Moto X Is a Serious iPhone Challenger: 10 Reasons Why

By Don Reisinger

There’s no debating that the Moto X is a well-designed smartphone. In fact, it might be one of the most attractive Android-based devices on the market, thanks to its smooth, rounded corners and big, beautiful display. The device can also be personalized based on users’ preferences, making it fit into whatever design aesthetic they like.

Motorola has realized that to set itself on the right track in mobile, it needs to appeal to the eclectic smartphone owner who wants to customize his device. That’s why the company offered customers the ability to choose colors and different backings. It’s been tried before, of course, but this one might actually work.

Google, by watching over Motorola, seems to understand that the company’s device must target consumers first, and worry about other customers second. That’s important. Most smartphone makers, except for Apple, have no idea what their customers want. Google is helping them figure that out.

The Moto X comes with a 4.7-inch display that, according to many who have tried it out, is absolutely beautiful. That’s great news for Motorola and Google. One of the big advantages for the iPhone is its Retina display. The fact that the Moto X is larger and has a high-quality design is important.

According to Google and Motorola, the Moto X will ship with Android 4.2.2 and will be updated to the latest Android versions after the device launches and the updates are made available. Considering the iPhone is always ready with new software, that little feature is very important.

Google and Motorola made the exceedingly intelligent decision to make the Moto X available on just about every major and regional carrier in the U.S. In other words, the company will have ample supply available to customers. And it won’t try to limit where they can get the handset. In a battle with Apple, that’s important.

If there’s anything that will annoy today’s customers, it’s the lack of enough wireless options. Realizing that, Google and Motorola have bundled all of the latest WiFi technologies into the Moto X, including wireless AC. In addition, it can connect to the Web via 4G LTE. So, just about anywhere a person goes, they’ll have high-speed networking. Nice.

Google has decided to create an “ecosystem” of products for the Moto X that could eventually pay off in a big way. The company’s premise is simple: Customize the handset the way you’d like, and once you have a color picked, buy up some accessories that match. It should be interesting to see if that matching strategy helps Moto and hurts Apple.

It would be a failure if the Moto X was going to cost customers $300 or more. However, the smartphone is going to launch at $199 with a two-year contract, putting it directly in line with Apple’s iPhone 5. Pricing matters when you are competing with the Apple iPhone. It appears Google and Motorola understand that.

Make no mistake: That Google is backing Motorola and the Moto X is extremely important. Customers lost trust in Motorola, but they’ve only watched their trust grow in Google. Now that they’re teaming up on handsets, there’s a good chance that Motorola will rebound to some degree and regain its lost appeal. After all, that’s what Google acquired the company for, right?