The Motorola Moto X will be coming to India and Australia in a few Weeks
When the Motorola Moto X was first launched, it showed itself to be a tantalizingly different device than anything on the market at that time, but probably the greatest shame at that time was the fact that the Moto X would only be sold in Motorola‘s native America. While the Moto X has made its way to the U.K. between then and now, Motorola has been relatively quiet regarding plans to launch the Moto X anywhere else in the world, until today. Motorola tweeted earlier today that it plans to start selling the Moto X in India and Australia within a few weeks, and hopefully this is a sign that the Moto X may see its way to many other corners of the world in the future.
Despite the Moto X’s relatively pedestrian hardware specifications, Motorola’s mobile smarts allowed it to create a device that challenged every other flagship device in speed during day-to-day use as well as introducing voice-command centric software that showed us a way to use Google Now never seen before. Unfortunately, it never sold as well as its innovations might suggest, probably the reason why it has taken so long to leave American shores, however now that Motorola is backed by Lenovo, perhaps it now has the backing to get the Moto X the sales it deserves.
If you live in India or Australia, are you excited to hear that the Moto X is finally making it over the Pacific Ocean? Let us know if you are going to get one in the comments.
Source: Twitter via Phone Arena
We’ll be
Pictures leak of the Motorola-made Google smartwatch that might have been
You may not have to wait until later this year to see a smartwatch from Google or Motorola — in fact, you may be looking at a jointly developed watch right now. Android Police claims to have photos of Motorola-built prototype wristwear from 2013, nicknamed Gem, that was intended as an official Google device. The gadget runs Android and includes both dedicated controls for fitness and voice commands. It also mentions a “3 Bit mode” that may have been meant to save battery life by reducing the on-screen color palette. Unfortunately, it’s not clear whether we’ll ever see a finished version of Gem as we know it. The watch would likely need changes before it shipped, and Lenovo’s acquisition of Motorola’s phone business casts doubts on the whole project. If you’re only looking for a possible peek at Google’s early watch strategy, though, you’ll get your fill at the source link.
Filed under: Wearables, Google
Source: Android Police
Moto takes to Twitter for Q&A, Moto X successor coming ‘late summer’ and more
Motorola isn’t showing off any new devices at Mobile World Congress 2014 in Barcelona this week, but the company made a few announcements in the form of a Q&A on Twitter today.
Among the news was that the successor to its Moto X flagship smartphone is coming this year in ‘late summer.’ Still owned by Google at the time, Motorola released the Moto X in August 2013, so it’s due for a refresher. Motorola said to stay tuned for more details about the upcoming smartphone.
Other news is that it is bringing a smartwatch to market this year that addresses ”consumer issues like style & battery life” and Moto Maker will be rolling out to Western Europe and Mexico in Q2 2014.
It’s sure to be a big year for the now Lenovo-owned company, that’s all we have to say.
via Twitter[1], Twitter[2], Twitter[3]
The post Moto takes to Twitter for Q&A, Moto X successor coming ‘late summer’ and more appeared first on AndroidGuys.
New Moto X and Smartwatch Confirmed, MotoMaker Headed to More Countries
Looks like a simple Q&A at Mobile World Congress with Motorola executives about the state of Motorola after the news that Lenovo would be attempting to acquire, them turned into quite a bit of other news. The panel consisted of Rich Osterloh, Steve Horowitz, and Mark Randall, and they were ready to talk about plenty of other things.
During the Q&A it came out that a new Moto X will arrive “late” summer 2014. This seemingly confirms the information that one of our sources proved that a new flagship Motorola phone wouldn’t be seen until late Q3. Along with the next Moto X, they also revealed that they are indeed working on a smartwatch that will be released later this year. No specifics were mentioned.
It isn’t all that surprising that there is another Moto X in the works. It is still a highly sought after device and one that is loved immensely by end users. What would they need to do to make the next one even better? Well, we know that Google kept Project Ara, the module building device building blocks. So that is out. Lenovo of course has some pretty spectacular little bits of tech that could make its way over all while keeping the basic stock-ish Android approach with the added benefits of what Motorola did with the current Moto X. I wouldn’t mind seeing two variants. A 5-inch version and another 4.7-inch version. We will just have to wait and see what they are doing in a few months.
The smartwatch side of things is a whole different story. If they take the same customizing approach to it as Moto Maker does, it could be pretty interesting. Of course it will all rest on what direction they take things. Rick Osterloh made a statement regarding the smartwatch, “We are working on a watch that will be available this year. We aim to address consumer issues like style & battery life.” Battery life is big one. The new Galaxy Gear 2 upped their battery life to 3 days from 1.5. Where as we have the Martian Notifier battery at 5 days and the Cogito hitting 1 year. Varying degrees of smartwatch approaches of course. One thing I personally don’t want to see is a proprietary watch that is only compatible with Motorola devices, but I am sure that is exactly what will happen.
The last bit of great news to come from the Q&A session was aimed at Moto Maker its self. The guys confirmed that the customizing ordering tool will be launching in Europe in Q2. Specifically the UK and Germany to start and then will expand. Droid-Life also mentions Mexico.
Not a bad little Q&A after all.
Source: Engadget via Droid-Life
img: Laptopmag
Motorola confirms Moto Maker service coming to Europe in Q2, starting in the UK and Germany
We’ve seen and heard plenty from most of the main players here at MWC, but one company has remained eerily quiet, until now. Motorola’s situation has changed significantly in recent weeks, and that change of plans has taken attention away from hardware releases, and back onto how it plans to reinvent itself post-Google. But, there is news. Rick Osterloh, SVP Product Management has just announced that its popular Moto Maker service will be coming to Europe in Q2. First in the UK and Germany, but more countries to follow. Mark Randall, SVP Supply Chain & Operations also revealed that while its Texas plant will continue to handle the US side, they are exploring options for Europe. This could involve a mix of local sourcing, or order merging with standard orders from Chine. At the very least, if you weren’t happy with the default color options it launched with, there’s hope for you yet!
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile
Motorola: ‘We’re working on (another) a watch too’
Well, well well. Guess who’s back in the watch game? Motorola. Of course, it already did the watch thing, but Rick Osterloh, SVP of product at the firm, has just confirmed that the company is working on another smart watch, and it will be coming in the next few months. At a press conference at MWC, Osterloh commented that the problem with current watches is that no one wants to wear them (hear that Samsung?), and it’s a problem they are tackling head on. It also might not just be another straight up sports watch this time, with Osterloh asserting that “it’ll solve some real user problems.” Good looks and brains? Surely not.
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile
How would you change Motorola’s RAZR i?
Here’s how it is: Intel is king of the PC hill, but in smartphones and tablets, you’re more likely to be using an ARM chip. For a tech behemoth to be beaten by a tiny firm in Cambridge is unacceptable, so Intel started cranking out mobile chips to redress the balance. For the Droid RAZR i, Motorola scooped out the guts of the RAZR M in favor of Intel’s Medfield chip and an “Intel Inside” sticker on the back. When we reviewed it, we found that it was fine at meeting similar mid-range devices head on, but that was about it. But what about you, gentle readers? What did you think? Why not head over to the forum and share your experiences with this device.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Google
Source: Engadget Forums
The future is awesome with Google’s Project Tango
When Google recently sold Motorola to Lenovo, it kept the vey best part of the company for itself, the Advanced Technology and Projects group, which is working on the ambitious Project Ara modular smartphone.
On Thursday, Google announced another project that the group has been busy with, known as Project Tango, a smartphone that, of course, runs Android and can map the world around it, creating detailed indoor maps.
The team said that over the past year it has been working with universities, research labs, and industrial partners in nine countries around the world “to harvest research from the last decade of work in robotics and computer vision” and has been scaling that down into an advanced, unique smartphone.
Project Tango is capable of learning the dimension of rooms and spaces just by being moved around inside of them, whether it be your living room or bedroom. It then creates a map that could allow Google to offier precise directions to any point. You can think of this as Google Maps on steroids.
The project takes into account that humans live in a 3D world and that the physical world should not end at the boundaries of our smartphone screens.
While the technology is in the very early stages, it could potentially help millions of people around the world such as those that are visually impaired by helping them navigate an unfamilar area, in addition to fun and games with augmented reality turning your living room into “a little game world.”
Google is accepting applications for 200 devices it has available to distribute to developers who want to build applications, games, and algorithms. It was also noted that since it runs Android, it includes development APIs to provide position, orientation, and depth data to standard Android applications written in Java, C/C++, as well as the Unity Game Engine. The smartphones are still early prototypes, so algorithms and APIs are still being developed, and this not a final shipping product. Google plans to have all of the devices distribued by March 14, so if you’re an interested incorporated entity or institution, you better get your application in soon.
via +SundarPichai, Project Tango
The post The future is awesome with Google’s Project Tango appeared first on AndroidGuys.
Lenovo CEO: Motorola will be profitable in a “couple of quarters”
Lenovo has been making the headlines with their recent acquisition of Motorola Mobility from Google for $2.91 billion. Needless to say, investors in Lenovo are somewhat concerned given Google’s posted loses with the company since its acquisition, but Lenovo’s Chief Executive Yang Yuanqing and Chief Financial Officer Wong Waiming took part in an interview with the Wall Street Journal.
On the topic of turning around an unprofitable business, Yang said that they have already identified areas where they can cut expenses due to the significant economies of scale that the Motorola acquisition will give Lenovo.
When we complete the acquisition, from day one, we can start working on those cost synergies. Most likely it will take a couple of quarters to turn around the Motorola business. But I definitely believe we can have a profitable business over time.
Yang was also very vocal in stating that they plan to fully utilise the Motorola brand to build more products and take advantage of Lenovo’s vast operational resources.
Lenovo seem very confident that they can turn Motorola’s steep losses around and keep it from hurting the Lenovo brand.
For the short term, it could have a certain negative impact on our performance. But for the long term, I think this acquisition will be good for our shareholders and for the future of Lenovo.
Lenovo seem to know what they’re doing here, and despite investors not being completely comfortable with their vision, the CEO and CFO certainly seem to know how they will utilise Motorola.
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below – is it a good acquisition for Lenovo?
The post Lenovo CEO: Motorola will be profitable in a “couple of quarters” appeared first on AndroidGuys.
HTC M8 Shows its Thin Bezels! Galaxy S5 Render Leaked? – The ManDroid Show
Happy Friday my nerd friends. TIme for that video portion of our website. Some more HTC M8 images arose from the interwebs. A strange little Galaxy S5 render has been circulating through the web that is most likely a nifty Photoshop job. Won’t be long now until we actually see these new flagship phones.
News Topics
HTC M8 images
HTC M8 render
Galaxy S5 render
LG G Pro official
Dennis Woodside leaves Motorola for Dropbox
AIVAnet 