Motorola's mysterious "X Phone" has been the subject of many rumors and leaks in recent months, but tonight the phone got a bit more real thanks to company CEO Dennis Woodside. During an interview at the D11 conference, Woodside confirmed that Motorola is working on a new device called the "Moto X."
As noted by AllThingsD and The Next Web, Woodside described the Moto X as a "hero" phone and said that it would have several sensors that are integrated with the rest of the handset's hardware. These sensors will reportedly draw little power but will be enable the phone to know what's going on around it, like when it's pulled out of a pocket or traveling in a car, and ready itself for that situation.
Woodside went on to tease that Motorola has a "handful" of devices that will launch by this October. Some of these phones will address the entry-level and middle area of the smartphone market, but Woodside said that the Moto X is meant to go head-to-head with Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy products.
Finally, the Motorola CEO revealed that his firm's new X handset will be manufactured in the U.S. The Moto X will be built inside a 500,000 square foot facility in Fort Worth, Texas, that used to manufacture Nokia hardware. Woodside went on to explain that around 70 percent of Moto X manufacturing will take place in this facility, with parts like the processors and OLED displays coming from Taiwan and Korea, respectively.
While most of the concrete details of this Moto X are still up in the air, it's good to finally have confirmation that the device does indeed exist. The fact that Woodside described it as a "hero" phone and said that it's meant to take on iPhones and Galaxy products suggests that the Moto X will be a high-end piece of kit, but we'll just have to wait for Motorola to officially unveil the thing before we know for sure. What features would you like to see included with the Moto X?
UPDATE: According to Engadget, Woodside also teased that the Moto X will be "broadly distributed" across a number of carriers. No specific operators were named.
UPDATE 2: Motorola has issued a press release concerning the Moto X, reaffirming that the device will be manufactured in Texas. Motorola explains that this will allow it to do things like iterate on its design and deliver products to consumers much faster. The company also says that the Moto X will be "available this summer."
Via AllThingsD, The Next Web, Engadget, Motorola
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