i1

First announced back in March, we finally have a release date on the Motorola i1. It will be available from Sprint on July 25.

The first Nextel Direct Connect smartphone powered by Android, the Motorola i1 features military spec ruggedness, a 3.1-inch HVGA screen, 5 megapixel camera, Wi-Fi, and has a full touchscreen design. It runs on the Android 1.5 operating system and automatically syncs and integrates emails, calendar appointments and contacts.

"Motorola i1 is the only Android device to offer Nextel Direct Connect as well as the latest smartphone features and the ability to withstand some of the harshest environments," said Fared Adib, vice president – Product Development, Sprint. "This phone brings a new level of smartphone to our Nextel customers making it one of the most efficient devices to get work done, and our customers who rely on Direct Connect will appreciate this feature-packed phone that doesn't miss on must-have features like Wi-Fi and a 5 megapixel camera."Read more

Usually when you think of a rugged mobile phone, you think of a bulky clamshell type phone…not an Android-powered smartphone. That all changes with the new Motorola i1. Sprint and Motorola today released a new Android-powered smartphone with Nextel Direct Connect. This smartphone has a solid body construction that meets Military Specifications for protection against dust, shock, vibration, extreme temperatures, blowing rain, solar radiation, humidity and salt fog. It also provides you with business tools such as Microsoft Document Viewer, and it automatically syncs office info such as emails, calendar appointments and contacts too.

Features include:

• Direct Connect for instant, one-to-one push-to-talk communication nationwide with any other Nextel Direct Connect subscriber
• Business tools such as Microsoft Document Viewer and corporate sync ensure Word or PowerPoint files can be accessed on the go.
• Both Android standard virtual keyboard and Swype virtual keyboards are offered.
• 5.0 megapixel camera with flash, geo-tagging and panoramic capabilities provides crisp photos and clearly displays them on the vibrant 3.1-inch HVGA screen. Video can also be recorded and stored on a provided microSD for sharing or future viewing straight from the device.
• The Opera Mini 5 browser enables quick browsing over the Nextel National Network and Wi-Fi. The Android browser allows you see Web pages and Flash 8-enabled sites in full view using Wi-Fi.
• Motorola i1 can be customized with thousands of applications from Android Market.