Moto X Style will launch in India on October 8 according to new teaser

Of the duo of Moto X smartphones announced this year by Motorola, the Moto X Play is already available in India. On the other hand, the high-end Moto X Style isn't yet, but that may change very soon.

Motorola started teasing the launch of the Moto X Style in the subcontinent last week, and now it looks like we have an actual date to speak of. The image you can see below is a teaser put up by Flipkart, India's biggest online retailer (which could be gearing up to exclusively offer this device).

Now all that remains to be seen is whether the Moto X Style will actually be available for purchase on October 8 or if that's just the date of its announcement for the Indian market (in which case it's going to be released later).

As for pricing, it's expected to be in the INR 30,000-32,000 range (that's about $460-491 or €411-439 right now).

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Droid Maxx 2 will be Verizon's Moto X Play, Google confirms

Verizon still hasn't refreshed its Droid-branded line of exclusive Android devices this year, but that's bound to happen in the next few weeks. Back in August many leaks and rumors claimed that the carrier's upcoming Droid Maxx 2 would be nothing more than a rebranded Moto X Play. In fact, some leaked live images of the Droid Maxx 2 pretty much confirmed that beyond a reasonable doubt.

However, in case you somehow still weren't sure of this, Google can help. See, someone at the search giant managed to inadvertently confirm the fact that the Droid Maxx 2 is just a Moto X Play by another name.

What you see above is a screenshot of the Google support page listing which Android devices are optimized for using the Cast Screen feature with the Chromecast. The second row spells things out, black on white, as it says "Droid Maxx 2 (Verizon) or Moto X Play (Rest of World)". One and the same device, then.

The mishap has since been corrected by Google and any mention of the Droid Maxx 2 is now gone from that support page, but it's pretty clear that someone at the company simply forgot that this handset isn't official just yet. Hopefully that will change soon.

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Motorola announces which of its devices will get Android 6.0 updates

Since Android 6.0 Marshmallow will officially make its debut next week when it will land on Google's Nexus line of devices, Motorola thought it fitting to publish a blog post outlining its plans regarding Marshmallow updates. It's unfortunate that in this day and age very few smartphone makers are so upfront about their update strategies.

As you'd expect, Motorola has published a list of its devices that are going to get updates to Android 6.0 Marshmallow. Yet you might not have expected the list to be this short, or for certain handsets to be missing from it.

Let's start with the good news then. The following devices will see the newest version of Android:

• 2015 Moto X Pure Edition (3rd gen)

• 2015 Moto X Style (3rd gen)

• 2015 Moto X Play

• 2015 Moto G (3rd gen)

• 2014 Moto X Pure Edition in the US (2nd gen)

• 2014 Moto X in Latin America, Europe and Asia2 (2nd gen)

• 2014 Moto G and Moto G with 4G LTE (2nd gen)

• DROID Turbo

• 2014 Moto MAXX

• 2014 Moto Turbo

Add to all of these the Motorola-made Nexus 6, which however will get its update straight from Google (as is customary in the Nexus program). You may have noticed that neither generation of the affordable Moto E has been included, nor the first-gen Moto G and Moto X. And while these two may be considered too old to update at this point, the second-gen Moto E is only a few months old.

An actual release timeline for the updates for the devices that are getting them hasn't been outed yet, but Motorola says information on timing should become available "in the coming weeks".

Moving on, the company has also announced that it's going to stop developing some of its apps and services that have functionality that's now either built into Android itself, is very similar to Android features, or for which there are many third party alternatives.

Hence, Moto Assist will be gone in Android 6.0 Marshmallow, along with Motorola Migrate, and the Google Chrome extension found in Motorola Connect. The focus here is apparently on keeping things simple and bloatware to a minimum, and we assume most people would agree with this philosophy.

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Moto X Force will be the official name of the leaked Bounce

Just a short couple of days ago we brought you word of a new smartphone in development at Motorola. Up until today this was known by its codename - Bounce.

It will however be sold as the Moto X Force when it eventually launches. Along with the official name, we have a new leaked render of the device for your viewing pleasure.

It keeps the trademark Motorola design, so you're not definitely not going to confuse this with an offering from a different manufacturer. Since we've so far heard that there's a Droid Turbo 2 in the making for Verizon, it now seems likely that would be based on the Moto X Force, since Big Red's other Moto launch, the Droid Maxx 2, is basically just a rebranded Moto X Play. Then again, the carrier could have gone with the Moto X Style for its next-gen Turbo, we'll see.

The Moto X Force will apparently be "shatterproof", which suggests a military MIL-STD rating of some sort. This could be paired with water and dust resistance through an IP factor.

Inside the Moto X Force we'll find the Snapdragon 810 chip from Qualcomm, 3GB of RAM, 32 or 64GB of storage, as well as a 3,760 mAh battery (which, amazingly, is even bigger than that of the Moto X Play). The screen will be a 5.43-inch QHD affair, while the main camera will be the 21 MP unit seen in both of the other Moto X-branded devices launched this year, paired once again with a 5 MP selfie snapper.

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Moto X Pure Edition lands in the US on September 3

A few weeks ago Motorola announced the Moto X Style, its flagship smartphone for 2015. Back then the company told us to expect the handset to make it to the US sometime in the fall, but under a different name - Moto X Pure Edition.

The new Moto X Pure Edition, to be precise, because there was a Moto X Pure Edition last year too - but obviously based on the previous Motorola flagship.

All branding confusion aside, today the company has finally unveiled the actual release date for the new Moto X Pure Edition in the US: it's September 3.

This has been revealed through a tweet sent out by Motorola's official account. Intriguingly though, it has since been deleted. So either someone jumped the gun and published that information too soon, or there's a slim chance it wasn't accurate - keep that in mind.

You'll be able to customize the device as you see fit using the Moto Maker service, and order one that suits your tastes. The Pure Edition will be sold exclusively online through Moto Maker, though it will be able to work with the networks of all the major US carriers.

This Moto X Pure Edition will start at $399.99, unlocked. You can make the price go up by adding non-standard options in Moto Maker during the order process.

Like the Moto X Style, the Pure Edition comes with a 5.7-inch QHD touchscreen, a 21 MP rear camera with dual-tone dual-LED flash, a 5 MP front snapper with a LED flash of its own, Qualcomm's Snapdragon 808 SoC with hexa-core CPU, 3GB of RAM, 16 / 32 / 64GB of expandable storage, and a 3,000 mAh battery. It runs Android 5.1.1 Lollipop.

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Motorola Moto X Style and Moto X Play announced with 21MP cameras

As it turns out, Motorola’s teaser invites did have a hidden message, and the company went out and announced three phones today. We already told you about the Moto G (3rd gen) and as it appears, the constant leaks surrounding it were mostly a distraction from even more intriguing announcements.

Motorola unveiled today the Moto X Style and Moto X Play – a flagship and an upper-midranger with plenty of “best-in-class” features, as the presenters were keen to point out on numerous occasions.

Motorola Moto X Style

The Moto X Style is the top model of the bunch, with the specs to prove it. It comes with a 5.7-inch QHD display with an exemplary 76% screen-to-body ratio. Motorola has managed to retain the front-facing stereo speakers as well, which makes the comparison to the Apple iPhone 6s and Samsung Galaxy S6 even more impressive.

The smartphone is powered by Snapdragon 808, a notch below Qualcomm’s flagship S810, but also LG’s choice for their current top model, the G4. There’s a 1.8GHz hexa-core CPU inside the chip, complemented by 3GB of RAM. Three storage options will be available, and the built-in 16/32/64GB will be expandable by up to 128GB via microSD.

The Moto X Style sports a 21MP primary camera, with an f/2.0 lens and phase detection autofocus, joined by what's dubbed a Dual Color Correlated Temperature (CCT) flash. Of course, the camera is capable of recording 4K video, in HDR too.

Motorola stresses that DxO rated the Moto X Style’s camera as one of the top three cameras in the world. No such claims are being made about the front snapper, but it does feature a 5MP sensor, 87-degree wide-angle lens, and a front-facing flash.

The smartphone comes with a 3,000mAh battery, which isn't record breaking but Motorola pointed out that the Moto X Style offers fast charging with a bundled TurboCharger 25, which will get you 34% of charge in as little as 15 minutes.

Now, there’s a reason why it’s called the Style, and part of that lies in the smoothly curved back with finely textured silicone rubber. A multitude of colors will be available, but also real wood panels as well as high-quality Horween leather backs. Not only that, but you’ll be able to choose among three different frame color options.

Exclusive to the US, there will be a Moto X Pure Edition, basically a Moto X Style, targeted at the free-spirited customer. It will be a carrier-unlocked version, sold directly from Motorola and it will support the LTE networks of all four major carriers in the country.

A recurrent theme throughout Motorola’s keynote was pricing, though obvious regional considerations prevented precise numbers. Still, the Motorola Moto X Style will cost $399 in the States, unlocked. Perhaps the only fly in the ointment is that you won’t be able to get one until September.

Motorola Moto X Play

The Moto X Play is the lower-specced of the two Xs but it does offer a balanced package geared towards better longevity.

This model comes with a slightly smaller 5.5-inch FullHD display, Snapdragon 615 chipset and 2GB of RAM. Only two storage options are present - 16GB and 32GB, but the microSD slot can provide an additional 128GB.

The 21MP f/2.0 camera has been carried over from the Style, though video capture is limited to 1080p (the S615 doesn’t support 2160p on a hardware level). The front shooter is a 5MP unit again, though it’s lost the flash in this model.

It is battery life Motorola is after with this one, and it comes with a 3,630mAh battery, which the company claims is good for 48 hours of mixed use. There’s fast charging supported, though the TurboCharger 15 is optional.

The Moto X Play will cost $299 and will be available sooner, with 60 countries globally getting it in August.