Very exciting news today in the mobile industry, if I do say so myself! Here I was, reading up on mobile news and lo and behold the fabled Moto X, Google X, Whatever X phone you want to call it has actually come to fruition. It’s happening, guys. This thing isn’t a myth anymore - it’s actually going to happen!
The rumors surrounding the device have been in circulation for months (and months, and months…) and honestly, I had almost completely given up on it. Many devices that start out as rumors often remain as rumors, and rumors alone; but Motorola has come in from the left field during D11 and Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside graciously tells us a little bit about what we can expect from this flagship device.
Let’s discuss!
The first thing I would like to bring up is that a lot of these features are vaguely described – we sort of know what to expect, which makes me wary of coming up with rumors on exactly what they mean. Especially because I have a tendency to be very, very wrong (which isn’t so bad when I’m wrong for all the right reasons, i.e. expecting HTC to set themselves up for failure with the One when they’ve done very well given their resources) but I digress. Since they have given us some details, I’d like to at least touch base with them a little bit.
The first thing I read was that the Moto X is being built in a factory in Texas, making it the first smartphone to be built right here in the good ol’ US of A. I’m excited at the hope that this will provide a few more good jobs for American citizens in the economy that we are slowly rebuilding. The phone will be about 70% American-made, as different parts of the phone will be imported from the help of countries like Taiwan, Korea, and more. As the first smartphone to be primarily American-made, I wish it the best of luck in its production and hope to see great quality come of it.
Speaking of great quality, another intriguing quote from Mr. Woodside during his interview came off as very Google-esque: According to The Verge, Woodside mentioned that, “… one of the areas Motorola sees as promising is in high-quality, low-cost devices.” Sounds almost like they’re working on the next Nexus line, but I wouldn’t place any bets on this device turning up to actually be featured as the next Nexus. Not to mention, Motorola arguably has the skin that’s closest to stock Android over any other manufacturer, so even if it doesn’t turn out to run stock Android it’s not that big of a turn off. Regardless, at least we can kind of anticipate a premium device that’s also cost-effective.
And quite frankly, the little details we’re getting about this phone makes it seem like it is very much aiming to be as "premium" as possible, with Woodside stating that it would be in direct competition with devices like the Galaxy and the iPhone lineup.
There are some peculiar features that stand out about this future device, one of which sounds sort of eerie once you think about it, but is also my favorite quote: “… we know when it's in your pocket, we know when it's in your hand, it's going to know when you want to take a picture and fire up the cameras.” Sounds futuristic, but no real details on what it really means. The article from The Verge even says that the phone will know when you’re in your car. Creepy or cool? Maybe a little of both.
I really hope that the music played at whatever launch event is hosted for this phone consists of “Every Breath You Take” by The Police and “Somebody’s Watching Me” by Rockwell.
But I digress.
One of the last main components of the article also mentions that Larry Page, co-founder of Google, has put a lot of focus on breakability and battery life in the new Motorola device – which is practically music to my ears. Despite always putting a case on my phone, you can’t go wrong with a little extra armor added in to the phone itself – you know, in case whatever perils it endures ends up hitting that Achilles’ heel that every device has. I’m also keen for extra battery life, even if that means sacrificing a lighter, thinner phone.
There’s still a lot of details being spared about the device, but I’m sure more will surface for us to cover in the following months up until its release in the summer, which Motorola has confirmed. Nonetheless, it’s an exciting time for us in the mobile industry now that we know that the Moto X is a real thing. I know I'm pretty jazzed about it, and it sounds like "multiple carriers" are also pretty jazzed about it, which hopefully means the whole carrier exclusive thing is really starting to phase out. Hopefully.
Readers, what are your thoughts on this first peek into what the Moto X has in store for us? Are you excited for the device, or have you already got your heart set on another? What would you like to see from the device? Share your thoughts with me in the comments below!
Images via AndroidSpin