Motorola has revealed its plan to be a major smartphone player in emerging markets: the Moto G smartphone. The Moto G is an inexpensive phone that packs good technology for its cost, just $179 in the United States.
Even more revealing about Motorola's strategy is where it will launch the phone: The Moto G is for sale today in Brazil and parts of Europe. The company plans to bring it to the U.S., the Middle East and parts of Asia by January. In the next few months, the Moto G will be available in 30 countries on more than 60 wireless carriers, Motorola said.
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"Next year, 500 million people will by a smartphone for about $200," Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside said at the Moto G launch event. "Up until now they've had a choice: Buy a cheap phone with last year's tech, or a used phone. We don't think that's fair, we believe we've given them a better choice."
The Moto G has a 4.5-inch screen with 1,280 x 720 resolution. Inside is a 1.2GHz quad-core Snapdragon 400 processor. It boasts a curved design similar to the Moto X, with a 5-megapixel camera in back and a 1.3MP front-facing camera. The phone has dual-SIM capability, which is of interest to many customers in emerging markets.
The phone has a meager 8GB of storage (although a 16GB version is available for $199), but Moto G owners will get an extra 50GB of Google Drive storage in the cloud. Although the phone won't have the same level of personalization as the Moto X, buyers can choose from 19 customization options thanks to different-color back covers or "shells."
The phone runs Android 4.3 "Jelly Bean," and Motorola promises to push out an update to version 4.4 "KitKat" by January.

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Image: Motorola