“A Motorola executive on Thursday previewed an upcoming mobile phone that can play music from Apple Computer Inc.’s iTunes store,” Matt Hicks reports for eWEEK. “Speaking during a keynote at the International Consumer Electronics Show here, the executive demonstrated the phone, which in many ways mimics the iPod. It syncs with a computer and the iTunes Music Store like an iPod does, and incorporates the iPod interface for navigating and playing digital music, said Ron Garriques, a Motorola executive vice president.”
“The phone is the first of many Motorola devices that will support iTunes this year, said Garriques, also president of Motorola’s personal devices business. He didn’t provide product details for the phone or say when it would be available. But the demo at CES bolsters rumors that an iTunes-compatible Motorola phone would be launched this month, possibly at the Macworld conference and expo that opens next week in San Francisco. Last month, an Apple executive revealed that the phone was due in the first half of 2005,” Hicks reports. “In July, Motorola announced a licensing deal with Apple to use iTunes in its phones.”
Full article here.
So, I guess this means we won’t be seeing an iPhone debuting at Macworld…
Wonder what this phone will look like. Hope it’s not like the other dull Motorola phones. They just don’t know good design.
I dunno, the RAZR V3 from Moto looks pretty nice to me:
http://www.motorola.com/mdirect/hellomoto/experience/v3/flash/default.shtml
Anon
I dunno, the RAZR V3 from Moto looks pretty nice to me:
Very low memory, like less than 10MB IIRC. That combined with likely a low battery capacity, then you have a very cool idea, but maybe not fully realized (yet). It’s all metal construction looks promising and very sleek, the phone seems very compact and hopefully as well built as it appears. Certainly a far cry from many of the other turds that Motorolla has made of late. I’m partial to LG as I like their flip phone designs. I don’t think I’d buy a non-flip phone at this point although some people hate flip phones for some reason… To each his or her own I guess.
twilight,
the RAZR is a flip phone… what am I missing?
There was never an “iPhone”. It was very clear that when first discussed by Apple that they were developing an interface that would enable a Moto cell phone to accept iTunes downloads from a computer (not directly). All this talk about an iPhone was by instigated by rumor sites and posters over the net. Also the phone will not hold a large number of music files. It’s amazing to me how people don’t pay attention to what Apple said at the time they discussed their pending arrangement with Moto. As far as design, Moto phones look similar to LG, Samsung and Nokia. The new Razr is a very nice looking phone and is the advanced design of any currently on the market.
if you look at the motorola website the words they use to describe there next generation of phones (and the V3) are:
sleek design
minimalist style
ease of use
anodized aluminum
Which sounds a lot like the words used to describe the iPod mini when it first came out…perhaps the iPhone wasn’t too big of a stretch.
If Hp can have its own iPod, than why can’t Motorola be the maker of the iPhone? Or something to that extent but by a different name….
Yes but can I use it to open my car, change channels and make a daiquiri. -a vibrating a sex-prod attachment?. No?… Ok I’ll wait. I am a geek, but even in my geekiest moments. I want a break from technology. How many of you use the calculator and thermometer on your Nokia phone?
Nokias have thermometer? Kool
magic word “trade”
Do you want to?
This was simply a “preview”, so there may be some more details to be announced in the coming days from either Apple or Motorola. I still would like to see pics and know if it uses a color screen, and if it can handle playlist like an iPod, and, and, and……..
Sexy, Now if they can just get one for the Japanese Market that still includes all the bells and whisles already available over here…
I use the calculator on my sanyo a lot actually…
rob
he RAZR is a flip phone… what am I missing?
Nothing. Sorry, didn’t mean to imply the RAZR was not a flip phone.. just there are other phones out there that are pretty spiffy if you don’t like flip phones, but I do.
As far as flip phones go, the RAZR seems more about fashion than function, but if Motorola can make a decent phone that’d be nice. Their software has tended to suck pretty bad from my experience, and not just my experience, read some of the reviews of their phones online:
http://www.mobiledia.com/
http://www.phonescoop.com/
http://cellphones.about.com/od/productreviews/
pkradd
As far as design, Moto phones look similar to LG, Samsung and Nokia. The new Razr is a very nice looking phone and is the advanced design of any currently on the market.
“Look similar” sorta like the iPod knock-offs “look similar” in some cases. The devil is in the details, and a lot of Motorola phones I’ve played with seemed sub par on the hardware side, and the software has just not been as elegant as LG is. If I wanted a solution that worked, but not very well, and felt clunky and half ass, you think I’d be typing this message on a Mac?
Any one know where to get a picture of the phone?
…. needs to get off their ass and do some better cooperation with Apple. Their music approach has, is and will continue to fail. They need to team with a winner like Apple.
If Moto gets this half right, it will positively impact negatively on Nokia.
Only a matter of time before some doofus sues Motorola as a result of its “criminal conspiracy” to further the iTunes Music Store monopoly.
Curiously, Jonathan Ives praised his fellow designer Marc Newsons’ mobile phone designs at his Design Museum talk last autumn. Wonder if J’s influence hasn’t infected the work at Motorola…? If so, it’s time to buy Motorola stock too!
Strange thing.. Magic Word is ‘Design’ !
But it doesn’t work with Playsforsure??!!?! And neither do Sony’s products!!!?!?!! Bill said “Everyone but Apple” worked with WMA???!!!?!!
I have the i830 Nextel Motorola and while the interface is a little primitive, the design of the phone is quite beautiful. Perhaps a little rough around the edges, but it has a nice clean look without looking space age.
Nokia makes the best and coolest phones hands down! apple shoulda tied up with them instead of motorola! I personally hate flip phones.. i still use my trusty old Nokia 3650.. the next phone i get will probably be the 6630. Just wish the had bigger memory cards.. like 1 gig would be nice.. and of course iTunes. My current phone plays mp3’s, but i just use my ipod.
Dave..
Bill lies a lot.
There’s a reason he hangs out with Queen Latifah, Jay Leno, and Conan.. you know.. people who aren’t gonna call him on his lies.
Oh yeah.. and Paul Thurrott
Motorola said I could play music on my motoiPhone but it won’t play my CD’s. Anyone know a good lawyer?
“… first of many” !!!!!
pkradd: “There was never an “iPhone”. …All this talk about an iPhone was by instigated by rumor sites and posters over the net.”
Then, what about this: http://www.iphone.org/ ?
On the other hand, unless Apple has already handled it, the use of “iPhone” is already be in use:
https://iphone.nuvio.com/
pkradd,
I doubted that an iPhone would be created assuming that it would most likely be a regular phone with some sort of iTunes software on it, but if the article is correct and the phone has an interface like the iPod and syncs with iTunes, isn’t that essentially an iPhone?