Motorola and Sprint have teamed up to announce the Photon 4G this morning. It's got a 4.3 inch qHD display, a 8 MP rear camera, a VGA front facing camera, it will be running Gingerbread at launch with Motorola's new Blur, and a HDMI port, so we are wondering if it will be compatible with Motorola's Webtop.
If you count the Atrix as being 4G, it's Motorola's second 4G device, beating out the Droid Bionic on Verizon. If you don't count the Atrix as 4G, it's Motorola's first 4G device.
Another first was brought to the market by Motorola, it's a 4G WiMAX, CDMA, and GSM phone. Making it a world phone too.
It has 16 GB of on-board storage, expandable up to 32 GB making it a total of 48 GB. It's got a 1700 mAh battery, so it will be interesting to see how the battery life is. The bootloader will be unlocked, for all the hackers out there. Sadly, pricing and release information were not announced.
This looks like another solid option for Motorola, and we are excited to check this phone out once it is released.
Update - Motorola has said that the Photon 4G will not ship with an unlockable/relockable bootloader. Sorry guys.
Check out the press release below
MOTOROLA PHOTON 4G
The Perfect Blend of Business and PleasureSprint and Motorola are taking wireless innovation to a new level with Sprint’s first 1GHz dual-core NVIDIA® Tegra™ 2 processorsmartphone on the Sprint 4G Network, Motorola PHOTON™ 4G. Motorola PHOTON 4G provides on-the-go users with an edge in managing their lives, from anywhere in the world. Built with Android 2.3 Gingerbread, Motorola PHOTON 4G, combined with Sprint’s 4G network, lets users browse, download and multitask at maximum speeds to support their on-the-go lifestyles. Motorola PHOTON 4G does it all, providing users with an array of versatile tools like the Motorola webtop application, allowing users to access and create content from a larger screen while connected to a Motorola accessory dock*. Motorola PHOTON 4G offers the perfect blend between personal and business needs and boasts enterprise quality security for Android™, international GSM capabilities, a 4.3-inch qHD display, dual cameras and a kickstand for hands free viewing.
PRODUCTIVITY:
· 3G/4G Handset – The latest arrival to America’s favorite 4G network
· 1GHz dual-core NVIDIA®Tegra™2 Processor for quick downloads and app performance
· 4.3” qHD touchscreen for cinematic viewing with kickstand
· Built with Android 2.3, Gingerbread operating system
· International GSM capabilities
· Enterprise Security
· 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot capability for up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices (additional fee required)
· Corporate (MS Exchange ActiveSync) and personal (POP & IMAP) email access
· Messaging – personal and business email, Google TalkTM instant message and text messaging
· Sprint ID offering an innovative way to personalize an Android smartphone with apps, widgets, ringtones and more all in a single download
· GPS navigation enabledENTERTAINMENT:
· Dual cameras – 8 megapixel HD video capture camera and VGA front-facing camera
· 720P HD Video capture and the ability to output HD video (1080P) via HDMI
· Android Market™ for access to more than 200,000 applications, widgets and games available for download to customize the experience
· HD Multimedia Dock* and Car Dock* for a truly unique handset experience
· 16GB of on board memory, support for up to 32GB SD Card, for a total of up to 48GB
· Ability to utilize the webtop application while connected to a Motorola accessory dock to open, view, edit and send Microsoft Office documents using cloud-based web apps through the full Mozilla Firefox browser
· Bluetooth® 2.1
· Wi-Fi® b/g/nSPECIFICATIONS:
· Dimensions: 2.6 inches x 5.0 inches x 0.5 inches (66.9mm x 126.9mm x 12.2mm)
· Weight: 5.6 oz (158 grams)
· Display: 4.3-inch qHD 540x960
· Memory: 16GB eMMC ROM/1GB DDR2 RAM
· Battery Specifications: 1700 mAh Lithium-ion battery
· Talktime: CDMA: up to 10 hours; WDCDMA: up to 9.1 hours; GSM up to 10.4 hours
