Good Deal - Motorola Atrix 2 - Update $199 at The Warehouse

Motorola Atrix 2

UPDATE: News just in - The Motorola Atrix 2 will be available at The Warehouse (NZ equivalent of Walmart) for $199 NZD on Boxing Day December 26th. This is also for the Telecom NZ model which has an upgrade to Android 4.04 Ice Cream Sandwich available. 


If you're looking for a great Christmas deal to get a new Android smartphone for yourself or a loved one then look no further!

Harvey Norman currently have the Motorola Atrix 2 for Telecom NZ priced at only $268 NZD. This device has a powerful dual core processor, 8MP camera and a nicely sized 4.3" qHD display. While some might feel sorry for Motorola having their device relegated to the bargain bin, you certainly can't complain paying such a low price for such a great phone. If you're the type that needs reviews - check out this one over at The Verge.

If you're keen to grab this bargain, either head to your closest Harvey Norman store or go here to purchase online

While the device comes with Android 2.3 it should be upgradeable to 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich according to a quick search on Google. If you get stuck upgrading after purchase then check out the Atrix 2 forums over at XDA Forums. Be aware that all Motorola devices have locked bootloaders so this might be trickier than flashing a Samsung Galaxy device.

[DOWNLOAD] Droid RAZR HD wallpapers

Here's a little something out of the ordinary for Android NZ - a dump of stock wallpapers from the freshly-released Droid RAZR HD from Motorola and Verizon.
Extracted by yours truly from from the system dump posted yesterday at Android Taskforce - As I've mentioned in the past, I'm a big fan of the Droid series' stock wallpaper, and eagerly await the release of each device simply to steal its goodies. The RAZR HD's been out for a few days, but since I couldn't find the wallpapers posted online, I yanked them out of the HomeConfig.apk myself.

There's a selection some may recognise from the original Droid RAZR - now in a more 2012-standard 720p instead of qHD - and some Moto have been trucking around for a few release cycles, along with a couple of brand spanking new ones. Enjoy.

Download the lot from SendSpace - Zip - or grab them individually below.

German court bins Apple’s patent case against Motorola

Following a recent UK court decision, Apple has again lost in its attempt to have a competitor banned. The Dusseldorf court found that Motorola’s Xoom tablet doesn't infringe on Apple's Community design patent for the iPad while oddly upholding the validity of the actual design patent itself.

This outcome is just the latest in a series of setbacks for Apple, the company having failed so far to achieve any significant and permanent ban on its competitor’s products. And bans are what each and every case has attempted to extract, in Apple’s “thermonuclear” litigation programme against Android-powered devices. As Android has constantly increased its lead in market share over Apple’s iOS-powered iPhones, and although no single competitor tablet has enjoyed the success of say, Samsung’s Galaxy S III in the smartphone arena, the danger to the iPad’s media tablet market share is very real to Apple.

Apple loses big time in US patent battle

In a massive defeat for Apple and a mixed victory for Motorola, respected US jurist Richard Posner dismissed the attempted handset ban ‘with prejudice’.

Judge Richard Posner has dismissed Apple’s further legal attempt to ban numerous Motorola smartphones in the US market, labeling the action “against the public interest”. In a case that dates back to 2010, Apple had tried to ban its rival’s handsets, claiming the patents Motorola Mobile allegedly infringed upon were causing the iDevice vendor “harm”.

Apple unlikely to get Motorola banned in US

Stating that an order barring the sale of Motorola phones could have "catastrophic effects" for the mobile marketplace, Judge Richard Posner has given Apple his strongest hint yet that the iDevice maker’s attempt to have a ban enforced on a number of Motorola handsets is doomed.

Judge Posner had previously stated his view that such an injunction would not be in the public interest. In response to the jurist’s lack of empathy toward Apple’s case for injunctive relief, Apple’s attorney, in an apparent attempt to appear more conciliatory, resorted to the position that an injunction might alternatively force removal of the technologies that it alleges Motorola has infringed, within three months.

Apple vs Motorola patent case back on

Despite his earlier tentative decision to end the patent action in a Chicago court, Judge Posner changed his mind and has confirmed he will hear Apple’s plea for injunctive relief against several Motorola mobile phones.

The judge’s earlier pronouncement was that any injunction would be contrary to the public interest, effectively scuppering Apple’s attempt to have its competitor’s devices banned in the US. Apple immediately objected to that ruling, and after weighing up the options and consequences, Judge Posner has agreed to allow the two sides to make their case for injunctions.

Judge cancels latest patent trial brought by Apple against Motorola

Judge Richard A Posner has cancelled the trial, originally set down for June 11, citing Apple’s inability to convince the court that it would be able to prove injury. The action was taken by Apple against one of its Android-using competitors, Motorola Mobility, accusing the cellphone pioneer of infringing four patents. Motorola in turn had been accusing Apple of infringing on its own patents.

Judge Posner’s decision means that today’s pre-trial hearing is the final one that pertains to the current action, and if either Apple or Motorola want the jurist’s decision overturned, then they will be forced to take their gripes to the US Court of Appeal. If neither can prevail there, then a totally new lawsuit would be required.

Setbacks for Apple in patent suits against Motorola

 

In the Apple vs Motorola patent suit taking place in Chicago, Motorola has scored an important victory, gaining a summary judgment motion on a touchscreen patent in dispute. In addition, presiding Judge Richard A. Posner has narrowed Apple's claims of infringement by rejecting several other claims which he believes have no merit.

An undoubted setback for Apple, the outcome of this suit may well strengthen Motorola’s position in other litigation in the US and Europe.

US smartphone figures out for the Feb quarter. Who won?

comScore has released its latest smartphone numbers for the three months ending February, and as expected, Android continues its industry leading growth.

Despite the US being the home ground and the most successful single market for its main competitor, the Android platform took more than half of the US market, an increase of 17 points compared to the same period in 2010/2011.

Apple wins patent suit against Motorola in Germany

A regional court in Germany has ruled that Motorola's implementation of its "swipe to unlock" infringes on a patent owned by Apple, although how one can patent swiping on a touch screen beggars belief. Still, the Munich court has sided with Apple and ordered a permanent injunction against certain 'infringing' Motorola devices. Motorola has announced its intention to appeal and while Apple can enforce the injunction virtually immediately, it must put up a bond to do so, with the risk that should Motorola prevail on appeal, the bond would be paid to Motorola in compensation for loss of sales. However, such a bond would be trifling for Apple, considering its US$100 billion cash reserves.

Googlorola gets blessing from EU and USA

The acquisition of Motorola Mobility by Google took a step closer today when both the European Union and USA's DOJ gave their approval for the buy-out to take place.

Speculation has run rife since the announcement that Google and Motorola had agreed in principle to the purchase, that the real reason is in the thousands of patents that Mountain View's finest will inherit. This, it's increasingly believed, will provide the 'plex with the patent muscle it needs to ward off attacks from its rivals, Apple primarily, and increasingly Microsoft which has shown itself to be highly inclined to bully royalties from handset makers selling Android powered devices.

It's rumoured, although not confirmed, that Microsoft has demanded US$15 from each handset sold that it claims uses its patented technology. That's 3.3% of the average mobile handset price (based on a $450 average retail), significantly more that the heavily criticised 2.25% cap Moto was allegedly offering in its patent battle with Apple. If true, then MS is certainly in no position to lecture other corporates on the morality of their patent claims.

While China and India, both enormous marketplaces in their own right, have yet to OK the Googlorola mashup, few doubt that the approval will be granted. Since those territories and the EU plus US make up the lion's share of the mobile market, it's really immaterial if the remaining territories add their blessings, so it would be a serious gambler who'd bet against the deal being done in the coming weeks.

Source: All over the flippin' web

Apple fails to obtain injunction against Motorola in the US

Image: Todaysiphone

Claims by Apple that Motorola's Droid line of Android powered smartphones infringe its patents were rejected by US regulatory body, the International Trade Commission in the last 24 hours. The results are another blow to Apple's "marketing by litigation" approach to marketplace competition. Had the decision gone Apple's way, there's little doubt that the iPhone maker would have pressed for a total ban on sales of the supposedly infringing Droid handsets in the 'States, a catastrophic result for Motorola. Fortunately though, the ITC concluded that Apple's claims were bogus and the Droids live on in the US of A.

EU-wide sales ban on 3G iPhone and iPad awarded by German Court

In another reversal for litigation-happy Apple, Motorola Mobility has succeeded in obtaining a ruling banning 3G enabled iOS powered devices across the EU. The preliminary injunction, awarded Friday in the Mannheim regional court, is subject to appeal - something that Apple is certain to do.

Their first act will be to request a stay of the injunction in order to prepare their appeal, an act which will allow the iPhones and iPads affected to remain on the market until the results of the appeal are heard. However, the findings by the court are such that a stay is not automatic and should the preliminary injunction be enforced, Motorola Mobility will be required to pay a 100 million Euro bond as a hedge against harm to Apple should their appeal succeed later. Apple's request for the bond to be set at €2 billion was rejected by the court as manifestly excessive.

“Everything iDon’t, Droid Does” – a history of Verizon's "Droid" brand, Part One

Droid Does origin stories.

Hello there, friends. As some of you may be aware, I’m lucky enough to have had a brand spanking new Motorola RAZR to play around with since Tuesday. I’ve been putting it through its paces, and am about to start spouting out in-depth review content from a real-world day-to-day usage context – unlike those one-day review devices other sites rush to push out impressions on, I’m taking the time to make the RAZR my daily driver, and it’s for this reason that I want to write lots of filler articles tell you where I and the phone am coming from, before I begin.

You see, I’ve not had a chance to play with one of Motorola’s high-end Android devices with their own flavour of the operating system before. Here in little old New Zealand, the most exciting Moto device on the market is the Defy+. What have Moto been up to for the past two years? Well, that’s where this article comes in: I want to talk about the history of the Droid series of devices.

A comment on our aptly-named editor ArtooDeetoo’s excellent History of Android series asking why the original Motorola Droid was omitted inspired me to research it and its ilk in a little more depth than I had previously. This was quite the worthwhile venture, as the Droid reversed Android, Motorola, and Verizon's fortunes. I have quite a lot to say about these devices, so we’ll call this the first instalment – I also want to look in-detail at several key television advertisements, as well as the full device range, not to mention a few ways to get a taste of the Droid branding on your Android phone or tablet right now. Without further ado, let’s jump into onslaught86’s A Brief History of Droids.

Motorola Razr: Unboxing video - first impressions, size comparison to the Galaxy S II and Galaxy Note

Quick heads up that the first of our Motorola Razr coverage is out on YouTube now for your viewing pleasure. Of course it's the obligatory unboxing video, replete with a size comparison to some of the other mobile hotness living at my place right now.

Naturally lots more content will be following, so keep it locked here to catch our incoming and indepth "real-user" review, this time coming courtesy of editor extraordinaire Onslaught86. Make sure to give him a follow in Twitter @onslaught86 if you just have to have his up-to-the-minute impressions and experiences with the device. I've been posting to my Twitter account (@NZtechfreak) with some insights of my own from the brief play I'm having with the device before shipping it off to Nik.