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It has an interesting design where the screen is on the front and a QWERTY keyboard is on the back. You can flip it open half way so it’s like a photo frame or all the way so it’s like a phone with a keyboard.

I tried the BACKFLIP a while back in this video:

• Animated Wallpapers: This additional wallpaper option enables you to select from a number of wallpapers that can move on your home screen<s>. A selection of animated wallpapers are bundled with the software update – further wallpapers are available on the Android Market.
• Multiple home screens The number of home screens you can have now also just got bigger – you can choose to have 3, 5, 7, or even 9 home screens – plenty of space for all your widgets and icons.
• Facebook App and Widget A free Facebook App and Widget is included in this update. The Application enables contact importation including Names, Profile Pics and Status into your phones’ contacts. The Widget can be placed on one of your home screens to stream live updates from your Facebook account.
• Google Maps Updates** Personalized suggestions: Google Maps on your Android device suggests (auto-completes) locations based on your personal search history on maps.google.com.
  Sync with desktop: synchronizes starred items between Google Maps on your Android device and maps.google.com. Sync and personalized features require a user to be logged in to myGoogle account while on maps.google.com
  Multi touch is now also enabled within Google Maps.
• Other Enhancements Help : A new Help Center app is included that provides mobile access to your user guide, video tours of key features, tips and tricks, and FAQs to help you get the most from your device.
• Bluetooth support: support for headset multi function for initiating voice calls and other voice recognition commands ( French & English)
• Security: Prevents unauthorized pattern lock bypass, allows for Exchange security remote wipe
• Music Player: Album art 3D gallery view supported in landscape orientation
• Battery life: ongoing battery life optimization
• Email account removal: Improvements to manual removal of email accounts
• Word completion: for hard QWERTY: ability to enable word completion when the hard QWERTY keypad is used
• MP3 audio playback & camera improvements

**Turn by turn navigation and text to speech from Google are not available since Google is not supporting those applications for Canada yet.

You can read all the notes here.

You can download it over the air (settings -> system updates) note that it didn’t work for me, or you can go download it here (that’s what I did) provided you have Windows.

Here’s a tour of the BACKFLIP:

Motorola MOTOBLUR demo:

Hands on with all 3 devices and comparisons with some competitors:

Both the BACKFLIP and DEXT are similar software wise. Hardware wise both have QWERTY keyboards though their physical design is quite different. The QUENCH lacks a physical keyboard but gets a few extra software features; a special on screen keyboard, multi touch support and a nifty music app. Check out the last video to see those features in action. All run Android 1.5. Motorola is saying that they’re evaluating whether they’ll offer an upgrade in the future so that’s a no for now. While the Quench has the most features software wise I thought the BACKFLIP had the most interesting design. All will be available later this year.

It’s a touchscreen device with a slide out keyboard, 3.1″ 480×320 display and 5 megapixel camera.

You can sign up for more info here and be entered to win 1 of 5 DEXT’s.

The BACKFLIP comes with Motorola’s Android customization called MOTOBLUR.

It’s got Android 1.5, a 5 MP camera with LED flash, QWERTY keyboard, 480×320 touch screen plus  Gmail, Google Maps, Google Talk, AIM, Live Messenger, Yahoo Instant messenger support. The keyboard is located on the back of the device and the screen flips around. You can also leave the keyboard facing down and only partially flip the screen so you can use it like a picture frame.

Pricing and available have yet to be annouced.

The Motorola Brute i680 is now available on TELUS Mike. It’s a ruggedized phone with rubberized grips, Push to talk, a 2 megapixel camera, GPS and stereo bluetooth.

It’s $429.99 straight up or $229.99 on a 3 year.

It’s an Android 2.0 powered phone with a 800×480 display, a slide out QWERTY keyboard, removable memory and a 5 megapixel camera with flash all in a form factor slightly bigger than an iPhone. Yum!

It should be coming to TELUS (and possibly other compatible carriers) in early 2010.

I played with one the other day and couldn’t stop drooling

Packed with fun essentials.

• 1.3 megapixel camera
• MP3 player with microSD™ slot (expandable up to 8GB) & dedicated one touch music keys
• Bluetooth® technology for stereo and hands-free accessories
• Voice-activated dialing
• Speakerphone

The VE440 is only $125 or $0 with a 125 Tab.  Buying through the Koodo Mobile online store will score you free shipping.

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As stated in the previous post, each devices will set you back $125 or $0 with a 125 Tab.  More information and specs will be published once the devices are officially launched.

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