Techno Chunky

To say that AT&T's Android lineup was lacking would be an understatement, but fortunately, it looks like the company has finally gotten the memo. The carrier introduced three new Android handsets at CES 2011, but the one that impressed us the most was the Motorola Atrix 4G. The Android 2.2 smartphone boasts a dual-core processor (Nvidia's Tegra 2 chipset), 4G support, a 4-inch quarter HD display, and a front-facing camera that enables video calls over a cellular or Wi-Fi network. But wait, there's more.



Motorola designed a laptop dock and software to work with the Atrix that would allow you to still access the contents of your smartphone but provide you with a more PC-like experience. It's why we awarded the Atrix 4G our Best of CES Award in the cell phones and smartphones category, and it's why we were so thrilled when we finally received the devices to check out.

In this review, we'll focus on the Motorola Atrix 4G as a smartphone. (We've made some general observations about the laptop dock here, but CNET's laptops and Netbooks editor, Scott Stein, has delivered a closer look at the accessory to see if it's worth its steep price tag.) We can say that the Atrix excels as a smartphone. The dual-core processor delivers, and the Atrix finally brings some of the higher-end features that AT&T customers have been missing out on, such as video calls. Certainly, the laptop dock is a big selling point for the Atrix, but whether you decide to get the dock or not, you're still getting one of AT&T's best Android smartphones to date.

The Motorola Atrix 4G is expected to ship March 6 or sooner. The price for the phone alone is $199.99 with a two-year contract. AT&T will also offer a bundled package that includes the phone and laptop dock for $499.99 with a two-year contract and tethering add-on and after a $100 mail-in rebate. If you'd rather not sign up for the tethering plan, you can buy the dock separately (and use a Wi-Fi connection) from the phone for $499.99.


Touch-screen smartphones are a dime a dozen, and it may seem like if you've seen one, you've seen 'em all, but that's not necessarily true. Each design has its highs and lows, and the same holds true for the Motorola Atrix 4G. Thankfully, there's much more to like than dislike here. The Atrix is sleek and lightweight at 4.6 inches tall by 2.5 inches wide by 0.4 inch thick and 4.8 ounces. The handset's slim profile makes it easy to slip into a pants pocket, and the rounded corners and tapered edges make it comfortable to hold.

The Motorola Atrix 4G is a compact and sleek device.

However, compared with the company's other recent handsets, such as the Motorola Droid X and the Motorola Cliq 2, the Atrix doesn't quite have the same premium feel to it. It's still very much a solid device but just lacks some of the finer details like a soft-touch finish on back.

On the front, you've got a 4-inch qHD (quarter high definition) capacitive touch screen with a 960x540-pixel resolution. It's comparable to the iPhone 4's 940x640-pixel Retina Display, but since the Atrix has a slightly bigger screen, the pixel density isn't as great, so text and images don't look quite as smooth as they do on the iPhone. Still, the display is sharp and vibrant. As is typical, the screen washed out a bit in bright sunlight, but we were still able to see what was on the screen.

The touch screen is very responsive, both in terms of registering our touches and switching between portrait and landscape mode. And thanks to the dual-core Nvidia Tegra 2 chipset, general navigation felt zippier compared with any smartphone we've tested recently. Even a simple task, such as pulling up the app menu, was noticeably faster than on the HTC Inspire 4G, which uses a 1GHz Snapdragon processor.

Below the display are the standard Android shortcuts: menu, home, back, and search. There's a volume rocker on the right side, and a Micro-USB port and an HDMI port on the left side. The camera and dual-LED flash are on the back, as well as the power/lock button, which sits at the top center. It's a bit of an awkward location, but the button can double as a fingerprint scanner for extra security (to use, go to Settings > Set up screen lock).

The $189.99 Entertainment Access Kit includes an HD Multimedia Dock and remote control, a Bluetooth keyboard, and a wireless mouse.

AT&T packages the Motorola Atrix 4G with an AC adapter, a USB cable, an HDMI cable, and reference material. Aside from the laptop dock bundle, which we'll talk about a bit later, AT&T also offers an Entertainment Access Kit for $189.99, which includes the Motorola HD Multimedia Dock and remote control, a Bluetooth keyboard, and a wireless mouse.


The Motorola Atrix 4G runs Android 2.2 with Motoblur. Though we weren't huge fans of Motorola's custom user interface when it first launched, the company has toned down the UI quite a bit and enhanced the customization abilities, so that it's much more useful and reduces the information overload aspect of the previous version. One thing that does irk us is that you have to sign up for a Motoblur account when you first set up the device. Afterward, you can sign in to all your other e-mail and social network accounts to import your contacts, messages, and calendar appointments.

You get seven home screens that you can personalize with various widgets and shortcuts, such as a social network feed, weather widget, and mini media player. Interestingly, Motoblur now has a function very similar to HTC's Leap screen feature where you can view all of your home screens in thumbnail view--not that we mind, since it allows you to easily switch between the screens.

For more about Motoblur, you can check out our review of the Motorola Cliq 2.


Obviously, one of the big draws of the Motorola Atrix 4G is the dual-core processor. The smartphone is equipped with Nvidia's Tegra 2 chipset, and if you want to get technical, this includes dual ARM Cortex A9 cores clocked at 1GHz and an ultralow-power GeForce GPU graphics processor--all this backed with 1GB of RAM. What this means for you is that you should experience snappier performance, faster browsing, and better gaming graphics, among other things.

Though we've only had the device for a short amount of time, we've certainly been impressed with what we've seen so far. In comparing the Atrix 4G with the HTC Inspire 4G, the difference in overall performance isn't significant but it is noticeable. The Atrix was always just a tick faster than the Inspire when loading apps, menus, and tasks. Games were also snappier to load, and the gameplay was quicker-paced and smoother as well.

The Atrix also handled Flash content well. Though the Atrix and Inspire loaded the media--in this case, a CNET TV video on the phone's WebKit browser--in roughly the same amount of time, the Atrix went on to play the video playlist without problem, whereas the Inspire couldn't play it at all. We'll continue to do more in-depth performance testing, but we wanted to give you an idea of what we've experienced so far.

Another feature supported by the Nvidia's Tegra 2 processor is full HD 1080p video recording and playback via HDMI. Unfortunately, this feature will not be available at launch; instead, it will come at a later time through a software update, so for now, the Atrix can only handle 720p HD video capture and playback through HDMI.

Aside from 720p HD video recording, the Atrix's 5-megapixel camera also offers a dual-LED flash, autofocus, and digital zoom. Editing options in the camera app are rather limited compared with competing products. You can select from one of five picture resolutions and a variety of scene modes and effects, but there are no white-balance controls, ISO settings, or the like. The options are pretty much the same in camcorder mode.

Nearly four years of endless gossip, analysts 'forecasts', and so-called leaks, Verizon iPhone is a reality. We are very excited to be honest, mainly because we never write the story again another rumor. And, of course, we are also pleased to U.S. iPhone owners have a genuine choice of carriers.

If you've been longing for this moment for years, we feel joy. But before you rush to the store, there are some important points to consider. First, the four Verizon iPhone is almost identical to its counterpart at AT & T. It differs from a couple of ways, but is largely the same device with most of the same advantages and disadvantages. And like its predecessor, the iPhone 4 Verizon has some serious give and take by the user. You get this warm and pleasant, for example, but the Big Red CDMA and remove functionality.

The performance may also challenge some of their expectations, which we know are huge. We note that Verizon's network offers significant improvements in AT & T. Data rates much faster in most cases, we have had more success with calls placed in problem areas and quickly connect calls. The changes, however, life changes and are not fully supported. Thus, while better in some respects, can not beat AT & T on all fronts.

Verizon will coincide with a price of C & T, which is $ 199 for the 16GB model and $ 299 for the 32GB version. Can be achieved only in black for now, if the elusive white model is due this spring. Verizon will offer a set of data $ 30 unlimited plan to start, but this may take several levels of data plans in the near future.

Design

Honestly, we can not say much in this part, because Verizon and AT & T phones are so similar. There are a couple of cosmetic differences, which will be discussed, but the Verizon iPhone brings all the familiar style of Apple's trademarks. It 'the same size and weight (4.5 inches long 2.3 inches wide and 0.37 inches deep, 4.8 ounces), is almost identical in appearance outside, and you find that beautiful screen Retina. We still do not have sharp edges and the fans behind the glass, but there is no doubt that the iPhone is activated the device 4.

From the front, the two handsets look exactly alike.

Turn the handset on its pages and you'll notice some slight modifications. In response to the CDMA antenna, the ringer mute button on the left side has been moved slightly closer to the volume control. It makes no difference in terms of ease of use, but the change means that most of the current iPhone 4 cases, including the bumpers that Apple has distributed free last summer, does not work properly. Especially the right side, has a SIM card slot is gone, because the handset works on CDMA.

Apple moved the Verizon iPhone's ringer mute switch closer to the volume controls. In its place is the antenna gap that's on the top side of the AT&T phone.

In another change, the gap is located next to the headphone connector on the GSM version moved to the left side just above the switch ring. Apple would not discuss the details with CNET, not to confirm which parts of the antenna which functions are used (on AT & T phone, part of the antenna was for the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and is the antenna powered cellular call). We are not inclined to conspiracy theories, but it would not surprise us if Apple changed the design of the antenna after last summer's "Antennagate" drama. But more on that later.

A feature you gain

Within the Verizon phone has some differences, both good and bad. Big Red before winning the AT & T offers a personal hot spot function, which can support up to five devices. To create a connection cable and a Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or USB and use all three methods simultaneously. Even if AT & T has received the functionality of hot-spots IOS 4.3, a limited number of carrier equipment, which can make a wireless connection to only three.

Before you can use the Hot Spot, however, you must enable the option for Verizon. This feature will pay an extra $ 20 per month, which is cheaper than $ 29 fee per month for Sprint, but more expensive $ 14.99 share of T-Mobile. For this price, it was limited to 2 GB per month, after which you pay $ 20 for each additional GB. Overall, these taxes are not outrageous for what you get.

Once you have set with the carrier, the solution hot-spot appears in the Settings menu. So after setting a password and select the connection options you want, you can get started. We tried to connect a variety of devices including a laptop, IPAD, iPhone AT & T 4, an LG Optimus S, a RIM BlackBerry Torch, a Huawei Ideos X5, and a myTouch 3G T-Mobile.

For most devices, the process of connecting via Wi-Fi fast and painless. The myTouch 3G was able to find the hot spot, but for some reason he could stay connected for only five seconds before releasing. Watching video tapes, meanwhile, were unable to find the iPhone, even when they were side by side.

Even though hiccups have not been encouraging, could be a problem with other phones. What's more, when you threw them aside, the hot spots were very successful even when fully loaded. Web browsing on a laptop, for example, had only a few seconds slower than what we normally experience in the fixed network of CNET. Facebook Photo Upload lasted about 10 seconds (compared to the usual 5 seconds), and we were able to download several graphic heavy websites without problems. We had a similar experience when the USB cable to your PC, it was a bit 'slower than usual, but nothing drastic.

Browse the IPAD and telephones were satisfactory as well. As the computer, it took a little longer to complete tasks when we were linked with CNET Wi-Fi, but the speeds were not injured. Connection via Bluetooth has been difficult and we were not always able to establish a connection and then keep it when we had. Battery life on the hot spot was respectable. During the broadcast of movies Netflix, the iPhone has 5.2 hours before he died. It's just a little more than T-Mobile myTouch 4G running the same test.

The Verizon iPhone tracks how many devices are connected through the hot spot

Even with those few issues, the hot spot is user-friendly and it makes the Verizon iPhone an even better mobile-computing device. You don't get individual notifications when you connect a new device, and you can't see what is connected at a given time, but a status bar at the top of the display conveniently tracks how many gadgets are linked up. Yet, as with so many other things on the iPhone, the hot spot isn't the first or the best we've seen of its kind. It may do things differently, but it's not better. Remember that some handsets, like Sprint's HTC Evo 4G can support up to eight devices.

Features you keep

Outside the hot spot, you can expect the usual goodies iPhone. You get the 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, front facing VGA camera, Bluetooth, digital compass, e-mail and messaging, iPod player, voice control, voice memo recorder, assisted GPS and Google Maps, Safari Web browser, access to applications and media through iTunes, and FaceTime via Wi-Fi.

The Verizon iPhone has the same camera features as the AT&T version.

Polished user interface is also the same, even though the iPhone is currently IOS 4.2.6 Verizon, AT & T, the iPhone works IOS 4.2.1. Apple said that the version 4.2.6 is unique to Verizon phone, and that the only changes are the support for CDMA and function of hot spots.

Although the phone is impressive, the smartphone market is a thousand times more mature than it was in 2007 when it produced the original iPhone, and even in 2010 when the first iPhone went on sale 4. We have no doubt that the Verizon iPhone will succeed, but faces strong competition from rival companies and even within the limits of the Verizon. Some offer features that the iPhone can not touch, and many people are interested in buying the Apple device. The iPhone is a new medium, but only one player in a highly competitive field.