Motorola has updated their hugely popular Moto X flagship Android smartphone, which has gotten several changes except the name. The soon to be Lenovo owned company has brought in a bigger, beefier and obviously better version of the Moto X which should help Motorola to increase the desirability quotient of their flagship phone considerably. Before we get into the details, we must mention that it starts at only $99.99 on-contract and $499.99 (£419.99) unlocked.
Now let's dive into the details, starting with that screen. To be honest, it's not that much bigger than the old one; the 5.2-inch AMOLED display, still in Corning Gorilla Glass, is only roughly half an inch wider than last year's X. But now it sports a 1080p display instead of a 720p one, which makes it a touch more pleasing to the eye. The screen takes up almost the entirety of the phone's face, leaving just a bit of bezel on the bottom and the top, so it gives the illusion of a much larger display. To make room for the larger screen, the phone itself is also just a hair bigger -- it measures 72.4mm wide by 140.8mm tall and it weighs about 144 grams. The new Moto X retains the curved back from the original, but with a slightly slimmer width -- arching from 3.8mm at its thinnest to 9.9mm -- that still cradles nicely in the hand.
The phone has a much better and more premium looks than its predecessor. It now comes with an aluminum frame which wraps around the sides, and doubles up as the antenna as well. As before, the back cover is completely customizable. Motorola has introduced a new leather back option which comes in four varieties – Natural, Cognac, Black and Navy. Additionally, Moto Maker also now lets you add metal accents to power and volume buttons, speaker grills and the Motorola logo on the back. The dimple on the back remains intact.
Above that logo is an updated 13-megapixel camera (it was a 10-megapixel unit on the old one) with 4x zoom and a ring flash, which Motorola says will result in softer lighting. We'll need some time to test the camera a little more, but right now we know that it can capture 4K video instead of just 1080p and it's also got a new feature called Best Shot. It essentially maintains a rolling photo cache in the background, constantly capturing additional shots before and after a photo is taken. An algorithm then analyzes those photos to find what it thinks is the "best shot," filtering out blurry shots or pics of people blinking. You're then free to choose the selected shot or opt for your original image instead. Another new camera feature is the "Highlight Reel," which essentially compiles all of your day's photos and videos into a single video collage.
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.
The Android version continues to be near stock, with couple of Motorola specific apps thrown in, which includes Moto Assist and Moto Migration tools. The ever so popular active commands has got a major improvement as well. Instead of saying “OK Google”, you can use custom commands to wake up the display and there are some additional commends like “Take a selfie” which activates the front-facing camera along with a countdown timer so you never have to press a button.
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.