Big things might be in store for Motorola Mobility if Google's acquisition is able to proceed unabated, but for the fourth quarter of 2011, the mobile device maker posted a net loss of $80 million, albeit that figure is largely the result of write-off costs related to the proposed takeover. Still, it's a complete reversal of fortunes compared to the fourth quarter of 2010 when Motorola Mobility posted an $80 million profit.

A little over a week after pictures of Motorola's Xoom 2 tablet were the leaked to the Internet, the mobile device maker went and got all official by launching two refreshed Xoom slates in the U.K. and Ireland: the Motorola Xoom 2 and Xoom 2 Media Edition, both of which feature a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, Corning Gorilla Glass, a splashguard coating, and Android 3.2 (Honeycomb).

It's been a long wait for Motorola to drop its Wi-Fi only Xoom tablet, and those living in Canada will have to hang tight just a little bit longer. Motorola on Monday announced it will begin shipping and selling its Wi-Fi Xoom slate to Canadians beginning sometime in April, though stopped short of offering up an exact release date, or price for that matter.

While Motorola didn't want to get into pricing details, you can find the Xoom for pre-order on both Best Buy's and Future Shop's Canadian portals, with each one offering up the Wi-Fi tablet for $600, the same price as here in the States.

"Motorola Xoom brings PC-like power to a tablet, providing consumers with an easy-to-use, lightning fast experience designed with fun and productivity in mind, and we're thrilled to bring it to Canadians," said Jeff Miller, corporate vice president, Motorola Mobility.

Likewise, Canadians should be thrilled to have access to a viable alternative to Apple's first and second generation iPad tablets. As we noted in our review, the Xoom has a shot at being an iPad killer, but it's critical to get the Wi-Fi only version out there in the wild for people have no need or desire for the 3G radio, which carries a pricing premium.