All 2016 Moto devices will have fingerprint scanners, Lenovo exec says

Despite basically pioneering the concept of a smartphone with a built-in fingerprint scanner with the Atrix 4G back in 2011, Motorola hasn't been quick to jump back on this train last year, when such sensors have been featured in pretty much every high-end Android device.

That will change in 2016, however. Chen Xudong, SVP of Lenovo and president for Lenovo China and Asia Pacific, has revealed that all Moto-branded handsets launching this year will have fingerprint sensors. That's a 180-degree change from the Lenovo subsidiary's recent antics, and it will surely be welcomed by the brand's fans.

The Lenovo exec has shared an additional detail about the Moto portfolio for 2016: there will be no more phones launching with screens smaller than 5 inches. So we assume there won't be a new Moto E this year.

The Moto brand will mostly be used for higher-end offerings from this point forward, while the budget devices will generally bear Lenovo's Vibe moniker. In total, between the two brands, no more than 15 models will be launched in 2016.

Finally, Chen Xudong stressed that Google services will "definitely" re-enter China before the end of the year. This means that the Play Store might finally battle it out over there with the dozens of local app stores for Android, while staple Google properties such as Gmail and Maps could once again be openly used by people living in the mainland.

Source (in Chinese) | Via

Motorola begins allowing bootloader unlocks on Verizon Moto X (2014)

If you own a Motorola Moto X (2014) on Verizon, here is some good news: the carrier has started allowing bootloader unlocks on the smartphone. The news came courtesy of Motorola Forums Manager.


"Hey, everyone. Just wanted to let you know that we did get the green light to unlock the bootloader on Verizon 2014 Moto X (2nd Gen) devices," Matt (the forums manager) said, while making it clear that they can't do this for devices on other carriers.

For those planning to unlock the bootloader for the first time, keep in mind that the process - which allows you to install third-party ROMs - will void the warranty of your device. Plus, there are many other risks, too. Head to the Source 2 link below for all the details, including how to unlock the bootloader on your Motorola device.

Source 1 | Source 2

Lenovo phasing out Motorola brand for smartphones

When Lenovo completed the acquisition of Motorola Mobility back in 2014, it said "We plan to not only protect the Motorola brand, but make it stronger." However, looks like the Chinese company's priorities has changed with changing times as the brand is now being phased out.


"We'll slowly phase out Motorola," said Motorola Chief Operating Officer Rick Osterloh.
Motorola's phone business will now come under the Lenovo name, meaning it will be merged with Lenovo's phone business, with high-end smartphones using the Moto branding while budget devices using the Vibe brand.

You'll also see future Moto products featuring the blue Lenovo logo, although Motorola's batwing-like "M" logo will still be there. The Motorola name, however, won't vanish completely - it'll live on as a division under Lenovo.

Via

Nexus 6 pre-orders confirmed to start on October 29

Google and Motorola unveiled the Nexus 6 phablet last week. During the blog post announcement, we were told that pre-orders for the device would start on October 29.

And this date has just been confirmed by none other than the phone's listing in the Google Play Store. The Nexus 6 is in there, but you'll only be able to pre-order one starting on October 29 - next Wednesday, to be precise.

By now you probably know the pricing: the Nexus 6 will set you back $649 if you want the base 32GB model, or $699 if you need double that storage amount.

Nexus 6 will be sold by AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile

Motorola and Google made the Nexus 6 official earlier today, and we already know it's going to cost $649 if you choose to purchase the 32GB base model from the Play Store in unlocked form.

Though if you were wondering about carrier support, this is for you. And it's very good news. It turns out that the Nexus 6 will get the widest US release of any Nexus device ever.

It will be available at Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and US Cellular. What's more, T-Mobile was even so kind as to already announce its release details.

Google Nexus 6 is official with 6-inch QHD screen and S805

Without any sort of special event, Google has just announced the Motorola-made Nexus 6 smartphone running Android 5.0 Lollipop. The phone features a 6" 2560 x 1440 pixel display, which gives it a pixel density of 496ppi.

The premium display is backed up by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 chipset with a 2.65GHz quad-core Krait 450 CPU inside and 3GB of RAM. At the back, there's a 13MP f/2.0 camera with dual-LED flash. Internal storage is either 32GB or 64GB, but there's no microSD card slot.

At the front, there are two stereo speakers and a 2MP front-facing camera.

A Nexus X (aka Nexus 6) rumor : features, specs, price and release date

A few months ago, it seemed that Google had killed the Nexus line of devices, and the Nexus 5 was to remain the last one in the series. Reports from notable bloggers including @evleaks all agreed that Google was about to not only switch its focus from Nexus to the new Android Silver program for affordable markets, but also kill the Nexus series altogether. Then, we heard that Google’s Chief Business Officer, and the main proponent of Android Silver within the company, Nikesh Arora had left. This turned out to mean one thing: the Nexus was back in business.

At first, we were talking about a Nexus 6, a placeholder name that did the job done for the time being, but as more evidence started piling up, we started hearing more about a mysterious Motorola ‘Shamu’, a device uncovered in the Android Open Source Project’s code-base by Android Police at the end of July. 


After all those small fish, it was time for something bigger like a whale. It was time to get excited: after all, Shamu is the name of the killer whale that has survived the most in captivity. Most importantly, it is a name of fish, and that is exactly what Google traditionally uses for its Nexus devices: the Nexus 5 was ‘Hammerhead’, the Nexus 4 carried the ‘Mako’ shark codename, and the Galaxy Nexus was developed under the ‘Tuna’ moniker.

WSJ: Google's 5.9-inch Motorola-made Nexus will be launched this month

The Wall Street Journal today is reporting that Google will launch a 5.9-inch Nexus smartphone sometime later this month. Of course, this is what we’ve been hearing for quite a while now, so the report is far from being surprising - but it’s still good to see more reliable sources confirming the arrival of a new Nexus.

As mentioned many times before, the upcoming device - codenamed Shamu - is manufactured by Motorola, and will be the most advanced Nexus handset yet. Its 5.9-inch display will have 1440 x 2560 pixels, while other features should include a quad-core Snapdragon 805 processor, 3 GB of RAM, 12 MP rear camera, and a 3200 mAh battery.

Motorola DROID Turbo manual is out with a confirms specs

The Motorola DROID Turbo manual has hit the web before the official announcement of the monster handset. The manual details a 21MP camera with dual-LED flash and 2160p video capture.

Motorola Nexus 6 goes through CPU-Z, confirms its chipset

There is a new details regarding the Motorola-made Nexus 6 (codenamed Shamu) have appeared through the Geekbench benchmark database as well as thanks to a couple of CPU-Z screenshot posted on Twitter.

The 5.9" Nexus 6 managed a multi-core Geekbench score of 3199, which is more than the score of both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. The high result is thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 chipset with a 2.65GHz quad-core Krait 450 CPU inside and 3GB of RAM.