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It's been reported that Google senior management was never really committed to Motorola or the handset business[1]. The fact they took so long to launch a new f

It's been reported that Google senior management was never really committed to Motorola or the handset business[1]. The fact they took so long to launch a new flagship product (after first trying to use the IP arsenal against Apple while simultaneously winding down much of Motorola's other lines and businesses) and then selling the company mere months after the launch of it, seem to back this up circumstantially. I will say this, The Moto X is a really solid product. The smart display, speech recognition capabilities and Moto Assist make it one of the nicest Android phones I've ever used for practical purposes. The Moto G and Moto E look to be really solid values as well. The bad thing about this kind of corporate maneuvering here in the states is it makes the "American-made" angle they were playing for PR & political purposes seem manipulated and cynical. Maybe that's just not that important to most people though. I'm sure it was important to the people working there. [1] http://www.businessinsider.com/motorolas-super-powered-google-phone-2014-3 http://www.businessinsider.com/motorolas-super-powered-googl...

QuantumChaos 12y ago
>Maybe that's just not that important to most people though. It's not important to me: I'm satisfied that the theory of comparative advantage shows that free trade is good, and protectionism (even in the form of individuals preferring goods made in their own nation) is harmful to all countries. Presumably Google will put a positive spin on anything they do, and make the arguments that are best received by the public, not the most logical arguments. >I'm sure it was important to the people working there. Switching from supplier A to supplier B will always be bad for supplier A. Does that mean we should never switch suppliers? Or maybe it means we should always switch supplies (since it's good for supplier B).
- spinchange 12y ago
  I almost elaborated in my comment that for me personally it wasn't about protectionism, as much as a desire for a country that literally invented many high technology industries to simply regain some basic capacity and infrastructure to produce those goods again. I don't think it's incongruous to value free trade and the advantages of specialization and globalization but also like to see one's country able to produce more physical goods than just hamburgers or lattes.
pasbesoin 12y ago
I have a Moto X. I wanted the 32 GB variety (for $50 more, it made sense aside from personally wanting the additional capacity). Well, the store only had 16 GB models in "default" all-black and all-white configurations. So, I was sent to the Moto Store or whatever they call it. Or I wasn't, per the cell phone company. Or I was, per the Store that subsequently sent me an email through which to order the phone I'd already paid for. I'm leaving off many steps. The process was a big pain in the ass. Except that Motorolla was/is on the door, in some ways it felt rather typical Google. Ostensibly, it should work. In practice, it's quirky, and when it's a problem, it's difficult to get someone to actually sort it out. Ultimately, I had a clueful cell phone store manager walk through as much of it as he could. They didn't even call him back. The order did not then proceed as they told him it would (this included credit for a phone that I ordered ("you don't need to use the Moto Store / customization for a 32 GB all-black... It's on its way") that was never delivered -- but for which I was billed (yeah, our representative told you the wrong thing; if we do nothing further, you can consider the order cancelled)). But ultimately, after using the emailed "customize your order" link despite one further representative telling me not to, they sent one, and it works. I didn't think this "U.S. 'manufacturing' (assembly)" was going to stick around. Didn't take too long to be proven right. In this specific case, some genius decided to provide their cell phone stores with no 32 GB model stock (e.g. in all-black, at least) -- only 16 GB. As others have pointed out, so many people "case" their phones that the color choices are significantly if not entirely moot -- from my perspective, at least. It's a nice phone. They should have focused on actually making it easier and painless to get into people's hands. "G" and "E" will in good part also succeed because you can just go into a store and fucking buy one. No one really wants this customization and wait for the package crap -- especially not when it starts to get this painful. P.S. And when it means dealing with two independent companies' somewhat clueless support, as opposed to just one -- and they aren't even talking to each other (or, not well). P.P.S. I really wanted this to work out, limited as it may be ("assembly"). And it's one reason I chose the X.
rdtsc 12y ago
I got a Moto G and I really like it. It was cheap enough that if it broke, I wouldn't be too upset. My rule is if I have to get insurance or if I am afraid of breaking it too much, then I can't afford it, and Moto G was in that range. I've had it for about half a year. At no point in this time period, for example, have I thought "Gee I wish I had something more powerful". Granted this is the most powerful phone I've had, so maybe if I handled an iPhone I would be blown away, but so far so good, I am very happy with it.
- dm2 12y ago
  Motorola still sells great phones. Android doesn't have high system requirements and computing power has dramatically increased, become cheaper, and more energy efficient in the past few years, it's not too difficult to build a long-lasting and great phones anymore, which is bad for phone manufacturers because they rely on people purchasing phones frequently. Even though I'm very tempted to purchase a Moto G or E I can't help but to stick to the Nexus phones though. If HTC or Motorola would just sell phones without custom software and pre-installed applications and would have a 3 year update policy, only then would I purchase from them. I have no problems installing custom ROMs to keep a phone up-to-date but I really shouldn't have to.
  - rdtsc 12y ago
    > Moto G or E I can't help but to stick to the Nexus phones though. Moto G I believe is pretty minimal. There are a few "Motorola" apps. But dialer, calender almost everything else is vanilla Google Android
  - blue6249 12y ago
    While this isn't a guarantee that you'll get updates, you can definitely get a moto g (and a pile of other phones) without any carrier customization now as a "play edition" phone[1]. [1] https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Moto_G_Google_Play_edition_16GB?id=moto_g_16gb https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Moto_G_Google_...
    - 12y ago

QuantumChaos 12y ago

>Maybe that's just not that important to most people though. It's not important to me: I'm satisfied that the theory of comparative advantage shows that free trade is good, and protectionism (even in the form of individuals preferring goods made in their own nation) is harmful to all countries. Presumably Google will put a positive spin on anything they do, and make the arguments that are best received by the public, not the most logical arguments. >I'm sure it was important to the people working there. Switching from supplier A to supplier B will always be bad for supplier A. Does that mean we should never switch suppliers? Or maybe it means we should always switch supplies (since it's good for supplier B).

spinchange 12y ago
I almost elaborated in my comment that for me personally it wasn't about protectionism, as much as a desire for a country that literally invented many high technology industries to simply regain some basic capacity and infrastructure to produce those goods again. I don't think it's incongruous to value free trade and the advantages of specialization and globalization but also like to see one's country able to produce more physical goods than just hamburgers or lattes.

pasbesoin 12y ago

I have a Moto X. I wanted the 32 GB variety (for $50 more, it made sense aside from personally wanting the additional capacity). Well, the store only had 16 GB models in "default" all-black and all-white configurations. So, I was sent to the Moto Store or whatever they call it. Or I wasn't, per the cell phone company. Or I was, per the Store that subsequently sent me an email through which to order the phone I'd already paid for. I'm leaving off many steps. The process was a big pain in the ass. Except that Motorolla was/is on the door, in some ways it felt rather typical Google. Ostensibly, it should work. In practice, it's quirky, and when it's a problem, it's difficult to get someone to actually sort it out. Ultimately, I had a clueful cell phone store manager walk through as much of it as he could. They didn't even call him back. The order did not then proceed as they told him it would (this included credit for a phone that I ordered ("you don't need to use the Moto Store / customization for a 32 GB all-black... It's on its way") that was never delivered -- but for which I was billed (yeah, our representative told you the wrong thing; if we do nothing further, you can consider the order cancelled)). But ultimately, after using the emailed "customize your order" link despite one further representative telling me not to, they sent one, and it works. I didn't think this "U.S. 'manufacturing' (assembly)" was going to stick around. Didn't take too long to be proven right. In this specific case, some genius decided to provide their cell phone stores with no 32 GB model stock (e.g. in all-black, at least) -- only 16 GB. As others have pointed out, so many people "case" their phones that the color choices are significantly if not entirely moot -- from my perspective, at least. It's a nice phone. They should have focused on actually making it easier and painless to get into people's hands. "G" and "E" will in good part also succeed because you can just go into a store and fucking buy one. No one really wants this customization and wait for the package crap -- especially not when it starts to get this painful. P.S. And when it means dealing with two independent companies' somewhat clueless support, as opposed to just one -- and they aren't even talking to each other (or, not well). P.P.S. I really wanted this to work out, limited as it may be ("assembly"). And it's one reason I chose the X.

rdtsc 12y ago

I got a Moto G and I really like it. It was cheap enough that if it broke, I wouldn't be too upset. My rule is if I have to get insurance or if I am afraid of breaking it too much, then I can't afford it, and Moto G was in that range. I've had it for about half a year. At no point in this time period, for example, have I thought "Gee I wish I had something more powerful". Granted this is the most powerful phone I've had, so maybe if I handled an iPhone I would be blown away, but so far so good, I am very happy with it.

dm2 12y ago
Motorola still sells great phones. Android doesn't have high system requirements and computing power has dramatically increased, become cheaper, and more energy efficient in the past few years, it's not too difficult to build a long-lasting and great phones anymore, which is bad for phone manufacturers because they rely on people purchasing phones frequently. Even though I'm very tempted to purchase a Moto G or E I can't help but to stick to the Nexus phones though. If HTC or Motorola would just sell phones without custom software and pre-installed applications and would have a 3 year update policy, only then would I purchase from them. I have no problems installing custom ROMs to keep a phone up-to-date but I really shouldn't have to.
- rdtsc 12y ago
  > Moto G or E I can't help but to stick to the Nexus phones though. Moto G I believe is pretty minimal. There are a few "Motorola" apps. But dialer, calender almost everything else is vanilla Google Android
- blue6249 12y ago
  While this isn't a guarantee that you'll get updates, you can definitely get a moto g (and a pile of other phones) without any carrier customization now as a "play edition" phone[1]. [1] https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Moto_G_Google_Play_edition_16GB?id=moto_g_16gb https://play.google.com/store/devices/details/Moto_G_Google_...
  - 12y ago