Google bought Motorola back in 2011, and the company has been making smartphones since then, but they didn’t really matter (sorry, Droid RAZR MAXX HD). Today, however, Motorola unveiled a new phone, the Moto X. This one matters.
Why? Because it’s the first phone built entirely on Google’s watch. Google knows it has to move into making devices—its strategy of seeding Android into hardware for free has led to great mobile market share, but not great mobile profits. Hardware equals hard currency, and no doubt the company is tired of seeing companies like Samsung make a killing off work done in Mountain View.
Motorola unveiled the Moto X at an event in New York Thursday morning. The presentation departed from the standard playbook right from the beginning, as Rick Osterloh, Google’s SVP in charge of Moto X jumped right in by talking about Touchless Control, the phone’s hand-free, voice activated interface. You can say to the phone, “Ok Google Now, call so-and-so;” or “find a sushi restaurant nearby,” or “did the Mets win last night?” Since Google structures more and more of its search data, questions like the last one can be processed and answered via a synthetic voice (“No. They lost 3-2 to the Marlins” the phone replied.)
Unlike most new-product launches, the proceedings here did not start with the product, but the services. There was no video showing off the beautiful curves or chamfered edges of the Moto X, which will come out at the end of August with a base price of $199 for the 16GB model (a 32GB model will cost $249). We learned about the camera (it comes on when you twist the phone twice) and the Active Display (relevant info pops up on the lock screen when you move the phone), and then only at the end did we get into the hardware side of hardware.
Funny thing is, there actually is something interesting happening with the Moto X as a device, not just a collection of services. The phone’s design is certainly attractive—its slim bezel and curved back fit right in with modern phone design—but it’s what buyers can do with that design that may help distinguish it from the rest of the smartphone pack.
Motorola will be launching Motomaker, an online service that will allow users to custom-order their phone in a personalized combination of colors and materials, alongside the Moto X. The presentation referred to Nike’s ID program, in which customers can personalize a pair of sneakers, and Mini’s endless combinations of accessories and finishes that prospective owners can sort through before buying a car.
The Motomaker site lets you select the back color, the front color (so long it’s black or white) and the accent color on camera-lens surrounds and side-mounted buttons. Motorola also showed off prototypes of some woods it’s using to make a wood-based back cover. That material won’t be available on Day 1, but is expected soon after. There are also accessories like headsets from SOL Republic, which can be ordered in the same colors that are available for the phone.
Until now, phone customization was limited to cases and more-expensive refits. Motorola’s effort brings more individualization to more people. The company was also keen on pointing out the delivery-date estimator which updates in real time. In most cases, ordering a phone to your own specs takes four days, but that timeframe can shift by a day or two if, say, everyone wants an olive-green phone with orange accents.
Making this kind of customization a reality is an assembly plant in Ft. Worth, Texas. The only smartphone assembly plant in the U.S., Motorola purchased the facility (it had once been a Nokia plant) and employs around 2,000 people there to put together phones based on specs coming out of Motomaker, as well as standard-issue devices in black or white. Motorola doesn’t know how much of the production run will be taken up by custom orders, but they’re not taking any chances in case the idea takes off. “We’ve optimized [the plant in] Texas to assume that everyone will want a custom phone,” says Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside. “If we’re wrong, it’s a lot easier to go back to making black-and-white models than to go in the other direction.”
All in all, it was an impressive showing. Of course, we’ve seen impressive showings before. The Palm Pre looked good when it debuted. Nokia’s Lumia phones were well received too. The trick for Motorola is to convert “Hey, that’s a pretty cool phone” to “Man, I gotta get one of those.” Perhaps Motomaker will be the key to that.
