From 9to5Toys.com:
Future Moto X buyers take note as Amazon just dropped the price on both AT&T and Sprint variants to match the existing $0.01 price on Verizon. The deal lacks Moto Maker customization, but that’s a small “price” to pay for the opportunity to be among the first non-Nexus Android owners to have KitKat.
Just yesterday, Motorola began rolling out Android 4.4 KitKat to the T-Mobile variant of the Moto X, which was preceded by the Verizon model earlier this week. Today, the company has announced that the AT&T variant of its flagship will be the next device to receive the update.
Motorola says that the update will begin rolling out to Moto X users on AT&T today. The update will take the device to version number 140.44.5.ghost and includes all the features expected from KitKat, including the new design and much more.
We’re still waiting for a plethora of other devices to receive the update, including the Google Edition HTC One and Nexus 10. Motorola, however, finally appears to be on top of its game, and that’s certainly a good thing.
Fresh from the Motorola Blog, it appears that Motorola will launch its first Android 4.4 KitKat update on Verizon first, with rollouts starting today. The KitKat update brings:
I say ‘unusual’ because Verizon is usually the last of the four US carriers to roll out Android updates, usually owing the increased wait to Verizon’s lengthier testing process.
Motorola and Verizon have an unusually close bond however with the Google-owned manufacturer now making all of the carrier’s Droid products as well as pioneering the Droid brand. I anticipate that other carrier versions will follow close behind.
Note that I’m still waiting on the 4.4 update to hit the Google Play edition HTC ONE, and even my Nexus 4 and 10!
I guess Google and Motorola are finally tearing down the firewall.
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Verizon Moto X owners take note as feedback from Motorola’s forums confirm the newest soak test is in fact Android 4.4 KitKat. Considering that Verizon is often the last to see a major Android update, we’re pleasantly surprised that they are moving fast to squash bugs by putting this out in a soak test.
For all the things the Moto G may be, there’s little question that the Moto G isn’t the phone for the individual who cares most about smartphone photography. With a $179 price tag, we understand some compromises will have to be made and even if a 5 megapixel camera, f/2.4 lens and flash combination are present, we know some tradeoffs are at hand in overall quality.
As I spent a good portion of the week considering the impressive move Motorola made by introducing a well-specced $179 smartphone, I realized they were doing something Nokia has been talking about doing for years. Never-mind for the moment whether Nokia should have gone all-in on Android before their risky and as-of-yet market share boosting bet on Windows Phone. In fact, I see that the thoughts I had in my head already being echoed by Stefan Constantinescu at Mobile Industry Review.
With the US being a part of the second wave of Moto G launches, we’ve now learned being in the later group has an intrinsic benefit. According to Motorola SVP Mark Randall speaking to Omio, “Wave 2, products that we ship after Christmas will start with KitKat…Wave 2 is in the US, there’s South East Asia, and other countries.”
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The Moto G news train continues this morning with the very first commercial already hitting YouTube showing off the customizable backs, display, processor, and Android 4.3 with “guaranteed upgrade.” In total, the sixty-second spot doesn’t show us a whole lot we don’t already know and only mentions “exceptional price” without mentioning the actual dollar amount.
Motorola’s Moto G announcement just ended as the company truly introduced something very aggressive and perhaps exactly what the smartphone market has needed for a very long time. There’s little question that a lot of customers are turned off by the high price of today’s smartphones and that’s exactly the mindset Motorola is aiming to change. The company hopes to convince customers that aggressive pricing featured with specs that match “high-end” smartphones don’t require a $500+ price tag.
Motorola’s Moto G announcement is going down and the company is making no bones about wanting to produce a smartphone that is affordable while providing a premium experience. Motorola has done exactly that and there’s little question they are making some aggressive moves that dare I say will be called…”game-changing.”
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Motorola’s set to kick off their Moto G announcement in just a few minutes and you can catch the stream from Sao Paulo, Brazil live on YouTube. Motorola, now a Google company will of course use YouTube for its live-streaming and we’ve got the link embedded above so keep your eyes on 9to5Google as we break down all the Moto G news.
There has been much talk of Motorola’s upcoming Moto G smartphone in recent weeks, the rumored “mini” follow up to its Moto X flagship launched earlier this year. After making a brief appearance on Motorola’s website, the company started teasing a November 13th live online announcement for the device, and now we get what look to be official specs from a German retailer already listing the Moto G.
The Phone House, a german retailer, today quickly posted and then removed a listing for the Moto G that was caught by The Unwired. On top of listing what we assume are official specs (below), it also quoted a price of £149 (approximately $235 US). That seems a little pricey to be the on-contract price for what many assume will be a budget version of the Moto X, so it could very well be the off-contract price, which compares to the $499 Motorola and carriers charge for the Moto X without a two-year contract. The Moto X currently sells for $99 on contract.
Head below for the full list of Moto G specs:
It’s no secret that Google thinks big when it comes to crazy, innovative technologies, and that appears to be just what the company is doing with its latest patent filing (via The Register). Google’s Motorola Mobility division, a year ago, filed for a patent relating to a temporary neck tattoo that can serve as a lie detector and includes a built-in microphone. It’s an incredibly out-there concept. Essentially, Motorola says you will be able to apply the tattoo with a sticky substance to your neck and wirelessly connect it to a mobile device.
The patent application suggests a couple of potential use cases. For one, Google points out that it could be used by security personnel that work undercover or in noisy environments. The application reads:
Mobile communication devices are often operated in noisy environments. For example, large stadiums, busy streets, restaurants, and emergency situations can be extremely loud and include varying frequencies of acoustic noise. Communication can reasonably be improved and even enhanced with a method and system for reducing the acoustic noise in such environments and contexts.
Google also suggests that it could be used in conjunction with a lie detector to tell when a user is speaking falsely, based on skin response.
Optionally, the electronic skin tattoo 200 can further include a galvanic skin response detector to detect skin resistance of a user. It is contemplated that a user that may be nervous or engaging in speaking falsehoods may exhibit different galvanic skin response than a more confident, truth telling individual.
Obviously this Google neck tattoo is still in the early stages of development, but it does raise some interesting questions as to what else Google is secretly working on.
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When Motorola launched its first smartphone as a Google company with the Moto X back in August, the big stand out feature for the device was the ability to apply over 2000 customizations at the time of purchase. Motorola let users pick the front, back, and accent colors, match headphone and case colors, and more all though its MotoMaker.com online ordering tool. Unfortunately, until today the MotoMaker tool was exclusive to AT&T with other carriers only selling white and black models of the Moto X.
The good news is AT&T’s exclusivity window has now officially ended and starting today you can order a customized Moto X through Moto Maker from all major US carriers including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
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Usually reliable @evleaks has struck again, with a claimed photo of Motorola’s mid-range Moto G handset, due to be launched on the 13th.
The specs are rumored to comprise a 1.2GHz Snapdragon processor, 8GB storage, 4.5-inch 720p screen and a 5MP camera. An off-contract price of £135 ($217) has been suggested in the UK, which would make the handset an appealing proposition for those who want decent specs at an affordable price.
When the clock strikes November 13th, all eyes will be on Motorola and the announcement of their upcoming Moto G. We’ve just learned via Motorola’s Twitter and G+ pages that the device will be launched from Sao Paulo, Brazil. What that might indicate is that it is a mid-range smartphone meant for global emerging markets. Sao Paulo is an unusual venue for a high-profile smartphone launch and we’re hypothesizing that means the specs won’t be blowing anyone away. The tweet from Motorola this morning informed the world of the new launch details and provided a link to a Google+ page where it’s likely more information will be released as the announcement goes down.
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Moto X fans take note as prolific mobile leaker @evleaks has indicated that the wood-based model is still very much alive. It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything out of Motorola regarding the wood units, but where there’s a will there’s a way and @evleaks is providing the goods. It was back in August that @evleaks first previewed and teased the four variants of the wood-based cover. There’s still the extra $50 cost associated with the wood and we’ll just assume that extra cost is simply the price of going up to your friends and bragging you have a “wood” smartphone.
The image itself comes from a screen-grab taken from MotoMaker and shows off Teak, Ebony, Rosewood and Bamboo wood tones. The styles are expected to arrive anytime in the fourth quarter which began at the beginning of October so any.day.now.
Oh hi there Moto G teaser page with a November 13th launch date and live announcement sign-up.
After making a brief appearance on Motorola’s website, the rumored “Mini” version of the Moto X looks set for a launch a week from this Wednesday on November 13th. Current rumors peg the upcoming device as launching with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon processor, a 5 megapixel camera and 8GB of storage. Outside of these potential specs, we’re pretty much in the dark on Motorola’s next budget smartphone.
Will it offer all the same features as the Moto X in a smaller, less expensive package? Should we spend lots of time misinterpreting the animation on the teaser page as some secret part of the device? We’ll know the answers to these questions and many more in just 9 days.
“Ok Google, set reminder for November 13th.”
via Engadget
With Android 4.4 KitKat finally officially announced, many users now begin the agonizing process of waiting for their device to receive the update. As we are all well aware off, it can take a long time for Android updates to make their way to the majority of users. Things have started to improve recently, however, and with the release of Android 4.4, several manufacturers have already announced their upgrade plans. Here’s a running list of devices already confirmed to get the udpate along with release dates:
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Motorola appears to be making a play for iPhone users, launching a tool yesterday to allow an iPhone user to easily transfer their contacts and calendars from iCloud to a Google account, ready for use on an Android phone.
The option has been added to the Moto Maker customization tool for the Moto X handset, which allows buyers to choose from 32 color combinations.
Transferring contacts and calendar appointments between platforms is, of course, nothing new: both Samsung and HTC offer tools to help import data from an iPhone. We also doubt too many iPhone users will be tempted to switch to a mid-range Android handset, even if it does come with many more color options than the iPhone 5c.
But the wording of Google’s announcement suggests it may be the first step in a more aggressive move on the iOS market by parent company Google. In his Google+ post, Motorola Mobility VP Punit Soni commented:
We added the ability to migrate your iPhone contacts and calendar to the Moto X (from Motomaker.com). There is a long way to go, but its a start…
The tool was created by Mark/Space, a company with a lengthy track-record in mobile synchronization, dating back to 2001.
Via GigaOM
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Beginning today, AT&T Moto X owners will be able to download the camera improvements that debuted a few weeks ago. According to AnandTech, this update greatly improves the quality of images taken with the Moto X camera.
There are some other improvements in this update from AT&T that focus on Touchless control accuracy, updates to Motorola Migrate and finding lost phones functionality.
Rumors of a lower-cost Moto X variant have been around for a while, but if recent FCC documentations are to be believed, the device is not too far away from being released (via Android Police). A recent revised Permissive Change filing with the FCC has revealed a couple of photos of the device, which looks nearly identical to the Moto X. The phone is referred to as the Motorola DVX and appears to have a slightly smaller screen than the Moto X, coming in between 4.3-inches and 4.5-inches.
The FCC documents show the DVX as being compatible with GSM 850/1900 bands, meaning that it lacks LTE and will work only with AT&T here in the states.
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We’ve enjoyed seeing the new iPhones get smashed to pieces in the inevitable drop tests that followed the launch of Apple’s two new smartphones this month, but what we really want to know is how it holds up against some of its Android competition. SquareTrade has just completed a durability test (via AllThingsD), and found that not only are the new iPhones not performing as well as last year’s models, the new 5s and plastic-backed 5c were both beat by Motorola’s new flagship Moto X:
“We were expecting that at least one of the new iPhone models would up its game but surprisingly, it was the Moto X that proved most forgiving of accidents,” SquareTrade marketing chief Ty Shay said in a statement. “This is the first time we’ve tested the breakability on a Motorola phone, the only phone we’ve ever tested that’s made in the USA. We were pleased to find that it withstood our drop, slide and dunk test with only the slightest dent. It looks like Google is giving Apple and Samsung a run for their money.”
The new iPhones did, however, beat out Samsung’s Galaxy S4, which was also included in the durability test.
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Normally available for around $600 unsubsidized, Republic Wireless announced today that it will soon begin offering the Moto for just $299. That’s the carrier’s no contract price and just $100 more than most carriers are charging for the device on the usual two-year contract:
The Moto X will retail at $299 (plus taxes and surcharges) from the Republic Wireless store. That’s right – we took the hot, new Moto X, added Republic’s great Hybrid service and priced it at $299 with no contract required. That’s a price that’s, like, impossible to match anywhere in the industry. How did we do it? The phone is $299 because we are footing the bill. Period. This is NOT a $299 phone. Take a quick look around the web and look at “no contract” pricing for the Moto X.
The device will be available on two of the carrier unlimited plans that start at just $5 a month, but customers will have the following plans to choose from:
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