The Motorola Defy is a surprise addition to Moto’s UK line up alongside the brand new Motorola Milestone 2. It’s not a high end slider, or the Droid X equivalent we were hoping for, but a rugged, waterproof Android phone. We got hands on with it at a Motorola press conference this morning: read on for the photos and first impressions.
Want an Android smartphone but scared you might scratch the beautiful aluminium finish on the HTC Legend? The Motorola Defy might be up your street. It’s IP-67 certified, dust proof, and water resistant to the point where it’ll work after taking a soak in a glass of water for half an hour.
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The Motorola Defy isn’t quite as high spec as you might hope, especially compared to the Milestone 2: it’s running Android 2.1 (Skinned with MotoBlur) rather than 2.2 Froyo and all its bells and whistles. It uses the same 3.7-inch WVGA touchscreen, but the five megapixel camera isn’t capable of HD video recording.
We had a quick play with the Motorola Defy this morning, and as you might expect from a rugged phone, it’s a bit of a clunker. The port doors bulge out obscenely, and the black and white case makes it look slightly like an overfed Dalmatian. It’s not as fast as the Milestone 2, but it’s still nippy, and the keyboard was thoroughly responsive – Swype is also preloaded as an option.
Compared to most rugged phones however and their dumbphone software, the Motorola Defy is a breath of fresh air. Work in an oil field but long for a powerful smartphone which won’t break? It might just be what you need when it goes on sale later this year.
Out Q4 2010 | £TBC | Motorola
