Motorola PEBL U6

Motorola PEBL U6

Introduction

Not since the days of the StarTac has Motorola experienced such market growth, gaining market share when Nokia, Samsung, LG, and Sony Ericsson have all posted loses. And there has been good reason. While most manufacturers stick to convention, Motorola pushes the envelope, designing radically new form factors to achieve the "whoa" reaction CEO Ed Zander desired.

Starting with the ultra-thin RAZR, Motorola set off a new wave of innovation, not through technological advances, but through aesthetic design; captivated the clamshell-stale consumer-base with never-before-seen, yet simple concepts. Now a year later, Motorola has continued to innovate, unveiling its new "whoa" portfolio.

Coming this fall, the Motorola PEBL U6 exclusively hits T-Mobile stores. Straying as far from the edgy rebel-design of the RAZR as possible, Motorola decided to take the bold move to move away from a winning design.

Design

Motorola PEBL U6 Closed The exterior of the PEBL seems to go against popularity, dismissing everything that made the RAZR a best-seller; being thicker and rounder. Measuring 87 x 49 x 20 mm, the PEBL is about the size of a credit card (86 x 54 mm), much larger than its moniker suggests.

The highly-polished metal casing features an elongated monochrome external LCD. More stylish than functional, the screen displays time (awkwardly broken up into two lines), battery strength, and reception status. Below, a lens to the built-in VGA camera is able to capture photos at 640 x 480 px in resolution.

Convenient soft keys are placed along the left and right edges. Along the left, Volume Keys adjust earpiece and ringer volumes during calls and standby times. While below, a Smart Key performs operations by predicting likely actions to follow, such as selecting a menu item after it has been highlighted. Functions to record messages and initiate voice dialing are activated via a Voice Key along the right side. Incorporated within the top edge, a mini-USB data port allows consumers to synchronize with a PC, also doubling as the charging port.

By sliding the top cover down, a unique responsive mechanism allows users to open the PEBL with one hand, revealing the brilliant 262K-color internal screen. Previously featuring a traditional 1-2-3 keypad layout, Motorola redesigned it, aligning the 1-5-3 keys in a "wave" design. Unorthodox for aesthetic appeal, text messaging is not hindered.