dynatac

commentary At Motorola's "On Display" press event in New York City last week, most eyes centered on the company's new Razr phones. Yet, there were also a couple of tech celebrities in the audience, both of whom drew their own share of attention.

A man One of those luminaries was a person, a former Motorola vice president and division manager named Martin Cooper. Seated in the front row, but not banging away on a laptop, you knew he wasn't part of the journalist and blogger throng. Instead, with his dark suit, conservative red tie, and … Read more

Though it battled a crowded field, Motorola emerged from CES 2011 as the clear winner in wireless. Its Xoom tablet won CNET's Best of CES award; it introduced the dual-core Droid Bionic and Atrix 4G; and its laptop dock was the most innovative smartphone accessory we've seen in a long time. You had only to visit the company's massive booth on the show floor to feel the buzz that Moto created. I tried stopping by a couple of times, but I could barely get past the crowds straining for a glimpse of the new devices.

Call me a fanboy if you must, but Moto deserved that attention. When you see as many cell phones as I do over the course of a year, only a handful really stand out from the crowd. The remaining models aren't necessarily bad, but they can be so much alike that they just start to blend together. Moto, however, offered features and power in Las Vegas that I hadn't seen before. And that's always a welcome thing for a gadget reviewer.

It's complicated Ever since I started at CNET in 2003, I've regarded the company the way a parent might look upon a bright, hard-working, but sometimes wayward child. Like a long-suffering father, I've beamed with pride as the company succeeded, shook my head in dismay as it grew complacent (remember how long it pushed the Razr?), and tore my hair out in frustration as it made terrible mistakes. And like clockwork, Moto always redeemed itself just as I was about to kick the delinquent kid out of the house. … Read more