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Moto X

Very useful Free Android app you should download now

technologyEdward Kiledjian

I test thousands of apps every year for Android and IOS, and after a couple of weeks, most end up being deleted. 2 weeks ago I discovered a very useful free android app I think every Android owner should download now.

The app is called Agent (link) and offers 5 very useful pre-configured functions called Agents (which you see in the above image).

The 5 functions are described as follows (by the manufacturer):

  •  Drive Agent is triggered by bluetooth and motion sensing (activity detection). It can be configured to read SMS messages aloud, respond with voice, auto respond to texters and callers to let them know you’re driving (editable message) & only respond to your own hand-picked list
  • Battery Agent triggers at a percentage you choose. It helps conserve battery by giving you the option to turn off bluetooth, dim your screen and reverts back to normal settings automatically when you charge your phone. Will also let you know how much battery it saved you.
  • Parking Agent remembers where you parked, based off your speed or bluetooth connection. Will remember your last five parking spots
  • Meeting Agent syncs with your calendar to silence/ put your phone on vibrate when you don’t want to be disturbed. It can be configured to activate for busy events only, gives you the ability to specify your working week so that it only syncs with your calendar on days and times you prefer, works with shared calendars and auto responds to selected contacts during these "busy" events.
  • Sleep Agent will silence your phone automatically when you go to sleep. You can configure sleep times for different days of the week, minutes of inactivity before activating, auto response to selected callers and texters during your sleeping hours, list of contacts that can wake you & Bluetooth, autosync, wifi and mobile data deactivation.

Having played with it for a week, I think this is a beautifully useful app. It is a competitor to the MotoX only MotoAssist by Motorola.  In some ways, it is even more useful than MotoAssist and could coax some die hard MotoX users to switch to other android devices.

Next Motorola Moto X to be called +1

technologyEdward Kiledjian

EVLeaks has proven to be fairly reliable over the years and his latest prediction is that the next Motorola Moto X will be called the Moto X+1. 

We haven't seen too many rumours surrounding this upcoming device so we'll have to wait and see what the Lenovo owned unit will deliver. It is important to remember that many Android watchers still call the Moto X the best Android phone around (even though it was released August 2013).

In Canada the Moto X was released exclusively on Rogers and I am really hoping they bring the new device to Telus and Bell also. 

In the US and Canada, we have seen more and more tier-2 carriers selling the Moto X which typically indicates it will shortly be replaced.

 

New MotoX Coming this Summer

technologyEdward Kiledjian
2014-02-26_18-45-51.jpg

Since Motorola Mobility is now a Lenovo company, many asked if Motorola would be updating its aging MotoX and during a Twitter Q&A, we learned that the answer is yes. Expect the updated version sometime late summer.

Thats all we know but expect rumours to drop out of China as the release gets closer.

A $50 unlocked android phone from Motorola?

technologyEdward Kiledjian
Image by Hades2K under Creative Commons License

Image by Hades2K under Creative Commons License

2013 was the year of Motorola. When most Android manufacturers were competing on specifications (processor, memory, storage, screen size, etc), Motorola decided to take a different angle and built a well designed, customizable, reasonably priced android device. This device, the MotoX, came with an almost stock Android OS with some small but powerful usability add ons. I'm an iPhone user and have been from the very beginning but the MotoX was the device that almost made me switch.

Motorola then came out with their lower cost MotoG with sold for as little as $179 without a contract. Motorola is  truly on the right track.

Denis Woodside, the Motorola CEO that made all of this possible, recently gave Trusted Reviews (link) an interview. Denis said Motorola understands that even the $179 MotoG is expensive for many emerging markets. An interesting quote:

“In much of the world $179 is a lot of money so there’s a big market at a price point of less than $179. We’re going to look at that and just delivering on that value promise is super important. I mean why can’t these devices be $50? There’s no reason that can’t happen so we’re going to push that.”

In addition to low cost phones, he confirmed that Motorola is looking to improve its device customization options. Today ,via MotoMaker, you can choose colours but he predicts you will be able to choose screen size and functionality in the next year or 2. You want a 5" phone with always listening and a motion co-processor, you should be able to order that.

A $179 unlocked phone would have sounded crazy 2 years ago but Motorola showed that it was possible to sell a decent desirable phone at that price. They showed that customization was possible so I can only assume they will find a way to deliver a $50 phone and extreme customization on the higher end.