Xoom LTE upgrade will require a hardware modification, sending the device in
When I wrote about batteries the other day some of the commenters made it very clear that sending in a tablet to Apple (or anyone else) to get the battery replaced was not something they would do, both for privacy issue and because it would take a while. While an iPad owner might have to do that to his or her iPad after 3 years of using the battery, Xoom 3G owners will have to send their tablet in within 3 months if they want to upgrade to LTE (4G). Droid-life found an information sheet from Verizon stating a few details regarding the upgrade, which is supposed to happen within 90 days from launch. While the upgrade is completely free, you will need to send your tablet in to get the upgraded hardware soldered to the Xoom’s motherboard. The process is supposed to take 6 days (good luck with that if 2 million Xoom owners send theirs in the same week) and Verizon warn people to back up before sending it it.
I think this just emphasizes what I’ve already said about the Xoom: they’re so ridiculously desperate to get the thing to market before any other Honeycomb tablet that they’re basically taking a prototype and shipping it out the door, lacking both the hardware it will need in 90 days and Flash. Any sensible manufacturer would put off the launch until the hardware could be installed when the device is produced, but that is not how Motorola thinks. It’s sad, and I hope they get professional help, because this isn’t healthy for anyone- Motorola, Verizon, Xoom owners and especially the poor engineers who have to do all those upgrades.
