Motorola announces budget Androids, the MOTOLUXE and DEFY MINI

Motorola has officially announced two new Android powered handsets, the MOTOLUXE and the Defy Mini and here’s what they have to offer. The first one is named MOTOLUXE and it packs a 4 inch ‘edge to edge’ touchscreen, an 800 MHz processor with 512 MB of RAM and Gingerbread 2.3.7, according to Slashgear. Plus, it’s got a dedicated lanyard groove underneath the screen which makes it look a lot like a hybrid version of the Sony Ericsson Xperia Active and the Motorola DEFY+ we reviewed earlier. The only difference is that this area doubles up as a notification LED with ‘lighting effects’. The MOTOLUXE is available in two colours – licorice and white. 

The MOTOLUXE smartphone

Here’s the full list of specifications for the MOTOLUXE- 

• 4.0-inch edge to edge touchscreen with a 854 x 480 pixel resolution
• 800 MHz single core processor
• 512 MB of RAM and 1GB of ROM
• 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi
• GPS with A-GPS support 
• Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP
• 8 megapixel AF camera with LED flash, front facing VGA camera
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• 3.5 mm handsfree socket
• 1400 mAh battery

Here’s a video of the new MOTOLUXE (XT615) Android smartphone – 

The other one, the DEFY MINI, as the name suggests, is a miniaturized version of their popular rugged smartphone, the Motorola DEFY. It’s packed with a 3.2 inch Corning Gorilla Glass screen and has a 600 MHz single core processor powering it. The phone comes with an ‘Instrument Dashboard’ that allows Easy access to users’ favourite outdoor apps.

The Motorola DEFY MINI

Here is the list of specifications for the Motorola DEFY MINI:

• 3.2-inch Corning Gorilla Glass touchscreen with a 480 x 320 pixel resolution

• 600 MHz single core processor
• Android 2.3 Gingerbread 
• 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi direct
• GPS with A-GPS support 
• Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP
• 3 megapixel camera with LED flash, front facing VGA camera
• Stereo FM radio with RDS
• 3.5 mm handsfree socket
• 1650 mAh battery

Check out the video of the Motorola DEFY MINI (XT320) below:

Pricing or availability for Indian shores hasn’t been disclosed yet but Motorola has promised that both these phones intend to go easy on your pocket and they won’t make you ‘break the bank’. Also, both the phones come with Gingerbread on board, so we’re not too sure when they will get an ICS upgrade, if they ever will. What segment do you think should these two phones be priced at, to make them feature in your wish list? Alternatively, with ICS toting handsets launching this year, do you think these devices are ‘from the past’ and you’d rather wait for a new ‘high-end’ handset to release this year?