MOTOROLA TOUCH ZINE HD IS A BIG FAT PHONY

Last week we reported on the possibility that a new high-end Motorola touchscreen device with specs that seemed ready to resurrect Moto from the ashes. Oh, mother told us to never get our hopes up.

A new Androidphones.com posted an impressive visual deconstruction of the "leaked" images and seems to prove without a doubt that the device is simply a visual mashup of a ZINE ZN5 and ROKR E8.

But what does it say that people were so excited that the images we saw were of an actual product coming down the pipeline? One we could all throw our cash at. Android enthusiasts were happy that there might soon be a somewhat sexy device in the wild running the Google OS. Lord knows the platform deserves better hardware than the T-Mobile G1 can offer. With high end specs like the 5.0MP Kodak imaging abilities of the ZN5, a large high resolution touchscreen display, and a slim profile, these were the specs that made Motorola and Android fanboys drool, and that might even entice a sizeable bunch of consumers.

More critical for Motorola however, is the undisputed fact that they need to do something bold like this phantom Touch ZINE HD and do it fast. The company was absent from MWC in Barcelona, and they simply aren't selling phones like they used to. Layoffs abound; their product line is staggered. The RAZR is a dead end, and they haven't a real desirable option for consumers on the high end. They've publicly committed to Android as their platform of choice, so now is definitely the time to strike. Almost every other major handset manufacturer has a touchscreen device on the market, and most of their high ends are running Windows Mobile, which makes most discerning buyers groan even at the best of times. That gives MOTO an edge.

Motorola needs to get something like this out the door. They simply may not last long enough to wait for the right time.