Google Unveils New Motorola Mobility Logo

Motorola has been undergoing a major shift as a company. As part of the overhaul, however, Motorola looks to have a new logo. The new logo made its first appearance on the site of Techweek, an event Motorola is co-sponsoring this week. Now, this does make us wonder if the logo is here to stay or if it just for the conference, but we’re inclined to say that it’s here for good. Companies don’t change their logos all that often, as they are not something taken lightly.

The new logo is much simpler than Motorola’s old look, which was a bolded, italicized “MOTOROLA.” Now, everything is in lowercase font with a much softer color. The classic red “M” is now the same color as everything else and is surrounded by a wheel of colors. The most notable change, however, is what is underneath. To show of its new bosses, Motorola is now advertising that it is “a Google company.”

Google Agrees To Keep Android Free And Open For Five Years

For Google to secure the approval of Chinese authorities to purchase Motorola Mobility, it had to guarantee that Android would remain free and open for five more years.

It was announced yesterday that China has finally approved the purchase of Motorola Mobility by Google.  This was the last stumbling block to the acquisition, and now that it has been cleared, the deal is expected to close within a week.  It does seem, though, that Google had to make at least one large concession to gain that approval.

According to a report from Reuters:

"A main condition of the deal is that the Android system remain free and open for five years, said a source who is familiar with the Chinese approval but not authorized to discuss it."

There had been some fears when this deal was announced last August that Google would stop providing Android to other vendors to continue manufacturing phones, but Google has stated numerous times that it did not plan to give any preferential treatment to the Motorola brand.  While this has been the stated intent of Google, it seems China wanted it said in a more official capacity that would give it an avenue to come back on the search giant should it break its promise.  Google spokeswoman Niki Fenwick said of the agreement, ”Our stance since we agreed to acquire Motorola has not changed, and we look forward to closing the deal.”

Although Google is most readily associated with Android, it needs to be noted that it is actually developed by the Open Handset Alliance which consists of 84 members.  Google is the leader of this group, so it wouldn’t be an arbitrary decision to pull the operating system from other vendors.

Motorola Plans To Turning Android Into A Desktop OS With Webtop 3.0

Can Android 4.0 replace a desktop PC? We have already examined that question, and now it appears Motorola believes the answer is yes. Their Droid RAZR is expected to see a software update to Android 4.0 as early as next week, which delivers a totally new Webtop experience.

Previously, Motorola’s Webtop software allowed a phone to plugin into a smart dock that launched a custom Linux desktop that featured Firefox for as the browser. We thought it was an innovative feature when it debuted at CES 2011, but the actual experience turned out to be pretty sluggish and frustrating.

We predicted that the Motorola Atrix 4G and Webtop software were a good indicator of where Android was headed, and now it appears that has come true.

A leaked copy of the Android 4.0 update for the Droid RAZR reveals a new “Webtop 3.0 beta” that does away with the limited Linux desktop and provides users with a full Android 4.0 tablet UI when a device is docked to a larger display.

I’m pretty excited to see that this different-UI-for-different-displays feature is finally coming to Android phones. Hopefully handset makers will enable it over HDMI, MHL, and eventually WiFi Display. Check out the YouTube video below, be sure to leave your comments.

Google Acquisition of Motorola Mobility Still Awaiting China’s Approval



Despite getting clearance from the U.S. Justice Department and European Union, Google’s acquisition of Motorola Mobility is set to undergo another round of review by China’s antitrust agency. The $12.5 deal, which has been in the making since last August, can only be given full clearance once regulators in China sign off. “Motorola Mobility and Google can provide no assurances as to whether or when the transaction will receive clearance” Motorola said in a securities filing on Monday. However, regardless of the set back, Motorola still believes the deal will close by the end of June.

Google: We Will Launch 10 New Google Wallet Supported Devices For Sprint In 2012

Besides the LG Viper 4G, Sprint will be getting at least nine other devices that run Google Wallet by years end, says Google's VP of Wallet and Payments Osama Bedier. During the Mobile Money: Delivering Innovative Mobile Payment Services panel in Barcelona during Mobile World Congress 2012, Bedier said Sprint will introduce "at least 10 additional phones" with support for Google Wallet this year. He also added that Google is still negotiating with other operators, manufacturers, and potential financial partners to broaden the reach of Wallet in the US.

With 22 of the largest retail chains in the US supporting Wallet purchases at over 300,000 MasterCard PayPass terminals, Google has a big head start. But that's no guarantee that the service will become the standard, as competitor Isis sets up to begin trials later this year. Isis already has the partners -- HTC, LG, Motorola Mobility, Research In Motion, Samsung and Sony have committed to building devices that support Isis, and Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express, Chase, CapitalOne and Barclaycard have partnered with them as well. That is going to be tough to compete against. With recent security issues plaguing Google Wallet, a partnership with Sprint alone may not be enough to keep the project afloat. We'll have to wait and see who can deliver a product that consumers want, and more importantly, a new technology that consumers will adopt.

Google Nexus tablet in next 6 months teases Eric Schmidt

Google will begin promoting what could be the first official Nexus tablet within the next six months, according to chairman Eric Schmidt, the latest stage in the “brutal competition” between it and Apple. “In the next six months we plan to market a tablet of the highest quality” Schmidt told Italian newspaper Corriere della Sea, while also confirming that Google plans to leverage its voice recognition technology to better challenge Apple’s Siri.

Schmidt was at pains to praise Apple co-founder Steve Jobs for his work in transitioning the tablet from vertical and enterprise markets to a consumer-centric product. “Steve Jobs was the Michelangelo of our time” he told the newspaper, “[he] realized the revolutionary potential of the tablet and has created an amazing product like the iPad.” However, “our companies compete” he continued, “it is capitalism.”

Exact details of the upcoming tablet were not revealed, and it’s unclear whether the slate will be specifically branded with Google’s Nexus nomenclature or be another manufacturer’s model that the search giant will champion. A similar strategy was put in place earlier in the year, when Google worked with Motorola to launch the XOOM, the first Honeycomb tablet on the market.

Now, of course, Google is partway through the process of acquiring Motorola Mobility, and could well use its closer ties with the company to develop a true Google Nexus tablet. Whatever the manufacturer, the slate will likely use Ice Cream Sandwich, the latest version of Android; the tablet UI for ICS was discovered accessible in the Galaxy Nexus late last week.

Google has used the Nexus range – so far limited to phones – to help push its interpretation of how the smartphone should evolve. The first model, the HTC-made Nexus One, led the market in processor speed, while its successor, the Samsung-made Nexus S, introduced features like NFC. Most recently, the Galaxy Nexus arrived, the debut device for ICS.

Android tablets have generally struggled to compete with Apple’s iPad, and even the HP TouchPad managed to squeeze ahead of Android-based models in 2011 sales thanks to its cut-price discounting. Common criticisms include the somewhat jerky performance of Android 3.x Honeycomb, as well as a shortage of slate-scale apps to suit the larger displays.

Motorola Mobility stockholders approve Google merger

Not that we ever really expected otherwise, but the shareholders of Motorola Mobility today approved the company's merger with Google. Motorola says 99 percent of the votes were in favor of the merger, and the votes represented about 74 percent of the company's outstanding shares as of Oct. 11.

“We are pleased and gratified by the strong support we have received from our stockholders, with more than 99 percent of the voting shares voting in support of the transaction," CEO Sanjay Jha said in a released statement. "We look forward to working with Google to realize the significant value this combination will bring to our stockholders and all the new opportunities it will provide our dedicated employees, customers, and partners.”

Google has said it intends to continue to run Motorola as a separate company. The deal, worth some $12.5 billion, is expected to close late this year or in early 2012.