Why the Moto X (2014) is going to become my first commitment to buy an unlocked phone. And why you should consider it, too.

The Moto X: Six Months On

I got a hold of a Moto X 2014 (or the Moto X second generation, or whatever you want to call it) from AT&T for a normal hands-on review a little over six months ago. I loved it (named it my favorite smartphone of 2014) and have since been living with it as my primary mobile device. I got half a year with this phone, and I still don't want to give it up! 

So, despite the fact that the next generation Moto X is reportedly in the works -- and despite a reminder of its increasing age prominently featured in its unofficial moniker -- I've decided to buy one, unlocked, and will use it for the foreseeable future. 

The Perfect Start for an Unlocked Future

"Who cares?" you might be wondering. Well, I'm not advertising personal purchase plans for the fun of it -- I'm part of a growing trend, both consumer and carrier-driven.

Let me tell you a story. Long ago, when Facebook was still just a mote in a Harvard freshman's eye, there was a time when you'd buy a mobile phone (likely one of those bulletproof Nokia bricks) from your wireless carrier, use it for two years, and get a slightly better brickphone when you re-upped your contract.

Then smartphones happened. But at first, the devices were so expensive you practically had to sign on for a contract. Remember, the first iPhone cost $500 with a (non-optional) contract.

Then the industry blew up; competition and Moore's Law drove down prices, while the mobile web (and the wireless customer-base) expanded dramatically. In the past few years, nearly simultaneously, consumers began thinking that two years was too long to wait for a new smartphone. Carriers -- the wireless market now nearly saturated -- no longer saw any benefit to subsidizing phones.

As AT&T's Randall Stephenson put it a couple of years ago, "as you approach 90 percent penetration," meaning that there are very few "brand new" consumers who aren't already on a wireless plan of some sort left to snap up with cheap or free smartphones, "you move into maintenance mode... you can't afford to subsidize devices."

Now, also at the same time, prepaid and new contract-free options are on the rise (AT&T just announced its eliminating subsidies at third-party stores) while great smartphones, like the Moto X (2014) and others, are hitting affordable price points of $300 or below, unlocked -- without carrier subsidies.

This Is a Great Phone to (Actually) Own

Going contract-free with an unlocked device means you can flit between carriers on whim alone. But while a thriving marketplace has developed for used and unlocked smartphones, investing in the right smartphone has become incredibly important. Unless $300 is pocket change to you. For me, it's not, but luckily I've become familiar with one of the best ways to start living unlocked. 

The second generation Moto X is great hardware for the price (especially after the next price drop, which is probably soon, after the third generation is released). It's also got unusual potential for longevity, given the fact that it's a smartphone.

After six months of testing, I can confidently say the Moto X fits the average technophile's life like a broken-in couch. Or put another way, I see the Moto X (2014) as the modern equivalent of my parents' 1972 Cutlass, which they kept -- and more importantly, which kept running -- well into my existence more than a decade later. Obviously you shouldn't expect the Moto X to last that long in this exponentially growing technological world, but I'm betting it'll keep up at least another two years.

Simply put, the Moto X is the best-designed smartphone I've ever come across.

But not because of any bells and whistles. It's built to fit everyday life, and seems (at least) to be designed without the usual emphasis on an expiration date.

Most of all, it's balanced: It's not ostentatious, but packs some of the most surprisingly useful little features (especially in the long-term) that you're sure to overlook in a showroom. It's not stuffed with all the latest military-grade hardware that make for great specs comparisons -- but that's because it's thoughtfully designed to be exactly what you need (and nothing more) in your actual day-to-day. 

General praise aside, let's get into the nitty-gritty details. And let's start with gripes, because every smartphone has drawbacks.

I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change

The Moto X (2014) that I tested was the base-line model, with 16GB of storage. Because of its unibody design (the one smartphone trend I wished Motorola had ignored), you can't replace the battery or add microSD expansions.

16GB Is Probably Not Enough Storage 

I wish you could do both -- though Google is makes microSD expansion less usable in each new iteration of Android, anyway -- but more storage is key.

I found myself having to delete superfluous apps or transfer videos about once a week in the last couple months (though I'm a bit of an usual case, given that I test several apps weekly and create screen videos of them for Latin Post's Tap That App features).

Perhaps, then, it's surprising that 16GB lasted that long. But given the rise of cloud services and streaming media, a little storage goes a long way these days. In any case, I'll get 32GB, minimum -- and that's good advice for any new smartphone purchase.

Battery Life Is OK

In every article I see about the Moto X (2014), a new subspecies of Internet ogres, "the battery trolls," immediately take to the comments section to bash on about how the Moto X won't last a day on a charge (I'll be looking for you below, trolls). This is not true. It does.

Take it from my six-months of daily use: The Moto X lasts a full day of regular use on a charge. Plus it's a Quickcharge 2.0 device -- 30 minutes or so, on Motorola's optional fast-charger (or any modern charging hub) will juice it back up with plenty of power for a late night out.

A wimpy, wall-hugging iPhone this is not.

That said, if Motorola had managed to make the battery just a little bit bigger, I would never need to think about charging it at the end of a busy day, before a busy night, plus the battery trolls would find another target.

Moto Voice Needs a Toggle

I love the Moto X's Moto Voice feature.

Working in tandem with Google Now (though Lollipop messed with this seemlessness and is hopefully one of the fixes in the Android 5.1 update coming soon), the Moto Voice feature easily makes the Moto X the best hands-free smartphone I've ever used. Calling, texting, opening apps, or just querying Google on the go? Moto Voice gets it done with the highest degree of success of any smartphone-embedded system so far.

And since it's always on, it's truly hands-free -- unlike Siri or stock Google Now voice search, both of which require a tap on the home button or screen.

That said, Moto Voice needs a switch to toggle it off in the Quick Settings pane. Yes, you can set a custom keyphrase that's rare in any normal conversation ("Ma ma ma my Khaleesi!"), and yes, you can disable call commands when the screen is locked (that option is somewhat buried in settings, unfortunately).

But after finding out that my keyboard's Eb above middle C activates Google search pretty regularly -- and especially after my Moto X tried to call my boss at midnight, somehow triggered during particularly gruesome scene in "Game of Thrones" -- I'd rather have an option to quickly disable Moto Voice altogether.

The Fickle Power/Standby Button

This is probably the worst design flaw in the Moto X and, at one point, almost turned me against it:

The Moto X's power button seems to double as a hygrometer sometimes.

Or perhaps it's a barometer. In any case, I went through a period in the early spring when the button stuck for no good reason. Was it the humidity? Did I accidentally spill something on it and forget? Was it karma for something terrible I did to a power button in a former life?

I never got to the bottom of it, other than to find out others had the same problem. But it never made the phone unusable, and it disappeared within about a week, just as quickly and mysteriously as it had manifested.

However, that doesn't get Motorola off the hook for sloppy construction or design for its power and volume buttons -- they generally feel "mushy" compared to other smartphones -- especially because you rarely have to touch the power button, due to one specifically, amazingly useful feature of the Moto X, one that I'm surprised hasn't been copied by other manufacturers.

Speaking of which, let's talk about the Moto X's amazing qualities.

Why the Moto X Will Become My '72 Cutlass

1.    Value for Price

The Moto X (2014) just went on sale for effectively $300 unlocked, $325 if you want 32GB of storage (more if you want to customize it further).

For this price, I can use any GSM service (AT&T, T-Mobile, or across the world) I see fit, without contract, and I get a super-reliable smartphone that, while not cutting-edge, will be a reliable day-to-day workhorse, for years to come.

2. Design: Perfectly Balanced

I don't need a graphics powerhouse in my pocket. I could play the latest games on it (alas, the duties and rigors of smartphone testing requires it), but I'm not a serious smartphone gamer. If you're looking for such a device, go with the latest, most expensive from Samsung or Apple.

What I do need is a phone that I can browse, message, call, listen to music, and watch HD streams on. And a device that won't heat up or drain the battery in doing so.

The Moto X, with its AMOLED 5.2-inch screen and 1080p resolution is exactly that, and nothing more (Thank goodness!). The 13-megapixel camera is similarly "good enough" for everyday videos and pictures (shutterbugs, check out Nokia or Sony instead) and it's quick, intuitive, and easy to use.

Meanwhile, the Moto X's front-facing speaker (looks like stereo, but isn't -- though it's just as good as the HTC One M7/8 I've tested) made me a convert to playing media occasionally without headphones.

Oh, and the 2.5GHz Snapdragon 801 with 2GB of RAM feels just as springy as the day I first turned the Moto X on. And that's after putting it through a lot.

3. Feels, Bro. Major Feels

The physical design of the Moto X! Oh, the feel of this smartphone!

It's better than the iPhones, Samsung Galaxy S phones, Galaxy Notes, HTC One's, Nokias, and every other smartphone I've held in my hand. That's a feat in itself, but getting me to write (enthusiastically!) about the tired, overdone subject of "hand feel" shows how much the Moto X stands out from the rest.

Introducing the LG G2, LG's CEO once intoned that they had found 5.2-inches to be the perfect-sized screen to maximize space for one-handed use.

I now know that he was right, but it took the Motorola to perfect that, by giving the back of the Moto X a perfectly palm-fitting curve that won't slip, even if you have to reach for the very corners with one hand.

On top of that, it's an extremely attractive smartphone that bucks the Apple-led trend of the boring, anonymous silver/black/gold slate.

Even the stock Moto X will stand out in a crowd of boring slabs -- and the Moto X's customization options are just the cherries on top.

4. Software Synergy: Moto & Google 

Motorola is no longer a part of Google, but on average, it still gets the fastest Android updates of any OEM. Especially if you get the Pure Edition.

But the real star inside the Moto X is Moto Voice and Moto Display. We've already touched on Moto Voice, but suffice it to say, the Moto X found the right way to do true hands-free, since there's no point to hands-free if you have to press a button to start the interaction. I suspect we'll increasingly see major smartphones with their variation on this breakthrough feature.

But the other secret of the Moto X is that comes with four IR sensors that keep track of when the phone is in use, saving battery when it's not. You can set the phone for a short sleep timer, but it'll stay up when you're reading. This seems like similar technology to Samsung's "Smart Scroll," yet it's actually a useful application of it.

Most importantly, the sensors provide a fast way to wake the device or get information at a glance -- without touching a button.

Just quickly wave your hand over the phone for the time, notifications, and other at-a-glance information. Then, once it's (half) awake in this mode, you can unlock the device with a swipe. Taking the standby button out of that operation sounds small, but over time (say, six months), you realize this is the only way sleep-to-wake should be done.

Post-Script: Whither Smartphones?

The Moto X, unsung as it is, has reached a level of price-point, power, and innovation that it's almost depressing -- if you are used to thinking about technology on a macro scale. It makes me realize we're reaching the end of the innovation space for this particular form of technology.

No doubt, smartphones will continue to get faster, more powerful, lighter, thinner, and with better resolution screens (and hopefully that battery breakthrough that's supposedly just around the corner). And there's obviously much more to do with software, services, networking, Internet of things, wearables, AI, and many other technologies that you access or route through smartphones.

"Smartphone hardware" in itself, however, appears to have reached a plateau: Samsung's latest innovation is gimmicky curved screen edges. Apple's force touch might add a bit more depth of functionality to touchscreens, at least. And smartphone-based VR might actually make use of those new quad-HD resolutions in premium smartphones that are otherwise pointless because the naked eye can't tell the difference after a point.

Think for a bit and try to name an industry-revolutionizing innovation in smartphone hardware that's happened since HD screens or perhaps the front-facing camera. The fingerprint scanner? Not much amazing there. Amazon Fire Phone's 3D silliness? Well, give them points for trying.

The way Motorola has added a depth of functionality without the standard touchscreen has made me realize that that is the probably the next innovation space for mobile, whether in glasses (more refined than Glass), wearables (more refined than the "Watch"), or -- as Motorola seems to think with its latest gadget, a wireless, voice-activated earbud in the style of "Her," called Moto Hint -- in the form of enhancing aural/oral interaction. 

But it seems it will take a while (or at least it'll feel that way), until the "hockey stick" bend in the exponential progress of one of these technologies becomes as immediately obvious as it has been in the last five or so years of the smartphone industry.