What Happened to the Motorola MPx?

Early this year, the handheld world was abuzz with talk of the Motorola MPx, possibly the most innovative Pocket PC ever. Since that time, however, this device has basically disappeared, without ever seeing the light of day.

Today came the first word of the MPx in months. According to Pocket PC Thoughts, this cellular-wireless handheld will be released in Southeast Asia before the end of the year, and will be available in other markets "shortly."

The source for Pocket PC Thoughts information is a presentation from a Motorola representative at the annual Mobius conference, where a few additional details of the MPx were released.

Possibly the most significant of these was the amount of RAM this Pocket PC will have: just 32 MB. Reportedly, it will have just over 4 MB of RAM for Storage and a bit over 8 MB of RAM dedicated to running programs. In addition, it has almost 60 MB of Flash ROM available for storage.

More about the Motorola MPx

With its dual hinges, the MPx will take advantage of the Windows Mobile 2003 Second Edition's ability to switch on the fly between portrait and landscape modes, but its display will be at the standard resolution of 240 by 320 pixels. The MPx's screen is going to be 2.8 inches, well below what many Pocket PC users are accustomed to.

The MPx will use a Texas Instruments OMAP 200 MHz processor.

It's going to be 3.9 inches long, 2.4 inches wide, and .95 inches thick (99.7 x 61.2 x 24 mm). It will weigh 6.15 ounces (174 g).

As well as both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, the MPx will be able to connect to GSM/GPRS wireless networks for voice and data. It will support 900/1800/1900 MHz, which is bad news for Americans, many of whom depend on 850 MHz for good connections.

It will have an SD slot for additional storage. This will support SDIO, allowing the MPx to use non-memory peripherals that attach via the SD slot.

Related Links

• Brighthand's First Impressions of the Motorola MPx
• MPx May Be Delayed Until 2005