Does the MING series have a place in North America? The stylish (well, depending on who you ask) Linux-based Moto smartphones have always been designed from the ground up for the Chinese market going back to the original A1200, but from afar, it’s easy to see why you might want to put one in your pocket no matter where you live; after all, they look unlike anything else on the market, they’re smartphones, they’re delightfully compact, and they rock touchscreens. But realistically, is it possible to make a MING your daily dialer? Read on! (more…)

Nothing says “I love you” like sending every single one of your hot new handset models your way, and that’s pretty much the beautiful romance that’s going on between Moto and China as of late. The A1600, A1800, and A810 have all induced various levels of lust from outsiders who can’t get their paws on ‘em (not yet, anyway), and now we’ve got another little bundle of Linux-powered joy to drool over, the VE75 slider. It’ll happily swallow a pair of SIMs (as so many Asian market handsets tend to do) and offers EDGE data, a 2 megapixel camera, WQVGA display, and microSD slot. It’ll be available — and we use the term “available” loosely until a more global announcement is made — in black and white.

Like it or not, the combination of high-function media players with high-function cellphones is officially an inevitability (just ask Apple). It seems like every day a new handset’s being announced with that obligatory 3.5mm headphone jack on board, one of the final pieces of the puzzle that had prevented phones from becoming legitimate PMP competitors for years. Motorola took this fusion particularly seriously with the ROKR E8, a slick little candybar announced at CES earlier this year, and we sat down with a China-spec model recently to see just how well it functioned as a full-time replacement for our dedicated music boxes — and whether it could avoid losing its identity as a phone in the process.

We will plainly admit, going into this hands-on, we didnt think much of Motorola ROKR EQ5 — or the whole concept of a portable A2DP speaker, for that matter. Stereo Bluetooth has a nasty habit of detuning audio quality just enough to make it noticeable for folks that are paying close attention to their music, and portable speakers have a nasty habit of just not sounding very good in general. Not a winning combination.

Why doesnt Motorola offer the aerodynamic U9 in the States? After spending a little quality time with a unit recently, we honestly have no idea. The way we see it, it’s a potent alternative to the RAZR 2 V8 for anyone who wants the V8’s MOTOMAGX-based innards and high-grade music capabilities in a slightly different package. We were especially impressed with the quality of the “floating” external display; (more…)

A Vertu its not, but thats not stopping Motorola from borrowing Maranello most prized symbol of speed and excess yet again. Last time around, Moto was trying its hand at reworking the Z8 into a phone befitting some of the world’s most exotic cars — an effort that we believe failed spectacularly, for the record — and this time around it looks like the RAZR 2 V9 will be the unwitting target. Technologically, the phone’s a dead ringer for its less-flashy cousin, but in terms of appearance… well, that’s a whole different story, thanks to a checkered pattern on the phone’s metal surface, red trim, and if we had to guess, a full range of Ferrari-themed pictures and sounds. Oh, and they’ve also managed to throw in a lambskin case embossed with the hallowed badge. No word on pricing, but it seems that it’ll only be available in Asia and Latin America — for a very small fraction of the price of the real thing, may we add.

In case you hadnt 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 Engadget]

There are certain phones that seem to have the uncanny ability to unite a fabulous cross section of carriers across North America, and these two are clearly headed in that direction. Telus way up there in Canada has launched the Motorola Q9c and announced the eventual availability of the BlackBerry Curve 8330, giving it a power pack of smartphones embraced by a good number of CDMA cousins to the south. (more…)

We saw the Motorola V950 peek its head up today and seeing as we were in the neighborhood, we thought we’d drop in and pay it a visit. The V950, while still looking like a typical clamshell, makes up for it in feel, comfort and heft in hand, and pure QChat-ness. This military-grade set makes us almost — with emphasis on almost — want to pick up one of these next gen push-to-talk devices.

For any enV owners out there who managed to not splurge on a Voyager, it looks like you could end up being rewarded here something fierce. Verizon’s true enV replacement, the VX9100, has now found its way into some glamorous press shots — and while we’re sure that reaction’s going to be mixed, we’re really digging the super-simple candybar appearance when the QWERTY clamshell is in its upright and locked position. Looks like it’ll come in at least two colors to start — black and maroon — and we’re also hearing that the name “enV2″ is being tossed around in Verizon’s documentation (surprise, surprise). Careful observers will note that the phone is sporting a USB port (either mini or micro, we’re not sure) on the side, a promising sign that we’ll finally be able to ditch those custom LG chargers in the not-too-distant future. (more…)

Rumor no longer, Motorola is taking a hard look at its Mobile Devices unit and might very well give those slackers the ol’ Freescale treatment and spin off the division as a separate company. This sort of love ‘em and leave ‘em tactic is oddly a bit of a habit with Motorola when times are bad, and times certainly have been better — Motorola’s phone unit lost $388 million this quarter, compared to $341 million in earnings a year ago.

Well, will you look what the cat’s dragged in today? Another rumored Motorola iDEN delight for us to feast our eyes on, this time a pretty stylin’ looking refresh on the Motorola i335 called the, ah, Motorola i335. Gone is the funky and lumpy look of the i335 we saw late last year, this refresh apparently adds a VGA camera, updated Bluetooth, and improved music functionality. Apparently due out in Q4 of this year — we still can’t speculate on just how real it is — with yesterday’s news of the “CABO” it seems iDEN is making something of a comeback — or is it just starting? — in the cool handset department.