Motorola shows the future ways we'll use technology

Motorola Inc. may be stinging from Apple's successful touch-access iPhone and Nokia's stranglehold on the global cell phone market.

So what's it going to do? Diversify, said Chief Technology Officer Padmasree Warrior.

"Mobility is a very diverse market … And we'll need to focus on new sets of markets," Warrior said Thursday.

Motorola, which has been under pressure by Wall Street to provide more innovative cell phones, believes such diversity with phones will drive its future -- whether its selling a magic mirror, a "polite" device or providing power in Uganda.

And they all have a connection to cell phones.

Many such innovations were discussed at its annual Research Experience Day for the press at its Schaumburg headquarters. The event focused on technology being developed in its labs for possible consumer use.

For example, you may one day like to have a Polite Phone, an application, or software installed on your mobile phone so it can communicate with your car.

You then attach a device to your car's diagnostic system and it will read everything going on inside and even how you drive. That information will show up on your phone. It also will transform your phone into a remote key. And if you're in an accident and the airbags deploy, it will call 911 for you.

"Think of it as a lower-end version of OnStar," said Mike Gardner, director of Intelligence Systems Research in Tempe, Ariz., and inventor of the Polite Phone. OnStar, also created by Motorola, is an in-car subscriber system that provides assistance in emergencies.

The application also can be used by mom and dad to check on junior's driving habits. Or if you're in stressful driving conditions, the handset could automatically put all in-coming calls into voice mail.

Another invention with a cell phone twist includes the Magic Mirror. One day you could go into a department store dressing room to try on some clothes. The price tag, which will have an embedded radio-frequency identification chip, will communicate with the mirror.

The mirror, equipped with monitors in back, can then display images of what accessories would work well with that piece of clothing.

And if you're worried about whether others have the same outfit, it will tell you how many have just bought it in your area. You also can touch the mirror and e-mail an image of your favorite outfit to your best friend. Your friend then can read the e-mail on his or her mobile phone and respond with an opinion.

"Could this be in some high-end department stores? In the long term, it could be in a lot of different stores," said Tim Collins, a distinguished member of Motorola's technical team. "We're just trying to make it easier for consumers to make decisions."

In addition, that special price tag also can help store associates do inventory faster, tell them how many times an item was tried on without purchase and if there's a problem with it.

"It will also help in loss prevention," said Collins.

But Motorola isn't focusing just on your needs here. It's also developing technologies for use worldwide, especially in developing countries.

In Uganda, for example, Motorola created and distributed about 50 solar-powered kiosks to help local cell phone users re-charge their batteries. After all, the company can't keep selling phones in a market where electricity is scarce. The kiosks were donated to 50 women in different villages to help them earn a living.

While local phone providers had built networks, it couldn't work without electricity to re-charge cell phone batteries, said Stephany Ogbonmwan, a Motorola regional sales manager there.

"The service providers had built the networks and made the connections possible, but the people there had no access to power to keep their phones working," said Ogbonmwan.

The new program was launched in June and could be expanded soon to other developing countries.