Mobile Technology

Motorola Photon 4G gets price and release date

Motorola Photon 4G gets price and release date
Motorola Photon 4G
Motorola Photon 4G
View 3 Images
Motorola Photon 4G
1/3
Motorola Photon 4G
Motorola Photon 4G
2/3
Motorola Photon 4G
Motorola Photon 4G
3/3
Motorola Photon 4G
View gallery - 3 images

When the Motorola Photon 4G debuts through Sprint later this month it will be Motorola's first WiMAX smartphone and Sprint's first international 4G smartphone that is capable of working on GSM networks around the world. Powered by a dual-core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor with each core running at 1GHz, 1GB of RAM and with 16GB of built-in memory the device will come with Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) pre-installed.

In a first for a Motorola smartphone, the Photon 4G features a kickstand that will switch the display to landscape mode when deployed so you can enjoy some hands free viewing on the device's 4.3-inch qHD (960 x 540) touchscreen display. This is slightly larger than the 4-inch display found on the Motorola Atrix 4G available through AT&T.;

There's also a front-facing VGA camera for video-chat and an 8-megapixel, dual-LED flash rear camera with dedicated camera button that can capture 720p HD video. Full HD 1080p video can be output via the mini HDMI port. The 16GB of onboard memory can be expanded to up to a total of 48GB via a 32GB SD card, while the device's 3G/4G hotspot capability supports up to eight devices.

Motorola Photon 4G
Motorola Photon 4G

Aimed at business customers as well as the general consumer, the Photon 4G features enterprise-quality security capabilities such as data encryption and remote device management, alongside the international GSM capabilities to keep business travelers in touch around the globe.

The device will also be compatible with a range of optional accessories, including a Vehicle Navigation Dock and Motorola's HD Station multimedia dock that includes a wireless remote and HDMI cable and combines with the Webtop application to allow users to launch a full Firefox 4.0 browser and access and create content on a larger monitor or HD TV.

The Motorola Photon 4G measures 2.6 x 5 x 0.5 inches (66.9 x 126.9 x 12.2 mm) and weighs 5.6 oz (158 g). Its 1700 mAh lithium-ion battery should be good for up to 10 hours talktime on CDMA, 9.1 hours on WDCDMA and 10.4 hours on GSM. It will be available through Sprint from July 31 and will cost US$199.99 on a two-year plan.

View gallery - 3 images
2 comments
2 comments
Crankie Fahrt
Android 2.3??? Why would I want a device that sells new equipment with outdated software right from the git-go?
Almost everything out there coming online is sporting Android Honeycomb 3.1 or 3.2. I just cannot justify paying (what I\'m sure will be a pretty penny) for this item. JMHO.
Chris Dube
2.3 is the latest release for phones. 3.1 is only for tablets, and 3.2 has not been released yet (expected Q4).
I don\'t know what you are complaining about - most phones being released now are still on 2.2.