After another exciting CES event, it appears some of the top products announced were indeed Android devices, including what many are calling the “Best of CES 2011″ – The Motorola Atrix 4G. The groundbreaking Android smart phone looks to create a combination of phone, laptop, nettop and set-top box in one. While the phone itself has some impressive numbers, it wasn’t alone in some of it’s basic features, including dual-core Tegra 2 processor, 4G* connectivity to AT&T’s network and a qHD screen (960px x 540px). Other phones were demonstrating the same upgrades and features, and while the integrated fingerprint reader around back, the 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal memory certainly push this phone into a higher tier, it’s the external component integration that really sets it apart.
Looking at the Atrix on it’s own won’t gain you any “wow” factor. The shape and styling is actually fairly dull. It seems straight forward and functional. That could be a good thing or bad, depending on your taste, but it won’t turn heads. Powering the Atrix is a 1930mAh battery that should help this little device pull heavy usage all day long.
However, if you pull out the optional laptop dock, slide the Atrix into the cradle and boot up into 11.6″ screen and full keyboard. Basically, the phone becomes the muscle behind a small, lightweight laptop for on the go, large screen work. It’s still not a powerhouse as the phone automatically boots into a webtop style OS which has a full featured Firefox desktop web browser and a virtual Android homescreen. Of course you can run all your favorite Android apps there, and surf the web, connect to email etc, but in general it mainly provides a large screen and full keyboard to work from, instead of pecking, sliding or tapping away a lengthy email on a small on-screen Android keyboard.
Atrix Laptop Dock
Moving away from portable, if you get to the office, simple slide the phone into a desktop cradle and the phone becomes a nettop box, with the same functions as what was found on the laptop. Again, a great way to keep your information on the phone, and carry it from location to location with all your data in place. It comes with some USB ports, and HDMI port and of course power input. You can run your own USB keyboard, mouse and monitor.
Atrix HD Desktop Dock
Finally, should you take that same desktop cradle and move it over to your HD television, you can use a remote control to access your Atrix in a similar fashion as a set-top box with access to all your music, photos and videos, easily controlled from the comfort of your couch. There is a simplified interface present in the desktop cradle setting, not necessarily a webtop OS, more of something along the lines of an Apple TV or Roku with large, simple icons and interface. Since the Atrix includes a full featured web browser I can’t see why a user wouldn’t be able to access sites such as Hulu, Netflix and the like.
Still now word on pricing or when the phone or the accessories will be available, but when they are look for them on AT&T’s network.
