Motorola Droid Bionic

Motorola announced via their official Twitter account that they will be updating all of their Android devices to Ice Cream Sandwich, six weeks after Google releases it to OEMs. Like any new Android update users worry about how quickly it will be available on their devices. Luckily, Motorola is being pretty proactive about this one, most likely because there wont be much customization — since MotoBlur is no longer. It is unclear how other OEMs will respond with the update.

It was recently rumored that the Droid Bionic would be updated to Ice Cream Sandwich in Q1 of January 2012. We’re certainly happy that Motorola gave us an official timeframe to ease the waiting. Now its Google’s turn to get the ball rolling.

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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYLL1zWT0zk]

Just getting my barrings after a crazy day yesterday…and have to say that of the Ice Cream Sandwich and Nexus announcements, I was most blown away by the Motorola Droid RAZR.  Well the hardware anyway – we didn’t get to spend any time with the Software which is Android 2.3.5 with Motorola and Verizon Droid overlays.  All I can say about that is it is typical for the Droid line as far as I can see.  But let’s talk hardware really quick, shall we?

I’m going to say it: On hardware alone, this is the most impressive piece of mobile device equipment I’ve ever seen.  It is both impossibly thin and feels incredibly solid.  As you can see in the video above, when someone picks it up, there is a gasp.  It’s like picking up a material so light and strong (titanium?) with such a vibrant display that you can’t reconcile it with your past smartphone experiences.  Sure Samsung makes devices similar in size and weight, but they are plastic.  This is a super-light metal phone that doesn’t bend and whose back cover doesn’t fall off.

People will point out the bump at the top as making it thick – but even the bump is thinner than most smartphones (see below) and it is “so big” because it needs to house an LTE antenna and a 8-megapixel backlit CCD camera with advanced lens technology.

The display is also the best I’ve ever seen perhaps save for the tablet-phone tweener 5.3-inch Samsung Galaxy Note.  At a more pocket manageable 4.3-inch qHD 960×540 pixels Super AMOLED, it has amazing 180 degree viewing angles and looks incredible (the video above doesn’t do it justice).  I’m not sure how it will do outside but the presentation room had all kinds of lights which would have put a damper on early OLEd screens like the original Droid.  When compared to the Motorola Droid Bionic’s 4.3 inch display, it isn’t even close.  This looks like the highest end Samsung display.

For all of its thin-ness, Motorola still touts it as having a much better batter life than its competitors on LTE.

Again, based on hardware alone – I’ve yet to use it  – this is the best phone I’ve ever seen.  It goes on pre-order at the end of the month and hits stores some time in November (hopefully before Black Friday).  If Motorola has production delays like it did with the now obsolete Bionic, it will have missed a pretty significant opening.  If it delivers the product on time and without any glitches in the software, this will be its most significant phone since the original Droid, which put Android on the map two years ago.

Related articles

• Live from Motorola Droid RAZR/ MotoACTV event (9to5google.com)
• Motorola unveils the 4.3-inch Droid RAZR on Verizon (9to5google.com)

Ahhh.  Finally, an LTE phone with everything.  Motorola’s Bionic has been on everyone’s lips since its announcement at CES eight months ago.  However, Motorola’s first LTE phone underwent numerous facelifts, spec enhancements and delays pushing the phone out to last Friday.

We’ve had a week to play with this thing and can say that for all intents and purposes, this is the best Android device on the US market today.  Here’s the rundown of why:
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdM0w5Fee40&feature=player_embedded]

Joshua Topolsky of This is my next

Verizon Wireless officially announced the long-awaited Droid Bionic to be released tomorrow, and we are very excited to a look at the reviews that along with the announcement. The general consensus is that the Droid Bionic is a winner, if you’re looking to take advantage of Verizon’s badass 4G network and shell out the $299. We’ll add more reviews as they come in.

Joshua Topolsky / This is my next

This is not the killer handset that I think a lot of people were expecting it to be — it’s a good phone on a great network that will keep you satisfied… for now. As usual with Android phones, there always seems to be something else just around the bend, and you’ve got to figure out if you’re going to take the next exit, or keep on trucking. Let’s just say that the Droid Bionic isn’t a bad place to pull off and grab a cup of coffee.

Continue after the break:

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Over the weekend, many outlets reported that the Droid Bionic Twitter account tweeted the official Droid Bionic release date was September 8th. Sadly, PC Mag has confirmed with both Motorola and Verizon that the account is a hoax. That’s not to say the Bionic launch date still couldn’t be September 8th, but we’ll have to wait and see.

Motorola has also taken down the official Store listing that they made Saturday. The store listing didn’t provide anymore details on the device specifically. The listing did however give us a glimpse at a few more press shots — which you can find after the break.

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[youtube=”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iJaowSisMGs”]

As the launch of the Motorola Droid Bionic comes closer, more and more information regarding the device is leaking — almost daily. Today’s leak is the Droid Bionic’s teaser, and boy is this quite a production. Besides the great theatrical entertainment, it confirms a September drop. Boy this must have been expensive — enjoy! For those of you who didn’t see, check out the Bionic’s boot sequence after the break. (via Droid Life)

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Is Verizon preparing to launch the HTC Vigor, Droid Bionic, and two other mystery Android devices? If speculation stemming from a leaked pre-MAP (minimum advertised price) list is to be believed, the carrier is readying four new Android devices for launch including two HTC, one LG, and a Motorola.

DroidLife speculates the third device listed on the MAP memo, “HTC ADR6425”, is the rumored HTC Vigor, which, thanks to an anonymous NenaMark benchmark test, is rumored to sport a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor, 720p resolution display, and an Adreno 220 GPU.

The “LG-VS920” is most likely the successor to the LG Revolution, as the first-gen Revo was labeled with model number “LG-VS910”.

Less is known about the other mystery devices. The “Motorola MOTXT87” is thought by many to be the new DROID Bionic announced at CES and slated to launch in September. When it comes to the last device listed, the “HTC ADR6330”, your guess is as good as any.

Whether or not any of these devices will launch before the September Bionic launch is yet to be determined. We will keep you posted as more info becomes available…

(via Android Central)
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For those of you waiting for the rumored August 4th release date of the Droid Bionic, will have to wait just a wee-bit longer. During their earnings call today, Motorola’s CEO Sanjay Jha announced the Droid Bionic will launch in September. Jha didn’t comment the AT&T Droid Bionic we’re hearing about.

The Bionic was announced at CES in January. Motorola has held off the release for sometime due to issues with the device. Check out a hands-on of the Bionic after the break.

via Droid Life

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IntoMobile is reporting an AT&T varient of the Verizon Droid Bionic might just be on its way. If you don’t know what you’re looking for the above image doesn’t exactly tell you much. IntoMobile explains:

The small code following the version number is what to look for. You can see three mentions of the MB860 and one of the MB865. Well, a quick Google search for MB865 will return results for the Motorola Atrix 4G but if you do a search for MB865, you’ll get results for the Droid Bionic.

The GSM Bionic will likely be a slightly bigger version of AT&T’s popular Atrix.  The Atrix already has the qHD display and dual core processor.  It also got a Gingerbread update this weekend.

We certainly knew Motorola’s Droid Bionic was on its way to Verizon, but a price was uncertain until now. Android Central has found Verizon’s unreleased Droid Does product page for the Bionic that shows the 4G device at $299 on a two year contract. Ouch!  Still no release date, but we’re shooting for early August. Make sure to check out the specs after the break.

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Verizon has launched a sign-up page for their upcoming Motorola LTE phone, the Droid Bionic. The Bionic was announced at CES in January, but had some flaws that needed ironing out. On the sign-up page Verizon says the phone will be available this summer (which is half over already). We reported August 4th could be the launch date — could this still be the case? Head over to Verizon to sign-up and get updates, or just stick to 9to5Google.

The Droid 3, likely pictured above, is getting a little more real this weekend as someone holding one of these beauts decided to run it through the NenaMark1 Benchmarking results (below).

The Results:  The Droid 3’s Texas Instrument’s dual-core 1GHz OMAP4430 CPU boasts a PowerVR SGX 540 GPU, same 960×540/4-inch screen as the Motorola Atrix and is running Android 2.3.3 Gingerbread.  Also codenamed Solana, the model is known to be a XT862.

Since these guys are being benchmarked, a release is likely coming soon – perhaps alongside the Droid X2 which is also expected to debut on May 26th with a qHD 4.3-inch screen and a Tegra 2.   Neither of these devices look to be LTE, so we’re still waiting on a rebranded Bionic?

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