Motorola To Spread Self Thin, Promises New Products Next Month


Over at the Times, they’re reporting that, in a rare admission of defeat, Motorola is acknowledging a deep slump stemming from their oft-reported inability to follow-up on the ridiculous success of a certain ubiquitous handset. Their response: “introducing a series of innovative new cellphones rather than a ‘one-hit wonder’ like the RAZR.”

This is a sound enough strategy, and I applaud it. Any investor will tell you never to put too many of your eggs in one basket, and I’m constantly irritated at the lack of innovation in CE that stems from companies refusing to take any risks with new products, and instead relying on knocking-off or incrementally improving proven advances. The fact is, even though we’ll always have our share of ultra-hyped iPhones, the biggest hits and paradigm-shifters are often complete surprises.

And since they apparently have some new product announcements lined up for next month, lets just hope their idea of “innovative new cellphones” doesn’t involve simply plastering the RAZR with new coats of paint.

NYTimes