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New Motorola Atrix 4G Promo Begs the Question: Is this Your Next Phone, Laptop, or Both?

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No matter how many times we see the docking capabilities of the Motorola Atrix 4G for AT&T, we never cease to be impressed. Once again Motorola is showing off the capability in a new promo video that blurs the line between what sort of device the Atrix really is. Is it a phone? A laptop? A desktop? Well, if you’ve heard all the hype coming out of CES you will know it’s a little bit of each. All the power of an Android smartphone coupled with the computing power of a PC. Can you tell we are excited? You can be too, just watch the video below:

[via Engadget]

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66 Comments

  1. Thats pretty awesome.

  2. I can’t believe they gave this to at&t

  3. Verizon dropped the ball on the bionic. I will never go to at&t so this is out of the question. I don’t care about locked bootloaders. I have an of Droid to mess with, but I would love to be able to just plug my device into a dock for my work with my tv or run my laptop. I would rather that than buying a tablet as well as carry my phone.

  4. Heres hoping that when/if this thing ever gets honeycomb, they release a tablet dock as well. Now wouldn’t that be awesome.

  5. great idea, besides the optimus 2x this is the only thing that really caught my attention. too bad its on att. gross. love everything about this.

  6. Truly awesome , the next step in phone evolution , hope it takes off like wildfire .

  7. So why the heck is this available only on AT&T!? Why not on Verizon!?

  8. Good question Nikon D300. Verizon has better service, but they seem to think an outdated release like the Thunderbolt will keep their customers happy. WRONG!

  9. No its not replacing my laptop. But it does shelve my plans to buy a tablet.

    Now my only concern is the hype around this phone. Moto better deliver. I visit gadget blog sites daily and the anticipation around this is getting close to that of iphone releases.

  10. At least they call it the Atrix in the video, not Atrix 4G.

  11. Nice phone. I’m patiently waiting for Orion though. It should easily beat this phone, especially with it’s 3D Prowess. It’s a nice phone but Bad timing on motorolas part.

  12. @jmax,

    Better service is relevant to where you live or work. AT&T has great service where I frequent and faster data speeds.

  13. @smc29,

    Bad timing, how so?

  14. I want to see a phone like this on T Mobile. This phone is a beast.

  15. I wet my pantalones. I hate AT&T though. UGGG!

  16. This is the first I’ve heard of the Atrix having a fingerprint scanner. I’ve always thought it would be faster than Android’s security pattern and I’ve been waiting a while to see this.

  17. Exactly…the area where you live determines if you have good service. I’m good with my ATT service…10yrs+ with no problems since ATT>Cingular>ATT

  18. How about us Verizon customers be happy that other major carriers are finally getting serious about Android phones?
    .
    Even tho it may be to offset the iPhone not being exclusive on At&T anymore…lol But still, lets be happy for AT&T users, future users. Verizon cant get all the good phones.

  19. this aint bad timing the atrix is going to sell a shit load and I am even thinking about going to att from verizon becasue this phone looks so bad ass. That dock is titties

  20. Wow, I can’t believe this is going to AT&T. They must have paid Motorola a shit ton of money to get this, probably because the iPhone is now going to Verizon as well. This is probably their way of staying in the competition. I’m hoping other phones have this capability in the near future. Dear God, though, I want this phone.

  21. @Eric

    Honeycomb is not for phones. Maybe a optimized version after gingerbread will be for phones. Think of the iOS for the iPad & iPhone. Similar but not functionally the same. You can’t & don’t want to run a mobile OS on a tablet & have a tablet os on a phone. Each app & etc needs to be optimized for that devices experience.

  22. @AtlBuc
    .
    Exactly, I just moved late last year and Verizon isnt as good here. (I moved near my job) Sprint and AT&T are tho.
    .
    So I have a lil dilemma: do I wait to see if LTE helps with phone reception, or do I go with Sprint or AT&T?

  23. Wow. In the video, he or she just hung up on the BBQ guy. Thats kind of rude. ;)

    Ok I love the concept of this, it looks fantastic. But I am going to wait to see what else comes out this year. Who says this wont end up being a multi-carrier device, or that other manufacturers wont follow suit if the Atrix concept takes off?

  24. I cant wait for this to come out. 2 things to make it better, gingerbread and a front facing camera. but my gslate tab will make up for it

  25. @UniqueNate
    You might want to rethink what you said. Mattias Duarte (head of UI/UX) and Andy Rubin (Project Lead) have both, in separate interviews, confirmed that honeycomb is indeed coming to android.

    In fact, your example of iOS is exactly right. They are both currently in testing for iOS 4.3 and currently both run iOS 4.2. They may be different UI wise, but not at the core. The same thing is likely to happen to android. Tablet/Phone UI, but they won’t be running 3.0 for tablets and 2.4 for phones for long.

  26. To add on (wish this site would let you edit) iPad/iPhone initially had seperate OS versions till they merged, presumably to get a tablet version. Same is likely to happen here, but the phone will be the one lagging instead.

  27. I waited for the unicorn that was the white iphone. Then I considered switching to Verizon to get the Bionic or Thunderbolt. Once I saw the specs for this phone, I am gonna stay with AT&T. My coverage is fine, and my Data plan in unlimited. As long as that stays the same, I have no reason to leave.

  28. The concept is awesome, but until we can run a word processor and Excel on it, it seems like a novelty. Time will tell.

  29. I am jumping from Big Red to get this phone, WOW!

    I am thinking that 1 year from now all phones coming out will be this good if not better

  30. Why does this have to go to AT&T, Verizon should get this. This should be my next Droid. AT&T sucks…

  31. I’M ON AT&T AND CAN’T WAIT TO GET THIS ON DAY ONE!! And you guys on Verizon gets the Iphone which I’m happy it’s over. and VERIZON have too many DROIDS. give us AT&T users a GOOD POWERFUL PHONE WITH GREAT software apps and accessories.

  32. stop complaining and bitching about it going to at&t

  33. @atlbuck

    not so much bad timing as any time is a good time for a new Dual core to come out. I’m just saying that with Samsungs Orion coming 1Q 2011 If the motorola came out a little sooner, I might have considered getting the moto instead. Check out the Orion chip. It makes me shiver all over ^_^

  34. God does everyone have to complain that this phone isn’t going to be on their network? Seriously be happy they are getting it. Because if this is good then it is almost certain your carrier will get something similar. If it does not catch on then your carrier won’t do the same. And that way you don’t end up spending money on something that may not be as great as you think it is. I bet half of the people complaining about ATT being crap are ignorant and probably never had it. Their service may not be the best but people use it for a reason. Verizon is way too expensive for my needs. I live close to big cities so Tmobile is perfect for me. I get great coverage and fast coverage. Everyone has Preferences so stop saying it sucks just because you don’t agree with it.

    On the other hand, I like the idea. Its cool and different.

  35. No ffc= Epic Fail

  36. You guys bitching about the atrix coming to att and not verison need to shut the fuck up and quit whining. You Have had an endless supply of awesome android phones. Blow me.

    Wanting to get the phone and not being able to is one thing, I get that. But saying it shouldn’t go to att or that att. Doesn’t deserve it is ridiculous.

  37. Fyi, the phrase ‘begs the question’ does not mean what you think it does. You meant ‘raises’ or, more simply, ‘asks’. To quote the infallible fount of knowledge that is wikipedia, begging the question is: “…a type of logical fallacy in which to proposition to be proven is assumed implicitly or explicitly in the premises.”

  38. Holy crap, that’s cool. Forget about Android versions, what they need is a universal charging/docking port for all the phones to work in the same docking station. The iPhone dominates when it comes to that, manufacturers can make all kinds of after market devices because their charging jack is the same for all the devices. Android needs that thought process too.

  39. my question is this. why the freak would anyone with a laptop connect their phone to it? WTF? A HUGE GIMMICK. That’s what it is. Now as far as the phone being nice, yes it is.

  40. at everyone complaining about us complaining about what network its going to, yes, we do have to complain cause we are all jealous. DUH.

  41. @smc its not a laptop its a dock, without the phone the thing is just there.

  42. nvm, it does have a ffc. epic fail on my end

  43. i honestly think verizon has a shit lineup of phones with locked bootloaders. thats why i went to t – mo would be all over this except for the fact that it has blur and i know it has a locked bootloader

  44. A new netbook can be had for $250. $150 for a gutted netbook is actually a pretty terrible price. I agree with smc29, though the phone itself is nice, the dock is more or less a gimmick

  45. My laptop doesn’t have a locked bootlader.

  46. Awesome promo video!

  47. It’ll take 2 weeks for the bionic to be able to use the Dock thanks to XDA, wait it out and quit bitching. Motorola failed by putting that its the first Tegra 2 phone because Nvidia said at CES that LG has the first Tegra 2 phone. And the Orion? Who the shit would buy a Samsung after all this bull going on right now? Lamer.

  48. I swear I hate greedy, whining crybaby verizon customers. Att is better than verizon anyways, verizons suck ass voice coverage doesn’t want to penetrate buildings and their 3G service is slow as hell you can’t even stream a you tube video without it buffering for longer than the actual video. Att all the way!

  49. who would buy a Samsung? more people then you would care for. You can say all you want about it’s support which has been fantastic for me. People still want it. I wouldn’t be surprised Samsung probably makes more than half the parts inside the atrix. All this bull what? It still beats the crap out of all my buddies phones. And once Orion hits, it will blow everything out of the water.

  50. Hmm… Okay this is really really cool. But I’m wondering do I really need a phone that turns into a laptop? I have a laptop, one that I paid way too much money for. It feels like I wouldn’t use it that much. The phone itself without the dock seems good on it’s own, but I’m thinking of waiting til the samsung infuse comes out and get that instead. Idk, still torn. Also, that kind of power can’t be good for battery life and if it’s not used with a dock is a dual core processor really necessary?

  51. Please look up the meaning of the phrase “to beg the question.” You are using it incorrectly. Thank you.

  52. i hink all carriers have strong and weak points..i for the hell of it had all carriers with in year and a half,WHY? I ask myself that too.But really,verizons lag on videos is amazing ,att drop a few more calls,however it be a bit blown out of hand,sprint eh..billing issues..Tmob…speed up and down..granted im keeping things really short.but best balance..and not getting more kudos than it should…so im still on tmo..and loving it..but if you love yours thats fine but dont knock others if you never tried and most havent.

  53. why is the finger print reader on the top back rather than bottom front somewhere around the mic perhaps?

  54. The Atrix has a front Facing VGA Camera guys.
    Stop whining about no FFC.

  55. @kb
    It has built in Citrix client, you can run Windows 7 through that, so Excel and all Office, if that’s your desire.. You could also run the Google versions of word processor and spreadsheet if you want (cloud, which Office will eventually be as well).. it has the ability to print to wireless network printers.. You can attach drives to it.. As to being a “gimmick” as several posts have stated.. not at all.. just wait and see how useful this “gimmick” really is.. Your a bunch of cranky Luddites.. this is an awesome idea, and excellent implementation of that idea.. you will be jealous when you see others using it.

  56. Now I can finally get away from the iPhone

  57. Trouble is, smartphones become obsolete and/or break in about 1 year, or 2 if you’re lucky… Seems like a lot of hardware to invest in to have it last 1/3rd to 1/2 as long as a typical laptop…

  58. It does look like an awesome device, it’s just a shame that it’s Motorola.

    The Milestone was an equally awesome-looking device at the time it launched, but it never reached its full potential due to Motorolas delayed updates and broken promises. Spare a thought for us poor guys in Europe still waiting on FroYo when the Droid has had it for months.

    As for their promise that the Atrix will get full HD recording via an OTA, I’ll belive that when it happens. My “flash ready” device still can’t run flash over a year after I bought it. Motorola will never get any of my money again, and most of their european customers feel the same – check out the angry hoards on their european facebook page:
    http://www.facebook.com/motorolaeurope

  59. if it cant run World of warcraft, then… no

  60. Luddites, great word for a bunch of cranky folks. I’ve been with AT&T for about 5 years after they took over Circular and they been good. Had T-Mobile, but the coverage was spotty. It’s good to see them get Androids and WP7 phones and get away from IPhone all the time.

  61. @ NEWKIDONDABLOG. It can run under 3D Games such as Warcraft, Diablo and others games. Remember it has Dual core with 1ghz. btw, this cell phone is all in one. So, no needed to buy a netbook.

  62. I want!

    But what about battery life?

  63. Do any you know if the other phones will get docks and laptops like the atrix?

  64. I hope iphone fans see that its time to move on . Apple had its time on the spotlight . ITs time to move on to better things.

  65. att is the best verizon sucks and this phone deserves the best witch is att

  66. I received my Atrix yesterday, I’m returning it tomorrow.
    Worse reception than my iphone 4. What good is all the technology if you can’t make a call. If this phone was on a better network, I would consider using it. Until then, I’ll stick to my Apple device.

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