we can count on MOTOMAGX in place of Synergy for the operating system (a boon for Linux fans) and an utter lack of 3G, logical considering that T-Mobile has yet to roll out its next-gen network. No word on pricing, but we'd expect it to be in line with its neighbors.
AT&T now offering Motorola RAZR 2 V9
What a refreshing change of pace! AT&T actually beat its estimate of "early September" for its variant of the Motorola RAZR 2, the V9 -- albeit in a rather bizarre shade, "mahogany" (where we come from, that's called purple, but whatevs). Though it's not showing up on AT&T's online store just yet, it's showing up for their business "premier" customers (note the screen shot above) and seems to be filtering into brick-and-mortar locations as we write this. The premier site shows a rather shocking off-contract price of $749.99, though with a combination of discounts, rebates, and contracts, it should fall into a far more reasonable price range for pretty much everyone involved. Seriously, $750? Sheesh.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Motorola's RAZR 2 V9m now available on Verizon
It's August 29th and that can mean only two things: Nokia is about to drop a slew of handsets and the Motorola RAZR 2 V9m just went live on Verizon. As expected, $250 (after online discount and 2 year contract) takes home all the V CAST Music and Video downloading you can handle over EV-DO with microSD expansion, 2 megapixel shooter, and Bluetooth stereo in tow. Yeah, nothing groundbreaking but this is as good as it gets for Moto fans.[Thanks, Jon]
AT&T adding Motorola V3xx color, Nokia E62 still hanging around?
AT&T may be about to add the RAZR 2 V9 to its stable, effectively halving any remaining desire we had for the original RAZR V3 line of devices -- but that's apparently not stopping the carrier from trying to milk a few final drops from the played out design. According to the most recent dealer price sheet floating around, the HSDPA-capable V3xx will be offered in another color, the ambiguously named "platinum red." We can't recall the last time we saw platinum take on a reddish hue, but whatevs. Also interesting to note here is that the Nokia E62 -- a phone we'd previously heard had been killed off -- is seemingly alive and well; not only is it mentioned in the sheet, it has no sign of an "EOL" tag on it. Long live Symbian, we guess!
Verizon getting Motorola RAZR 2 V9m on August 29?
How refreshing is this? Despite initial promises of September for its own version of the V9m, it now looks like Verizon will be offering up the hotly anticipated (or at least Motorola wants it to be hotly anticipated) successor to the RAZR starting August 29 on the 'nets. That'll apparently be followed by an in-store launch on September 4, giving Sprint just about the shortest exclusivity period ever. AT&T, we don't suppose you have any August surprises for us too, do ya?
