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The physical keyboard Moto Mod is now fully-funded, might actually happen

Motorola got serious about building out a community of hardware makers for its Moto Mods platform last year, and there have been a few standout ideas so far: Amazon Alexa hardware, gamepads, and of course the trusty physical keyboard mod. Now, that last concept has hit its goal on Indiegogo, suggesting that maybe it will actually come to fruition in time for the 2nd gen. Moto Z…
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Comment: The Keyboard Mod will be the accessory that makes me go back to the Moto Z

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I know I am in a minority with this opinion, but I really do miss physical keyboards on phones. So much so that I cannot wait for the BlackBerry KeyOne to come out just so I can have a handset that doesn’t rely on an on-screen keyboard. That’s why when an Indiegogo campaign making a keyboard for the Moto Z posted pictures of its prototype, I got so excited…


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Motorola keeps promise, Nougat currently rolling out to some unlocked Moto Z users [Updated]

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Update: Republic Wireless has posted on its community forums that Motorola is currently rolling out Android 7.0 Nougat as a soak test to a limited number of unlocked Moto Z devices. In the post, the mobile carrier also confirmed that Motorola should rollout the update to all unlocked Moto Z models on February 17 if everything goes as planned.

Motorola hasn’t been as good as they once were when it came to updating their handset in a timely manner. Years ago, some of their phones had been updated to the latest version of Android even before Nexus devices. This is a thing of the past, though, as some Moto devices are now months behind on updates. Thankfully, it seems Motorola is now slowly rolling out Nougat to the unlocked Moto Z


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Experimental Moto Mod for Moto Z brings wireless charging & IR blaster in a super slim shell

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Motorola’s Moto Z was one of the more fascinating smartphones of last year, but as good as an idea as Moto Mods were, their potential was limited due to high prices and lack of compelling options.

Motorola isn’t giving up, however, as the company continues to assist some developers in building new options. One of those is the “Ultimate” Moto Mod, which aims to bring two highly desired features in a shell not much thicker than a Style Shell.


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Nougat isn’t coming to the unlocked Moto Z until Feb, Moto Z Play in March

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Verizon started rolling out Android Nougat to their Moto Z and Z Force handsets back in November. This fit with a statement given by a Motorola spokesperson which said that the entire line would be updated in Q4 of 2016.

The issue now is that the unlocked variants of the handset — sold directly from Moto themselves — have yet to receive any sort of update. A new statement from the Lenovo-owned company says that these updates should be coming soon…


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Opinion: While impractical, the Moto Z is my pick for most unique phone of the year

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From always running the latest version of Android to “more opinionated” software customizations, there are many reasons Google’s Pixel is ‘one of the best phones‘ of this year. In an industry where smaller usually means degraded, I greatly appreciate the near identical specifications between the two screen sizes.

While I think the design of that phone is quite nuanced thanks to curved edges that further help holdability, the Pixel won’t be getting any awards in that department. However, there is a clear standout for the most interestingly designed phone of 2016. For better or worse, that title goes to the Moto Z in my view. And yes, I am primarily referring to its thinness.

It’s been few months since the phone launched and I’ve just recently gotten my hands on it, so I thought I would share some of my thoughts…


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Android Basics: How to enable the battery percentage on all Moto Z variants

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When it comes to monitoring your battery life on Moto Z devices, it can be hard to estimate how much power is left just based on the battery icon. Thankfully, there is an option in the settings menu that allows you to enable the battery percentage which makes it much easier to glance at your status bar and see how much battery you have left…


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Android Basics: How to setup Moto Voice on all Moto Z variants

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Most modern Android devices now have the ability to setup a voice prompt that lets you operate your device without even picking it up. Motorola has had its own feature called Moto Voice for the last couple of years that allows for more than the standard “Ok, Google” command. The below steps will help you say “Hello, Moto” to your Moto Z device…


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Android Basics: How to take a screenshot on all Moto Z variants

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As with any mobile device, it is always important to know how to capture information on your screen. One of the unique aspects of the Moto Z line of phones is that the overall design is exactly the same, which means the process is also exactly the same across the board. Thankfully, Lenovo also didn’t change the screenshot process that can be found baked into almost every Android device…


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Moto Z ‘likely’ to get Tango functionality via a new module, Lenovo SVP says

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Lenovo launched the Phab2 Pro earlier this year (actually, it just recently started shipping) as the first Android “phone” to have support for Google’s Tango. I say “phone” because the Lenovo Phab2 Pro is basically a 7-inch tablet with cellular radios. Now, however, it looks like Tango might be coming to an actual phone in the form of a new module for the Moto Z…


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Android Nougat is starting to roll out to some Verizon Moto Z and Moto Z Force users, enables Daydream VR

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About two months ago, Motorola confirmed it would be rolling out the latest version of Android, 7.0 Nougat, to the Moto Z family by the end of the year. Ahead of any announcement, it appears that update is rolling out to some users of the DROID edition Moto Z smartphones


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Two feature-packed ads from Moto showcase the JBL Soundboost and Insta-Share Project Moto Mods

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Moto Mods Commercial

The Moto Z is unique because it features the ability to attach different ‘Mods’ to the back of the phone to give it extra functionality. Moto has now put out two one-minute long ads showing off the JBL Soundboost and the Insta-Share Projector, both of which makes sharing media with others a snap.


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