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American redux: Apple, Motorola, Lenovo and the pulse of stateside manufacturing
Google introduced the Nexus Q close to a year ago. It was an intriguing device with a standout design, but its high asking price and limited functionality meant it wasn't long before the Q was pulled from virtual shelves. A peculiar product and, perhaps, a cautionary tale, but the sphere was also interesting for another reason: it was manufactured in the USA. That credential is a rarity, and in the consumer technology business, almost an anomaly. It's fast becoming a lot more common, however, with some big players setting up a stateside manufacturing presence. Awareness of the potential advantages of doing so can only increase, and serve to debunk the myth that future technology can't be built on American soil. After flirting with the idea, then committing to build a computer in the US, Apple chose its redesigned Mac Pro for assembly in the states. Lenovo has a PC production facility up and running in North Carolina, and Google-owned Motorola will be putting together its next flagship, the Moto X, in Texas. Time will tell whether other companies will follow suit, and to what extent, but if the arguments in favor of US manufacturing hold up, we could see the trend sustained in the long term, leading to many more gadgets bearing a US birthmark.
Made in the USA: Four stories in four days
Over the past two years, the United States has seen a return to American manufacturing by some of the biggest names in tech. In 2012, Google introduced the ultimately failed Nexus Q, while Apple's Tim Cook teased an American-made Mac. One year later, Lenovo cut the ribbon on a new plant in North Carolina; Motorola announced plans for a Made in the USA flagship; and Apple made good on Cook's promise with its latest Mac Pro. However, even with President Barack Obama backing a return to American production and moves from big players like Apple and Google, the fear of skilled labor shortages persists. In the lead-up to July 4th, we'll bring you four stories in four days that explore what innovation in the United States looks like today and what that means for you. In our first installment, Jason Hidalgo sits down with theoretical physicist Michio Kaku to talk about the dangers of a Silicon Valley brain drain and building the Death Star. On day two, Darren Murph takes a tour of Babcock Ranch, the once-hopeful site of "America's most sustainable city." On day three, we'll bring you Jamie Rigg's look at tech's reshoring efforts. And on the Fourth, Brian Heater will explore how one non-profit harnessed the power of big names like Bill Gates and Jack Dorsey to help bring coding to classrooms nationwide. For more from the field and the factory floor, keep it locked here as we explore what it means to be Made in the USA. Future Soldier: Michio Kaku A Green Dream Deferred American Redux Coding is Fundamental . . . .
Motorola's new smartphone leaked, reportedly being tested on Sprint 4G
That long-teased Motorola X phone might be approaching an official release, if you believe what you're staring at above. Phone Arena says it received the glare-heavy photo from a source that's testing it for Sprint's LTE network. We've already seen official FCC documents pointing to a Now Network future for the Motorola smartphone, while other filings tally with the shape of the device seen here. Aside from a first look at the device sans hardware-disguising casing, there's nothing more to cement rumored specs, although it appears that it will arrive with a screen around the 4.5- to 4.7-inch region -- a size that's suddenly starting to look pretty middle-of-the-road.
Editor's Letter: Windows 8 gets its start back
In each issue of Distro, Editor-in-chief Tim Stevens publishes a wrap-up of the week in news. There are times when you need to stay strong, ignore the criticism and do what you know is right. Then, there are some times when the masses are right and listening is the smart thing. With Windows 8, Microsoft made many radical changes, not the least of which being the deletion of the fabled Start button. This week we got our first taste of that operating system's first major update, Windows 8.1, and it includes a number of notable upgrades and improvements. Perhaps the most notable? The return of a Start button. Well, sort of. It's now called a "Start Tip" as it isn't a proper button, but you can click on it and bring up the tiled Start Screen interface. So, the Start button is back, but not the Start menu. That's fine by me, as I don't think hidden, contextual elements make much sense in a keyboard-and-mouse environment. And the other tweaks are nice, including a far more comprehensive Settings section, a functional lock screen and, finally, the ability to adjust the size of applications that you've snapped to either side of your screen. Maybe in Windows 8.2 we'll get fully resizable windows!
Motorola's next flagship phone is called Moto X, will be built in former Nokia plant in Texas
Outside of possible FCC filings, Motorola has largely been coy about just what its next major smartphone will be -- until now. The firm's Dennis Woodside just revealed at D11 that the new flagship will be called Moto X (previously rumored as the X Phone), and that it will be built in a Fort Worth, Texas factory that was once used to make Nokia phones. Woodside isn't giving away many details at this stage, although he teases that the smartphone will "know what you want to do before you do." Oh, and he has a Moto X in his pocket... not that he's about to show us anything just yet, of course. If you're curious about Woodside's actual quote, it's below: "It'll be the first Motorola smartphone built in the United States. It'll be built in Texas -- we'll employ around 2,000 people. It's right outside of Fort Worth in a 500,000 square foot facility that was previously used to build Nokia phones." Update: Woodside had two extra nuggets while on stage -- he mentioned that the Moto X will be "broadly distributed" across numerous carriers, a rarity for Motorola smartphones in recent years. Specifically, he noted: "The Moto X is going to be broadly distributed -- that's a first for Motorola in a number of years. The support of the carriers has been fantastic." In other words, this won't be a Nexus device, and you can count on some amount of skinning and bloatware to muddle things up. On the issue of battery life, Woodside said: "I'll save the details for later, but [the industry issue of] battery life is a huge problem. Motorola has some of the world's best engineers and systems designers who spend their lives on that problem. There are two processors in the device that creates a system that allows you to do such a thing." Two processors, you say? Fascinating! Update 2: The Moto X should arrive in late summer. Also, a reminder: Motorola mentioned a shift toward stock Android coming later this year. While there isn't any guarantee that the Moto X will embrace that philosophy, it would be a fitting poster child.
Latest Motorola leak suggests company will make good on promises of stock Android
Motorola's been talking up its phones in the pipeline as of late, which are said to feature stock Android, broader carrier availability and less bloatware. We first saw hints of such a device from a leak in Vietnam, but now @evleaks has weighed in with a stock Android smartphone that looks eerily familiar -- although this time, it's in a black box. What's to gain from the latest peek? First of all, it's plain as day that the phone in question is for AT&T, which features the carrier's name in the top left corner, its unique LTE logo in the top right and a bundled myAT&T app. Granted, it's not much of a surprise that Motorola is giving carriers some sway in the development of its smartphones, but given the latest leak, it seems that some of the more egregious customizations and bloat might stay on the sidelines. As for the back of the device, with a label that reads "XFON," well, we'll leave that to your interpretation.
Unannounced Motorola Android phone surfaces, isn't the fabled 'X phone' (video)
The fine folks at Tinhte have gotten their mitts on a Motorola-made Android phone that hasn't made its official debut. Right out of the gate, the outlet notes that it's not the rumored "X phone" since it's missing a large, stunning screen that would rival other flagship gear, but the specs still give it a fair amount of horsepower. Behind the device's roughly 4-inch 720p screen hide a Snapdragon S4 Pro (or better), an Adreno 320 GPU, 2GB of RAM and a 2,000mAh battery. On the outside, the smartphone sports a curved back reminiscent of the HTC One, a black finish and a thin bezel framing its display. Tinhte reports that the handset carries a XT912A model number, so we reckon it could be a cousin of the Droid RAZR, which is labeled as the XT912. Hit the jump for a video tour of the device, or click the source link for a full photo gallery.
