This morning Verizon announced their official release of the Motorola Moto Z2 Force Edition. This device is Verizon's version of the device featured in our Moto Z2 Force Review from earlier this month. Verizon's release centers on the bits and pieces that come only with a purchase through their carrier - including Gigabit Class LTE service, launching with Verizon later this year.
OEM-customized Android experiences may (or may not) have some added value to offer, but Lenovo’s “Pure Vibe” skin isn’t one of those. As such, there was no tear shed when Lenovo revealed that it will retire that custom UX in favor of adopting the “real pure” Android envisioned by Google. That new phase in the OEMs smartphone journey starts with the K8 Note, which just broke cover in India. Hopefully, it won’t end with it as well.
The Moto E4 Plus Review we've got on deck today rolls through the basics of its hardware and software and offers judgement on its overall value. While the hardware is decent - especially for this price - it's within the long-lasting battery that this device truly shines. Can a device whose display, camera, and processor would be home in the mid-range two years ago survive as a low-end smartphone here in 2017? How about if it has a 5000mAh battery, 2.5x the size of the battery of the latest iPhone?
Good news for Android purists! Another manufacturer other than Google has revealed that it's switching to the stock version of the mobile OS for its future devices. That company is Lenovo, the current owners of the Motorola brand, and in turn it means that they are doing away with their custom Android skin, called Vibe Pure UI. It may be a small step, but it's one more towards a world where Android users don't have to deal with manufacturers' pre-installed bloatware.
Lenovo's next mobile move is putting pure stock Android on all of its phones - all with Lenovo's brand, anyway. This should make a significant difference in how serious the brand is taken and how much of a cult following the brand has - or will have. Without a doubt there is a major subset of Android device users who desire - and are vocal about their desire for - the most basic version of the mobile operating system available.
This week the folks at Motorola have revealed the Moto Z2 Force Edition alongside a Moto Mod that sees the world from all angles. This is the Moto Mod called "Moto 360 Camera", and we've seen it before - albeit very briefly. This piece of work delivers spherical video with two lenses that, together, create a 4K-sized video captured at 24-frames per second.
People love cheap, usable notebooks. Rewind a decade or so and 'netbooks' were just becoming a hot item. Things like the Sony Vaio P existed. Consumers gobbled them up, and though the market as a whole eventually moved on from the ultra-tiny laptop trend, the fact remains that a portable, inexpensive laptop is almost always a desirable option to have. Thus enters Lenovo's new budget-friendly 2-in-1 Miix 320 convertible laptop.
Lenovo might not be the biggest name in the mobile scene, smartphones or tablets, but you can’t say it isn’t willing to make some ambitious leaps. From the first commercial AR Tango phone to the Yoga Book tablet and, indirectly, to the modular Moto Z, it has been willing to play around with trends and hype, whether or not it actually continues to produce and support those products. For now, we can at least appreciate how Lenovo is this close to bringing the foldable device dream to life, showing off a working prototype at the Lenovo Tech World and making our mouths drool.
As we approach the release of a couple more Motorola-made smartphones on the 25th, it's become a good time to be a fan of the mobile MOTO brand again. The staple brand name in mobile electronics had a few years of ups and downs - switching parent companies twice over - but they've come home once more. Owned by Lenovo and moving forward with a unique and powerful phone lineup, Motorola's once again hit their smartphone stride.
Everyone’s doing AI these days, from Google to Apple, from smart speakers to smart cars. While different people and companies have different ideas about what artificial intelligence means in theory and in practice, almost all agree about using AI to build a better future. Lenovo, one of if not the leading PC makers in the world, is just as invested in this trend, or so it says. At its Tech World Innovation in Shanghai, it demonstrated just how serious it is with five AI powered products that you may or may not see in the near future.
Come September, it will almost be a year since Lenovo wowed the world with its unusual Yoga Book laptop/tablet convertible. You’d think that, just like most mobile devices, it would be time for a new model. Lenovo will indeed launch two new Yoga Books in September, but they will barely be different from last year’s model. Their only difference is that they will come in two new colors of Pearl White and Ruby Red and nothing more.
Disney has teased what Star Wars fans have long been demanding: an augmented reality game that allows you to wield your own lightsaber. Previewed at D23, Disney's annual expo, Star Wars: Jedi Challenges combines an AR headset with a smartphone app and a number of games. While details are in short supply right now, there are already several hints at just what the system could do.
