Moto X And The Colorful Customization Of Motorola, A Google Company

Motorola will soon (as early as tomorrow) announce the availability of the Moto X, a smartphone whose outward appearance will be able to be custom-ordered through the web. The device's built-in storage will also have options attached, though not beyond the standard 16, 32, or 64GB options offered with many major smartphone releases in past years. This device will come in a variety of colors – at least 12 of them – as well as a standard set of tones available in-store.

What you're seeing above and below are visualizations mocked up by SlashGear based on the color ring surrounding the Motorola logo reboot shown this week for the very first time. This new logo comes attached with the note "a Google company", the first time said logo had a modification since well before the group was acquired by the creators of the mobile operating system Android.

The Moto X will also feature Android inside, working with at least version 4.2.2 Jelly Bean with a yet-unseen level of customizations from Motorola. As this is the first device to have been developed entirely under the umbrella of time that is the company's tie-in with Google, it's likely we'll see a bit more "pure" version of Android with each new phone, the Moto X included.

That said, the head of Motorola put in place by Google at their acquisition, Dennis Woodside, made it clear once again that they'd be sticking to their New Motorola plan, in so many words, laid out back in September of 2012 at the launch of the DROID RAZR HD and DROID RAZR M. Though one of the three pillars spoken of back then wasn't mentioned here (that being high battery life), the other two are a lock: 4G LTE data speed and Android.

"If you want the best Android device, you should be looking at a Motorola device." – Dennis Woodside for Motorola

In a chat here in 2013 at the 2013 D11 conference, Woodside described a collection of abilities the Moto X has in store for the public, outlining features such as the device's camera "firing up" when the smartphone is removed from a user's pocket, and top-notch management of "ultra-low power sensors" such as a device's gyroscope and accelerometer.

"Imagine when in the car, the device will know it is going 60mph and it is going to act differently so you can interact with it safely. Those are the kinds of things we're doing with fundamental technology.

Motorola has always been good at managing ultra-low power sensors, such as the gyroscope and the accelerometer, and keeping those on all the time so the device knows different use states. The [Moto X] knows when it is in my pocket, it knows when I take it out of my pocket. " – Dennis Woodside for Motorola

Just this afternoon, two Verizon-bound Motorola smartphones appeared at the FCC, this quite often a good sign that said devices will be launching soon. It's been suggested that while one of these machines will be the Moto X indeed, the other will be a larger machine called DROID Ultra.

Three of the colors you're seeing here above and below appeared in a factory floor photo leaked earlier today, each of the units looking to be rather smooth, likely made of a soft (yet undoubtedly strong, per Motorola's rugged recent history) plastic made to feel comfortable in the palm.

The rather patriotic full-page advertisement you're seeing below came on the 2nd of this month, appearing in newspapers across the nation today (one day before the 4th of July). This message suggests that while the USA celebrates its Independence Day, Motorola will be joining in on the fun with independence from the fairly limited choices available with the competition.

Click for full-sized JPG image

According to sources speaking with ABC News' Joanna Stern, customization of Moto X will include more than just a choice of backside covers. This machine is also suggested to be working with a custom engraving of said colorful phone back, a second custom color for the trim of the phone, and a built-in wallpaper as uploaded by the future owner of the device.

It's been tipped – and all but confirmed by the size of the leaked images from this and previous weeks – that this device will be delivered with the following:

• 4.7-inch 720p display

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 Processor (dual-core)

• 2GB RAM

• 16, 32, 64GB RAM

• Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean with lightly skinned Motorola UI

Though it's not been confirmed by Google (certainly not until the device itself is out on the market, at least), it wouldn't be a massive surprise to find this machine appearing on the Google Play store sooner than later. As devices like the Samsung Galaxy S 4 and the HTC One find themselves being delivered by Google with a pure Vanilla (no manufacturer customizations) version of Android aboard, it'd be a shame if the OEM owned by the software creator weren't to bring on another "Google Play edition", as it were – complete with customization abilities, of course.

As for the date of the actual reveal – if not entirely on July 4th (there more likely another teaser) – It's been suggested by "This Week in Google" publisher Leo Laporte that a July 10th event will be held by Motorola for the Moto X – see #204 at 40:40 – stay tuned for more! Thanks for the tip, Garmon!

This device will be a bit of a rebirth of efforts for Motorola, and perhaps one rather necessary, as the smartphone creator hasn't done exceedingly well in the market over the past several cycles. Watch this week and into the summer as Google brings on a colorful, customizable future for the company with the the big M, signed for quality with an X.