The Atrix 4G takes the definition of smartphone to a new extreme, bordering it with a desktop computer, a laptop and even a set top box. The laptop dock, HD/desktop dock and the rest of the accessories ensure you have a unified multimedia experience, though not very seamless.
Hardware
The phone is about 4.63 inches long, 2.5 inches wide and just a little under 0.45 inches thick which makes the phone only slightly thicker than the iPhone 4. One of the striking aspects about the hardware of this phone is obviously the design. Though the phone has a predominantly plastic body, the build quality gives you the impression that the material is far more solid and sturdy.
One of the primary reasons for this is the weight of the phone which is around 135 grams. The phone has a button interface similar to most Android phones out there on the market with the inclusion of a finger print scanner which ends up being a little on the annoying side when you actually use the phone.
Though the qHD screen manages to produce crisp images and does full justice to full screen apps such as Gmail, there are a few issues when you try to run applications which are not capable of taping into the high resolution display.
Performance
The massive processing capabilities of this handset ensure that even the most complex tasks run smoothly. There isn’t even a slightest hint of lag when running the latest 3D games such as Gun Bros which almost puts it in the same league as the iPhone 4 or EVO 4G.
The battery life is fairly good running up to almost 24 hours on a single charge with a fairly above average amount of usage throughout the day. The battery life is greatly increased by the light and proximity sensors which ensure optimum utilization of the battery. The battery life could be furthered enhanced if the display brightness settings are manually adjusted to around the 40-50% level.
Multimedia
The 5 megapixel camera at the back of this camera is quite impressive as it is perfectly capable of shooting amazing photographs in both high and low light conditions and has a horde of other customizable settings for various situations. The camera also comes with a very impressive macro mode, though beautifully enhancing photos.
The camera is also capable of capturing HD video at 720p. The quality of the video recording is more than decent when viewed both on the phone and other HD viewing devices.
The processing capabilities of this phone put most other Android smartphones and even laptops miles behind the curve in the race for the best performing device. The HD dock and the laptop dock make for an interesting combination. However, once the novelty wears off, the dock is more troublesome than functional; hence a little more work on the integration is definitely required. However, the phone itself is amazingly well built, offers great multimedia and processing power and coupled with above average battery life, makes for a compelling choice.