Motorola
has refreshed its smartphone lineup, introducing new versions of Moto X
and Moto G smartphones. While the new Moto G is more of an evolutionary
upgrade, the next-generation Moto X brings with it a number of radical
changes. In fact, it won't be wrong to say that it's a completely new
phone and not just an iterative upgrade.
We got our hands on the new Moto X and felt it has the potential to be one of the top contenders if there's ever a contest for the best designed Android smartphone. The new Moto X looks much more premium compared to the original Moto X thanks to its all-aluminium frame. Despite sporting a larger, 5.2-inch display, the new Moto X doesn't feel cumbersome to hold and fits nicely in your hands. The narrow bezel and the smooth tapering towards the edges accentuate the phone's design. The AMOLED panel also gets credit for the seamless black glass look at the front. It has two front speaker outlets, but they are subtle unlike the new Moto G's chrome grilles.
The back of the Moto X is slightly curved and the back panel (non removable) will also be available in genuine leather and wood finish in addition to the standard black/white option.
The rear features a slightly recessed Motorola logo and the 13MP camera which is surrounded by a unique ring-shaped flash.
The right edge features metallic keys for power and volume rocker controls and offer good tactile feedback. The 3.5mm headset jack sits at the top while the micro-USB port is placed at the bottom edge. All in all, it won't be wrong to say that the new Moto X looks and feels like a premium version of its predecessor.
The new Moto X features a 5.2-inch full-HD AMOLED display that looks really bright and vibrant, and offers excellent viewing angles.
Thanks to the narrow bezel, it looks bigger than it actually is and dominates the front panel. The display is protected with a Coring Gorilla Glass 3 coating. Touch sensitivity felt great and the panel responded to the slightest of touches.
With the original Moto X, Motorola tried to prove that it's not just the hardware specifications, but the user experience that mattered the most. However, with the new version of the phone, Motorola doesn't want to leave any stone unturned. The new Moto X boasts of high-end hardware specifications. It is powered by a 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor and 2GB RAM.
In India, the phone will be available in the 16GB storage version and unfortunately, it doesn't come with a microSD card slot. This means you'll have to live with the limited internal storage despite the high price you pay for it.
The new Moto X has a 2300mAh battery and Motorola claims it lasts an entire day. We'll be able to confirm if it lives upto expectations when we get the phone for a review. In our short hands-on time with the phone, we did not find any lag or stutter while launching and switching between apps, and navigating across the home screens.
Motorola has bumped up the rear camera sensor to 13MP (F2.25) from 10MP and has put a unique ring-shaped flash for softer lighting. The camera is capable of recording video in 4K resolution. Pictures taken at the venue turned out well with little or no noise.
The front-facing camera sports a 2MP sensor. In the selfie era, it's acceptable but not that great. Selfies shot at the venue had good amount of detail, but were grainy due to less light. We'll only be able to comment on the camera after using the phone for a few days.
Coming to software, the new Moto X runs a near-stock version of Android 4.4 KitKat and the company has promised that it will get the upcoming Android L update. The phone comes with Motorola's Migrate and Assist software tools.
The original Moto X is known for its special features, namely, Active display and Touchless control. The two features have been updated to support more functions.
The voice prompt can now be customised to your liking if you don't like the standard 'Ok Google' prompt. It also supports additional commands and even actions for third party apps like WhatsApp, YouTube and Facebook. We were not able to test this feature due to connectivity issues. Touchless control now supports a wide range of gestures, including waving your hand to get a peek at your notifications or even silence the ringer.
So is the new Moto X worth a buy? We'll need to spend more time with the phone to arrive on a conclusion but we were impressed with the phone after our brief hands-on session. It looks like a good upgrade for existing Moto X users and will rival the likes of the Nexus 5.
Having said that, the pricing will also play a big role. Currently, the new Moto X costs $499 in the US which roughly turns out to be Rs 30,000. With Xiaomi and OnePlus all set to release their flagship devices in India, Motorola will have to price the phone competitively if to wants to succeed. However, it's highly unlikely that the company will sell the phone below its US price. The new Moto G priced at $179.99 (Rs 10,800 approximately) in the US sells at Rs 12,999 in India.
We got our hands on the new Moto X and felt it has the potential to be one of the top contenders if there's ever a contest for the best designed Android smartphone. The new Moto X looks much more premium compared to the original Moto X thanks to its all-aluminium frame. Despite sporting a larger, 5.2-inch display, the new Moto X doesn't feel cumbersome to hold and fits nicely in your hands. The narrow bezel and the smooth tapering towards the edges accentuate the phone's design. The AMOLED panel also gets credit for the seamless black glass look at the front. It has two front speaker outlets, but they are subtle unlike the new Moto G's chrome grilles.
The back of the Moto X is slightly curved and the back panel (non removable) will also be available in genuine leather and wood finish in addition to the standard black/white option.
The rear features a slightly recessed Motorola logo and the 13MP camera which is surrounded by a unique ring-shaped flash.
The right edge features metallic keys for power and volume rocker controls and offer good tactile feedback. The 3.5mm headset jack sits at the top while the micro-USB port is placed at the bottom edge. All in all, it won't be wrong to say that the new Moto X looks and feels like a premium version of its predecessor.
The new Moto X features a 5.2-inch full-HD AMOLED display that looks really bright and vibrant, and offers excellent viewing angles.
Thanks to the narrow bezel, it looks bigger than it actually is and dominates the front panel. The display is protected with a Coring Gorilla Glass 3 coating. Touch sensitivity felt great and the panel responded to the slightest of touches.
With the original Moto X, Motorola tried to prove that it's not just the hardware specifications, but the user experience that mattered the most. However, with the new version of the phone, Motorola doesn't want to leave any stone unturned. The new Moto X boasts of high-end hardware specifications. It is powered by a 2.5GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor and 2GB RAM.
In India, the phone will be available in the 16GB storage version and unfortunately, it doesn't come with a microSD card slot. This means you'll have to live with the limited internal storage despite the high price you pay for it.
The new Moto X has a 2300mAh battery and Motorola claims it lasts an entire day. We'll be able to confirm if it lives upto expectations when we get the phone for a review. In our short hands-on time with the phone, we did not find any lag or stutter while launching and switching between apps, and navigating across the home screens.
Motorola has bumped up the rear camera sensor to 13MP (F2.25) from 10MP and has put a unique ring-shaped flash for softer lighting. The camera is capable of recording video in 4K resolution. Pictures taken at the venue turned out well with little or no noise.
The front-facing camera sports a 2MP sensor. In the selfie era, it's acceptable but not that great. Selfies shot at the venue had good amount of detail, but were grainy due to less light. We'll only be able to comment on the camera after using the phone for a few days.
Coming to software, the new Moto X runs a near-stock version of Android 4.4 KitKat and the company has promised that it will get the upcoming Android L update. The phone comes with Motorola's Migrate and Assist software tools.
The original Moto X is known for its special features, namely, Active display and Touchless control. The two features have been updated to support more functions.
The voice prompt can now be customised to your liking if you don't like the standard 'Ok Google' prompt. It also supports additional commands and even actions for third party apps like WhatsApp, YouTube and Facebook. We were not able to test this feature due to connectivity issues. Touchless control now supports a wide range of gestures, including waving your hand to get a peek at your notifications or even silence the ringer.
So is the new Moto X worth a buy? We'll need to spend more time with the phone to arrive on a conclusion but we were impressed with the phone after our brief hands-on session. It looks like a good upgrade for existing Moto X users and will rival the likes of the Nexus 5.
Having said that, the pricing will also play a big role. Currently, the new Moto X costs $499 in the US which roughly turns out to be Rs 30,000. With Xiaomi and OnePlus all set to release their flagship devices in India, Motorola will have to price the phone competitively if to wants to succeed. However, it's highly unlikely that the company will sell the phone below its US price. The new Moto G priced at $179.99 (Rs 10,800 approximately) in the US sells at Rs 12,999 in India.
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