Semper Fi. Aim High. This We’ll Defend. To all the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces who have served in any war and given their lives, Motorola remembers. For more than 80 years, we’ve been there too — fighting right beside you. Our Handie-Talkie SCR536 portable two-way radio, developed in 1940 by Galvin Manufacturing Corp. (later Motorola) engineers, was a World War II icon. In 1943, we designed the world’s first FM portable two-way radio, the SCR300 backpack model, for the U.S. Army Signal Corps. Weighing 35 pounds (15.9 kg), this “walkie-talkie” radio had a range of 10 to 20 miles (16-32 km). Yes, Motorola remembers. And we salute you. Learn more about Motorola over the years.

It knows your mom’s digits by heart. And your favorite pizza toppings too. It’s heard every Oscar-worthy break-up, make-up and send-up. Yep, your phone’s been right there with you through thick and thin. Your one true companion. And confidant.

But guess what? It’s tired. Your trusty friend is not the sparkling, state-of-the-art, champion of wireless communication it used to be. And it’s just begging you to break in a younger, sleeker, sexier model. Believe it or not, you might currently be eligible for an upgrade. You can keep your existing number too. You owe it to your old phone, and friend, to find out. Take a look today.

Three day weekend: time to get outta town! Make sure it’s smooth sailing for you this Memorial Day weekend, by downloading these travels apps to your phone or tablet before you head out the door. They’ll help take the stress out of getting there, and help you explore once you’ve arrived, all on your compatible Motorola device.

FlightBoard

Turn your phone or tablet into the Arrivals and Departures board for any airport in the world. Using a beautiful, old school design, FlightBoard lets you check out the boards of your favorite airports and view all the flight information in real-time.

Expedia Hotels (Free)

Road trip? Cancelled flight? Family getaway? Find and book a hotel room in just 4 taps. Swipe through hi-res photos of hotels and see lobbies, rooms, pools and more. Get a great deal at more than 130,000 hotels in 20,000 cities worldwide.

Tourist: language learn & speak (Free)

Travelling to a foreign country? Get some help getting around. This app serves up translated phrases for situations like these: travel, transportation, food, accommodations, emergency situations and small talk. Languates currently supported are Spanish, Portuguese, Polish, German, French, Italian, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.

Wikitude (Free)

Discover your surroundings in a completely new way. Simply hold up your smartphone and, using the camera, explore what’s around you in Augmented Reality (AR). See places, points of interests and other exciting AR content through your camera’s field of vision–a truly  engaging and immersive experience. Voted “Best Augmented Reality Browser 2009-2011.”

At Motorola, we’ve always pushed the envelope, innovating forward-thinking products and services, like the first pay-TV system.

It was 1957 when the Telemovies services offered people living in Bartlesville, Oklahoma the ability to pay for movies not offered by the regular TV channels and watch them in the comfort of their homes. We designed and provided the equipment that made it possible.  The first subscriber not only got to be the first person to watch their chosen movie at home, they also won a Motorola TV.

In 1960, the Motorola Astronaut television was the world’s first transistorized, cordless portable, large-screen television (at 19 inches!).

Then in 1966, there was the Motorola experimental shirt-pocket television, featuring a 1-1/8 inch picture. This advanced engineering project was directed by DeLoss Tanner of Motorola’s consumer products engineering department.

circa 1968 (Credit : Motorola, Inc. Legacy Archives Collection)

We’ve got a thing for being revolutionary, and you can click here to see all the latest ways we’re working to better your TV experience inside and outside of the home.

What cool things have you thought of that you’d like to see in the future? Tell us about them in the comments.

Sure. The DROID XYBOARD 10.1 by Motorola is super touchable. But when your fingers really wanna get going, give them something other than Gorilla Glass to bounce off of. We made a portfolio case and wireless keyboard so you could protect your tablet, display it the way you want, and attach a wireless keyboard.

See the DROID XYBOARD in action:

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For the Grad in your life, or any other deserving soul, a purchase of the MOTOROLA XYBOARD 10.1 with Wi-Fi comes with a free keyboard with device stand – while supplies last, a 30 day no risk return policy and free 2 day shipping.

Learn even more about the MOTOROLA XYBOARD 10.1  and all its accessories.

For our European readers, it’s time to find out who your real friends are with a new app from Motorola Mobility and T-Mobile UK. It’s called “What’s Your Line Up?” and it shows how your online interactions on Facebook map to the real world. It works like the Social Graph feature on MOTOLUXE™ (and all Motorola phones with the MotoSwitch user interface), which enables quick and easy access to the people you contact most frequently.

“What’s Your Line Up?” allows you to create and share a Social Graph for Facebook, where your “top friends” are based in part on:

• The frequency of posts on your Facebook friends’ walls
• The number of people you’ve tagged (e.g. in photos, locations etc.)

If you’re not happy with the lineup the app creates, just switch to “manual select” and hand pick the friends you want to show off most. Check it out on the Facebook page for Motorola Europe.

Need more incentive? People from the UK and Ireland who use the new “What’s Your Line Up?” app will be eligible to enter a weekly contest for a chance to win one of 10 MOTOLUXE phones! The ultra-vogue, rail-thin Android™ 2.3 (Gingerbread) smartphone is a real eye catcher, with a 4-inch touchscreen, 8 MP camera and access to hundreds of thousands of Google Play™ books, videos, games and apps.

How’s the contest work? Every Monday for the next 10 weeks, Motorola and T-Mobile UK will announce a Social Graph theme. For example, this week it’s “Most friends dressed in red or pink.” The person who creates and shares the best Social Graph matching this theme wins. Themes run from Monday through Sunday. Winners and next week’s theme are announced on “MOTOLUXE Mondays,” so check back often! Ready to go? Access the new “What’s Your Line Up?” app and get started.

You’re not alone. Good thing we’ve got a page for that. You can get the latest software upgrade news on our refreshed page.

You may be wondering why all devices aren’t being upgraded to Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Here’s the deal. We work very closely with Google and cell phone carriers for every software update. And, obviously we want the new release to improve our devices. If we determine that can’t be done—well then, we’re not able to upgrade that particular device.

Happy upgrading!

It’s Friday 4:59 p.m. Your boss calls. Could you please do just one more revision?  At the same, your colleague IMs you about that spreadsheet update, and your wife sends you a text reminding you to pick up the dry cleaning for your daughter’s graduation party.  Yes.  She’s leaving the nest.  Off to college in the fall.  You didn’t forget.  How could you?  She’s been your running buddy for years.

All those early morning runs – through rain, snow, heat – just the two of you talking, planning, laughing.  You’ll miss that.  But it doesn’t have to end.  MOTOACTV can help you maintain the spirit of those runs. With it, you can easily share data from your latest workout; compare your distance, speed, and time. Challenge each other.  Celebrate your personal bests.  You can even share your playlist – though Pink might motivate her more than Pink Floyd.

At 5:15 you fire off that revision – your boss quickly approves.  That spreadsheet? Done. There’s nothing like exercise to help you multitask in stride. Not to mention helping you look great at the party.

MOTOACTV can help your grad start and stay on the right track, too.  Check out this video tip touting the Smart MP3 player:

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Feel like you’re playing the same games over and over and over again? Sure, it’s nice to have your go tos, but it’s time to shake things up.

You never know. Your new favorite game could be just a click away.

 World of Goo Demo (Free)

 ”Game of the Year” -MetaCritic, IGN, TouchArcade, Rock Paper Shotgun, GameTunnel

Drag and drop living, squirming, talking, globs of goo to build structures, bridges, cannonballs, zeppelins, and giant tongues. Awarded “Game of the Year” by MetaCritic, IGN, TouchArcade, Rock Paper Shotgun, GameTunnel.

 Burn The Rope (Free)

A challenging game where you try to burn as much rope as you can in each level. There’s a catch: the fire only burns ups, leaving you to tilt and turn the puzzle to keep your flame alive!

NBA : King Of The Court (Free)

Compete to become the king of virtual basketball courts placed where you are. Or, search for local courts and challengers in your area.

Riptide GP

Riptide GP is the first ever console-quality water racing game for mobile, featuring super-realistic water physics, real-time reflections (dual core only), and gorgeous high-detail vehicles and environments.

What’s your favorite Android game app?

While many people were enjoying the warm weather this past weekend, a group of hack-loving Chicagoans gathered at the Adler Planitarium to particiapte in Science Hack Day Chicago.

During the 24-hour marathon, developers, designers, scientists, and educators suggested ideas, gathered support and collaborated to create some awesome projects, like an Android-powered mobile labratory.

One attendee called out some of the innovations on Twitter at the hashtag #SHDCHI

Hacks so far include brain wave readers, cloud chambers, location tracking and general relativity.

Hack Days were originally created by Yahoo! in 2005, but soon after became a worldwide trend. When it came to Chicago this year, Motorola was there to support it.

Motorola Mobility Foundation supports the development of Android apps for non-profits and also encourages employees to volunteer their time to develop apps for non-profit organizations.