Most manufacturers seem to be renewing their focus on the lower end of the market. Samsung recently released the Samsung Galaxy Y with low end specs and then followed it up with an update to the Samsung Galaxy Ace, which is now the Ace Plus. Motorola seems to have joined the bandwagon too, with two new releases for the lower to mid range segment called Motoluxe and the Motorola Defy Mini.
The Motoluxe has been available in China for some time now, going by the official name of XT615. The new device features a 4 inch screen of 480×854 resolution along with an 800 MHz Scorpion processor. The connectivity department is well stocked with GPS, BT 3.0, WiFi of all protocols, a mini USB port and a 3.5 mm audio jack. Rounding off the list is the usual 7.2 MB/s HSDPA radio. Other notable specifications include an 8 MP camera, which is quite unusual for the lower and mid tier segment and should make the young generation users towards which the phone is probably aimed at quite happy. The Motoluxe is expected to be available in South America and Europe sometime by February.
The other device is the Motorola Defy Mini which comes with a 3.2 inch screen of 360×480 resolution and a 600 MHz processor. Deriving its lineage from the Defy line, it features dust and water protection along with a Gorilla Glass display. RAM is expected to be 512MB, which should be sufficient for most multitasking needs, along with the usual connectivity options (same as those of the Motoluxe but with BT 2.1). Quite opposite the Motoluxe, the Defy Mini’s weak point is its camera, which is a lowly 3 MP snapper. Most lower end choices in the market today feature at least a 5 MP camera, so the one on the Defy Mini comes as a surprise.
Overall, Motorola has announced a set of devices which will probably sell quite well in the market looking at the segment they are aimed at, but the company could have benefitted by launching something with slightly better specifications. The Motoluxe has an 800 MHz processor where most other similarly priced phones come with at least 1 GHz. Internal memory also clocks in at only 512 MB, whereas other low end devices like the newly announced Galaxy Ace Plus sports a healthy 3 GB of internal storage.
