Moto G4 / Plus Release Date, Price & Specs Rumor Update: May Launch in India Likely
The new Moto G for 2016, expected to be called the Moto G4, is almost assuredly going to launch in mid-May. That's because Motorola, the Lenovo-owned maker of the Moto G series, has announced it's holding a "special event" in New Delhi on May 17.
Moto G4 Release Date
The news comes via Android Authority, which got the press invite from Motorola late last week. Though the company didn't specifically mention any device launch during the May 17 event in India, the location and timing pretty obviously points to the unveil of a new Motorola smartphone targeted at that market. The Moto G4, the rumored upcoming 2016 fourth generation update of the popular, low-priced Android smartphone, is the most likely focus of the mid-May event.
What features and specs will the rumored Moto G4 pack when it's unveiled in a couple of weeks, and how much will it cost? Here's what the online buzz suggests.
Moto G4 Specs & Price
The Moto G4 will reportedly arrive with a mid-tier Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, which is no surprise since the Moto G line of devices traditionally packs an adequate but low-cost system on a chip to keep the total device price low.
Multiple reports compiled by Android Authority have the fourth generation Moto G running either a Snapdragon 430 or a Snapdragon 435, which in 2016 is in line with what you'd expect on a new Moto G. Expect 2GB of RAM to accompany whichever system on a chip Motorola decided on including in the Moto G4.
For the display, it seems Motorola may have decided to up the size just a bit more over the 5-inch screened Moto G 3rd Generation, since the rumor mill has coalesced around a 5.5-inch screen and a 1080p resolution in the 2016 model.
According to GSMArena, one new feature that might be coming to the 2016 Moto G (and apparently all new Motorola devices) is a fingerprint reader, embedded into a physical home button, much the way Samsung and Apple now does it.
Finally, most are expecting the Moto G4 to come with a 13-megapixel rear camera along with a minimum of 16GB internal storage to help house those higher resolution snapshots.
As for the price, some are suggesting it will retail for about 240 euros, or around $275 in the U.S., but since Motorola usually tries to stick around the $200 minimum-option price point, take that (and all rumors, of course) with a grain of salt.
Rumored Moto G4 'Plus'
Along with the fourth generation Moto G, there's a rumored "Moto G4 Plus" coming this year. Lenovo's U.S. headquartered smartphone maker has been diversifying its device strategy with, for example, different variants of essentially the Moto X coming out in 2015. But each variant, like the Moto X Force, was launched for specific markets, so the possibility of the existence of a 2016 Moto G4 Plus does not necessarily mean it will be available for purchase everywhere and anywhere.
Fewer details have hit the rumor mill about the rumored Moto G4 Plus compared to the Moto G4, but it's expected to have the same screen size (strangely, for the name), but a higher 16-megapixel main camera.
Some leaks have suggested that the G4 Plus could feature nicer, metal build materials, along with a slightly higher price equivalent to around the U.S. equivalent of $325.