Motorola Pro
The Motorola Pro doesn't look flashy, but its security features may convince your IT department to finally let you have an Android phone.
The Motorola Pro smart phone hopes to do the business by marrying a touchscreen with a Qwerty keyboard and some special security sauce. This Android device is no oil painting, but it will probably sit charmingly in a high-powered executive's phone holster.
Expect the Pro to appear in March. We'll let you know as soon as we find out its price.
Best of both worlds
If you need a keyboard but you still want your Angry Birds fix, the Pro could be just the ticket. It's got a 3.1-inch touchscreen and a keyboard that looks like it absconded from a BlackBerry.
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then RIM, the BlackBerry's creator, should be very flattered by the Pro. The buttons even have a similar raised, wave shape, which makes them easy to find and press.
We'll take the touchscreen for a lengthy test drive in our full review, but, based on our initial hands-on session, it seems quick and responsive. That's partly thanks to the Pro's 1GHz processor.
The Pro runs Android 2.2 Froyo, which isn't quite the latest version of Android, but has pretty much every feature that Google's mobile software is famous for. Some of our favourite features include a fast, accurate Web browser that supports Flash, and the unmissable Google Maps app.
A 5-megapixel camera should be capable of capturing decent snaps, but the Pro's target audience might prefer to know that it's got hefty security features. Some companies have shied away from giving their staff Android phones because they don't offer the defences that BlackBerry devices do. But Motorola has whipped up some security sauce for the Pro.
Security tweaks include the ability to remotely wipe the phone, including the microSD card, in case it falls into the wrong hands. You can also set it to wipe itself if some rapscallion enters the wrong password too many times.
We had to concentrate on the Pro's security features to help us get over its appearance. This phone debuted in the US and has a whiff of khaki trousers and blue, button-down shirts about it -- the current uniform of the American office drone. It's not horrible, but it certainly lacks the sexiness of many other Android smart phones.
Outlook
If you fancy ditching your BlackBerry so you can start having more fun with Android apps, the Motorola Pro could fulfil your need to work hard and play hard.
Edited by Charles Kloet