ICS-running Motorola RAZR HD shows up in China

The Motorola RAZR HD name leaked a week ago though some EXIF data and now alleged photos of the actual device have hit the Internet. The phone in the photos is headed to China Mobile and carries the model number MT887.

The Motorola RAZR HD MT887 is an Android 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich smartphone and lacks any hardware keys, opting for on-screen ones instead. The smaller bezel means a smaller phone compared to another China-bound RAZR with an HD screen - the MT917.

 
Motorola MT887 next to an MT917 (4.5" screen)

This could be due to a smaller screen size - 4.3" seems like a good guess, but 4.6" is mentioned in a couple of places. The camera on the back is reportedly an 8MP unit, which is inline with the EXIF info we saw.

Here are some further specs on the Motorola RAZR HD according to the rumor - TI OMAP 4430 chipset with dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 1GB RAM, 4GB storage, GSM and TD-SCDMA network connectivity. The phone is thicker than the 8.5mm thin XT917, which generates speculations that it packs a 3300mAh battery, a la RAZR MAXX.

  
Some leaked renders of the Motorola MT887 from earlier this week

There's another model number thrown around - MT889, which may be headed to China Telecom. There's no info on a world-wide version of the Motorola RAZR HD, but a Google-owned Motorola can't take too long to deliver an ICS phone, can it?

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Motorola announces XT390 dual-SIM droid for China Unicom

Motorola and China Unicom announced a new dual-SIM Android with unique design element. TheMotorola XT390 offers dual-standby functionality and support for China Unicom's 3G network.

It runs Android 2.3 Gingerbread on an 800MHz processor and 512MB RAM. The screen is 3.5" big but the resolution wasn't mentioned in the press release (our guess is HVGA, judging by the screen's aspect ratio).

  
Motorola XT390 dual-SIM Android smartphone

Anyway, the XT390 can be had in either Black or Champagne gold and its 11mm thick body has an interesting asymmetric design element at the bottom.

The press release is in pretty poor English in this part, but we're pretty sure that the asking price for the Motorola XT390 is 1000 yuan (about $160), which is pretty cheap for a 3G dual-SIM droid.

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Motorola RAZR update brings battery and camera improvements

Motorola has released a software update for the international GSM version of the RAZR. It isn't the long-awaited Ice Cream Sandwich RAZR owners are hoping for, but rather the update is based on the good ol' Android 2.3. However, there are a couple of new features to keep owners happy.

First off, there are new Smart Action presets available, such as Auto Text and VIP Caller mode. On top of that, Moto says battery life is better due to software optimization and the camera is also improved.

The update is currently available in the UK, France, Spain and Italy with more regions to follow. To check if the update has been made available for your RAZR, check System Updates in the About phone menu.

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Apple, Nokia, Motorola and RIM argue over the nano-SIM design

Giesecke & Devrient, the German company that invented the SIM card, recently came up with the idea of the nano-SIM. This new, even smaller version of the SIM is only a third of the already tiny micro-SIM and will help device manufacturers save some precious space inside their devices.

Image courtesy Esato

But now there is problem. Hardware manufacturers have proposed their own version of the nano-SIM, which they think should be made the standard. Once chosen, the other manufacturers will then have to license it to use it in their devices.

Two of the designs put forth till now are by Apple and Nokia. Apple's design makes use of a tray to hold the nano-SIM, not unlike the ones it uses on the iPhone and the iPad. Nokia, of course thinks that this is not a good idea and that its version of the nano-SIM has significant technical advantages. Moreover, Motorola and RIM seem to agree with Nokia on this.

But if you think Apple is alone in this battle, then you're wrong because Apple is being backed by most of the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI). Moreover, Apple is registering six different European subsidiaries as voting bodies, that can provide up to 45 votes each, which should be more than enough to outnumber Nokia's existing 92 votes.

Either way, it's certain that the nano-SIM is coming your way shortly. But then, considering the technical advantages it has, it's actually a good thing. And it will be backward compatible with regular SIM using an adaptor. Just make sure you don't lose it.

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ICS-powered Motorola DROID Fighter leaks

We just got a glimpse of the next member of the Motorola Android lineup. Codenamed DROID Fighter, the yet unannounced smartphone appeared in a live photo, alongside its Droid RAZR sibling.

There's not much in terms of specs of the Verizon-bound smartphone that we know at this point, but the absence of any physical buttons at the front of the device (touch-sensitive or regular) clearly points to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich running underneath.

According to the source of the leak, the Motorola DROID Fighter will come with a 4.6" HD screen and a battery about the size of the unit inside the DROID RAZR Maxx. Yeap, that's 3300 mAh worth of juice, which should keep the Fighter going for quite a while.

The launch of the Motorola DROID Fighter is rumored to happen in April so we should find out more about the smartphone quite soon.

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