Motorola has stepped up its smartphone game.
I'm Bridget Carey and this is your CNET Update.
After much hyped and rumored, the Moto X Smartphone has been unveiled and this is an Android phone that will be a true challenger to Samsung's Galaxy S line.
This is the first flagship phone from Motorola mobility since Google bought the company in 2011.
The Moto X is born from the union of Motorola's hardware's strengths
with Google's software smarts.
The Moto X comes close as to offering a clean Android user interface that is aside from the Nexus phone.
There are some software tricks that make the Moto X Android experience a little different and these are the same tricks that could be done on the brand new Motorola Droids at Verizon.
There's the ability to twist your wrist to wake up the camera quickly.
You can check the time and messages on the unlock screen and without turning on the phone, it will respond to voice commands with three magic words; Okay, Google now.
So, can it be always listening for your voice command without draining the battery?
By using a new tactic to separate different elements of the system on a cluster processors.
The feature that listens for your voice is powered on its own chip, so it isn't burn through the battery.
The Moto X is said to get one full day of battery life with normal use.
So, why would you go with the Moto X instead of the Droids at Verizon?
A few reasons, software wise, the Moto X won't have any Verizon's extra junk preloaded on it but it will sold at Verizon as well as
4 other US carriers; AT&T, T-Mobile, Spring and US Cellular.
Motorola phones have previously been disjointed on different carriers before and having the same phone on every carrier will give the brand more strength to take on the Galaxy S and iPhone and the Moto X brand will have more versions including the cheaper one for no contract customers.
The Moto X is assembled in America and it has a 4.7-inch screen with a curved back and that backside will be customizable.
If you order through the Moto
maker website, customers can pick from a variety of colors and accents and you will be able to eventually order it in different types of wood, yes wood, with options like bamboo, teak, ebony and rosewood.
Customization will only be available at first for AT&T.
The other carriers will follow.
If you buy from a store, the only options will be black and white with 16 gigs of memory for $200 under contract.
And these phones will be rolling out at the end of this month.
Motorola is working with SOL Republic to make headsets,
Bluetooth speakers and cases that match the Moto X's custom colors.
That's your tech news update.
You can dive into more details at cnet.com/update.
From our studios in New York, I'm Bridget Carey.
