San Francisco – Calling it the second chapter in Android phones,
Motorola announced a new Cliq Android smartphone to be offered exclusively by
T-Mobile in time for the holidays, and said a second phone will be announced in
the next several weeks.
The Cliq uses a new Motorola Motoblur service that combines
email, social networks and messages into a single stream, or “Your life in a
single stream,” proclaimed Motorola co-CEO Sanjay Jha during an Internet
conference Thursday. Motorola believes its Motoblur service will differentiate
it from other Android smartphone providers.
The new Cliq through Motoblur lets users create their own opening
screen from customized live widgets, so one widget might show all Facebook,
Twitter and MySpace updates and one might show all emails, text messages,
etc.
“Motoblur is the first and only solution to sync contacts, posts,
messages, photos and much more – from sources such as Facebook, MySpace,
Twitter, Gmail, work and personal e-mail, and LastFM – and automatically
deliver it to the home screen,” said Motorola.
If users lose their Cliq phone, their data will remain on
Motoblur servers to be reloaded in the device when it is found or a new phone.
Cliq features include a slider QWERTY keyboard, Wi-Fi, 5-megapixel
camera, 24 fps video and what Motorola termed a “best in class” HTML browser by
Google. The Cliq will allow turn-by-turn GPS directions, Google maps and access
to “thousands of apps” from the Android Marketplace app store, said the
company.
The Cliq also has a standard headphone jack, so users can use
their own headphones.
Motorola also said it will offer many additional phones in 2010
using the Motoblur service and will provide the service overseas on a Dext
phone through three carriers.
Other recently announced Android smartphones include the Hero,
due from HTC through Sprint on Oct. 11.
