Motorola, this morning, opened up pre-orders for its newest flagship, the Moto X Style in the UK. While the device has been available to order in the US for a couple of weeks already, pre-sales only began today across the pond in Britain. Pricing starts at £399 and increases based on materials used on the back, or which storage option you go for.
We recently heard from Motorola Senior Director of Software Development David Schuster that the company was working on testing and rolling out Android 5.1 Lollipop to the Moto X (2nd gen) and Moto E LTE, and sure enough it appears that U.S. Cellular customers should see the update hit their devices pretty soon.
According to an Android software page on U.S. Cellular’s website, the build number for Lollipop on the 2nd generation Moto X is LPE23.32-21 while for the Moto E LTE it is LPI23.29-15. Since this is an over-the-air update you’ll need to be connected to WiFi to download the software update. To check if the update is available for your device yet, open the Settings app, select About Phone, and then System Updates. If it’s rolled out to you then you’ll see information about the update and be able to begin the installation process from this screen.
Motorola Mobility, the mobile phone company sold by Google to the Chinese company Lenovo last year, has been ordered to pay $10M damages for infringing a Fujifilm patent. The patent concerned a method of converting color smartphone photos to monochrome, reports Reuters.
There’s a certain irony to the case, as Google was widely believed to have acquired Motorola in the first place for its patent portfolio, retaining most of the patents when it sold the company …
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Google and Motorola this evening have started rolling out Android 5.1 to the Play Edition Moto G. The update carries the build number LMY47M and comes in at 171 MB. The update is rolling out now over-the-air, although as usual, it’s a staged rollout and could take a few days to hit your device (via Android Police).
Republic Wireless announced today that it will begin selling the 2014 Moto X on Wednesday, December 10th. As seen with other retail outlets, the “hybrid calling” service will support device customization via the Moto Maker. Republic Wireless will offer the 16GB variant of the second-generation Moto X for $399, which is about $100 under the handset’s regular off-contract price.
Earlier this month, Motorola Mobility revealed a pair of new slim metal wristbands for its Moto 360 smartwatch, but absent from the company’s announcement were release dates for these stylish options. Today, however, the firm started listing these alternative bands as available on its website, but they carry a slightly higher asking price.
Motorola Mobility recently updated its Camera and Gallery with a splash of Material Design, giving its in-house software a refreshed feel. Owners of the Droid Turbo, Moto X and Droid Ultra can now use a wrist twist hand gesture to alternate between their respective handset’s front and back cameras, and they’ll also notice a refined flat interface that should fit in nicely with Motorola’s latest smartphone.
AT&T retail stores are reportedly being told to send back their first shipments of Google’s Nexus 6 due to a software bug identified by Motorola. The noted issues with this glitch are a blacked out screen and trouble connecting to the carrier’s service. Motorola Mobility is said to be working on restocking Ma Bell’s inventory with replacement devices, however this will likely have an impact on the handset’s availability.
Between the release of the Moto X, Droid Turbo and taking on a new taskmaster, Motorola Mobility has been extremely busy. With no signs of slowing down, the former Google company just announced the availability of the Keylink, a Bluetooth-powered fob that helps you find your misplaced keys or smartphone.
Nexus 6 pre-orders from Motorola are starting to reach consumers. A Reddit user recently shared proof that their order from the former Google company had arrived today via FedEx. While this might be good news for some, what about the people who ordered their device directly from Google Play?
From now through October 20th, Motorola Mobility is knocking $50 off the 2014 Moto X’s asking price on Verizon. This brings the device’s purchase price down to $50 with a two year service commitment. This deal also supports customization via Motorola’s Moto Maker, which lets you tailor the handset to fit your style.
UK Carrier O2 is officially offering the Moto 360 smartwatch via its website for £199.99. Currently, the device is listed as shipping next day, but as anyone who has followed the Moto 360 release knows, the device has been hard to come upon, repeatedly going in and out of stock in the United States. We wouldn’t recommend wasting too much time on pulling the trigger, O2 customers.
O2 appears to only be offering the Moto 360 in black, but we’ve already told you how to get a steel band for device on the cheap. In our review of the Moto 360, we praised the device’s design and even its battery life. We called it the “best smartwatch you can currently buy,” as well.
O2 customers can order the device on the carrier’s website right here.
If you missed your chance to pick up a Moto 360 when it first went on sale, here’s your chance to score. Motorola just restocked its new smartwatch, but there’s no telling how long it will last.
Between manufacturer and carrier gunk, Android is often weighed down by unwanted bloatware. When looking for a high-end handset, software purists are often pushed towards Nexus devices from Google, or stripped down ROMs furnished by software development communities. However, the folks at Motorola are looking to break this cycle with the release of its 2014 edition Moto X.
Photo: ibtimes.com
Samsung and Apple just announced that they have agreed to drop all patent suits against each other in countries outside the United States, Bloomberg reports. The two companies will drop suits against each other in Australia, Japan, South Korea, Germany, Netherlands, the U.K., France and Italy. This agreement does not include any licensing agreements, though. This has no effect on United States battles either.
Pictured above is a box for an alleged Verizon-bound device from Motorola that carries the model number XT1096. Although we’ve heard rumors about new Motorola-made devices heading to Big Red, it’s really hard to tell what this mystery gadget may be. The soon to be former Google-owned company recently scored a trademark for the name “Moto Maxx,” which could possibly be heading to Verizon.
Another day, another set of leaked Moto X+1 images. Today’s pictures are of a “near-final prototype” build of the device and they manage to reveal some new information about the unannounced handset. For starters, the X+1 is said to have a 5.1-inch display, so it’s a little larger than its predecessor. The device doesn’t have any capacitive buttons and has a loudspeaker below its display, similar to the design of the budget-friendly Moto E.
Summer is fading fast and as a way of saying farewell, Motorola Mobility is having a back to school sale on its off-contract Moto X. The entry-level 16GB version of the company’s customizable handset is down to just $300 ($100 savings) and the 32GB model has been reduced to $325 ($125 savings). However, if your app arsenal is heavy and you’re looking for a lot of storage space, you can pick up the 64GB Moto X for $375 ($125 savings).
Lenovo’s $2.91 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility from Google is still pending regulatory approval, however it looks like the company is already mapping out a new strategy. Despite being one of the world’s largest PC makers, Lenovo is halting the development of Windows tablets under 10 inches in size and migrating its remaining inventory to markets like Brazil, China and Japan where there’s more of a need for low-cost slates.
Last month, Motorola announced that it was accepting design submissions for watch faces for its Moto 360 smartwatch. We showed you some of the best and most interesting submissions last month, as well, but today, Motorola has finally announced the winner of its contest. In a blog post, Motorola announced that out of the 1,300 submitted designs, David Pascual’s watch face was deemed the best. You can see his design at the top of this page.
Motorola says that Pascual wins one of the very first Moto 360s and the chance for his design to be featured on the watch when it ships. It’s unclear exactly what Pascual has to do for his design to be featured on the watch, but we’re guessing there’s some sort of licensing.
You can view all of the Moto 360 watch face designs on Google+. The Moto 360 is slated to go on sale later this summer.
Although Motorola has yet to formally announce the Moto X+1, we’ve seen our share of alleged photos and videos of this phantom smartphone. Today, however, we’re getting the clearest shot to date of the rumored handset, courtesy of @evleaks. Unlike previous sketchy images, this front and back pair of photos appear to be press renders of the Moto X successor dressed up in some type of case.
Motorola Mobility really wants you to try its Moto X smartphone and next week you’ll have a chance for an insanely low premium. On Monday, June 9th, for just one penny, Motorola will build you a custom off-contract Moto X and send it to you for a two week trial run. While most retailers and wireless carriers have similar return policies, they typically require a full upfront purchase. The offer is valid for one day only and Motorola warns that quantities will be limited.
Motorola Mobility’s journey to becoming a Lenovo-owned company has been filled with changes, but it looks like some of Google’s influence may endure this transition. Pictured above is a purported shot of the long rumored Moto X+1. While the photo’s appearance is quite sketchy, it was posted on the Google+ page of Antony Cheng, a former Motorola product specialist, based out of Hong Kong.
Motorola Mobility’s days as a Google-owned company may be numbered, however this doesn’t mean the outfit is completely severing all ties Mountain View. In fact, the company’s latest smartphone, the Moto E runs a near-vanilla version of Android 4.4.2 KitKat. Perhaps as a way to help its new handset reach its full potential, Motorola has decided to add the Moto E to its Bootloader Unlock program. This decision will most likely bolster support from third-party Android developers, freeing up the device’s hardware for open source platforms like CyanogenMod. Sure, Google and Motorola may soon be parting ways, but it appears that the two companies may still maintain a friendly relationship.
