Motorola M990 / Motorola Smart Rider
Discontinued 9th April 2008
Do you remember when mobile phones were
called carphones? Devices that were so big and
heavy that they couldn't really be carried around and
had to stay in the car? If you have a long memory, or
if you live in the UK where the Carphone
Warehouse is based then the answer might well be
yes.
It turns out that Motorola also remember
the carphone, and the Motorola M990 (also known
as the Motorola Smart Rider) harks back to earlier
times, being a mobile handset that is specifically designed
to be installed in a vehicle.
It's a strange looking device, in part
due to the wide 320 x 240 pixel 2.8" display that
gives a clue that the M990 Smart Rider is nothing
like the carphones of the past.
The
large display is used in conjunction with the M990's
GPS based satellite navigation system. But GPS isn't
the only trick up the M990's sleeve, it also features
an advanced voice recognition system that can be used
for dialling calls or handset control, Bluetooth, an
email client, web browser and quad-band GSM with
GPRS and EDGE data support.
This is a big handset with a
footprint of 137mm x 85mm and it weighs in at around
400 grams. The large size is an advantage for in-car
use (where permitted), but it's not the sort of thing
that you would want to carry around with you.
The M990 itself connects to all the
other components via an "Octopus Cable". This
means that the M990 will usually require a professional
installation. The handset itself can be unplugged from
the cable, so it can be removed from the car or truck
when not in use.
The Motorola M990 is aimed at professional
drivers rather than normal business customers or consumers.
So, if you're a delivery driver, chauffeur, taxi driver
or some other type of road warrior then the M990 may
well be of interest. Perhaps this is a small market,
but it is one that is not very well served and it's
quite refreshing to see Motorola come up with something
that is nicely tailored for this customer demographic.
The navigation system on the M990 Smart
Rider integrates traffic reports and features real-time
rerouting. It can also be connected to a suitable fleet
management application to allow for vehicle tracking.
In addition, the M990 Smart Rider features
4 user profiles, which is useful when more than one
person drives a vehicle, and it has an MP3 player with
a 2GB microSD card included in the standard sales package.
This is a niche product, but it appears
to be very well implemented. Motorola say that the M990
Smart Rider should be available worldwide from June
2008 onwards, although no guidance was given on cost.
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Motorola
M990 Smart Rider at a glance
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Available:
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June
2008
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Network:
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GSM
850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
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Data:
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GPRS
+ EDGE
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Screen:
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320
x 240 pixels
|
Camera:
|
No
|
Size:
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Large
monoblock 137 x 85mm
/ 400 grams approx
|
Bluetooth:
|
Yes
|
Memory
card:
|
microSD
|
Infra-red:
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No
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Polyphonic:
|
Yes
|
Java:
|
Not
specified
|
GPS:
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Yes
|
Battery
life:
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Not
specified (connected to
vehicle battery)
|
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