Motorola will be bringing its Webtop apps and their corresponding docks to all of its high-end smartphones in the second half of this year, CEO Sanjay Jha told investors today.
That means Motorolaa4‚¬a4„s Atrix, one of our favorite gadgets from the Consumer Electronics Show in January, wona4‚¬a4„t be the only Motorola phone that can plug into a dock and turn into an ultraportable laptop using its Webtop app. It makes sense, because the Atrixa4‚¬a4„s high-end hardware will likely be matched by upcoming Motorola phones, like the Droid Bionic on Verizon. Therea4‚¬a4„s no good reason for the company to keep such innovative technology in one device.
Ita4‚¬a4„s unclear if future phones will come with docks of their own, or if theya4‚¬a4„ll somehow connect to the Atrixa4‚¬a4„s dock.
Hopefully the news will also lead to Motorola will wising up about its Webtop dock pricing. The company is offering the Atrix bundled with its dock for $499.99 with a two-year contract. The dock on its own retails for $499.99 as well &8212' a price which seems egregious when you can get full-blown laptops at that price.
Motorolaa4‚¬a4„s dock is basically a thin shell with a screen, battery and keyboard. All of the hardware that powers it &8212' including the CPU, RAM and storage &8212' is contained in the Atrix phone. Given that ita4‚¬a4„s really not packing too much power, it seems more fair for Motorola to price the dock somewhere around $200 and under.
AT&'T is also forcing Atrix users to sign up for its tethering plan at $20 a month, if they want to get the phone bundled with the Laptop Dock. I suppose it makes sense since the dock relies on the Atrixa4‚¬a4„s network connection, but it still seems ridiculous for AT&'T to demand even more money when the dock itself is overpriced. Hopefully future Motorola docks will come with fewer carrier restrictions.
Via Engadget
Next Story: On the GreenBeat: Solyndra raises $75M credit facility, Reno&'s wind experiment Previous Story: Think&'s electric car faces third recall after three months in the U.S.
Print Email Twitter Facebook Google Buzz LinkedIn Digg StumbleUpon Reddit Delicious Google More&8230'
Companies: AT&'T, Motorola Mobility
People: Sanjay Jha
Companies: AT&'T, Motorola Mobility
People: Sanjay Jha
Devindra Hardawar is VentureBeat's lead mobile writer and East Coast correspondent. He studied philosophy at Amherst College, worked in IT support for several years, and has been writing about technology since 2004. He now lives in Brooklyn, New York. You can reach him at devindra@venturebeat.com (all story pitches should also be sent to tips@venturebeat.com), and on Twitter at @Devindra.
Have news to share Launching a startup Email: tips@venturebeat.com
VentureBeat has new weekly email newsletters. Stay on top of the news, and don't miss a beat.
Discuss Add this link to... Bury
Comments