Hello Moto: when are Motorola's new products coming to the UK?
Like many other phone makers at IFA this week, Motorola has shown its hand, introducing a new flagship and a revamped version of its highly-rated budget smartphone. It's even told us when its circular smartwatch will go on sale. It's unleashed the Moto X, Moto G and Moto 360 on the world, but when are they coming to the UK and how much will they cost? Let us explain.
Moto X
Yup, the Moto X is back. It has the same name, but don't worry, things have upscaled quite a bit. With a 1080p 5.2-inch AMOLED display, it's ever-so-slightly bigger than its predecessor, and it's a little weightier too. Inside you'll find Qualcomm's Snapdragon 801 processor with a 2.5GHz quad-core CPU, an Adreno 330 578MHz GPU and 2GB of RAM. There's also a 13-megapixel camera (up from the 10-megapixel sensor in the older model) and it's powered by a 2,300 mAh battery. While it runs Android 4.4 KitKat now, expect an Android L upgrade in the very near future.
Although Motorola is now owned by Lenovo, the popular Moto Maker customization service is important to its new owner as it was to Google. It's back and there's an added bonus: it's also coming to the UK. That's right, you'll now be able personalise your Moto X with a bespoke design and even deck it out in leather (if that's what excites you).
Whether you buy a ready-made 16GB Moto X from Amazon or design your own using Moto Maker, the phone will cost £419.99 when it goes on sale at the end of September. If you're looking to ramp up the quality, however, both the wood and leather options will set you back a little extra, meaning you'll pay £439.99 for your unlocked handset. The same can be said of the 32GB model, which starts at £459.99 and rises to £479.99 if you want that premium feel.
Moto G
Like the X, Motorola has also decided to stick to what it knows with the new Moto G. Given that it's Motorola's best-selling smartphone of all time, there's no reason to mess with success. Again, the company has decided to improve things a little, first by equipping the G with a bigger 5-inch 720 HD IPS display. That helps make it a touch bigger and heavier than its older sibling.
While it features the same 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor, Motorola has upgraded the G's sound output by including two front stereo speakers (up from the one rear-mounted speaker on the original) and enhanced it's photo-taking abilities with an 8-megapixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front-facer. As before, it'll come with 8GB or 16GB of internal storage and let you add more with its expandable memory slot.
With more new than old, it's reassuring to see that the new Moto G isn't going to cost much more than the original. Amazon will sell it to you for a tenner extra from today (although we're not seeing it yet), pricing it at £144.99. While you won't enjoy the delights of Moto Maker with the G, Motorola's coloured shells will be available and go on sale from October.
Moto 360
While we've got our hands on the Moto 360 before, Motorola kept specifics like release dates and pricing under wraps. We now know that the circular smartwatch will go on sale at O2, Tesco, Phone4u, Amazon and John Lewis from "early October," starting at £199. It'll ship with grey leather and black leather straps initially, but Motorola has said it will offer sleeker silver and black metallic options later this autumn.
Moto Hint
Motorola's new stylish Bluetooth headset is designed to be discreet as possible. It's so discreet that it's not even got a UK release date or price yet. While we hunt for more details, here's a photo of the Moto Hint to keep you entertained.
Steve Dent contributed to this article.
