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hashholly

macrumors 6502
Oct 13, 2008
436
119
Honestly, Im not sure why this is even a thing?

The Moto X / Moto G are what i feel is almost stock android done right....speedy updates, little tweaks here and there. I actually prefer the version of kitkat they run to pure stock android.
 

gotluck

macrumors 603
Dec 8, 2011
5,717
1,260
East Central Florida
I guess the gpe is for people who want to insure against carrier updates down the line? I guess the argument is that who is to say that the carriers won't sit on updates a year from now.

I hear you though, I too like what moto is doing. What does the moto moto g have as extra software features?

Nevermind gsm is sold unlocked anyway. Hard to wrap my head around the reasoning for this. Unlocked boot loader supported on the ge?

Honestly, Im not sure why this is even a thing?

The Moto X / Moto G are what i feel is almost stock android done right....speedy updates, little tweaks here and there. I actually prefer the version of kitkat they run to pure stock android.
 

jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
I kinda find it odd that this even exists considering the regular Moto G has bone stock android. Its not like the X that added things like touchless control etc.
 

IFRIT

macrumors 6502a
Oct 15, 2012
840
137
I guess the gpe is for people who want to insure against carrier updates down the line? I guess the argument is that who is to say that the carriers won't sit on updates a year from now.

I hear you though, I too like what moto is doing. What does the moto moto g have as extra software features?

Nevermind gsm is sold unlocked anyway. Hard to wrap my head around the reasoning for this. Unlocked boot loader supported on the ge?

The camera software is different for sure. Which is not a bad thing as the Google camera software is a bit pap.
 
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Stooby Mcdoobie

macrumors 6502a
Jun 26, 2012
834
45
Honestly, Im not sure why this is even a thing?

The Moto X / Moto G are what i feel is almost stock android done right....speedy updates, little tweaks here and there. I actually prefer the version of kitkat they run to pure stock android.

I guess the gpe is for people who want to insure against carrier updates down the line? I guess the argument is that who is to say that the carriers won't sit on updates a year from now.

I hear you though, I too like what moto is doing. What does the moto moto g have as extra software features?

Nevermind gsm is sold unlocked anyway. Hard to wrap my head around the reasoning for this. Unlocked boot loader supported on the ge?

I kinda find it odd that this even exists considering the regular Moto G has bone stock android. Its not like the X that added things like touchless control etc.

It will likely have an unlockable bootloader out of the box (no need for OEM tokens/no voided warranty), which makes this a cheaper/safer option for independent developers and people who like to tinker with custom ROMs.
 

kenypowa

macrumors 6502a
Oct 16, 2008
711
79
somewhere
Im genuinely surprised they didn't put the Moto X

All the other GPE phones are $600+. Moto X GPE would be in the same range as Nexus 5, which essentially would distort and confuse consumers.

Keep in mind the best features on the Moto X (Moto Assist, Active Display, Touchless Control) would be taken away if it is released as a GPE phone.

Moto G makes a lot of sense as it is ridiculously cheap, at $200 compared to $350 N5 and other $600 GPE phones.
 

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
Im genuinely surprised they didn't put the Moto X

A moto X gpe would honestly be worse than the regular Moto X. The moto X is literally stock android except for the addition of touchless control and active display both of which can actually be fully disabled including the apps. Those features are worth keeping on anyway.

And the Moto X Kit Kat OTA actually rolled out before even the Nexus 4 started to roll out over the air. And nearly a month before any of the GPE phones received Kit Kat.
 
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mattopotamus

macrumors G5
Jun 12, 2012
14,738
6,109
A moto X gpe would honestly be worse than the regular Moto X. The moto X is literally stock android except for the addition of touchless control and active display both of which can actually be fully disabled including the apps. Those features are worth keeping on anyway.

And the Moto X Kit Kat OTA actually rolled out before even the Nexus 4 started to roll out over the air. And nearly a month before any of the GPE phones received Kit Kat.

This. The new moto phones are the only phones I would want the manufactures version and not a GPE.

not to mention this:

" it's worth mentioning that the spec sheet does not show 1700MHz (AWS) support for HSPA+ — that means T-Mobile customers in markets that have not been refarmed to 1900MHz will be sitting on EDGE with this one."
 
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Ffosse

macrumors 68000
Nov 5, 2012
1,827
652
It's so close to stock, anyway.

I've had the unlocked, sim-free Moto G for 2 months now...it got KitKat today and I installed the Google Experience Launcher.

Great phone.
 

JH-

macrumors 6502
Feb 25, 2009
392
2
This. The new moto phones are the only phones I would want the manufactures version and not a GPE.

not to mention this:

" it's worth mentioning that the spec sheet does not show 1700MHz (AWS) support for HSPA+ — that means T-Mobile customers in markets that have not been refarmed to 1900MHz will be sitting on EDGE with this one."

So the version straight from Motorola supports all the bands for T-Mobile? Obviously with the exception of LTE?
 

bozzykid

macrumors 68020
Aug 11, 2009
2,481
535
So the version straight from Motorola supports all the bands for T-Mobile? Obviously with the exception of LTE?

The US version from Motorola and Amazon (not the Global version) support all the T-Mobile bands for 3g. The GPE doesn't support 1700mhz (it is based off the global version) which is still used in many areas on T-Mobile.
 

JH-

macrumors 6502
Feb 25, 2009
392
2
The US version from Motorola and Amazon (not the Global version) support all the T-Mobile bands for 3g. The GPE doesn't support 1700mhz (it is based off the global version) which is still used in many areas on T-Mobile.

Thanks.
 

jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX
So let's categorize the differences here.....

Same price points, but what exactly is different about the version sold by Motorola versus the GPE?
 

mattopotamus

macrumors G5
Jun 12, 2012
14,738
6,109
So let's categorize the differences here.....

Same price points, but what exactly is different about the version sold by Motorola versus the GPE?

-The moto version has the Motorola apps such as moto assist.
-moto version supports t-mobile 1700mhz band and the GPE does not.

That means you will see EDGE a lot on the GPE.
 

jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX
-The moto version has the Motorola apps such as moto assist.
-moto version supports t-mobile 1700mhz band and the GPE does not.

That means you will see EDGE a lot on the GPE.

Hmm - and from what I've read, the camera app on the Moto branded one (not GPE) is better.

Thinking about just pulling the trigger on the one from Motorola. How does the UI compare?
 

mattopotamus

macrumors G5
Jun 12, 2012
14,738
6,109
Hmm - and from what I've read, the camera app on the Moto branded one (not GPE) is better.

Thinking about just pulling the trigger on the one from Motorola. How does the UI compare?

I believe the UI is nearly identical since neither has the Google experience launcher. I may be wrong, but I think the moto version is running 4.4.2
 

jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX
I believe the UI is nearly identical since neither has the Google experience launcher. I may be wrong, but I think the moto version is running 4.4.2

Ya - I think I'll definitely go the Motorola route then.....plus free 2 day shipping with Moto versus $10 3-5 day with Google....
 

JH-

macrumors 6502
Feb 25, 2009
392
2
Ya - I think I'll definitely go the Motorola route then.....plus free 2 day shipping with Moto versus $10 3-5 day with Google....

I'm seriously considering replacing my nexus 5 with one of these. The only thing holding me back if the lack of LTE. I understand that's a product of the price point. I just like the size of the Motorola phones better.

Before anyone says it I tried the X and for my usage the battery life just wasn't very good. LTE browsing just kills the battery in my experience.
 
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jrswizzle

macrumors 603
Aug 23, 2012
6,107
129
McKinney, TX
I'm seriously considering replacing my nexus 5 with one of these. The only thing holding me back if the lack of LTE. I understand that's a product of the price point. I just like the size of the Motorola phones better.

Before anyone says it I tried the X and four my usage the battery life just wasn't very good. LTE browsing just kills the battery in my experience.

Ya - for me LTE wouldn't be an issue as I'd be using it as a backup phone and not as a daily driver. I jumped back into iOS full force because I missed having an iPhone as my personal phone (required to use them at work) and I couldn't justify keeping a $350 device in a drawer, so I sold my N5.

It'd be a different story however at the $200 price point. Heck - for roughly $300 now I could pick up a Moto G and Lumia 520 and be able to play on all platforms. Would be more worth it to me over keeping a higher end Android cooped up.

Still may dabble with high-end Android in the future - namely when I can really afford to let my hobby run a bit rampant. But for now, my "toys" have to come from the lower end of each platform.
 
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