Motorola Went Big and Gimmicky on the Moto X (2014) a La Samsung This Time

[deesugar]

When the original Moto X launched last year it was bold statement for having this minimalist principle of "If it doesn't make the phone better we don't use it!" balanced with another guiding principle of "If we can come up with something truly innovative that's different from anything else out there we will use it."

From the size and resolution of the screen to the speed of the CPU Motorola didn't follow what Samsung, HTC and the other big guys were doing. With their Moto Maker, Active Display, Touchless Control and other features Motorola dared to be different in a homogeneous sea of me too Android devices.

It now looks like the Engineering daredevils that made the original Moto X gave way to the Marketing group and their test surveys. I don't see the logical successor to the Moto X with this model, I see what would have happened if Samsung bought the Motorola unit and rolled it up into the Galaxy line of phones.

 

[someguy01234]

If the new Moto X still had 4.7" screen, approximately 5 people would buy it, and those 5 people does not include me (even though I bought 3 original Moto X and 4 Moto G).

 

[Rocketsaucev2]

The original also didn't sell very well because so many people were like hurr durr it's only 720p and no quad core. Well now moto can say yes it is a high end smartphone. As far as the size, well I'm happy with my current x

Sent from my XT1060

 

[Clocks]

There's nothing wrong with the current moto x. There's nothing to refresh in the 4.7" form factor. A 4.7" moto x+1 would have landed with a thud. Anyone who wants a 4.7" no-lag-fast-updates-stock-android phone can buy the 2013 version for $200 on Swappa or $300 brand new.

The only way to justify a higher price is to touch a new market which now demands a 1080 screen, a cpu bump, and a slightly improved camera with similar dimensions to the other flagships.

 

[YAYTech]

Seems like a nice evolution of the phone to me, not sure what your beef is. They added the IR sensors for the wave wakeup (and surely they'll use them for some other things). I can understand some folks wishing it'd stayed a bit smaller, but as mentioned, that's marketing (though a mini version that stays true to the previous gen's size might be worthwhile, perhaps we'll see something like that in a refreshed Droid lineup?)

 

[NoYankees44]

Ok yeah it is bigger, but what is gimicky about it? It is the same philosophy as last time, just in a bigger package.

Not enough people bought the first one, so they are doing a few things different. Google wont be there to allow moto to hemorrhage profits much longer.

 

[Ry]

When the original Moto X launched last year it was bold statement for having this minimalist principle of "If it doesn't make the phone better we don't use it!" balanced with another guiding principle of "If we can come up with something truly innovative that's different from anything else out there we will use it."

From the size and resolution of the screen to the speed of the CPU Motorola didn't follow what Samsung, HTC and the other big guys were doing. With their Moto Maker, Active Display, Touchless Control and other features Motorola dared to be different in a homogeneous sea of me too Android devices.

It now looks like the Engineering daredevils that made the original Moto X gave way to the Marketing group and their test surveys. I don't see the logical successor to the Moto X with this model, I see what would have happened if Samsung bought the Motorola unit and rolled it up into the Galaxy line of phones.

Motomaker gets more options.

Active Display is updated (looks like more notifications in the vids).

Touchless Control can activate on custom commands now.

The IR sensors? An evolution from the Moto X where you could wave your hand to turn on Active Notifications.

..what did you expect?

 

[mogelijk]

There's nothing wrong with the current moto x. There's nothing to refresh in the 4.7" form factor. A 4.7" moto x+1 would have landed with a thud. Anyone who wants a 4.7" no-lag-fast-updates-stock-android phone can buy the 2013 version for $200 on Swappa or $300 brand new.

The only way to justify a higher price is to touch a new market which now demands a 1080 screen, a cpu bump, and a slightly improved camera with similar dimensions to the other flagships.

You completely missed what he was saying. People didn't buy the Moto X because of its outdated processor and 720p screen; in essence, it wasn't a "high end" phone. To a lesser degree, the still face this issue since the new Moto X is "only" 1080p, rather than QuadHD.

I think the opposite of you; at 5.2" the Moto X largely blends in with the other "high end" phones at your local retailer. The only thing special about it is MotoMaker, though many people shopping for a phone aren't going to be willing to wait to have it custom made, they want to take their phone home with them. So, from that standpoint, it almost seems like a variant of the S5, G3, or One (M8) with nothing (that most will see) to make it stand out. By contrast, if Moto had left the X about the same size it would be different, it would be the only Android 4.7" flagship (with high end specs).

Again, the older Moto X doesn't have the high end specs -- in fact, no one who is looking to buy a high end phone is going to buy a phone with a 720p display and dual core 1.7Ghz processor. They aren't going to buy the older Moto X, despite the 4.7" screen.

 

[deesugar]

When you imitate rather then innovate you become a follower and not a leader. When a company like Moto is trying to be like a Samsung I'd rather have the real thing.

The higher resolutions and faster CPU's have became a marketing game. For people who only like what they're told to like I understand. But this is also about Motorola putting their efforts into unique features which were lost and we never got to see this time due to the change in focus.

 

[YAYTech]

But this is also about Motorola putting their efforts into unique features which were lost and we never got to see this time due to the change in focus.

What was lost other than smaller screen size that some prefer?

 

[deesugar]

Motomaker gets more options.

This is the one good thing.

• Active Display is updated (looks like more notifications in the vids).
• Touchless Control can activate on custom commands now.

These are minor changes, the type of which Moto has given us in software updates in the past.
[UPDATE]
Looks like old Moto X will be getting them
Motorola Touchless Control app gets updated with a new name, Moto Voice | Android Central

The IR sensors? An evolution from the Moto X where you could wave your hand to turn on Active Notifications.

Gimmick and redundant. People forget that old Moto X does this through the proximity sensor. It was the feature for when you flip the phone over but waving your hand over the phone also activates it.

..what did you expect?

The ideas that never made it to the Moto X is what I expected. I worked for a mechanical design firm that made smartphones. Many people don't understand is that there are sketches, ideas and prototypes with awesome features that we'll never see because of the change in direction. The Build of Materials (or BOM) can't fit all the features so cool moto stuff had to give way to things like IR sensors, bigger screen, etc...

 

[UJ95x]

I don't see how any of what they added was gimmicky. The only complaint I have is the small battery. Other than that, it seems like a worthy successor to the Moto X, even though I would have liked for them to keep it a bit smaller.

 

[darkoman4]

Man, just thing like adding aluminum frame and that beautiful brown leather back is a buy for me. No other phone has that.

 

[deesugar]

The Galaxy Note 4, Ascend Mate7 and Lumia 830 all have metal frames. However, the Moto Maker with changeable backplates is an exclusive for the Moto X.

 

[A895]

I don't even..... I mean how do you look at the 2014 Moto X and think Gimmicky? What concerns me is that random people are putting down this device (like last year) for some reason.

 

[deesugar]

Not just "random" people:
I Don’t Want a Bigger Moto X. I Want a Better Moto X.|Gimodo

 

[b_slow1]

The "New" Moto X was a solid update, in my opinion. It addressed a good number of the complaints that people had about the original.

That being said, I have no interest in buying one, provided that the "Moto Voice" updates are made available to "Original" Moto X customers.

(Also, does anyone else find it strange that a lot of other features that people wanted in the new Moto X only showed up in the new Moto G? The Moto G got SD card support, FM radio, and stereo front-facing speakers, while the Moto X did not.)

 

[Clocks]

same thing plays out on every board when a new phone is released. how many people on the note 3 forum say they are skipping the note 4? lots of butthurt from the small-phone crowd, lack of enough gimmicks butthurt from others, too many gimmicks butthurt from even other people.

 

[deesugar]

(Also, does anyone else find it strange that a lot of other features that people wanted in the new Moto X only showed up in the new Moto G? The Moto G got SD card support, FM radio, and stereo front-facing speakers, while the Moto X did not.)

The Moto G has become a premium media phone over the Moto X

 

[b_slow1]

same thing plays out on every board when a new phone is released. how many people on the note 3 forum say they are skipping the note 4? lots of butthurt from the small-phone crowd, lack of enough gimmicks butthurt from others, too many gimmicks butthurt from even other people.

I believe what you refer to as "butthurt" are actually called "opinions". There is no reason why consumers have to LOVE every iteration of a device. There is no reason to assume that new devices are better than old ones and need to be universally accepted. It's a matter of preference.