Motorola showcases follow-ons from the RAZR V3

Page 1: 3G    Page 2: GSM    Page 3: Accessories

Motorola morphs the successful RAZR V3 into a 3G phone, announces a slew of entry-level handsets, and shows off three new fashion phones and wireless accessories, including a pair of Bluetooth Oakley sunglasses.

Hot on the heels of Nokia's announcement of seven new mobile phones, Motorola has unveiled a 3G clamshell based on the design of the successful V3 called the RAZR V3x. The US-based manufacturer also announced a wide range of lower tier products at CommunicAsia 2005 in Singapore this week that it hopes will bolster its position in the Asia-Pacific region.

The Motorola RAZR V3x was previously known as the V1150.

Although not quite as thin as its svelte GSM counterpart, the V3x looks quite similar to its predecessor with a beautifully etched similar keypad and vivid dual displays. It sports a 2-megapixel camera for stills and an additional camera on the inside for 2-way video calling on third-generation (3G) networks. The V3x also ups the ante by supporting removable TransFlash memory cards. While the company was quiet on the much-anticipated iTunes phones, the 3G RAZR holds its own with a multimedia player supporting AAC+, MPEG4, WMV, WMA, MP3 and Real media files.

Pricing is yet to be confirmed but it is expected to launch in Australia in the third quarter of 2005. Although not specific about exclusivity deals with any networks, Motorola's director of product marketing for mobile devices Stephen Doran said the company is talking with a number of carriers for its release in Australia. Later this year, Optus, Vodafone and Telstra are expected to launch their own 3G mobile services in competition with Hutchison's 3.

Motorola, the worlds second largest phone maker, also hopes to capture more market share through low-tier customers with two entry-level 3G handsets and four GSM models. The C975 is a candybar-designed 3G phone with a VGA camera, MP3 player and expandable memory via removable TransFlash cards. The V975 has similar capabilities but is a flip phone with an external colour display.

The new entry- to mid-level GSM models also aim to bring mobile technology to the masses, especially in developing mobile markets in South-East Asia. Devices include the back-to-basics, monochrome-screened C117 and its big brother, the colour-screened C157. Moving slightly up the scale is the Bluetooth-equipped V360. It features push-to-talk, an MP3 player and a VGA camera. Another follow-on from the success of the V3 is the V280. It is a candybar phone measuring a super-thin 114 x 49 x 11mm and boasting a 262K-colour, 128 x 160-pixel display.

3G
Model	Availability	Features
Motorola C975 See images	Now	3G, VGA camera, CIF camera for video calls, MP3 player, MMS, e-mail, 2MB built-in memory, expandable memory (TransFlash), WAP browser, 24-voice polyphonic ring tones, speakerphone.
Motorola V975 See images	Now	3G, VGA camera, CIF camera for video calls, 1.9-inch 65K-colour internal display (176 x 220 pixels), 4K-colour external display, MP3 player, expandable memory (TransFlash), USB connectivity, J2ME games, MMS, e-mail.
Motorola RAZR V3x See images	Q4 of 2005	3G, 2-megapixel camera, additional VGA camera for video calls, Bluetooth, media player supports MP3, AAC+, WMV, WMA and Real video/audio files, voice recognition dialling (without pre-recording), WAP 2.0 browser, MMS, TransFlash memory expansion, supports 3D games and J2ME.