Well, this is a nice surprise. Motorola today announced that the Moto G is now available for purchase in the U.S., well ahead of the January 2014 release timeframe that the company previously gave. The Moto G is available with either 8GB or 16GB of storage, with no contract pricing set at $179 and $199, respectively. Orders of the Moto G are expected to begin shipping on Dec. 2.

The version of the Moto G that's launching in the U.S. today features 850/900/1800/1900MHz GSM/EDGE support as well as HSPA+ 21Mbps connectivity on the 850/1700(AWS)/1900MHz airwaves. That means that it should play nicely with both AT&T and T-Mobile. Motorola goes on to say that the CDMA version of the Moto G will launch with carrier partners in 2014. Also coming soon are the Moto G's interchangeable backs, which include Motorola Shells and Flip Shells in seven colors and Grip Shells that'll be sold in five colors.

For those that'd like a quick spec refresher, the Moto G comes packing a 4.5-inch 720p display, 5-megapixel rear and 1.3-megapixel front cameras, 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor, 1GB RAM and a 2070mAh battery. It also comes preloaded with Android 4.3 Jelly Bean, and Motorola says that an update to Android 4.4 KitKat will be made available at the beginning of 2014. All of that adds up to make a device that may not be the highest-specced phone around, but at a starting price of $179, it's one heck of a deal for anyone that's hunting for an affordable Android device. You can order a Moto G of your own by hitting up the link below. 

Via Motorola