Motorola Droid Razr and the Motoactv

Much was made during Motorola’s presentation of the Motoactv’s ability to track a user’s heart rate through their ears using headphones. But it turns out those headphones are a large expense on top of the Motoactv’s base cost: $99 for a heart-rate-tracking wired set of headphones, and $149 for a wraparound Bluetooth headset. When the Motoactv itself is priced at $249 for an 8GB model and $299 for 16GB, we were expecting the heart rate monitor to come standard. Still, the Motoactv fills out its price somewhat in that it’s much closer to being an actual phone than the iPod nano is: it can take calls and receive text messages by sync-piggybacking on another phone’s number.The device will auto-sync workouts wirelessly with Motorola’s Motoactv website, where users can view the progress and set goals. The Motoactv also has an interesting talent: it can analyze how the music you listen to corresponds to your workout intensity, and will, if allowed, play the songs it believes motivate you best at crucial moments. This feature doesn’t strike us as foolproof, but it sounds pretty neat. The Droid Razr will be up for pre-order on October 27 for $299, and will ship mid-November. The Motoactv debuts November 6 and will be priced at $249 for an 8GB unit and $299 for 16GB.

moreless