Motorola Backflip ships, but AT&T locks users in

AT&T’s first Android phone, the Motorola Backflip, is now shipping, though some users will be disappointed that they cannot download apps from outside the Android Market.
AT&T has asserted its authority over its own user experience by locking down its first Android handset, a clear indication of how it will treat its forthcoming Symbian devices too.

The Backflip, with its distinctive reverse flip design, is now on sale from AT&T and (more cheaply) at Amazon.com, where it is free with a two-year data contract of at least $30, plus voice plan, from the carrier. Unlocked, it would cost $349. AT&T itself is charging $99 upfront with the same contract requirements.

Backflip subscribers will not be allowed to install apps from outside Android Market, whereas Android phones from T-Mobile, Verizon Wireless and Sprint enable support for non-market apps as a default option.

This will annoy Android enthusiasts, who claim access to non-market software and beta apps is one of the major advantages of the open source platform, compared to the Apple iPhone. However, AT&T may willingly sacrifice the love of such cutting edge users, in favour of maintaining control of the apps that its customers allow onto the network. Also, its multi-OS strategy – embracing Android, Symbian, Brew and Palm – is geared primarily to volume, and the expansion of the smartphone into the mass market, where users will be more amenable to simple, well controlled experiences. As long as AT&T’s iPhone exclusive lasts, it will wish to preserve the Apple handset as its premium offering for advanced mobile web consumers.

According to the xda-developers Forum, users can work around the Backflip lockdown by installing the latest Android developers kit and enabling the USB debugging option.

Backflip should come to Europe soon, with the brand name Enzo. Users will be hoping for an OS upgrade by then – the weakest feature of the phone, in a crowded Android sector, is that it still runs release 1.5, while many high end options are running 2.1. But the Backflip is positioned as a lower end, cheaper handset than models like Motorola Droid, Google Nexus One or HTC Bravo.

It has the Motoblur user interface, and AT&T has cast ripples through the Android world by preloading the Yahoo search engine rather than Google, again asserting its independence from Android norms. Living up to its name, the Backflip’s qwerty keyboard ends up on the back of the phone when it is closed – instead of sliding, it folds back to cover the backplate.

It has a 3.1-inch touchscreen display with 320 x 480 resolution, Wi-Fi and a 5-megapixel camera – which has to be in an unusual position because of the back-folding keyboard, and has ended up on the bottom left corner of the keyboard, so that pictures can still be taken when the handset is closed. There is also a large touchpad for scrolling on-screen.