The DROID Ultra, Maxx, and Mini were announced just days before the first Moto X, and now Motorola is reneging on an early promise to provide Android 5.1 to those devices. As consolation, however, they are offering owners a discount on the Droid Turbo 2 or Maxx 2.
In case you didn’t know, Verizon and Motorola are prepping to launch a couple of new Droid phones today, and they say that our “expectations will be shattered.” And while we are on the ground ourselves in New York City to find out if that turns out to be true (I’m betting against it, personally), I’m happy to report that Verizon has indeed provided a livestream if you want to tune into the action yourself.
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As Motorola and Verizon’s event to launch the refreshed lineup of DROID Turbo and DROID Maxx smartphones looms, a handful of new details have emerged alongside a new leaked image. The picture above — shared by the usual leakster, Evan Blass — shows both the new DROID models. What’s more, information obtained by Droid-Life suggests Verizon is working on a unique ‘design refresh’ program for customers looking to buy the new DROIDs…
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New images are circulating around the web this morning of what is purportedly Verizon‘s yet unannounced DROID Maxx 2 smartphone, believed to essentially be Motorola‘s new flagship Moto X Play rebranded for the “Big Red” carrier. Motorola has been the manufacturer behind most of Verizon’s DROID line of smartphones.
Motorola’s recently announced Moto X Play isn’t coming to the United States — not with that name, at least. It’s widely believed to be coming to the states exclusively on Verizon as the Droid Maxx 2, and the widely-sourced Hellomotohk has released new images of what is purportedly the back cover of the phone.
The most notable thing about these images is how the Verizon and DROID branding blends in with the rest of the cover — Verizon tends to plaster the back of its DROID phones with prominent logos. It depends on how the covers are manufactured and at what stage these were taken off the line to be pictured, but hopefully this is what the back will look like at its consumer release.
The reason it’s believed that the Moto X Play will come to the US as a re-branded Verizon phone is due to simple pattern-matching: Motorola builds all of Verizon’s DROID line of smartphones, and save for modifications to outward appearance and features, they tend to follow Motorola’s phones closely in terms of their baseline platform. Last year’s Droid Turbo, for example, was a tuned up Moto X. And in particular the Moto X Play compromises in places where Motorola’s other recently announced phone, the X Style, doesn’t, in favor of a larger battery. The Droid Maxx is traditionally Verizon’s line targeted at those who want large batteries.
Based on the sight of two different back plate covers, it seems possible that Moto Maker or something similar will be available for this phone, but we wouldn’t get our hopes up. Nothing pictured has been confirmed by Motorola or Verizon, and could be fake.
After much speculation and a few bizarre viral videos starring James Franco, Motorola and Verizon stepped forward to announce the Droid Turbo last week. That’s great for folks in the US, but what about phone fans in different markets? Today, the former Google company announced the Moto Maxx, which appears to be an international version of the Turbo.
Android 4.4.4 has slowly found its way to several off-contract devices and it looks like its time for the latest version of KitKat to make its way to some carrier-connected handsets. If you’re the proud owner of a Verizon Droid Maxx, Ultra or Mini, you’ll want to check your device for an over-the-air update or manually initiate the software push by tapping Settings>About phone>System updates>Download.
Motorola this afternoon updated its Assist app on Android to version 2.2.35 with a handful of changes. Motorola Assist already offers a variety of features that improve handsfree capabilities of the Moto X (and other devices), and this update adds another very useful one.
Hey Verizon customers, keep a special eye out on Big Red’s “end of year” savings as there are a few goodies to be had. First off is a new sale on the Moto X similar to what the carrier ran in November offering the device for $49.99 with a two-year agreement.
You get KitKat, you get KitKat, you get KitKat! Well, Verizon isn’t the Oprah sure but with Verizon’s announcement via Twitter this morning that Android 4.4 is on its way to the DROID Ultra, Maxx and Mini it sure feels like a Oprah giveaway episode.
Our expectations are always tempered when it comes to the wireless carriers and Black Friday specials as its been a long, long time since I can remember a deal that made my jaw drop. With that in mind, Verizon Wireless’ 2013 Black Friday ad has hit the airwaves thanks to BlackFriday.com but it won’t knock your socks off. Thankfully, it will help those of you looking to pick up a DROID RAZR HD for free or a Motorola DROID Ultra for $99 with a two-year agreement.
It looks like Motorola and Verizon are set to team up for yet another lineup of DROID devices this fall, as press images from @evleaks and story boards from Android Central have leaked. First off, the DROID MAXX looks to be the successor the popular DROID RAZR MAXX from last year. Specs are still a mystery for the most part, but seeing how the RAZR MAXX was a flagship last year, it seems likely that its successor will also feature high-end internals. The big selling according to the leaked ad, however, will still be the battery life. The ad teases that the DROID MAXX will have “48 hours of worry-free battery life.” The RAZR MAXX was advertised with 32 hours of talk time, so two full days of usage is pretty impressive.
The DROID ULTA’s storyboard doesn’t really give us any hints as to what to expect from the device, but it does mention that the device will be “Only on Verizon. 8-8-13.” More than likely, the DROID ULTRA will be very similar to the DROID MAXX, but with less impressive battery life and a thinner design.
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