LAS VEGAS - Just when it seemed like QWERTY keyboards were becoming a thing of the past, Verizon Wireless announced it would carry the Motorola DROID 4, the " thinnest and most powerful 4G LTE QWERTY smartphone," according to the carrier.
The DROID 4, which is just 0.5 inches thick, packs a five-row backlit QWERTY keyboard, a dual-core 1.2 GHz processor and 1 GB of RAM, 16GB of onboard memory, and support for up to 32GB more via a microSD card slot. The device will run Android 2.3.5, but Verizon says it will upgrade the device to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich--just not when.
Riding Verizon's 4G LTE network--which was having a bit of trouble last month-- the DROID 4 should see download speeds of 5 to 12 megabits per second (Mbps) and upload speeds of 2 to 5 Mbps within Verizon's coverage area. Business-ready features include government-grade encryption (FIPS 140-2) for email, calendar and contacts; and Citrix Receiver for Android (available in webtop) for desktop virtualization and access.
Pricing has yet to be determined, but Verizon says the phone will be available for sale in the coming weeks.
