Motorola

Motorola is sending out invitations to a media event in Chicago that will be held on September 4th. The not so subtle invite displays a picture of a watch (Moto 360), a phone with an X (maybe a Moto X+1?), a phone with a G (we’re thinking Moto G2) and a headset that’s likely some type of new wireless accessory.

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Chinese company Lenovo, which is in the process of buying the Motorola brand from Google, has reported a 23 percent year-on-year increase in first-quarter profits to $214M, reports Reuters. The company also said that worldwide phone sales were up 39 percent, in line with recent IDC numbers.

While Lenovo recently became the market leader within China, CEO Yang Yuanqing said that the company will in future be focusing on more profitable overseas markets … 
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A few weeks ago we heard that Motorola was developing Google’s next Nexus device and aside from a rumored 5.9-inch display, its specs were were pretty much unknown. Today, however, an alleged benchmark of the unannounced handset has hit the web and it tells the tale of a powerful up-and-comer. The device listed packs a smaller 5.2-inch 1440p display, a 2.6GHz quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage, a 12-megapixel rear-facing camera capable of 4K video capture, a 2-megapixel front-facing shooter and Android L.

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Motorola recently introduced an LTE-capable version of its Moto G, but it appears that an full-fledged upgrade is in the works. The follow up to Motorola’s affordable smartphone will ship with a 5-inch 720p display, a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, an Adreno 305 GPU, 1GB of RAM, an 8-megapixel rear-facing camera, a 2-megapixel front-facing shooter, 8GB of internal storage and Android 4.4.4 KitKat.

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Rumors of when we can expect a Moto X successor have been around for a while now, but now Droid Life is reporting that the device will be released on Verizon in late September. The blog claims that its sources are currently hearing that Verizon is planning to launch the device on September 25th.

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This is what the Moto 360 wireless charging dock looks like, according to Italian site Gadget.net – and it certainly looks persuasively real. Assuming you can choose to show the time as well as the charge state, the dock effectively turns the smartwatch into a bedside clock while it’s charging overnight.

The blue circle around the outside of the watch face shows the charge level. Looking at the rear of the dock, we can’t see any detail, but it’s likely that it’s some kind of USB connector … 
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It’s no secret that we were huge fans of the Moto G when it was released last fall. At under $200 and with the performance of a flagship device, it was a steal of a phone at the time. Now, two benchmarks have emerged from what is allegedly the Moto G successor. First noticed by CNET, these benchmarks peg the second-generation Moto G as having a 5-inch display, up from 4.5-inches, and a higher-resolution 8MP rear camera, up from 5MP.

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During the summer of 2013, the line-up of Google Play Edition devices grew incredibly quickly, with devices available from HTC, Motorola, Samsung, and Sony. Last month, however, the selection of devices dropped to just three: the Moto G, Galaxy S4, and HTC One (M8).  Now, this evening, Google has removed the Galaxy S4 Google Play Edition from the store without any replacement in sight.

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Over the weekend, a report was published claiming that Google and Motorola were working together on a 5.9-inch Nexus device codenamed the Shamu. This afternoon, The Information published a separate report corroborating this weekend’s source.

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The fate of Google’s Nexus line of devices has been up in the air for several months now, with LG saying it is not working on a device for it and Android Silver reportedly taking over its role. At Google I/O last month, however, Googler David Burke confirmed that the company is still heavily interested in the Nexus line of devices. Rumors have also recently circulated that HTC is working on a 9-inch Nexus tablet dubbed the Volantis. Now, Android Police is reporting that Google and Motorola are working on a device codenamed Shamu.

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[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15uIFmysZV4]

Let’s face it, when companies are interviewed at tech conferences, they talk about all kinds of crazy stuff that will never be launched – like the idea of wearing a digital tattoo to unlock your phone. Except this time, more than a year after first discussing the idea at the D11 conference last May, Motorola has actually done it and is showing it off in a new video …
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Motorola Mobility’s ownership may be stuck in regulatory limbo, but the soon to be Lenovo-owned company definitely has some handsets in its pipeline. This time around we’re looking at an unidentified Motorola device that appears to running Android L. Allegedly running on Verizon’s network, the still shots of this smartphone reveal that it’s larger than a Nexus 5, which packs a 4.95-inch display.

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Samsung, HTC and Motorola are likely to be looking a little nervously over their shoulders as Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi more than doubled its year-on-year sales. The company announced (via TNW) that it sold 26.1M phones in the first half of this year, more than it sold in the whole of 2013.

These are impressive sales for a company which sold its first smartphone just three years ago, and whose sales were initially limited to China. Its growth has been fuelled by expansion into Singapore, Malaysia, India and the Philipines, with the company now eyeing up Latin America as its next market … 
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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.

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We’ve been hearing quite a bit  recently about the upcoming Moto X+1, which is expected to be Motorola’s next flagship smartphone. Now, 9to5Google has received what appears to be a promotional render for what is said to be that device from a source we consider reliable.

While a lot of information has already been leaked about this phone, one new feature revealed by this source is the apparent inclusion of a front-facing speaker at the bottom of the phone, though the purpose for that hardware (beyond possible music playback or speakerphone support) is still uncertain.

The source says it’s possible this phone will be revealed at Google’s I/O developer conference. If that’s the case, it would make sense for promotional images to start floating around about this time as the company prepares to unveil the next-gen device.

We’ve also gotten our hands on two separate images from a second render from the same source which is embedded below:

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Motorola has been aggressively pushing its Moto X lately, but the smartphone’s rumored successor appears to be coming along. Pictured above is a purported shot of the Moto X+1 wrapped up in plastic like it was killed by a mafia hitman. Not exactly a fashion statement, the device’s operator claims that this was done to hide identifying markings on the handset.

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