Android Marshmallow
Motorola has one of the best names in the Android world for updating their phones to the latest and greatest version of Android. Today, Motoroal has announced which Moto handsets will get the update to Android 6.0 Marshmallow and has surprisingly announced a few features will be going away.

Motorola has announced that the majority of their handsets will receive a gooey Marshmallow update, but for the first time original Moto X and Moto G as well as both Moto E handsets have been left off the list – however,Motorola is quick to advise that with this list ‘Things may change’.

The full list of devices getting the update laughably includes the Nexus 6 as well, so at least Motorola is having a bit of a giggle.

  • 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 LTE2 (2nd gen)
  • DROID Turbo
  • 2014 Moto MAXX
  • 2014 Moto Turbo
  • Nexus 6

There’s a lot of new features in Marshmallow, which Motorola has taken time to point out. But what Motorola has also pointed out is that some of these features replicate core Motorola features such as Moto Assist and Moto Connect. Motorola has advised these competing features will be removed in favour of a more ‘stock’ experience:

The release of a new Android version is a great time to take a fresh look at our signature Moto Enhancements to ensure we’re complementing Android (not competing with it). Android 6.0 Marshmallow includes some great new features similar to things we’ve developed in the past. For example, you’ll find an option for ‘Do not disturb’ under the ‘Sound and notification’ settings to make sure you’re not interrupted during meetings or while sleeping. That’s similar to Moto Assist, so we’re removing Moto Assist as part of the upgrade to M.

Android M also enhances support for backing up user data. These improvements duplicate most of what Motorola Migrate provides. Consequently, we’ll retire Motorola Migrate and no longer preload it going forward. We will also retire the Google Chrome extension found in Motorola Connect. Since we created Motorola Connect, several similar services have shown up on Google Play and many consumers have moved from SMS to other over-the-top messaging services. Both of these products were valuable in their time but the world has moved on and they no longer add enough value to justify taking up space in your device. For more information about where to find a few of these common features within Android M or alternative apps other consumers use, check out our support forum.

The update schedule for the handsets included for an update to Android 6.0 will be announced in the coming weeks, but even then the list provided today may not be final. We’ll keep checking in with Motorola on Australian specific

Source: Motorola.

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Thumbs

Well this is a bit surprising… the OG Moto G and X are 2 years old now and the E is an entry level handset but I would have thought Motorola’s strategy of using an almost stock build of Android would have cut down the time and cost of upgrades significantly, allowing them to support handsets for longer. To be fair, other manufacturers would have done the same but Moto has an opportunity here to lead the market and demonstrate to the public the advantages of using what is basically a stock Android device. Come on Lenovo, you need to… Read more »

BrainBeat

I can tell you the battery life of the Moto X Play is amazing. I have just gotten back from camping over the weekend and took my phone off charge about around noon on Friday. As I was not sure if I would make it I did turn off the phone the on Friday night for about 12 hours and did charge it ~ 10% when I had time. I did not turn if off any of the other evenings but did have WiFi off for most of the time. I did however not use it a whole lot but… Read more »

Thumbs

Awesome! That’s the kind of battery life I want from a phone right now. Something that will last a weekend away and for me personally a full day with lots of photo and video taking during the day and into the evening when out on a trip. Thanks for sharing.

toast

Ah well, time for my 2013 Moto X to be retired or handed on.

jdt1986

Interesting… This changes my plans somewhat. Now that the 5X and 6P have been released with their ridiculous Australian pricing, I was thinking about getting either a refurb N5 (2013) or a Moto G (2015). But now I know the Moto G (2014) and Moto X (2014) are also getting the upgrade to 6.0, I might look at getting one of those instead. They are all over eBay for next to nothing. I also have an old Moto G (2013) in the cupboard, if Motorola do change their plans and upgrade this device to 6.0 as well (unlikely, but possible),… Read more »

Christopher

Would be nice to know when I can get a Moto G though… Hahaha

Pumpino

(Post edited cause I can’t read). Is the second gen Moto G 4G the model released in Australia?

Fred

Really very dumb to not be supporting the first Moto G, or Moto Es or even some Moto Xs.

Until this announcement motorola had a good reputation for updates (nexus lite) but the hit on their name, for a minor cost saving, is going to hurt.

At least 3 years from purchase is a good assessment of how long every company should be supporting every device.