Google-Motorola "Phone X"

[onthecouchagain]

Interesting:

http://androidandme.com/2013/03/new...devices-will-have-user-customizable-hardware/



Rumor: The Motorola “X Phone” is not just one phone, it’s their new brand to compete with Samsung’s Galaxy.

Response: This makes perfect sense. Every OEM is trying to recreate what Samsung has done with the Galaxy brand, and we would be surprised if Motorola was not working on launching a new brand.

Rumor: The first Motorola “X Phone” will be released around June.

Response: Again, no surprises here. Google is holding their annual developer conference in May, and many are expecting them to announce some new Android-powered devices. If Google and Motorola reveal the first “X Phone” in May, then it could probably ship by June.

Rumor: Motorola will guarantee at least one full Android version update after the purchase of the phone. Software updates will be delivered by Motorola, and not the carrier.

Response: Google has always talked about guaranteeing updates, but we have never seen an actual program put in place. If Motorola is putting all their resources into this program, then it shouldn’t be too hard to upgrade this year’s phone to next year’s software when it comes out. We all know that carriers slow down the software update process, so it’s nice to hear that Motorola is taking them out of the picture.

Rumor: The X line of products will be sold through an “online store” and they can be ordered from carrier retail stores.

Response: I’m going to assume that the “online store” is Google Play. It makes sense for Motorola to support the Google Play store, but we think the carriers might have something to say about selling a device where they don’t control the software. Apple has managed to pull this off so it’s not impossible, but Motorola will need to offer some kind of incentive to get the carriers on board.

Rumor: Customers will be able to customize their device. They can choose the color of the device and configure some of the hardware specs like RAM and internal storage. Motorola will guarantee your custom device will be delivered in one week.

Response: This could be the WOW feature that Google was hinting at earlier this year. Google previously allowed some level of customizations with their Nexus One (you could engrave the back), but this is taking things to a new level. Most OEMs already let you choose the level of internal storage, but we think it would be awesome to have the ability to change around other hardware specs. This would allow consumers to essentially build their own phone, similar to how Dell or other companies let you build a PC.

Rumor: Customers can pre-load their own wallpapers, ringtones, apps, contacts, etc. before the device arrives.

Response: Sounds like someone is a fan of HTC Get Started.

Rumor: You can opt to unlock the bootloader and SIM lock to use the device on any carrier.

Response: I’m not sure how Motorola would technically pull this off, but Qualcomm and others are working on modems that should work on any US network.

Rumor: The first “X Phone” will be an octo-core device, with a full core dedicated to Motorola’s new human language system.

Response: Quite a few semiconductor companies are working on octo-core chips, so that’s no big surprise. Qualcomm has been demoing a new voice activation feature on their Snapdragon 800 that allows users to wake up their device with a voice command. The Snapdragon 800 is coming in the second half of the year, but it’s only a quad-core CPU, so maybe our source has the number of cores wrong.

Rumor: Motorola and Google will heavily subsidize the cost of the device to attract more customers.

Response: Google is already doing this with the LG Nexus 4 sold at $299, and we have said that we expect the trend to continue.

 

[mattopotamus]

The idea of customizing the internal specs is pretty awesome. Shipping times 1 week? That seems a little ambitious considering the iPhone 5 and nexus 4 launches. I just think that is unrealistic.

 

[jrswizzle]

Interesting:

http://androidandme.com/2013/03/new...devices-will-have-user-customizable-hardware/



Rumor: The Motorola “X Phone” is not just one phone, it’s their new brand to compete with Samsung’s Galaxy.

Response: This makes perfect sense. Every OEM is trying to recreate what Samsung has done with the Galaxy brand, and we would be surprised if Motorola was not working on launching a new brand.

Rumor: The first Motorola “X Phone” will be released around June.

Response: Again, no surprises here. Google is holding their annual developer conference in May, and many are expecting them to announce some new Android-powered devices. If Google and Motorola reveal the first “X Phone” in May, then it could probably ship by June.

Rumor: Motorola will guarantee at least one full Android version update after the purchase of the phone. Software updates will be delivered by Motorola, and not the carrier.

Response: Google has always talked about guaranteeing updates, but we have never seen an actual program put in place. If Motorola is putting all their resources into this program, then it shouldn’t be too hard to upgrade this year’s phone to next year’s software when it comes out. We all know that carriers slow down the software update process, so it’s nice to hear that Motorola is taking them out of the picture.

Rumor: The X line of products will be sold through an “online store” and they can be ordered from carrier retail stores.

Response: I’m going to assume that the “online store” is Google Play. It makes sense for Motorola to support the Google Play store, but we think the carriers might have something to say about selling a device where they don’t control the software. Apple has managed to pull this off so it’s not impossible, but Motorola will need to offer some kind of incentive to get the carriers on board.

Rumor: Customers will be able to customize their device. They can choose the color of the device and configure some of the hardware specs like RAM and internal storage. Motorola will guarantee your custom device will be delivered in one week.

Response: This could be the WOW feature that Google was hinting at earlier this year. Google previously allowed some level of customizations with their Nexus One (you could engrave the back), but this is taking things to a new level. Most OEMs already let you choose the level of internal storage, but we think it would be awesome to have the ability to change around other hardware specs. This would allow consumers to essentially build their own phone, similar to how Dell or other companies let you build a PC.

Rumor: Customers can pre-load their own wallpapers, ringtones, apps, contacts, etc. before the device arrives.

Response: Sounds like someone is a fan of HTC Get Started.

Rumor: You can opt to unlock the bootloader and SIM lock to use the device on any carrier.

Response: I’m not sure how Motorola would technically pull this off, but Qualcomm and others are working on modems that should work on any US network.

Rumor: The first “X Phone” will be an octo-core device, with a full core dedicated to Motorola’s new human language system.

Response: Quite a few semiconductor companies are working on octo-core chips, so that’s no big surprise. Qualcomm has been demoing a new voice activation feature on their Snapdragon 800 that allows users to wake up their device with a voice command. The Snapdragon 800 is coming in the second half of the year, but it’s only a quad-core CPU, so maybe our source has the number of cores wrong.

Rumor: Motorola and Google will heavily subsidize the cost of the device to attract more customers.

Response: Google is already doing this with the LG Nexus 4 sold at $299, and we have said that we expect the trend to continue.

Bazinga! This could keep me away from the GS4....

 

[onthecouchagain]

Bazinga! This could keep me away from the GS4....

I've lost a lot of faith in Google directed devices of late, but this is very interesting indeed.

I wonder what this means of the Nexus line. Will the cross over, be two separate things, will the X line take over? Many interesting things.

Quite a lot of shaking up at Google too. Andy Rubin leaving Android... Will be an interesting year.

 

[jrswizzle]

I've lost a lot of faith in Google directed devices of late, but this is very interesting indeed.

I wonder what this means of the Nexus line. Will the cross over, be two separate things, will the X line take over? Many interesting things.

Quite a lot of shaking up at Google too. Andy Rubin leaving Android... Will be an interesting year.

Aye - I would guess this will be the new "Nexus" line, though there is still plenty of talk about another LG-Nexus phone....

My Nexus 4 is nice, definitely worth the $350, but I don't think I would've used an upgrade / paid the high-end price for it.

Though, because I prefer stock android, I'm hoping Google can produce a true high-end smartphone sometime soon.....as it is, I'm considering using my September upgrade on a GS4 .....something I never thought I'd do give my general dislike for Samsung.

The HTC One, while stunning, gives me too much pause - with all the mixed reviews. I don't really trust Sony at this point and am not a fan of LG.....

If I were on Verizon, I'd probably have a droid, but alas - no droid on AT&T.

So it's the GS4 or the mystery Nexus/Motorola X phone for me this fall and an iPhone 6(?) next summer/fall!

 

[onthecouchagain]

Aye - I would guess this will be the new "Nexus" line, though there is still plenty of talk about another LG-Nexus phone....

My Nexus 4 is nice, definitely worth the $350, but I don't think I would've used an upgrade / paid the high-end price for it.

Though, because I prefer stock android, I'm hoping Google can produce a true high-end smartphone sometime soon.....as it is, I'm considering using my September upgrade on a GS4 .....something I never thought I'd do give my general dislike for Samsung.

The HTC One, while stunning, gives me too much pause - with all the mixed reviews. I don't really trust Sony at this point and am not a fan of LG.....

If I were on Verizon, I'd probably have a droid, but alas - no droid on AT&T.

So it's the GS4 or the mystery Nexus/Motorola X phone for me this fall and an iPhone 6(?) next summer/fall!

100% agree.

In the mean time, I will pick up an unlocked iPhone 5 until the S4 gets reviewed and released. Then make my decision then.

The way I see it, Apple's return policy is the most lenient, and worse comes to worse, I can sell online for some decent cash back.

The thought of going back to iOS... :/

 

[jrswizzle]

100% agree.

In the mean time, I will pick up an unlocked iPhone 5 until the S4 gets reviewed and released. Then make my decision then.

The way I see it, Apple's return policy is the most lenient, and worse comes to worse, I can sell online for some decent cash back.

The thought of going back to iOS... :/

Lol the whole dread of iOS thing is funny. I mean I don't find using my iphone 5 debilitating at all even after using a Nexus 4....guess I just don't use the phones all that differently. The customization thing is fun, but there are things about the iOS user experience that trump customization.

Ehh, to each his own....I'm having fun using both.

 

[MRU]

Not sure customising the internals is good. Biggest argument labeled towards Android is device fragmentation - surely this just exacerbates that notion.

 

[onthecouchagain]

Lol the whole dread of iOS thing is funny. I mean I don't find using my iphone 5 debilitating at all even after using a Nexus 4....guess I just don't use the phones all that differently. The customization thing is fun, but there are things about the iOS user experience that trumpcustommization.

Ehh, to each his own....I'm having fun using both.

I fear and dread the iOS keyboard. It's one of the main reasons why I left the iphone in the first place. It is dehibilating to use and I would imagine more so after getting so used to SwiftKey.

 

[MRU]

I must be the only person who doesn't like swiftkey....

Swype keyboard is better IMO and sense 4+ keyboard on the one X was good and included Skype input too.

 

[jrswizzle]

I fear and dread the iOS keyboard. It's one of the main reasons why I left the iphone in the first place. It is dehibilating to use and I would imagine more so after getting so used to SwiftKey.

Ehh I can see the advantages of the android keyboard, but for whatever reason I feel very comfortable with the iOS keyboard even after having used the 4.2 keyboard....

Gesture typing is cool....but I don't usually mess with autocorrect that much....I find correcting while I type is fine for me rather than having a choice of three words and seeing if the one I want is there.

I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I'm generally pretty accurate when I type on my iPhone and relatively fast. I haven't been a victim of any of those "autocorrect fails".

-typed on my iPhone 5

----------

I must be the only person who doesn't like swiftkey....

Swype keyboard is better IMO and sense 4+ keyboard on the one X was good and included Skype input too.

Never used it and don't see the point in spending the money when I type just fine without it.

You're not alone - though I suppose I can't say I don't like it since I've never used it.

 

[onthecouchagain]

Ehh I can see the advantages of the android keyboard, but for whatever reason I feel very comfortable with the iOS keyboard even after having used the 4.2 keyboard....

Gesture typing is cool....but I don't usually mess with autocorrect that much....I find correcting while I type is fine for me rather than having a choice of three words and seeing if the one I want is there.

I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I'm generally pretty accurate when I type on my iPhone and relatively fast. I haven't been a victim of any of those "autocorrect fails".

-typed on my iPhone 5

Try Swiftkey on your Nexus, my friend.

More important than the prediction, it's the auto correction that rocks. The prediction, in my opinion, is a little overrated. Once in a while, it does finish sentences for you, and that's truly an amazing feeling, but it's rare.

What makes Swiftkey special is it's auto correction. It just knows what you mean to type. Truly magical.

And it keeps things simple. For example, the keyboard size can be adjustable by "small, medium or large". Simple.

The only one knock of Swiftkey is the "?" and "!" placement.

 

[mattopotamus]

I must be the only person who doesn't like swiftkey....

Swype keyboard is better IMO and sense 4+ keyboard on the one X was good and included Skype input too.

I actually like the stock keyboard on the nexus 4 better than anything.

 

[dkersten]

That sounds pretty killer actually. Being able to choose internal specs/looks and carriers sounds awesome in theory but it would probably be pretty hard to do in reality.

I wonder what other products they would release under the brand name? Surely it would cover phones and tablets. I wonder if they would expand it to other products such as a watch (I think Motorola already has a watch?) and possibly in the future Google X Glass? Either way its exciting

 

[tjl3]

No they don't. Far as the phone market goes, they only make $$$ if someone uses that Android phone to access the internet and use G-services. Which is why it doesn't matter that Android is growing marketshare by becoming popular in places like China and India where people can't even afford a data plan in the first place. They make no money off those handsets and basically just gave away their OS for free. Speaking of which, you wanna know why Apple is going after the low end market, it's because they know Google is not gonna fight them for it

And they're an advertising company. They don't make money off software so you can't call them a software company. They make money off ads baked into services and the software they give out for free is just a gateway to their services. You don't use their services, they don't get paid, simple as that.

They got a monetization problem on Android. You wanna know why they paid 12 billion for Motorola, it's because they're hoping getting into the hardware business can fix it.

I suppose you can own an Android device and avoid Google services all together. But in all likelyhood most if not all Android users use at least 1 Google service.

While they generate revenue off advertising, their products are all software. Without their software services they have no such revenue. So even if they are indirectly profiting off of software, they're still a software company.

And Apple is targeting the low end b/c there is profit to be sought there, not b/c Google will just concede it to them. Its not as if Samsung, HTC, LG, etc. will just roll over and die in emerging markets.

 

[DakotaGuy]

What makes you say that? I thought I remember reading it would not actually be a nexus phone. I could see it having some motorola theming to it, but maybe just no carrier bloatware.

If the update I received to Jelly Bean on my RAZR MAXX is any indication Moto is pretty much just running stock Android at this point. Almost everything Moto has been replaced by stock Android stuff by this point.

 

[strausd]

Interesting:

http://androidandme.com/2013/03/new...devices-will-have-user-customizable-hardware/

...

So much of that just seems too good to be true. But I was disappointed with the S4 so I will likely be waiting to see what Google I/O has to offer.

 

[Liquorpuki]

I suppose you can own an Android device and avoid Google services all together. But in all likelyhood most if not all Android users use at least 1 Google service.

Not the ones who are too poor to access the internet (IE India). You also got the Android users whose governments control information (IE China) preventing Google from tracking users, making advertising services relatively useless. But Android marketshare is growing the fastest in countries like these. Which is why you look at graphs trending Android profits with marketshare growths, there's a disconnect. That's a problem

While they generate revenue off advertising, their products are all software. Without their software services they have no such revenue. So even if they are indirectly profiting off of software, they're still a software company.

They don't monetize off software. Just like Apple isn't thought of as a software company. Yeah Apple makes software but software sales account for less than 3% of their revenue and they do all sorts of funny stuff to commoditize it because they could care less about maximizing their software margins. Meanwhile the iPhone accounts for over 50% with high static margins. Which is why everyone calls Apple a hardware company.

And Apple is targeting the low end b/c there is profit to be sought there, not b/c Google will just concede it to them. Its not as if Samsung, HTC, LG, etc. will just roll over and die in emerging markets.

Right now the low end market is owned by Android phones and Nokia. Nokia doesn't have the branding clout to fight Apple. None of the Android OEM's except Samsung has the branding clout to fight Apple either (and Samsung is busy doing other stuff). And Google makes no profit off the low end market so they don't care if they lose it. As a hardware company with strong branding, it makes good sense for Apple to go after the budget phone market because they can easily take over it. The only bad thing is potential brand erosion, which may or may not happen.

 

[strausd]

Potential design cues? Video in link:

http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/13/4097778/motorola-google-phone-leak

Image

Image

I saw that on Engadget. It's basically all the hardware in the Nexus 4 packed into a 4" 720p screen and made by Motorola. It is just another one of their phones. Definitely not the X Phone.

 

[jrswizzle]

Looks like the GS4 might be falling down my list of potential Android phones this year....The phone X has risen to the top....mainly because it hasn't come out yet so we don't know whats wrong with it

Right now I'm thinking:

(1) Phone X / Nexus 5
(2) HTC One
(3) Note 3 (depending on the size....6" is TOO BIG)
(4) GS4
(5) Give up and buy the iPhone 5S

I'm wanting to do my Android upgrade this year and my iPhone upgrade next, but if the Motorola/Google phones disappoint I may just jump on the iPhone 5S and wait for 2014 Android offerings....but that's a longshot.

 

[strausd]

Looks like the GS4 might be falling down my list of potential Android phones this year....The phone X has risen to the top....mainly because it hasn't come out yet so we don't know whats wrong with it

Right now I'm thinking:

(1) Phone X / Nexus 5
(2) HTC One
(3) Note 3 (depending on the size....6" is TOO BIG)
(4) GS4
(5) Give up and buy the iPhone 5S

I'm wanting to do my Android upgrade this year and my iPhone upgrade next, but if the Motorola/Google phones disappoint I may just jump on the iPhone 5S and wait for 2014 Android offerings....but that's a longshot.

I think my list is the same as yours. Except for the Galaxy note. In that I would probably just put to keep my Nexus 4.

 

[jrswizzle]

I think my list is the same as yours. Except for the Galaxy note. In that I would probably just put to keep my Nexus 4.

Number (5) would include the "keep Nexus 4" part as it is my personal device. My iPhone 5 is a work phone (though the phone belongs to me, the plan is paid for by my job). I have two upgrades by way of my LTE iPad mini - so I figure I can upgrade one or the other each year.

(3) and (4) are interchangeable depending on the size of the Note 3

 

[charlieegan3]

I really doubt the 3000+ battery but it's certainly one to watch.

 

[strausd]

I really doubt the 3000+ battery but it's certainly one to watch.

The RAZR MAXX HD has a 3,300mAh, and that is obviously made by Motorola. Why would it be odd for them to put a similar battery in another one of their phones that would be even newer?

 

[mobilebuddha]

What if Andy is instead leading the x phone initiative?

I've lost a lot of faith in Google directed devices of late, but this is very interesting indeed.

I wonder what this means of the Nexus line. Will the cross over, be two separate things, will the X line take over? Many interesting things.

Quite a lot of shaking up at Google too. Andy Rubin leaving Android... Will be an interesting year.