By Tracy Voncannon
Cameras and different ring tones will be old features on cell phones after Motorola and Apple computer put out their first phone that can store and play full-length downloaded music tracks.
Motorola announced last week an agreement between themselves and Apple computers to make phones that can store and play iTunes music tracks. People can transfer their downloaded iTunes songs from their Mac or PC onto Motorola''s new handset.
Chief executive director of Motorola, Ed Zander, said in a press release the new product would open the market.
'This expands the market reach for both of us and drives new revenue for customers,' Zander said. 'We can''t think of a more natural partnership than this one with Apple, the brand synonymous with easy-to-use, legal music downloading, and Motorola, the innovator in mobile technology.'
Apple will create the new iTunes mobile music player, and Motorola will make the standard music application on all their mass-market music phones. Transferring stored songs will include using a USB cable or Bluetooth wireless connection.
iTunes users will have the capability to hold anywhere from half a dozen songs to a few dozen songs. The amount of songs will depend on the style of phone. New features on the phones will include the ability to display music videos and information about the artist.
Josh Smith, a junior from Blades, Delaware majoring in nutrition, said the new Motorola phone should help students to not have as much to carry.
'No one wants to have a lot of gadgets in their pockets like iPods and your cell phone,' Smith said. 'This seems to be just the beginning of more convergences between all digital devices.'
Some analysts are concerned that the new cell phone could cut into the sales of portable music players, but Eddy Cue, Apple''s vice president for applications and Internet services, said otherwise in a recent press release.
'We think the convergence will be complementary to iPods,' Cue said.
The Motorola music phone will be on the market at the beginning of next year.