Motorola ROKR E8

I've been waiting for the ROKR E8 ever since I first saw it at the Motorola Developers' Conference in Bangalore a couple of months ago, and for good reason! Clearly Motorola’s got an eye for good design, and also a strong research team in place to ensure the best quality. That said, it's time the company concentrated on better integrated services. The technology used in its phones is rather staid, for one, and the GUI further undermines the value of the product.

The E8 offers some snazzy new features, but their execution sadly leaves much to be desired. Let’s start with the form factor.

Design and Build
The build quality is, in a word, amazing. There’s the much appreciated shiny glass finish on the front, and a slip-free rubberized back. At 115 x 53 x 10.6 mm, it’s not the slimmest phone around, and the 3.5mm jack found right on top is perhaps to blame. However, the phone looks proportionate, and the 3.5mm jack allows you to connect your device to pretty much any speaker system.

The phone-lock slider on the right makes a lot of sense. No more trial-and-error; just one flick and the phone is locked. The USB/charging slot is placed right above the lock slider. The volume keys are on the left, and for good measure there’s a dedicated MusicID button below.

When the screen is off, you will notice tiny dot-sized ridges all over the face of the phone. Since the face is flat, there are no visible buttons; they all light up only when in use. This is where the morphing technology comes into play – it lights up only those keys needed for a particular application. Nice!

The Fastscroll wheel is another fancy addition, along with the Modeshift four-way navigation pad. However, with such a snazzy design I wonder what sense a small two-inch screen makes. It really pulls the rug under Motorola’s feet, forcing the E8 to land flat on its face.