Motorola, one of the world’s top producers of mobile devices and network equipment,
has launched iRadio in the U.S.. This is an ambitious music radio service which allows users to download songs to their computer and transfer them to mobile phones and mobile devices as well as stream music.

The service will include 435 commercial-free radio stations featuring various genres.

The system requires an iRadio-enabled mobile phone, a broadband Internet connection, a Windows XP-based computer, and a USB port.

Phones that can handle the service, including the next-generation Rokr E2, are expected to launch in the next few months.

No wireless carriers have signed on yet to carry iRadio, which may also be adapted for non-Motorola phones if carriers request it.

iRadio subscription will be anywhere from US$6 to US$10, to be set by individual mobile phone carriers. This is a few dollars cheaper than the satellite radio networks that would be among the phone-based service’s immediate rivals.

The phone, pictured, has a dedicated iRadio key near the green answer key.