December 2 - 11:55am EST   Motorola announced on Tuesday it will soon add the MOTOROKR EM35 handset to its range, which will have an emphasis on superior audio performance during phone calls through Motorola's now-established CrystalTalk noise reduction technology. Otherwise, the quad-band GSM slider phone sports a 2.2-inch, 240x320 resolution display and a full complement of music controls, including a scroll wheel. The handset has a built-in FM tuner, which can be listened to over the integrated dual speakers or wired 3.5mm or Bluetooth headsets or headphones. [full story]

August 6 - 2:05pm EDT   Canadian cell provider Rogers Wireless will put most of its emphasis in the next few weeks on the BlackBerry line and music phones, according to a roadmap slip from BGR. The details confirm the launch of the BlackBerry Kickstart and add that the device will work with Rogers' Home Calling Zone Wi-Fi phone service, which will be rechristened Talkspot. The EDGE-only flip smartphone hasn't been given pricing but has previously been slotted into a late September release that may arrive near that of T-Mobile USA's version. [full story]

August 5 - 10:20am EDT   Motorola today made a more aggresive leap into music phones with three mid-range ROKR phones, all of which are based on Motorola's more recent Linux-based operating system. The EM30 is based closely on the same dynamic interface as the ROKR E8 and illuminates different buttons depending on the context, swapping in media controls to make navigation easier but without the expense of a touchscreen. It also has a 3.5mm headphone jack, native integration with Windows Media Player 11 for those not using other operating systems, and microSDHC card support for storage of 8GB or more. [full story]

June 26 - 7:25am EDT   T-Mobile on Thursday set the 7th of July as the launch date of its version of Motorola's ROKR E8 music phone. First seen at the 2008 CES show at the start of the year, the bar phone is unique in its dynamic touch-sensitive interface: different controls light up depending on the immediate context, with phone controls switching to camera or music controls as those programs become available. A similarly touch-sensitive wheel active in most apps helps users scroll through tracks quickly. Most controls are also haptic and vibrate to simulate a button press. [full story]

May 19 - 12:10pm EDT   T-Mobile has an aggressive launch schedule that will see it launch multiple high-profile phones by mid-summer, according to a leaked roadmap. Although few details are known about the release, the US carrier reportedly plans to launch both the unannounced BlackBerry Kickstart flip smartphone and the more official Bold by August, significantly upgrading T-Mobile's smartphone lineup within two months. A previous leak has suggested the Bold would appear only by September. [full story]

April 29 - 4:30pm EDT   T-Mobile's long-delayed 3G cellular Internet access will first be available as early as this week, says new information from BGR. The company's proprietary 1,700MHz service will reportedly become active on Thursday and should be available for subscribers in at least New York City; separate rumors also have the faster service available in Los Angeles and Miami in the near future. Other regional launches aren't yet known but should take place over coming months. [full story]

April 1 - 10:45am EDT   Motorola today continued its wave of CTIA-related announcements with two audio accessories. The H690 (shown) is an upgrade to its H680 Bluetooth earpiece that adds active noise reduction techniques: a combination of dual microphones and echo-reducing software should deliver a much cleaner sound for call recipients, Motorola says. A redesigned earbud is also claimed to be more comfortable on the H690. Battery life is rated at 5.5 hours of continuous talk on the headset, which ships during the spring. [full story]

March 6 - 4:35pm EST   The chief marketing executive at Motorola has made a sudden departure, the Wall Street Journal has revealed in a report. Brought to the company in October 2006, Kenneth Keller Jr. has largely been responsible for the latter half of the company's promotional campaign behind the RAZR and is known to have perpetuated the theme across most of the company's lineup, including the RAZR2 and spinoffs such as the ROKR line. No reason has been given for his departure, which remains unannounced by the company. [full story]

February 6 - 2:20pm EST   Motorola today drummed up attention by announcing that the ROKR E8 music phone would ship first to the US as a gift at the Oscars. Echoing its practice from last year with the RIZR Z3, the nominees for the top directing and acting roles get a special version of the phone with a special blue (male) or red (female) false iguana-print box as well as a ROKR S9 HD Bluetooth stereo headset. Each box is personalized to include the actors' and actresses' individual names and their potential Oscar wins. [full story]

January 8 - 12:00am EST   Motorola unveiled the Z10 and ROKR E8 media phones during the first day of CES 2008, as well as several new speaker products. The compact EQ5 and higher-end JBL-powered EQ7 speaker systems use Bluetooth to interface with compatible music phones to provide richer sound than the phone’s built-in speaker. The Bluetooth-based ROKR S9 headphones were another highlight, giving users a utilitarian, albeit sporty headset option. Motorola had plenty of demos on hand to demonstrate to curious show-goers. [full story]

January 7 - 8:15am EST   Motorola on Monday released two of its more media-centric phones to date. The MOTO Z10 effectively replaces the Z8 and shares the same angled kick-slider action that curves the design when open. The new version chiefly upgrades the camera: in addition to a sharper 3.2-megapixel image (up from 2 megapixels), the camera starts in a relatively quick 1.5 seconds and takes burst shots as quickly as 3 frames per second. It continues to focus on video with full-speed video playback, quicker uploads through ShoZu and YouTube, and a microSDHC slot that holds as much as 32GB of movies and other media. [full story]