7 reasons why the Motorola Dext will save the brand

Of course, it's not all sweetness and light for a company that's been mired in rumours of extinction for so long. One phone launch will struggle to make everything hunky-dory, and there are a few reasons why Motorola should worry about the forthcoming Dext launch:

1. It's too expensive for a phone that appeals to teenagers as well as adults

Social networking might be getting 'cooler' for the older generations to partake in, but MySpace and Facebook is pretty much populated by the younger generations.

So for the Dext to cost £35 per month on a two-year contract is a bit crazy, as it alienates a huge percentage of the market. We're not talking about the 20-30 year olds who have that kind of disposable income - we mean the teenagers who would go gaga for such converged networking.

But unless you can convince your Ma and Pa that this is phone will help you do your homework better or make you less prone to mood swings, you're unlikely to get them to pay that much per month for you. There's a reason the iPhone isn't used by many teens, and it appears Motorola has followed it down that expensive path.

2. It's not aesthetically pleasing

Yes, it's got a QWERTY keyboard and a pretty responsive touchscreen, but it is a touch on the bulky side at 15.6mm thick.

It also has leanings towards HTC's business in the chassis, which is very much more about function than style for the most part.

The reason items like the iPhone and the Palm Pre are such big hitters isn't just what they offer the user in tech terms, but also because they are not something people are afraid to pull out their pocket at parties.

Aesthetics are far from the be all and end all in a mobile phone, but if you want to extend the appeal of a device beyond the tech enthusiast, it has to be handbag friendly as well.

3. Motorola has sunk too far to play in the smartphone game

And of course, there's the case that it could be too late for Motorola. While the US might still be more interested in feature phones than smartphones, the UK and Western Europe (not to mention Asia) is very much behind the new wave of the 'do-all' handset.

Motorola has been a notable absence in the smartphone arena for some time, and while it might find it easier to rise back to the surface in the US as a top name, in order to achieve true success it needs to be competing at the sharp end of all the major markets.