atrix - 2/4 - Android Police - Android News, Apps, Games, Phones, Tablets

Jul

ATRIX 4G Gingerbread Update Now Available Via OTA - Brings Sideloading, New MOTOBLUR

Posted by David Ruddock in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Gingerbread 2.3, Motorola, News

Better late than never, right? Motorola's first dual-core handset, the ATRIX 4G, has finally received the green light for Gingerbread - and the OTA is a go. If you head into your Settings menu, and hit About Phone, then System Updates - the update should be waiting for you. If not, just wait a while - OTA's often take several days or even weeks to complete the "rollout" process.

What does the update bring? Well, Android 2.3.4 is the big star of the OTA. ATRIX 4G users will experience better app performance, UI refinements, and (hopefully) a slew of bugfixes. You'll also get a shiny new version of MOTOBLUR - hopefully one that's similar to what the DROID 3 is running, which we think is the best (well, least bad, maybe) version of the skin to date, and by a country mile.

Jul

[Deal Alert] Pre-Order The Photon 4G From Wirefly For Just $180

Posted by David Ruddock in 4G, Deals, News, Photon 4G, Sprint

The upcoming Motorola Photon 4G for the Sprint network has been made available for pre-order on Wirefly. While a ship date isn't listed, we know the Photon is being released on the 31st - meaning you can probably expect to receive yours on or a little before that date, if you opt for overnight shipping. $180 will get you on the list for the Photon, but you'll have to be a new Sprint customer to swing that deal.

The Photon 4G is basically a reworked version of the Motorola ATRIX 4G, with a larger display and access to Sprint's WiMAX network.

Jun

[AtriX-Mas Continues] XDA Serves Up Gingerbread 2.3.4 For The Motorola ATRIX

Posted by Matt Demers in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Gingerbread 2.3, Motorola, News

As an Atrix owner, these past couple of days have been a bit of a "Christmas in (almost) July" celebration. First, we get confirmation that our bootloader will be unlocked with Android 2.3.4. After that, the phone is placed on sale on Amazon for one measly cent. Then XDA Developers say "screw that; we'll give you an unlock on Froyo!"

Now, in perhaps the biggest gift yet, the genius minds over at XDA have devised a way for users to install a pre-release build of Gingerbread 2.3.4 on their phones.

As with the bootloader unlocks, this flash is only available on the AT&T versions of the Atrix.

Jun

No Need To Wait For Gingerbread: The Atrix Bootloader Has Been Unlocked

Posted by Matt Demers in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Froyo 2.2, Gingerbread 2.3, Motorola, News

Even though we reported yesterday that the Motorola Atrix would be receiving the option to unlock its bootloader, a group of dedicated developers on XDA have found a way to do, even on Froyo. The update involves flashing a specifically-coded SBF, and then running commands from the fastboot menu of the phone. If all goes well, you'll get the fabled "device is now unlocked" message, and you will be one step closer to killing that damned Motoblur.

^{XDA user XLR88 reports his success}

However, there are some limitations. The phone has to either be running the AT&T or OLYFR version of the phone; certain versions, like the French or Bell Canada Atrix have been reported to have less than optimal results (an error which stops the process, but no reports of bricking).

Jun

Motorola To Unlock Atrix 4G Bootloader With Gingerbread Update? Looks Like It.

Posted by Aaron Gingrich in AT&T, Motorola, News

Notch another victory for the Android community: shortly after Motorola publicly stated they would be moving towards unlockable bootloaders - even retroactively where possible - it appears that the Gingerbread update for the Atrix does just that. Brief Mobile laid hands on a leaked early build of the Android 2.3.3 update, and to their delight, found that unlocking the bootloader was as simple as using a simple console command.

^{I hereby declare this the poster child for "Mr. Blurrycam" photos.}

It's worth pointing out that, according to Brief Mobile, this is an early build of the update. As such, there's a possibility that Motorola simply left the bootloader unlocked for developer use, and the final update will maintain the locked bootloader.

Apr

[Updated] Motorola ATRIX 4G Gets Two Updates, Includes HSUPA And Android 2.2.2

Posted by Cameron Summerson in AT&T, Atrix 4G (Olympus), News

Last Updated: May 3rd, 2011

Update: I know that most of you have not yet received the update, and now we know why. According to its Twitter page, Motorola has said that it would be "rolling out in phases", so hopefully you'll start to see some update action soon.

Well, what do you know? It looks like one update wasn't enough for AT&T today - there are now two OTA updates available for the Motorola Atrix 4G, the second of which brings some long-awaited features.

The first one brings the software version up to 4.1.57 and adds Bluetooth enhancements, improved performance for the fingerprint reader, car dock, 3.5mm jack, and improved battery life.

Apr

ATRIX 4G OTA Update Change Log Shows HSUPA And Call Quality Fixes, Coming Soon

Posted by David Ruddock in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Motorola, News

ATRIX 4G users rejoice - HSUPA will soon be here, and without any sort of hacky flashing requiring root access. The official Motorola update page for the ATRIX 4G's latest OTA, 4.1.83, has appeared on Motorola's website today. Here's the change log "highlights" according to Moto:

Data Speed
Increased speed at which data can travel on the network.

Data Connection
Improvements to prevent interruptions to data connection.

Screen
Improvements to prevent screen from freezing.

Email
Improved ability for users to receive email notifications so you know when you have a new message. Also, improvements were made so that you are now able to use the same email login to access both MOTOBLUR™ and YouTube.

Apr

Deal Alert: Motorola ATRIX 4G Now $50 At Amazon Wireless, $100 Off Webtop Accessory

Posted by Cameron Summerson in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Deals, News

If you have been lusting over the Motorola Atrix 4G but waiting for the perfect deal to come along, wait no more. Throughout the weekend, you can grab this super-hot dual-core device for only $50 with a new two year agreement on AT&T from Amazon Wireless. Unfortunately, this deal doesn't apply to upgrades on existing plans, so those of you that are already with AT&T will be stuck paying $99, which is still quite a good deal for a phone this beastly.

Just in case you have forgotten how awesome this phone is, here is a quick look at the specs:

1GHz Tegra 2 dual-core processor
1GB RAM
16GB built-in storage
4-inch LCD
5MP rear camera, 0.3MP front camera
Android 2.2 with Motoblur

If you really want to go for the gold, you can also get $100 off of the Webtop accessory via a promotional code that will be sent your way after you purchase the ATRIX.

Mar

AT&T Confirms That The Atrix And The Inspire Will Receive HSUPA-Enabling Updates In April

Posted by Nate Kimmey in AT&T, Atrix 4G (Olympus), News

Motorola Atrix and HTC Inspire owners have had good reason to be upset with AT&T's "4G" network - due to the fact that HSUPA wasn't enabled on either of the two devices, users have been plagued with unbearably low upload speeds, and the announcement of an upcoming Atrix update that ignores the problem didn't seem like a good sign. Fortunately, AT&T has used its Facebook page to confirm that software updates enabling normal upload speeds are in the works and are expected to roll out some time in April.

AT&T also dropped some good news regarding the Samsung Infuse: the handset will launch with HSUPA already enabled, so nobody will have to wait for an update from Samsung there.

Mar

ATRIX 4G To Receive First OTA Update - Doesn't Include HSUPA Or Call Quality Fixes, But You Can Sign Up To Test It

Posted by David Ruddock in Atrix 4G (Olympus), Motorola, News

Motorola is preparing to release its first over-the-air update for the ATRIX 4G (beta signup link here, open until Friday at 12PM EST), which should be exciting news for owners of the device, though it may end up inspiring more angst than joy.

The ATRIX 4G has been known in particular for two problems since its release: first, a lack of HSUPA (high speed upload) support in the software and, second, poor voice quality on phone calls. Motorola has promised to address both of these issues - just not right now. Moto has yet to release the change log for the incoming update, but the admin on the Moto forums who posted on it has made it a point to confirm that neither of the ATRIX's biggest annoyances are being taken care of in the impending release.