motorola

Android users outraged over Motorola's broken promise

Doran Else bought his Photon 4G last October, lured by the fast dual-core processor and by the close relationship between Motorola and its new owner, Google. Motorola had recently joined the Android Upgrade Alliance, promising to release operating system updates to all its phones for 18 months following their release.

But for Else and thousands of others, those operating system updates turned out to be a mirage. Last Friday, buried in a Motorola forum, the company quietly abandoned its update pledge, killing off plans to ever update the Photon 4G. The Electrify, a re-branded Photon available on the US Cellular … Read more

Motorola wins one over Microsoft in German patent case

Score one for Motorola Mobility in the company's ongoing legal battle with Microsoft.

The Google subsidiary today was found to not be infringing a patent Microsoft holds related to applications running on different devices without having to write separate code for each product. The ruling came down in the Mannheim Regional Court in Germany, which has become a hotbed of patent lawsuit activity.

Reuters was first to report on the news.

Motorola's victory today comes less than a week after a federal appeals panel in San Francisco upheld an earlier ruling that stopped the mobile company from blocking … Read more

Viewdle could lead to multi-user profiles for Android tablets

When I read the news this morning that Motorola had acquired facial and gesture recognition company Viewdle, the first thing that crossed my mind was, "Here comes multi-user profiles for Android."

Why? Because it's the next logical step for the platform, and one that could help differentiate it from Apple. That, and it's something for which I'm really hoping. Assuming I read the tea leaves properly, future versions of Android will introduce the capability to unlock a device with your face that leads to individual profile settings. … Read more

Google widens cuts at Motorola, expects $340 million charge

Google has further evaluated Motorola Mobility's business and has found more parts that it wants to dump.

The company said today in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it has identified additional areas in which it plans to cut staff and restructure the mobile firm. Google says that those actions will occur outside of the U.S. and include $300 million in costs related to employee severance. Google also expects to incur $90 million in charges for "facility and market exits," though it will pay only $40 million of that this quarter.

"Google … Read more

Google confirms it's buying facial recognition firm Viewdle

The rumors have been confirmed, Google's Motorola Mobility is indeed acquiring the facial recognition technology company Viewdle.

"Motorola Mobility today announced that it has acquired Viewdle, a leading imaging & gesture recognition company," a Motorola spokesperson told CNET today. "Motorola and Viewdle have an existing commercial agreement and have been collaborating for some time. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed."

CNET reported on Monday that Google was about to close a deal to buy Viewdle, which is a Ukrainian maker of facial recognition technology that automatically tags photos. Apparently the acquisition had been in … Read more

Motorola SVP: Google gives us no 'special treatment'

Google may own Motorola, but when it comes to making and selling phones, the Android smartphone manufacturer says they're on their own.

"We're operating as an independent OEM, so there's a firewall between us and the Android team," Motorola Senior Vice President of Product Management Rick Osterloh told CNET, explaining the sometimes-distant relationship between Motorola and its owner.

"It's very important to the company (Google) that Android remain an open playing field."

One might think that with Motorola in the brand umbrella, a Droid phone would be a shoo-in for Google's … Read more

Motorola surprisingly withdraws Apple complaint from ITC

Motorola Mobility, a unit of Google, yesterday withdrew a complaint against Apple -- its second one -- from the U.S. International Trade Commission.

The complaint involved the infringement of seven non-essential standards patents that Motorola accused Apple of violating, according to Foss Patents, which first spotted the move.

It's a surprise move given the trend of escalating legal battles between Apple and its various opponents, from Samsung Electronics to Motorola.

What's surprising is Motorola just filed the complaint in August, and there isn't any reason given for the withdrawal. Two weeks ago, the ITC said it … Read more

Tablet Tuesday: Get a 32GB Motorola Xoom with 4G for $219.99

The iPad may be horrendously overpriced compared with other tablets on the market (and I suspect the rumored iPad Mini will be as well), but it does offer an option found on few Android-powered competitors: 4G LTE.

I mean, look at the most popular Android tablets -- the Kindle Fire, the Nook, the Google Nexus. They offer only Wi-Fi connectivity. You can get 3G on a couple models (like the Samsung Galaxy Tab), but 4G is rarer still.

Cut to today's deal: while supplies last, Ice Monkey has the refurbished Motorola Xoom 10.1 32GB Wi-Fi + 4G LTE tablet for $219.99 shipped.… Read more

Motorola won't update three 4G phones to Ice Cream Sandwich

Bad news for owners of some Motorola Mobility smartphones released in 2011: the company will not upgrade them to the 2011 version of Android.

According to a post in the Google-owned company's forums, three smartphones from last year will not be upgraded to Ice Cream Sandwich:

Motorola Mobility continues to review how each device can deliver the very best experience possible, and at times, this can mean making tough choices - especially as it relates to Android software upgrades. Today, we need to let you know about some tough choices related to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich upgrades. … Read more