If there's one thing that can be said about the Atrix, it's that it's the only phone of its kind.
In fact, it's the only phone you could type this review up on.
At first glance, it's nothing special. The overall design is unimpressive, and the plastic back cover doesn't exactly scream cutting edge. By no means is it as pretty to look at as Apple's iPhone 4, though both devices have similar high-resolution display and have screens made of Gorilla Glass.
But the Atrix packs a punch under the hood. The 4.0 inch screen is incredibly crisp, and the custom Android 2.2 build is unique, integrating social features into the overall system.
It comes loaded with tools like AT&T's Uverse service that are boosted by 4G, and offers web browsing speeds that are among the fastest available. The Atrix is blazing fast, in some cases halving the time it takes to bring up a page compared to the iPhone. The device's browser however, is a bit choppy, especially compared to the smooth scrolling of an Apple device.
The custom interface of the Atrix is most notable in terms of social integration. When you start the phone for the first time, you'll be asked to link a number of accounts to it, including Facebook, Twitter, and Google (all optional). There's an individual screen purely loaded with social features, oddly combining everything into one spot. It's a bit clunky and confusing, but it's not completely integral to the Atrix's function (though it could be a great supplement). The interface certainly isn't as intuitive as the iPhone, though many of the features, like the side-scrolling homescreens, are the same.
In the short experience with the phone, it didn't drop a single call, even in areas with poor reception (amazing compared to the iPhone's sketchy dropped call track record ib AT&T's network). There's still something to be said for good, solid calling features, and the Atrix seems to suffer from no Apple "death grip" type problems.
Overall it's a pretty standard (though fast) Android phone, which gives iPhone 4 a run for its money in terms of hardware. At $200 it's probably the best Android phone out there for the price, and a perfect iPhone alternative if you like Android.
The main draw of the Motorola's convertible phone/computer hybrid however, is it's functionality in terms of both hardware and software. The Atrix's dual-core processor really means it can do two things at once. The problem is it can't do both things well at the same time.
Pulling the phone into the laptop dock pulls up a custom Linux OS on screen. As cool as the thought of turning your phone into a laptop is, that's a problem for many people right away. It comes pre-installed with Firefox and a custom browser for Facebook, but beyond that there isn't much.
The question remains why it doesn't have a Chrome OS, given that it's an Android phone it would make sense for the laptop to be Chrome based. Motorola's custom Linux build is pretty basic.
The laptop does have access to a "Mobile View," which essentially lets you use your phone on the laptop. It's great for a few things (and a front-facing camera on the laptop would make for awesome video-calling over 4G), including using a preinstalled version of Quickoffice, which is great for anyone who needs to type on the go. However, it's not exactly a comprehensive word processor.
Any files you save on the Atrix remain on the phone's internal storage, for access on both the laptop and the phone itself, allowing you to mange your files wherever you are. Storage can be another problem though, with just 16 GB of storage, the Atrix laptop dock could never be your only computer.
In many ways it's the anti-iPad, providing you with features like a physcial keyboard and trackpad. The problem is that beyond that it barely transforms the phone. It's less a transformer and more of a temporary upgrade.
All in all it's a great, superfast phone, and a mediocre-at-best computer.
See our side-by-side comparison of the iPhone 4 and Motorola Atrix 4G below. Which phone do you prefer and why?