Motorola RAZR i : i for Intel Inside

Yes, I know. I am talking about a device that was launched 2 years ago, and a device that I owned over a year ago. But bear with me here, because it is more than just the device I am talking about. It is about the 2 companies that have not been doing that great in the smartphone industry.

About a year ago, around the time the Moto X was going to be released, I decided to look for an older Motorola device to play with since it has been a while since I have used a Motorola device (RAZR V8 was the last Motorola device I have used). That little beast of a phone really did surprise me in more ways that one, and it gave me great hopes about the future of the company and their products.

(And they proved me right by creating a series of devices that received great accolades from tech reviewers and consumers alike with the Moto X, and Moto G.)

But what made the device interesting, was also its greatest downfall. It was using an Intel Atom x86 processor rather than the usual Qualcomm Snapdragon ARM chipset that so many others are using.

While the performance of the device was not as good as its Qualcomm counterpart, the RAZR M, the redeeming factor was its battery life especially when it comes to talk time. Just have a look at the battery test results by GSMarena.com

But the downfall? OS Updates. While the RAZR M received its 4.4.2 update back in May, the RAZR i has been stuck at 4.1.2 since over a year ago. I visited XDA back then searching for custom ROMs, or newer versions of Android back then, but there was none. If i remembered correctly, there was like only 2 custom ROMs available, and both were minor variations on the same stock 4.1.2 ROM, and both had bugs.

Back then there was no promise of an update. But whenever Intel publishes new images for x86 for newer versions of Android, it is normally being noted by someone in the forums about “There’s hope for an update or custom ROM!!!”, only to have his/her hopes and dreams dashed by someone who knows what is going on (developers), who goes on to explain that the images isn’t for the platform that the RAZR i is using. A year later, and I went to browse the forums, and the same exact thing is happening.

Earlier in the year in February, Motorola updated their support site and gave RAZR i users renewed hope, stating that 4.4.2 will be coming. But fast forward to 7 months later, with Android L’s release imminent, the update is still no where to be found. On the bright side, evidence are pointing towards the fact that the update do indeed exist, with Motorola beta testing the update with selected users already (Youtube video showing RAZR i updating to 4.4.2).

So what? A 2 year old device is getting Android KitKat update. Big eff-ing deal. But it is. It is a big deal when you think about it.

This update is not a matter of fulfilling a promise made to a small subset of users on the RAZR i. It is not because they care about the few people who are actually still using the RAZR i (which isn’t even officially sold in Singapore by the way). It is all just a show.

For Motorola:

By updating the RAZR i, it would show Motorola’s commitment to bringing the latest Android OS updates to as many phones as they can. An advantage they are touting these days with their near-stock Android OS. Even Google themselves dropped support for the Galaxy Nexus (which was about 2 years old back then) when KitKat was announced.

For Intel:

By updating the RAZR i, it would show Intel’s commitment to the smartphone/mobile industry. There are a lot of newer phone like the ASUS Zenfone series of devices with newer Atom processors, but they never really caught on. To me it is not because the performance of the device is bad or anything, but personally, it is whether the device will be supported further down the road by Intel themselves.

The words “Intel Inside” on an Android device is pretty much synonymous with "Don’t expect too many updates or custom ROMs". Prime example, the Motorola RAZR i. To me, updating the RAZR i is Intel’s way of saying they are serious about being a major player in the mobile/smartphone market, and consumers can have more faith in them to support their own product and not have to worry about OS updates. If the update to the RAZR i really comes through, I think I would at least feel a bit more comfortable buying a modern smartphone with Intel’s chip in it.

I guess only time will tell. If the 4.4.2 update does indeed come to the RAZR i, it would probably be after the release of Android L. The update might be very very late, but it is the thoughts behind it that counts. And I dare say the update means more to Intel than it does Motorola. I for one would love to see other manufacturers step up their game to provide Qualcomm with a real challenge, and hopefully, this is the beginning of better things to come from Intel.

The Beginning of an End... Hopefully.

Today marks the 365th day since my last cigarette. They say that people who keep track religiously about how long since they last indulged in their addiction have a higher chance of relapsing, and I kind of agree. Ideally you need to reach a point where you do not even think about it anymore. A point where counting days do not matter anymore since you have completely gotten past that part of your life. A point which sadly, I am not at yet.

365 days is nothing. I know people who have stopped longer (years), only to relapse. My Dad for example is one.  And to be honest, if I were to start smoking again in the future, I could probably come up with a ton of excuses for myself. Hell, I already have a list of them in my mind that I have thought of over the past year.

I am my greatest enemy. I am weak. I know people who smokes occasionally, but never gets addicted. My Mum for example does occasionally light one up from my Dad’s pack just to unwind. (Shhh) There have even been a time or two in the past where I just sat in the living room smoking with her before she goes off to work. :p

But anyway, I am not sure I can do that. I am afraid that once I light a stick again, it will be the first of many more to come. Well, admitting one’s weakness is the first step to overcoming it isn’t it?

There is no one solution fits all when it comes to quitting an addiction. Everybody fights it differently. To me the simplest way to start is to exploit your own fears and weaknesses. If you are the type of person who don’t like to break promises, make a promise to someone to stop. If you are the type of person who don’t like to lose, make a bet with someone that you would stop. If you like numbers, start counting days. So on and so forth.

Here is something that really resonated with me when I first heard it on House of Cards.

“I’m Doug and I’m an alcoholic. One of the things I do for a living is count. I count votes. Yays, nays, neutrals, abstaining. And I’m good at it. But the most important count I do has nothing to do with work. It’s the number of days since April 4th, 1999. As of this morning that’s 5,185. The bigger that number gets, the more it frightens me because I know all it takes is one drink for that number to go back to zero. Most people see fear as a weakness. It can be. Sometimes for my job I have to put fear in other people. I know that’s not right. But if I’m honest, like the fourth step asks us to be, I have to be ruthless. Because failure is not an option. The same goes for my sobriety. I have to be ruthless with myself. I have to use my fear. It makes me stronger. Like everyone else in this room, I can’t control who I am. But I can control the zero. Fuck the zero.”

But those of you who watches the show probably know what happened eventually…

This method probably would not work forever for me, but it is a start. Right now I am just taking things as I go along. But the fact that I care enough to blog about it probably means I am still far from actually stopping for good. :p

So this is not the end of an addiction. This is but the beginning of an end. An end that would hopefully come.