Officials, however, are sceptical as to whether Delhi and Moscow can really shift their relationship from the prevailing unequal one of a buyer and seller of military hardware to jointly developing defence equipment and marketing it globally.

BBC: India reworks Russian ties

Perhaps Google wanted to acquire Motorola's patents so quickly that there was no time to look for a buyer of the company's hardware business.

ENGADGET: Switched On: The accidental handset company, Part 2 Mobile

Some analysts have speculated that the hardware business could be sold off to an Asian handset buyer in a deal analogous to IBM's sale of the ThinkPad unit to Lenovo.

FORBES: The Tech Trade