Webtop Dock will be $300/$500! Thoughts?

[netposer]

$500 for a laptop with no RAM or HDD or CPU....WTF?

Why not just buy a BB Playbook, Motorola Xoom, or any other tablet for around $500.

If you absolutely need a laptop (typing etc.) then just get the hotspot plan or a MiFi. Better yet, root and rom your device and get a free hotspot.

 

[ka3yan]

People saying that it should be $100 need to take an intro economics class.

I think it should be priced to sell. I've had intro to micro and macro econ and still feel that these are not priced to sell. Just read the comments from all the potential former buyers. The readers commenting on the various blogs (engadget, android central, etc.) are a sign of consumer displeasure. I'm sure there will be units sold, but intro to econ is not going to sell more of them. This whole debacle with the docks is going to turn some potential buyers off to the Atrix. Add the BS with the CLIQ XT, and potential buyers might be turned off of the Motorola brand completely.

 

[Dark_Blu]

Locking the bootloader plus overpriced phone dock = "hell no" in the eyes of most here. probably elsewhere as well.

 

[Gameboy70]

That's all additional work, additional steps, more time. This is effortless. Everything you work on, all your music, all your stuff is all on your phone. And while I indulge in the occasional Youtube (maybe 10 a month) and check my Google Finance regularly every day multiple times of day, do email and texting and calling, I've yet to breach even 1 gig of data. I just don't think geeks on this site are normal users.

I don't think normal users will understand the distinction between the Atrix's dumb terminal solution and just using a laptop. The value proposition may be ideal for road warriors, but is really only perceived by geeks.

Look at the comment threads and forums on any tech site. When the Atrix was first announced, maybe 80% of the feedback was that it was the new Jesusphone, and 20% retorted, "Why not just get a laptop?" Now it's more like 98% of the feedback is negative, and it's all coming from the community of would-be early adopters.

I've been using smartphones for over 10 years, since the Sprint Treo 300, but I've never seen a phone that ever made be consider switching carriers until the Atrix. Now I'm relieved that it's off my list. Honestly, I probably could have rationalized the $500 bundle, but the charge for a tethering plan that's not being used insults my intelligence, and I don't see how any responsible consumer can justify paying this artificial premium.

 

[bhayden25]

Im still considering the phone because it looks like a great phone. But i am going to hold off on the dock because the price is way to high. I'll wait till amazon sells it or find one on Ebay The reason for that stupid tethering plan is because its pure profit fot AT&T. It wouldn't surprise me that if someday that AT&T drops that requirement. Yes i know that unlikely to happen but hey one can dream.

 

[bhayden25]

$500 for a laptop with no RAM or HDD or CPU....WTF?

Why not just buy a BB Playbook, Motorola Xoom, or any other tablet for around $500.

If you absolutely need a laptop (typing etc.) then just get the hotspot plan or a MiFi. Better yet, root and rom your device and get a free hotspot.[/QUOTE

There are ways around the limits that the carrier places on their phones. In case of the Atrix. I would Root the device and get a free hotspot.

 

[ka3yan]

...but the charge for a tethering plan that's not being used insults my intelligence, and I don't see how any responsible consumer can justify paying this artificial premium.

Amen.

 

[Andy Thatcher]

Honestly, I probably could have rationalized the $500 bundle, but the charge for a tethering plan that's not being used insults my intelligence, and I don't see how any responsible consumer can justify paying this artificial premium.

Precisely my thought.

Yes I could have swallowed the $500, after all buy an off contract phone and you are in that ballpark'ish. I t's that alleged tethering fine from AT&T, sorry that should be fee, that I just cannot justify.

MWC coming soon no doubt something Android will grab my attention from there. Alas due to having various folks in my AT&T family plan having different contract expiry dates I am locked in but the more I think about that tethering nonsense the resolute I become that the Atrix will not appear in my pocket. In the grand scheme of things will this make a difference to AT&T and Motorola....probably not but if enough people tell them this is the reason they are not selling what should have been the hottest device launched at the time well maybe they will learn.

 

[movielover76]

Thanks but no thanks

I really thought the laptop dock was a cool idea, if it was priced reasonably
I mean the thing really is just a keyboard and a screen, not worth the price imho
since your required to get a tethering plan, which I suspected might happen
you are better off getting a cheap netbook and tethering, as you'll be able to do a lot more with a regular netbook.
If your rooted or running a custom rom you likely have free tethering, so your much better off in that case

 

[Duck the Fodgers]

I never assumed I'd be in the market for the laptop dock...and that assumption has been confirmed.

However I'm very disappointed in the media dock pricing. I definitely don't want/need the bluetooth keyboard and mouse, and hope there is an a la carte option. But given the $190 price tag of the bundle, that doesn't bode well for the $40-50 price range I thought was reasonable for a relatively dumb piece of hardware.

I'm still in the market for an Atrix though and will likely be on the pre-order list. My BB9000 contract runs out this month, so I'll take the phone for a spin and return within 30 days if anything smells funny.

Honestly, the make or break for me will be if Denver is going to get HSPA+ back-haul installed before 3/6...nothing will piss me off more that if I see that little 4G icon because the towers have the HSPA+ radios, but I don't get the speeds that should go with it.

 

[bend32]

Don't Really Understand the Price Point

I can go and get a fully functional laptop for that price that does not have to have a phone plugged into the back of it to work. Not sure what they are thinking. I think maybe $199 would make sense.

 

[Nchaka]

I've read alot of the posts on AT&Ts facebook page regarding the tethering charge and they refuse to answer the posts. They say they will "look into it" or "will let someone know"
Hopefully, if they don't change their tethering charge, the sales of the Atrix won't as big as they expect.
Has Motorola responded to peoples complaints? It affects their bottom line too. It would be a shame for Motorola to be punished for At&t's stupidity. Motorola should have put the Atrix on other carriers also.

 

[mobilityguy]

Just curious: what happens if you're in the middle of editing a spreadsheet on your docked Atrix and you get a phone call?

 

[jdk2]

Just curious: what happens if you're in the middle of editing a spreadsheet on your docked Atrix and you get a phone call?

It should multi-task, allowing you to answer the call and continue editing the spreadsheet without issue.

 

[Jonneh]

I don't know what to do now. I was set on the Atrix until the pricing announcement as well as the ridiculous tethering cost. I am grandfathered into unlimited data, but if I add tethering, doesn't that cause me to alter my plan, effectively removing my unlimited data in favor of the caps? Well, even if it doesn't, I just can't justify a tethering charge for this ****. It's ridiculous - so I won't be paying for it.

Personally, I do like HTC's hardware over any other manufacturer's, aesthetically. I don't know if I should go for the HTC Inspire on AT&T or not...I'm so confused now! I've had this upgrade for months and months, just waiting.

The HTC phone is a lot cheaper at just $99 for upgrade price...and I am a somewhat-poor-college-student after all...I'd keep my unlimited data for sure due to not changing my plan at all...but I do prefer Atrix's large battery and 4" screen over Inspire's 4.3" screen and ridiculously tiny battery.. - but there will be 3rd party batteries made, right? Gah, just don't know what to do now.

 

[textiaac]

I was set on the Atrix until the pricing announcement as well as the ridiculous tethering cost. I am grandfathered into unlimited data, but if I add tethering, doesn't that cause me to alter my plan, effectively removing my unlimited data in favor of the caps? Well, even if it doesn't, I just can't justify a tethering charge for this ****. It's ridiculous - so I won't be paying for it.

+1 I am having the same problem, coming from a 3GS i expect to have no data cap, although the dock is nice, the artix is a great phone independent of all the accessories and well worth the extra 100 bucks.

... but there will be 3rd party batteries made, right? Gah, just don't know what to do now.

The Inspire will not take those huge batteries that you see around the internet. The battery slides out of a small hole on the side of the device and a large battery cover is not possible (see pics). On the atrix these large battery covers will be possible and the atrix already comes with a 1950 mah battery over the inspires 1250 mah.

BTY: Since you are a college student and you are always in wifi at school why do you need unlimited data?

 

[Jonneh]

Thanks for that info about the Inspire battery issue...kind of a bummer. I knew it was super tiny (1250 mah) but I didn't realize I can't just upgrade the battery. Guess that's not the phone for me either.

I don't necessarily need unlimited data, it's just the fact that I've always had it, and if possible, would like to keep it. If not possible, then it's not possible. But it should've been possible with the Atrix + Laptop Dock, until they decided to throw down a ridiculous tethering charge on top of it. I just think that's so stupid. By the way, though - I go to a community college, and I commute there...so I'm not always there. Not to mention the school's wifi sucks, but that's another story. I still have wifi at home as well.

Anyway, I guess I will just have to decide somehow if I want the Atrix just as the Atrix by itself, or go another phone route. I know it's still a cool phone, but aesthetically I still prefer HTC phones (hardware looks) over Motorola's, so without the laptock dock (I was going to use it for college, actually) I have a cool phone inside an okay-looking outside. Add to that people have claimed Android isn't optimized as an OS for dual-core phones yet, unless I do a ton of hardcore gaming on it, and it's looking more and more like the Atrix may not be for me :\ But I was soooo set on it before all this pricing + tetheting!!

 

[ftonyp]

Ditto!

My strategy, too!

 

[anon(41845)]

Just curious: what happens if you're in the middle of editing a spreadsheet on your docked Atrix and you get a phone call?

The phone defaults to speakerphone when in the laptop dock. If you have a bluetooth headset you can answer it that way as well. The phone is still running while docked and using the webtop application.

 

[El Guero]

Sums up how I feel.

This about explains how I feel. Click