The wooden backs for Motorola’s Moto X shown off at the handset’s launch event may be here soon. Noted tipster Evleaks tweeted out images and information on the price and availability. He expects them to add $ 50 to the cost of a Moto X handset when they arrive in the fourth quarter, which actually starts tomorrow. Also noteworthy is an expected price cut he reports:
Moto X price drop to $ 100 coming in Q4, along with wooden back configurations (for $ 50) http://t.co/wpIdgYLjHO—
@evleaks (@evleaks) August 31, 2013
Neither bit is terribly surprising although some who have already purchased a Moto X could be unhappy by the news. However, it’s common for most Android handsets to see a price cut within a few months of launch. And it’s likely most new Moto X owners are still within their return policy so if they really wanted to wait for any potential price drop, they could probably still do so.
I doubt the price cut takes place soon though. More likely would be after the initial carrier roll out excitement fades, which would be closer to the holiday season: A price cut could help spur a second wave of sales. Regardless: Those disappointed in the initial price point for “mid-range hardware” should have one less reason not to consider the phone.
Of course, it’s always nice to save $ 100 and that’s what buyers can do by purchasing a Nexus 4 now. Google announced price cuts of the handset this week, making a good phone an even better buy. The handset doesn’t natively support fast LTE networks and has been around for nearly a year but it’s still a great handset for those who prefer the Nexus experience. The base model now starts at $ 199 for an unlocked handset in the U.S.
In the meantime, next week’s focus could shift from smartphones to smartwatches as Samsung is expected to make a splash with its Galaxy Gear wearable. Don’t count Google out of this race, however. This week, GigaOM discovered that Google purchased Wimm, an Android smartwatch maker, last year. This marks the second smartwatch that Google has either bought or inherited; the first being the MotoACTV from the Motorola acquisition.
I’ve noted before that I think Google has all the tools to make a killer smartwatch: A highly used platform in Android, strong developer support and contextual data in Google Now that it can put on the wrist. With the Wimm purchase, it adds another group of engineers and developers that have created a working product along with a developer program to create mini apps for the Android-based watch.
When might we see a watch from Google? Although I’d like to see one sooner than later, I suspect Google will wait until it has a bulletproof product because it will want to get this right the first time.
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