Motorola Moto X Pure Edition: The ultimate phone for self-expression (pictures)

Motorola's latest flagship, the Moto X Pure Edition (or Moto X Style as it is known globally) launches this month. It starts at $400 and because it is compatible with networks that operate on either the GSM or CDMA standard, it should work on nearly every carrier.

Though not as big as the 6-inch Google Nexus 6, which is also made by Motorola, the device's screen has jumped from a 5.2-inch 1,080p display to a 5.7-inch 1,440p display.

You can customize the handset with different storage options, accent colors and back plates that come in leather, wood and  bamboo.

Unlike its cheaper Moto G counterpart that came out this year, the phone is not submersible underwater. It is water-repellent, though, so you don't have to worry about a few droplets of water here and there.

Bucking the current trend of mobile flagships, the Moto X Pure Edition has a MicroSD card slot so you can expand its storage up to 128GB on top of the 16, 32 or 64GB of internal storage it already comes with.

The device has dual front speakers -- as in both speakers will output audio for music and movies (though only the bottom grille will output phone calls on speaker), resulting in a louder and fuller experience.

This is different from last year's Moto X, which only used one stereo speaker for media, and the other served as the in-ear speaker for calls.

The phone ships with Google Android 5.1.1 and unlike what the name suggests, it doesn’t exactly deliver the purest Android experience compared with Google's Nexus line, but it comes pretty close.

There's no heavy-handed manufacturer user interface – just Google apps and Motorola’s familiar software suite, which includes Moto Actions, Voice and more.

Camera specs have been bumped to 21-megapixel on the back. In addition to still being able to shoot 4K video, there is now a night mode for snapping pics in low-light situations.

The 5-megapixel front-facing shooter also has a wide-angle lens and a flash to brighten up all those selfies.

A closer look at the front camera's flash.

The Moto X Pure Edition has a 3,000mAh nonremovable battery. In some markets, it comes come with a 25-watt fast-charging Turbo Charger.

Other accessories include a bumper that protects and wraps around the edges of the device.

Inside the handset is a a 1.8GHz hexa-core Snapdragon 808 processor from Qualcomm, a 600MHz Adreno 418 graphics processing unit and 3GB of RAM.

All in all, the Moto X Pure Edition is a reliable and quality-built device. But the competition is fierce these days when it comes to powerful and inexpensive unlocked handsets. For more information, click here for all of CNET's reviews of Motorola phones.