During the company’s Q4 2014 earnings call, Google Chief Financial Officer Patrick Pichette addressed a few of the reasons for the company’s slower than expected quarter. Pichette said that one issue Google had was keeping up with demand the demand for the Nexus 6. Pichette noted that while the device was well received, the company simply couldn’t get the inventory to keep up with consumer demand.
Motorola today held an event for its return to China after being acquired by Lenovo with company execs taking the stage to officially announce the launch of the new Moto X, new Moto X Pro and new Moto G with 4G LTE smartphones in the country.
The recessed Motorola logo was originally going to be a fingerprint sensor
The fingerprint reader widely rumored before the launch of the Nexus 6 was indeed part of the plan, confirmed former Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside. Speaking to the Telegraph, Woodside said that the dimple on the back of the handset was originally intended to be a fingerprint reader, but they were stymied by Apple’s purchase of biometrics company AuthenTec back in 2012.
Indeed, the 6-inch Nexus 6, he can now admit, was stymied by just one of those big players. A dimple on the back that helps users hold the device should, in fact, have been rather more sophisticated. “The secret behind that is that it was supposed to be fingerprint recognition, and Apple bought the best supplier. So the second best supplier was the only one available to everyone else in the industry and they weren’t there yet,” says Woodside.
It’s believed a fingerprint reader was included in internal prototypes, before it was abandoned. Woodside’s comments provide the explanation, Motorola originally intending to buy or license the sensor from AuthenTec. Motorola of course pioneered the smartphone fingerprint reader with the “Atrix” in 2012.
Motorola this morning has taken to Google+ to say that Android 5.0 Lollipop is rolling out to the Moto G in the United States and India. Specifically, the update is today hitting the 2nd generation Moto G in the states and both 1st and 2nd generation devices in India.
#Lollipop is rolling out in phases to #MotoG (2nd Gen) in US & #MotoG (1st & 2nd Gen) in India. Look for the notification on your device to update!
This official announcement comes a couple months after Motorola began soak testing the update for the 2nd generation Moto G, and about a month after the update started rolling out to the Google Play Edition of the device.
Following some Nexus 6 users complaining about the smartphone’s back cover coming unglued, The Times of India reports that Motorola is aware of at least a few devices affected by the problem. The handset maker tweeted earlier this week that it has received at least a few complaints about the defect, but fortunately appears to be willing to help affected customers replace their devices. Expand Expanding Close
Motorola’s quest to update its devices to Lollipop has gone anything but smoothly so far. The company started its efforts with the 2nd generation Moto X Pure Edition, but quickly learned that it had some more work to do when users started reporting a plethora of bugs. In a statement on Google+ this evening, however, a Motorola software engineer said that devices from 2013 and 2014 can expect their updates “really soon.”
SamMobile is reporting that Samsung plans to launch a fully round smartwatch at Mobile World Congress next month. Not a lot is known about this new Samsung smartwatch, though. It reportedly carries the model number SM-R720 and is referred to as Orbis within the company.
Motorola has just announced in a blog post that it is making a return to China. Following the company’s acquisition by Lenovo, Motorola Mobility says that it is returning to China with three of its newest devices. Motorola calls China “one of the world’s fastest-growing smartphone markets,” and promises to release the Moto X, Moto X Pro, and Moto G with LTE in early 2015.
According to the Moto G page on the Brazilian Motorola website, there appears to be another model of the company’s affordable Moto X alternative in the works, sporting LTE and a variety of other minor changes (via Android Police). It was only a matter of time before this device popped up consider its predecessor had 4G capable model, and now it’s (almost) here.
Amazon’s Gold Box Deal of the Day is the Moto G 2014 edition 5-inch 720P smartphone for $149.99 shipped. That’s $30 off on this phone that receives quick Android updates to Lollipop and beyond and is unlocked for use on T-Mobile or AT&T in US or available for international shipping. It is available in Black or White and available with US or Global GSM variants. Other features
5″ 720p HD display
Front-ported stereo speakers
Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor with 1.2GHz quad-core CPU
This phone gets incredible reviews (4.6/5 stars) from over 500 Amazon reviewers. With your savings, you can get a Plantronics Bluetooth headset for $25 (50% off) shipped and/or nice cases which start at $2.
Earlier this week, Motorola unveiled a pair of new ads for its Moto 360 featuring burittos, a pianist, and a dude named Chad. The ads mocked the luxury watch industry and its traditional commercial format. Today, Motorola continued its Moto 360 advertising with two more new videos. One is titled “Golf,” and the other “Holiday.”
According some speculation from DroidForums, Motorola is working on a new “Droid” phone that’s largely based physically on the Nexus 6, but is going to have specs that make Google’s latest smartphone look pale in comparison. The device is said to sport the same 5.9-inch QHD display as the Nexus 6, but will come with a next generation Snapdragon 810 processor. The most interesting part of this rumor, and part of what actually helps us believe its legitimacy, is that the source claims this phone might not be a “Droid” at all, and that it might just be another Motorola-branded alternative.
Motorola today revealed a pair of new commercials for its Moto 360. The first commercial, entitled “Businessman” starts out with close-up shots of the Moto 360, highlighting the device’s “craftsmanship” and “style.” It then, however, cuts to a notification for a takeout order of burritos being on its way from Eat24.
Motorola announced earlier this month that it would soon begin to offer interchangeable leather and metal bands for the Moto 360, and today, those accessories have gone up for sale. A standalone leather band for the Moto 360 runs $29.99 and is available in either cognac (brown), stone, or black. Metal bands cost $79.99 and are available in light and dark finishes.
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.
If you’ve been eyeing up the 2nd-gen Moto X but found it a little pricey, Motorola’s Cyber Monday deal may be just what you’ve been waiting for.
On 1st December, you’ll be able to pick up an off-contract model from just $359, a saving of $140. Upgrade or take out a new contract on Verizon, and you pay just one cent for the 16GB model or $50.01 for the 32GB.
Either way, you also get 30% off any accessory purchased with the phone. But you’ll only have a 6-hour window in which to register for the deal … Expand Expanding Close
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.
When you hear the word Droid, you probably think of two things: Star Wars and Android. While both items are a correct association, the latter comes with a bit of a twist. Armed with a licensing agreement with Lucasfilm, Verizon launched the Motorola Droid in the fall of 2009. To make a long story short; the device went on to become one of the first commercially successful Android smartphones, but with one small carryover. Verizon ran a very aggressive, but highly successful marketing campaign for the Motorola Droid and as a result, casual tech consumers started referring to Android phones and tablets as “Droids.”
Up until now, Verizon has typically released a few Droid-branded phones each year. But here we are at the end of 2014 and its hardware partner Motorola Mobility has been busy working on its own smartphones like the Moto X, which recently launched across multiple wireless carriers, including Verizon. With the exception of a questionable camera and a few small quirks, the former Google company’s flagship handset is truly sublime. So when Big Red and Motorola announced the Droid Turbo, we saw a device that looked to right some of the Moto X’s wrongs, at least on paper. However, is it really enough to lure us away from the phone that made us feel all warm and fuzzy just two short months ago?
Last week, Motorola began rolling out a soak test for Android 5.0 Lollipop to users of the Moto X Pure Edition, and today it appears Motorola is continuing its soak testing with the second generation Moto G. Several users have reported receiving the update already and Motorola has also published the full release notes on its website (via Android Police).
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.
When the Nexus 6 first went up for order on the Play Store, the process was anything but seamless for customers. The device sold-out almost instantly and Google’s servers took a massive hit, making it nearly impossible for anyone to get through and place an order. If you’re still looking to get your hands on a Nexus 6, however, Google this evening has announced its plans for restocking the device.
While Google confirmed the $2.9B sale of Motorola way back in January, it is only today that the last piece of paperwork was signed and the formerly American-owned Motorola officially became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chinese electronics manufacturer Lenovo.
Announcing the completion of the acquisition on the Motorola blog, the company said that its headquarters would remain in Chicago, along with its offices in Silicon Valley … Expand Expanding Close
