Guest Xamination by Andrew Clausen for TechXaminer (@guruandrew)
Moto X (Verizon): the “mid-range” phone that isn’t so mid
I’ve seen reviews that have thrown around “iPhone killer” and “the best Android phone ever” and other hyperbolic phrases that hype Motorola’s Moto X up--you sites know who you are. But I’m not going to do that because frankly, that cheapens what the Moto X is.
The Moto X is a phone that helps you with everyday needs and predicts what you are doing and acts based on that. Truly, it is a phone that actually tries to make your life easier.
Now, that’s not to say it’s JARVIS from Iron Man or anything like that, but it’s good at what it does.
Specs
Before we talk about any of the pros of the Moto X, let’s talk about what people are calling the phone’s biggest con: specs.
It has a Qualcomm MSM8960Pro Snapdragon that is dual-core and clocked at 1.7 GHz. It also has an Adreno 320 GPU to help with graphics. It also has 2GB of RAM. That may not look like a whole lot on paper, but this phone is fast, make no mistake. It runs as smooth as any phone on the market and with the added GPU, it runs games pretty smoothly as well.
Android really just doesn’t need a souped up quad-core beast, at least not yet.
Screen
The second big con: its screen.
The Moto X comes with “only” a 720p AMOLED screen. Sucks right?
No! Are you kidding? What in the hell do you need 1080p for on a 5-inch screen? The difference is pretty much indiscernible to the human eye at that size. Just like on the other end, you can’t see the benefits of 4K resolution below 60-inches, so why buy it?
Now, if you want to debate why AMOLED isn’t as good as other technologies, then alright. I won’t argue with you. But this screen is solid and has a pixel-per-inch of 312, which means the image on the screen still looks pretty damn good.
You’ll also be glad it’s AMOLED because of Active Notifications.
Software Features
Now let’s start talking pros.
Active Notifications is by far the most useful software addition I’ve ever seen. It’s so good, I wish Android built it into source and then found a way to do it on all phones.
Unfortunately, the feature needs an AMOLED screen (lighting up individual pixels is hard, y’all) so that it doesn’t waste battery power like turning on your whole screen.
This feature saves you from having to constantly turn your screen on to do common things like check the time (who needs watches) and see summaries of messages you’ve received, all with little battery consumption.
And then there’s Touchless Controls.
You can do a lot with the device without ever laying a hand on it (insert Motorola TWSS joke). With Google Now being a very usable feature now, it can do most simple tasks like set alarms/reminders, send texts/emails, make calls, etc. by simply saying “Ok, Google Now.” Once you train the phone, it will only respond to your voice.
(It’s also still an awesome bar trick to ask it questions like how tall Lebron James is or how tall the Empire State Building is, now you just don’t need hands)
The Moto X also comes with Motorola Active, which, when activated, will know when you’re sleeping and silence the phone (except for favorites or when someone calls twice within five minutes); know when you’re driving and automatically make calls on speaker and read texts aloud; and know when you’re in a meeting (using Google Calendar) and silence your phone then too so you don’t end up being “that guy.”
Active isn’t always useful, but it’s a nice touch that has potential.
Hardware
This is a beautifully built device. It’s solid, feels great in your hand and is pretty light. When torn down by iFixit, they said it had the precision in its build that they only see in Apple phones.
Does that mean it’s an “iPhone killer”? No. But it means that finally someone is putting the time and craftsmanship into designing a phone that Apple does, and they’re known for great hardware, of course.
The phone has a very Google feel to it, as it should, being the first phone from the joint Motorola/Google company. But it doesn’t feel cheap. In fact, it feels like $199 is a steal.
I haven’t dropped mine yet (trying not to since it’s my personal one), but I feel like it would take a hit pretty well. It doesn’t have a removable battery, so it’s locked shut with no backdoor per say, but isn’t unibody.
Camera
It’s hard to say about the camera. It’s better than my Galaxy Nexus so it’s great right now for me. But is it better than the other phones? That’s the question. I can’t say confidently yet, either way.
Sometimes it takes amazing pictures, sometimes it’s like having the ‘ol GNex back. It’s very bi-polar and that hurts its rating. But it shows it can take great pictures and I’m wondering if a software update could help. The hardware aspect of the camera I think is great, now the software has to catch up.
It’s kind of a cop-out here, but it’s an interesting conundrum.
Conclusion
This is the best phone that is currently available right now. It isn’t too big like the HTC One, it doesn’t have features you’ll never use like the Galaxy S4. It does feel like the middle of all the “greats” but brings in the best of each to create a great experience.
Is this biased? Of course. But it’s a review and this is my opinion. However, I also strongly believe that the phone for you is what fits your needs, not mine.
That being said, this phone is a solid bet, on any carrier. Also, if you’re on Verizon like me, it’s a better bet than the Droids (unless you need the super battery of the Maxx). Everything is the same, just with a design team behind it. Win-win.
There are always other, sometimes better phones on the horizon. But this phone is making the statement that its time for the spec-wars to end and to start making truly great quality Android phones. Stop with all the flashy features that are purely for show and start making features that are useful in everyday life.
That’s why the Moto X exists.
To steal from Verizon’s multimillion dollar advertising, that’s why the Moto X DOES.
(Photo credits: Geoffrey Brackman)
Moto X (Verizon): the “mid-range” phone that isn’t so mid
I’ve seen reviews that have thrown around “iPhone killer” and “the best Android phone ever” and other hyperbolic phrases that hype Motorola’s Moto X up--you sites know who you are. But I’m not going to do that because frankly, that cheapens what the Moto X is.
The Moto X is a phone that helps you with everyday needs and predicts what you are doing and acts based on that. Truly, it is a phone that actually tries to make your life easier.
Now, that’s not to say it’s JARVIS from Iron Man or anything like that, but it’s good at what it does.
Specs
Before we talk about any of the pros of the Moto X, let’s talk about what people are calling the phone’s biggest con: specs.
It has a Qualcomm MSM8960Pro Snapdragon that is dual-core and clocked at 1.7 GHz. It also has an Adreno 320 GPU to help with graphics. It also has 2GB of RAM. That may not look like a whole lot on paper, but this phone is fast, make no mistake. It runs as smooth as any phone on the market and with the added GPU, it runs games pretty smoothly as well.
Android really just doesn’t need a souped up quad-core beast, at least not yet.
Screen
The second big con: its screen.
The Moto X comes with “only” a 720p AMOLED screen. Sucks right?
No! Are you kidding? What in the hell do you need 1080p for on a 5-inch screen? The difference is pretty much indiscernible to the human eye at that size. Just like on the other end, you can’t see the benefits of 4K resolution below 60-inches, so why buy it?
Now, if you want to debate why AMOLED isn’t as good as other technologies, then alright. I won’t argue with you. But this screen is solid and has a pixel-per-inch of 312, which means the image on the screen still looks pretty damn good.
You’ll also be glad it’s AMOLED because of Active Notifications.
Software Features
Now let’s start talking pros.
Active Notifications is by far the most useful software addition I’ve ever seen. It’s so good, I wish Android built it into source and then found a way to do it on all phones.
Unfortunately, the feature needs an AMOLED screen (lighting up individual pixels is hard, y’all) so that it doesn’t waste battery power like turning on your whole screen.
This feature saves you from having to constantly turn your screen on to do common things like check the time (who needs watches) and see summaries of messages you’ve received, all with little battery consumption.
And then there’s Touchless Controls.
You can do a lot with the device without ever laying a hand on it (insert Motorola TWSS joke). With Google Now being a very usable feature now, it can do most simple tasks like set alarms/reminders, send texts/emails, make calls, etc. by simply saying “Ok, Google Now.” Once you train the phone, it will only respond to your voice.
(It’s also still an awesome bar trick to ask it questions like how tall Lebron James is or how tall the Empire State Building is, now you just don’t need hands)
The Moto X also comes with Motorola Active, which, when activated, will know when you’re sleeping and silence the phone (except for favorites or when someone calls twice within five minutes); know when you’re driving and automatically make calls on speaker and read texts aloud; and know when you’re in a meeting (using Google Calendar) and silence your phone then too so you don’t end up being “that guy.”
Active isn’t always useful, but it’s a nice touch that has potential.
Hardware
This is a beautifully built device. It’s solid, feels great in your hand and is pretty light. When torn down by iFixit, they said it had the precision in its build that they only see in Apple phones.
Does that mean it’s an “iPhone killer”? No. But it means that finally someone is putting the time and craftsmanship into designing a phone that Apple does, and they’re known for great hardware, of course.
The phone has a very Google feel to it, as it should, being the first phone from the joint Motorola/Google company. But it doesn’t feel cheap. In fact, it feels like $199 is a steal.
I haven’t dropped mine yet (trying not to since it’s my personal one), but I feel like it would take a hit pretty well. It doesn’t have a removable battery, so it’s locked shut with no backdoor per say, but isn’t unibody.
Camera
It’s hard to say about the camera. It’s better than my Galaxy Nexus so it’s great right now for me. But is it better than the other phones? That’s the question. I can’t say confidently yet, either way.
Sometimes it takes amazing pictures, sometimes it’s like having the ‘ol GNex back. It’s very bi-polar and that hurts its rating. But it shows it can take great pictures and I’m wondering if a software update could help. The hardware aspect of the camera I think is great, now the software has to catch up.
It’s kind of a cop-out here, but it’s an interesting conundrum.
Conclusion
This is the best phone that is currently available right now. It isn’t too big like the HTC One, it doesn’t have features you’ll never use like the Galaxy S4. It does feel like the middle of all the “greats” but brings in the best of each to create a great experience.
Is this biased? Of course. But it’s a review and this is my opinion. However, I also strongly believe that the phone for you is what fits your needs, not mine.
That being said, this phone is a solid bet, on any carrier. Also, if you’re on Verizon like me, it’s a better bet than the Droids (unless you need the super battery of the Maxx). Everything is the same, just with a design team behind it. Win-win.
There are always other, sometimes better phones on the horizon. But this phone is making the statement that its time for the spec-wars to end and to start making truly great quality Android phones. Stop with all the flashy features that are purely for show and start making features that are useful in everyday life.
That’s why the Moto X exists.
To steal from Verizon’s multimillion dollar advertising, that’s why the Moto X DOES.
(Photo credits: Geoffrey Brackman)
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