Motorola Xoom 4G LTE soak test to finally begin, 3 months after initial invites [Update 2: Android 4.1.2]

Update: Shortly after the soak testers started getting emails, Verizon made 4.2 official for everyone with a Xoom. We're not sure if they still have something special planned for testers or if they're done with the Xoom. 

Update 2: It seems that the soak test has begun, and it is for Android 4.1.2 — despite the official Verizon page (see screen shot after the break). We may see a retraction from Verizon soon.

Almost 3 months after the initial invites were sent out by Motorola, emails telling participants that the soak test for the Verizon Motorola Xoom 4G LTE will soon begin and finally being sent. At the time when the invitations initially went out, it was expected that Xoom owners would get a version of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean to test, or maybe Android 4.2. Now that more time has passed, and Android 4.3 has been released, things could change — although it is unlikely.

It would make sense for Motorola to bring the Verizon Xoom up to the same Android version as its WiFi-only sibling, Android 4.1.2. We won't know for sure until builds become available to those participating in the soak test, which should be any time now. Verizon Xoom owners that received an invite back in May, make sure to keep an eye on your inbox.

Thanks, Hunch!

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Hands-on with the Moto X

'OK, Google Now. Show me the Moto X'

Motorola and Google, as we like to say in the South, have done good. We've finally gotten our first look at the new Moto X today in New York City. This thing's been leaked eight ways to Sunday over the past few months — and frankly a lot of what you're about to read we saw in last week's Droid announcements— but pick up the Moto X for the first time and you know you're feeling not just another phone, but a phone looking to do things a little different.

The Moto X is the first phone designed and built from scratch since Google acquired Motorola. And the end result is a phone that's as simple as it is complex. Its design is as understated as it is attractive. There have been so many assumptions about what the first Googlerola phone should be. It should be "Pure Google." It should have NASA-level hardware. It should have at least as many features as the droid line.

What Motorola's done is taken solid hardware and attractive design and married it to a fairly stock version of Android — with some interesting features thrown in, as well as a number of customization options. It's coming to five U.S. carriers in a few weeks and worldwide later, retailing for $199 on contract.

And with that, here's our first look at the Moto X.

The Moto X hands-on video

Moto X hardware

First things first: The Moto X is deceptively big. Motorola has squeezed a 4.7-inch display into a phone that feels a lot smaller. It's not a particularly thin device — hitting 10.4 mm at its fattest point — but it's curvy in all the right places. (We've never believed that thinner always was better anyway.) The back of the phone curves very nicely into your hand, even better than the HTC One, which does the same sort of thing. The feel of the back depends on how you've customized yours. We're currently holding a soft-touch model, but there's glossy plastic to be had — and, yes, Motorola is prototyping wood backs, to be released later this year.

We'll touch on the customizations in a bit.

The 10-megapixel camera and flash are recessed ever so slightly, as is Motorola's logo. The back of the phone isn't removable or anything. No swapping batteries. No microSD card. And if you customize your phone, no swapping it out for anything else. What's there is there.

Up top is the 3.5mm headphone jack. The microUSB port is centered on the bottom. The power button and volume rocker are on the right-hand side. The nano-SIM is on the left.

The front of the Moto X is decidedly black-slabbish, but it's worth noting how the glass flows around the 90-degree edges and into the plastic body. It's very well done.

The Moto X is using the same X8 "Mobile Computing System" under the hood as Verizon's recent Droid refresh. That is to say, it's a dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Pro running at 1.7 GHz, a quad-core Adreno GPU, and dedicated Natural Language Processing and "contextual computing" cores. The latter two are key to the Moto X's major software features.

Other hardware points of note:

• 2GB Of RAM
• The display is (only) 720x1280, and it's AMOLED RGB. It's certainly usable, but probably not our favorite display.
• The battery's got a 2,200 mAh capacity, and Motorola swears it'll go all day. As in 24 hours.
• Most versions of the Moto X sports 16GB of internal memory. AT&T has the exclusive on a 32GB version.
• You'll get 50GB of free storage on Google Drive for two years.
• NFC and Miracast are on board.
• Wifi does 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac.
• aGPS and GLONASS for finding your way around.

The Moto X software …

You've got a relatively stock experience on the Moto X. Home screens, app drawers and settings are as God and Google intended. The two major customizations are Touchless Control — think Google Now without the annoyance of having to turn on your phone and actually touch anything — and Active Display, which is a low-power way of showing you information on the display without actually having to wake the phone.

Touchless Control

For Touchless Control, you'll have to teach Moto X what it sounds like when you say "OK, Google Now." From then on, the phone will be listening for you — or someone who sounds like you — to say that magic phrase. The phone will wake and be ready for voice commands. No touch required at all. And it works pretty well. Is it possible for someone else to activate? Yep. Seen it happen. It's also subject to the same limitations of Google Now. But that's a software thing, and Google Now's getting better all the time.

This is where some folks have worried about the phone being "always on" or "always listening." We're not going to let that keep us up at night.

Active Display

Active Display — again, like on the Droid line — shows you a bit of information without actually having to hit the power button and waking the phone. A clock will flash every few seconds. If you get e-mail or a text message or something, you'll know it here as well. The items that can appear on the Active Display are customizable — and some can live behind a lockscreen, hidden from prying eyes. You also can set the hours during which you want to see Active Notifications. Don't want 'em at night? Turn 'em off.

The camera​ app

Moto X has a new camera as well (unless you have one of the new Droids, we suppose), with that quick-flip way of getting to it. Called "Quick Capture," you just turn your wrist twice — like turning a screwdriver or a doorknob — and the camera app fires up. In just a couple seconds from any point, you're able to take pictures. (You can turn that off if you want, and the usual camera icon works just fine as well.) The camera app itself is nicely done, too. Not overloaded with features, you get to the options by sliding out from the left-hand side. From there you have options for HDR, flash, autofocus — by default, you tap the screen to take a picture; this option lets you touch to focus instead — slow-motion, panorama (no Photosphere, though), Geotagging and shutter sound.

It's also worth taking a look at the Assist app, which is sort of an offshoot of the old Smart Actions. The phone will recognize when you're driving, when you're in a meeting or when you're sleeping, and change its behavior appropriately. Moving at 55 mph? Chances are you're driving, so it'll fire up the car mode. Or it'll silence the phone at night.

Other software we're seeing:

• We'll withhold official praise until we see a final retail version, but there's not a whole lot of AT&T bloatware on the unit we've got here.
• Motorola's got its own "Migrate" app for transferring data from another device. You'll need to download it on the other device from Goggle Play.
• There's a translate app built in as well.
• There's a Motorola Connect Chrome extension if you want to get texts and such on your computer as well as your phone.

Customizing the Moto X

Motorola wants this to be your Moto X. And to that end, you're going to be able to customize it. Colors, backs, styles, textures — including, yes, wood — will be yours for the choosing. 

If you're on AT&T, that is. For now, one of the coolest features of Moto X is constrained to a single U.S. carrier. That's great for AT&T. It's great if you're on AT&T. And it's lousy for everyone else. Motorola needs to get that opened up as soon as it can.

You'll do all your customizing through "Moto Maker."  You can change up the color on the front. Or the back. The accents. You can even inscribe a name or message on the back of the phone. At AT&T stores, you'll have the option to either pick a basic white or black version and leave the store with a phone right then. Or if you go the custom route, you'll pay and get a redemption code, then design your phone at home.

From there, Motorola promises you'll get your phone within four days — that's one perk of assembling the phones (not manufacturing, but assembling) in the U.S. Fort Worth, Texas, to be exact.

Along with colors and designs (and the option to choose between 16GB of storage, or 32GB for another $50), you'll be able to purchase accessories — headphones, speakers, cases and earbuds — directly from Motorola.

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Sol Republic DECK wireless speakers “M4DE for Motorola” launched

Motorola is really pulling out all the stops in launching its latest darling, the Moto X. Motorola’s new flagship is quite impressive, as we ourselves have experienced. But what brand new phone would be without some fancy accessories to go along with it? Introducing the DECK wireless speakers from Sol Republic, the first such accessory certified to be “M4DE for Motorola”.

One area where Apple trumps even the combined strength of different Android device manufacturers is in accessories. It helps that accessory makers only have to focus on one model or version of the iPhone or iPad at a time. To address this gap, Motorola launched its “M4DE for Motorola” program, gathering partners to create certified accessories for its devices, particularly the Moto X. And Sol Republic’s DECK speakers is the first of such accessories.

The DECK Bluetooth speakers supports a range of 300 feet. It utilizes NFC technology for easy pairing of devices. The DECK boasts of large R2 Sound Engine speakers and a bass port to give it a bigger sound than normal portable speakers. It blasts out sounds in a full 360 degree angle, ensuring that sound is delivered equally in all directions.

The DECK features a unique “Heist Mode”, allowing up to five devices to be paired with it to play their own tunes. There is no queueing, so any one of the five devices can just “hijack” the currently playing music to start their own. Sol Republic envisions the DECK to be used as such in party situations and even provides a 3.5mm audio in jack which allows a couple of DECKs to be daisy chained together.

The DECK comes in four color choices of Gunmetal, Lemon Lime, Electro Blue HD, and Vivid Red, with the latter two marked as coming soon. Sol Republic is accepting online pre-orders priced at $199.99. There is no date as to when it will be released but it is expected to come out together with the Moto X, probably sometime in September.

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Motorola Moto X to also get “Google Play” version soon

There seems to be a new trend of new flaghship phones getting unlocked and pure “Google Play” versions that can be purchased directly from Google. Since such was the case with Samsung’s Galaxy S4 and HTC’s HTC One, people have wondered whether the Moto X, which Motorola just launched today, will be getting a similar treatment, especially considering it is the first Motorola phone created under Google’s supervision. And so it will be that one will be able to buy a Google Play version of the Moto X “soon”.

There are some benefits to purchasing such a version of the phone. For one, units sold from stores of carriers like Verizon come preloaded with tons of apps, a good number of which do not really provide additional value to users and have been derisively called “bloatware”. Secondly, carriers are notoriously slow for providing Android updates, sometimes taking months, or even never. The technical reason for this is that manufacturers and carriers make so much modifications on top of a pure Android system that it takes them a significant amount of time to apply and test those changes on top of new Android releases.

That’s where Google Play versions come in. Same hardware, no bloatware, no modifications. Just pure Android. Of course, if there are features specific to a certain manufacturer that you’ve come to love, you might end up having to give up on those, too. In the case of the Moto X, however, there might not be much to take out as it doesn’t deviate too much from Google’s pure Android experience unlike HTC’s Sense or Samsung’s TouchWiz. Moto X does have some software customizations, and it is unknown whether they will survive in the Google Play edition.

There are also other unknowns, such when the Moto X Google Play edition will be available from the Google Play store and how much it would cost. If prices of other Google Play editions are to go by, we could expect that it would cost a lot more than a unit on contract but slightly less than one off-contract. So far, only AT&T has announced its pricing, offering on-contract prices of $199 for the 16GB version and $249 for the 32GB variant. Off-contract units will be available for $575 and $629 for the 16GB and 32GB models, respectively. It is also unknown whether the Google Play edition will be able to customize color options, something that is so far exclusive to AT&T customers.

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Motorola Moto X “Designed by you” commercials released

What else could whet your appetite for a gadget aside from juicy hardware specs and sharp-looking or colorful designs? Why a video advertisement, of course! Knowing that not everyone will be so easily swayed by figures and measurements,Motorola released a number of ads that demonstrate what it really means to have aMoto X.

The video entitled “Quick Capture” demonstrates how easy it would be to quickly take photos. No more unlocking phones and fumbling around menus to launch a camera app. Presuming you don’t have wrist or hand problems, all you need is a few flicks of the wrist. The video also claims the phone will have fewer photo fails, allowing you to take and share more and more photos with the Moto X’s brand new 10 MP “Clear Pixel” camera.

“Always Ready” shows a less active example. It is so inactive that the whole video is about a man controlling his phone from the comfort of his bed with nothing more than his voice. Undoubtedly, the point of the video is showing off Google Now with voice control, and maybe with a bit of a hint about the fancy low-power context and natural language chips powering the Moto X.

But what seems to be the prevalent theme of all the ads is made explicit in the third video. Motorola uses the slogan “Designed by you” to refer to MotoMaker, a web service that allows buyers to design and customize their own Moto X phone. Users will be able to choose from a variety of colors for the front, back, and accents. It even allows users to enter a custom engraving for the back of the phone. While the service is free, it is unfortunately available only to AT&T customers. If you’re still on the fence about getting one, head on over to our hands-on review to check if it’s worth the price.

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Moto X: What we know so far

Motorola officially unveils the Moto X today. Although we'll have exact details soon, there's still plenty we know about the device -- and even more that we don't. Here's a sampling of what's certain and what's still up in the air.

What we know for sure

August 1 reveal date

Official invitations have been sent; Motorola will introduce the long-rumored handset on August 1. On July 26, the Moto X officially cleared the FCC.

In stores by October

Motorola first confirmed that the Moto X is real and that it would arrive before October.

Motorola has officially switched on a sign-up page for the Moto X, giving interested readers an opportunity to learn more about the phone as the launch approaches.

According to tech blogger Taylor Wimberly, an unverified source suggested that carriers would sell the phone as soon as today.

It will come in black and white

The Motorola invitation shows these two hues, but there's a possibility we'll see more colors emerge.

It's curvy

The first few images of the Moto X to pop up showed a more gentle approach to Motorola's recent tough, edgy form factor. Gone are the angular shoulders and Kevlar coating, replaced with a curvy back and what looks like a plain, soft-touch finish.

The official Moto X invitation confirms that we'll see rounded edges and slight bevels.

What we think we know

The Moto X will be customizable

Motorola's Guy Kawasaki threw the Android faithful into a tizzy when he hinted at the possibility of customized smartphones.

Molded glass

It isn't clear which components exactly will be customizable: the color, the capacity, the apps, custom back plates, or the finish. But here's some of what we'd like to see.

The Moto X could feature molded Gorilla Glass that wraps over the sides of the phone. It could be called "Moto Magic Glass." According to tech blogger Taylor Wimberly, there will be zero gap between the glass and the back case.

If there's a display element beneath the glass, this kind of treatment could support a customized ticker or other notifications along the edges. Or, it might just be plain old glass for added sheen and premium oomph.

It will be contextually aware

Various members of the Google and Motorola teams played coy over the last couple of months, alluding to features in the upcoming device. Talk centered mostly around battery life, durability, and contextually aware settings.

"Contextually aware" can mean a lot of things that involve location, sensors for light and spatial positioning, incline, and so on. If the phone senses you're outside at night, for instance, it may turn on night settings. If it detects you're traveling, the phone could line up some transportation and dining tips.

Motorola hasn't given any indications that this is what it means in terms of the Moto X, but when we think of Google Now's personal assistance capabilities, we get the sense of what a phone could do.

Google Now is always listening

A recently leaked (and subsequently pulled) YouTube video, allegedly from Canadian carrier Rogers Wireless, gave a few hints as what's in store for the phone. Among the details in the short clip were an always-listening Google Now experience that can be activated by saying "OK, Google Now." Additionally, the phone was shown to have onscreen notifications called Active Updates.

Quicker camera launching

Another feature of this YouTube video was waking up the phone into the camera app. A simple flick of the wrist may be all it takes to launch the app from your pocket.

In stores by August

Even though we know for sure we'll see the Moto X before October, a recently leaked Verizon road map points to an August 23 sales date. Considering that Google's own Eric Schmidt has been spotted out and about with a Moto X we might expect it that it's mostly retail-ready.

A few of the rumored color cases for the Moto X smartphone.

It will have a nano SIM

According to a leaked photo, the Moto X will join Apple's iPhone 5 in using a nano SIM card.

What's still up in the air

If rumors are correct, the comparatively lackluster midrange feature set could include a 720p HD AMOLED display (we'd guess a 4.5- or 4.7-inch screen with that resolution), a 1.7GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon MSM8960 Pro processor, and a 10-megapixel camera.Hardware details.
We have to remain skeptical about the Moto X's leaked specifications, which seem lower than they should be for Moto's comeback hopeful.

The phone could also come with 16GB internal storage and 2GB of RAM. Motorola's Droid Razr series is completely embedded, which means there's no removable battery, but there is an expansion slot. If the Moto X is the same, users with high storage needs should be happy.

Android version

While early rumors pointed to an Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean build, recent chatter indicates that Google could have 4.3 ready to go. Google is announcing something on July 24, and we've got our money on Android 4.3. That timing would put the Moto X in line to be the first phone on the market to ship with the new OS.

Camera specifics

Whatever the megapixel and sensor size, the Moto X's camera might have its own special sauce. Rather than implementing your standard run-of-the-mill digital camera lens in the Moto X, customers could see a new sensor with technology known as Clear Pixel.

Kodak apparently uses the technology to improve the way that a sensor captures light when taking a photograph, making photos clearer and less dark. There don't seem to be any other sources to substantiate the claim, but it's an interesting idea.

Interestingly enough, Motorola recently toyed with Twitter followers on the camera front, saying "Either this kid is really fast, or today's phones are really slow."

Sales model

Rumors suggest that the Moto X will be offered through multiple carriers, not just through Verizon as with the company's Droid line of phones. Should that be the case, we may look for standard color and finishes at retails stores.

There's also been talk of Google selling the smartphone direct to consumers through the Google Play store. What remains unclear is whether customers will be able to buy the custom designs through either channel. With rumors of 16 colors (translate) and multiple finishes, either Motorola or Google could run the e-tail show from their Web sites.

Cost

Since most of today's top phones still hover at the $200 mark on contract, there's a good chance that the Moto X will slide in around that range or slightly under. At the end of the day, it'll all depend on the specs we see.

We think there could be a surcharge for custom phones, especially if they involve engravings, etchings, or harder-to-manufacture designs.

Motorola's Moto X event kicks off August 1 in New York.

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Moto X leak tips a wrap-around “Magic Glass” design

The Moto X launch event is almost here, however it looks like the rumors and leaks are going to continue right up until that time. Looking at a few of the leaks and there has been talk of the handset arriving with something called “Moto Magic Glass.” This is described as being a single sheet of Gorilla Glass that wraps around the front edges of the device.

The combination of the Gorilla Glass and the wrap around setup should help to increase the strength of the handset, but there also seems to be a bit more that went into the design in terms of both strength and also the weight. This portion that deals with the handset durability and the weight is broken down in the above image of the handset.

This image and the details were posted on the Google+ page of Taylor Wimberly and he describes this as being a “laminated aluminum structure.” Otherwise, while the handset was described as having a wrap around setup that does make it look like there will be a bit of a lip around the front of the handset. Not much, but maybe enough to offer a bit of protection for those times when you place the handset display down on a table.

Aside from the talk of the exterior, we also recently saw the Moto X camera app leak. That leak provided what was described as being a mostly functional camera app. Basically, it was good enough to give a solid idea of what could be expected, but there were some key features missing. One of those was the double-flick gesture that can launch the app. In addition to the camera app, the Moto X has been rumored to arrive with a 10 megapixel “Clear Pixel” camera.

Details of this camera have the pixel size as being 1.4 microns, which for comparison is smaller than the HTC One and larger than the Galaxy S 4. Those handsets are 2.0 and 1.1 respectively. The Moto X is also expected to be able to record 1080p video at up to 60 frames-per-second. Of course, at this point we are looking towards August 1st so we can put thes rumors to rest.

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Moto X spotted in green as Motorola continues the teasing

Motorola has already confirmed the Moto X event for August 1st, however it looks like they are going to continue teasing right up until that day. Fortunately we are only a few days out at this point, but this latest from Motorola has arrived in the form of a basic image posted on Twitter. You can see this latest teaser image sitting below, but as you will see, there is nothing aside from the name of the handset and a reminder of the date.

We are happy to have August 1st approaching so we can put this teasing to a rest, but there is also the aspect of putting the rumors and leaks to rest as well. Speaking of that other side, it looks like there was a recent event for Motorola employees and some pictures from that event ended up giving us a look at another color Moto X.

That image is sitting below and as you can likely see — the Moto X is shown in a rather bright shade of green. That image also has the Moto X shown in black and white, though they are clearly not as easy to see as the bright green. That said, while neat to see the color we aren’t really surprised. After all, earlier leaks have pointed towards the handset as being customizable with unique colors and even wood and ceramic back covers.

We do have to wonder though, what color would we pick for a personal handset? Otherwise, some of the earlier Motorola teasing offered a brief look inside the Texas assembly plant and even touched on the speed of the camera. It seems the camera, which is said to be a 10 megapixel “Clear Pixel” is going to be a big part of the announcement.

While the leaks have been plentiful and the teasing from Motorola has been steady it seems the best look at the handset up until this point has been when it was spotted being used by Google’s Eric Schmidt. Just as a reminder, we will be live on-site for the August 1st event so make sure to keep paying attention for the latest in official details.

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Here Are The Clearest Shots Yet of the Moto X

Motorola doesn't officially announce the X until this Thursday, but let's be honest, this has quickly become one of the worst kept secrets in tech. Here we have the clearest shots yet of Motorola and Google's long-awaited collaborative effort.

Details are still relatively sparse, but the Moto X is said to be sporting a new type of Gorilla Glass called ""Magic Glass."" The new variant is apparently a special concoction that creates a ""continuous surface that wraps around the entire front and edges of the device,"" according to Android and Me. The Moto X will also purportedly be made from laminated aluminum.

What do you think so far?

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More Moto X smart features surface, including active notifications and phone tracking

More Moto X features have been described by a publication with access to the device, some of them never discussed by previous leaks and rumors.

Android Police has continued its Moto X “teardown” (after looking at specs, camera specs and posting a boot animation video) and revealed some of the features of the handset that haven’t made it into existing reports.

• TouchLess Control: The feature is also found in the new Verizon Droids and lets users issue voice-based commands to the handset – the Rogers video has already demoed this feature. The phone will apparently learn your voice, and the hotword is “Ok Google Now,” (it’s not clear if it can be changed at this time).

• Active Display and Active Notifications: Also demoed on the new Droids, the feature takes advantage of the AMOLED display in these handsets (the Moto X will apparently pack one such display too) to light up only certain pixels when the screen is off in order to display notifications while conserving battery life. The phone will know when it’s in your pocket or purse, in a call, or place face down on a surface, in which case the display won’t light up for notifications. You can also configure it not to turn on during the night. The feature comes with new gestures: swiping up will let you see more details about the notifications, swiping down unlocks the device, while dragging the finger to left and right will clear notifications.

• Motorola Connect: A Motorola Connect Chrome extension will be available to Moto X owners, and once enabled, it will let you send and receive messages from the desktop, as well as get call notifications. The service will be available for the new Droids as well.

• Motorola Migrate: The tool will let you easily migrate information from your former smartphone to the Moto X, including text messages, call history, SIM contacts, media, and even some settings. To work, a Motorola Migrate app should be installed on the old device.

• Motorola Assist: This app apparently replaces Smart Actions and will help you automatically switch settings depending on certain parameters. Some of these smart actions include automatically moving to driving mode when detecting driving or to silent mode for meetings or at night. The Assist app has a Google Now-like UI, and together with the Active Notification feature seems to be included in the phone’s “contextual awareness” features we’ve heard about in so many Moto X reports.

• Phone tracking: Finally, this feature will help you find a lost or stolen phone by using your Google account and an unspecified web portal to track it.

Check out the features above in the following screenshot gallery provided by the publication:

Moto X: Active Display and Active Notifications 

Moto X: Active Display and Active Notifications 

Moto X: Active Display and Active Notifications 

Moto X: Active Display and Active Notifications 

Moto X: Active Display and Active Notifications 

Moto X: Motorola Connect 

Moto X: Phone tracking

Moto X: Phone tracking

Moto X: Motorola Migrate 

Moto X: Motorola Migrate 

Moto X: Motorola Assist 

Moto X: Motorola Assist 

Moto X: Phone tracking 

Moto X will be officially unveiled on August 1, during a special event in which Google will probably confirm all the reports related to the handset that we’ve seen lately.

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Motorola wants to make beautiful wearable devices, has opening for Senior Director of Industrial Design

A recent Motorola job posting hints that the company may be interested in creating a variety of wearable devices in the near future.

The company is looking for a Senior Director of Industrial Design for “wearables” with the experience, knowledge and “courage” needed to develop interesting new wearable products.

While the job description doesn’t actually mention the sort of wearable devices the company will be working on, the focus is clearly on the buyer of such devices:

Our ambition is to make Motorola a recognized leader in design of all things mobile. We will do this by creating product experiences that are lead by consumer insight and intuition, keen design sensibility and cutting edge technologies. We want our products and brand to be experienced and loved by millions of people worldwide. We want to create the new Motorola. […]

Specifically, the Industrial Design Team collaborates closely with our internal work partners to create compelling, usable and innovative products that define our brand with over a million consumers worldwide. The wearables design team will lead the establishment of our brand in the massive competitive and growing space of wearable connected products.

Motorola isn’t new to “wearables,” as the company did make a certain smartwatch that you may remember, the MOTOACTV (image above). Moreover, since Google already has one wearable gadget in testing – Google Glass – and is rumored to work on a smartwatch of its own, it certainly make sense to see its subsidiary develop a growing interest in wearable computing devices.

We’ll certainly keep an eye out for future Motorola wearable devices, as we wait for more such products to be unveiled in the near future – a recent research has shown that the smartwatch market will explode next year, with shipments expected to top 5 million units, or ten times the number of smartwatch sales estimated for this year.

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