MotoKRZR to all of you: what about me? I'm iconic too!
Fans, bloggers and sometimes Motorola itself remember the MotoRAZR as the last iconic piece of hardware to come out of Chicago in the 2000s. We, however, think that's a big mistake. Here is another classic Moto phone that must be revisited and seen under a different light from now on.
Motorola released the MotoKRZR as a fashion alternative to the RAZR, late in 2006. The phone featured an all-glass front and came in a variety of shiny colors. It featured expandable storage of up to 2GB, external touch-sensitive music buttons (on its CDMA version), a 2MP camera and a 1.9" TFT screen.
It was just as powerful as the RAZR at the time but it was an even more compact device, with a width of just 60% of the RAZR. The KRZR name kind of made reference to the craze behind the RAZR and the need to make consumers happy with a similar, yet new design.
The campaign for this phone was out of this world. It was bold and sexy, showing an edgy side of Moto. The KRZR was everywhere by late 2006 and it went on to sell over 35 million devices worldwide, becoming one of the best-selling Motorola phones in history. We got to see three KRZR variants: K1, K3 and K1m.
But nowadays, the KRZR is just seen as another cool Moto phone from the past, but not as an iconic device. We hear RAZR, RAZR, RAZR all the time, with even Motorola itself falling for this. The truth is that the KRZR should be seen as another classic Moto phone. It might have not changed the game in terms of features, but it did in terms of design-language and product marketing.
Wonder why so many retro Motorola items are back since last year? You'll be surprised to know the KRZR campaign (actually everything 2005-2008) was thought by the same marketing agency who is now behind the new Moto campaigns. That's why HelloMoto and many other visuals are back and that's why the new campaigns are so cool!
The KRZR taught Motorola how to be sexy, bold and classy at the same time. That's what it should be remembered for and that's why it's an iconic device just like the RAZR.
