Motorola is set to launch a device “made to last, priced for all” next Tuesday, which many believe to be the long-rumoured Moto E.
Over the past couple of weeks, Motorola’s official Twitter account has teased the announcement with the hashtag #GoodbyeFlipPhone, making it clear that the new device will appeal to first-time smartphone users in developing markets.
What’s interesting is that Motorola is clearly ceding the high-margin Android market to Samsung and going with what works: volume. The Moto G was much more successful for the company than the Moto X, even though the latter saw heavy discounts shortly after launch.
The device we see in the photo is not handsome, but it’s decidedly utilitarian (though it must be said that this is likely a pre-productive unit, if it’s real at all) and therefore appropriate for someone upgrading from the king of utility, the flip phone.
Less important than the Moto E’s design or its spec sheet is the prospect of inviting Android into the homes of people who would not have even considered a smartphone. While $100 Android phones have existed for some time, they’ve lacked the capabilities to offer an experience that wouldn’t send their users back to the comfortable, limiting confines of a dumbphone.
What’s interesting is that the device in this photo lacks a front-facing camera. We’ve heard that the Moto E will arrive with a 1.2Ghz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, 1GB of RAM, 4-8GB of internal storage, a 5MP rear camera, a 1900mAh battery and Android 4.4.
We’ll know more next week, so stay tuned.
[source]Android Police[/source]
