Ah, 2015. A fresh, new start. Maybe you want to get in better shape, be more organized, or multitask better. Or maybe none of those things sound right and you just want to slow it down. It’s up to you. Here are four ideas to help you choose a new you in the New Year.

‘Twas the night before Christmas, and I, home alone.
Sat typing texts on my outdated phone.
After sending the last, I folded it closed.
Then laid my head down for a holiday doze.

As I lay sleeping, a sound in the distance.
I rushed to the door to offer assistance.
I looked all around me, and there in the snow.
A neatly wrapped box with a ribbon and bow.


I lifted the box and shook it with care.
Examined the label and read what was there.
“To Stephen, From Santa” was all that it said.
A wash of confusion, a scratch of my head.

It was then that I heard a voice from behind.
I whirled around quickly and who did I find?
A large, bearded man, I felt so perplexed.
Said the red-suited man, “How’s your new Moto X?”

Happy holidays from the Motorola family! However you choose to celebrate the holiday season this year, what we love is being able to celebrate in a way that fits you. We know that many of you use your phones to listen to music, and so in the spirit of the season, we put together a holiday playlist to play on your phones.

Take a listen to our full Spotify playlist here:



Just why do we love these songs so much? Hear from a few members of the team:

Kristin Arnold and Lexi Valasek from Consumer Research
“All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey
“I have only one holiday song I like, and I like it a lot. I could listen to it on repeat forever and skip all other holiday songs (seriously, if there was radio station that played only this song on repeat from Thanksgiving to Christmas, I'd listen). Something about this song just makes me smile.”

Michelle Gatsuo from Product Management
“God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,” Barenaked Ladies and Sarah McLachlan
“It gives me a warm feeling of holiday spirit which is playful and joyful! This pop rendition combines many traditional holiday songs into one single song. I love both bands and together the harmony of voices is absolutely outstanding.”

Lally Narwal from Product Marketing, and David Schuster from Product Management
“Chanukah Song,” Adam Sandler
“Can't go wrong with Adam. Why? For years I wondered about Harrison Ford's ethnic background. Thanks to Adam, I now know he is a 1/4 Jewish… not too shabby. It’s also a light hearted look at the holiday season and brings a smile to my face.”

Dickon Isaacs from Design
“Decoration Day” by Howlin Wolf
“I grew up in England in a house where my parents were huge fans of American jazz and blues. My dad managed the Marquee Club in London for a few years and during that time booked artists coming to the UK for the first time including Howlin Wolf and Sonny Boy Williamson. Christmas was always a music-filled time at home, with this song always making it's way to the record player. Old blues, old vinyl and a warm crackling fire!”

Heather Dowdy from Product 
"What Christmas Means to Me" by Stevie Wonder
“It's a classic song that always brings a smile to my face. It reminds me of all the great memories I get to make with my closest loved ones during Christmas.”

Michael Jahnke, Consumer Experience Design
“Christmas in Hollis,” RUN-DMC; “The Little Drummer Boy,” Bing Crosby; “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” Band Aid
“From a classic duet between a Legend and a Space Oddity, a surprise Christmas rap hit for the whole family, and a genuine outpouring of hope from some of the decades biggest stars… these are the songs that say the most about what the holiday season is to me.”

Happy Holidays!

Posted by the Motorola Blog Team

You can admit it: You’re someone who loves everything about the holiday season. Christmas. Chanukah. Kwanzaa. All of it. You can’t get enough of the most wonderful time of the year.

Holiday lovers, we’ve got you: no matter which holiday you celebrate, your trusty phone offers a few ways to get you and yours in the holiday spirit:

SPOILER ALERT: If you’re reading this with someone who believes in Santa Claus, please tread lightly. Some of these suggestions reveal Santa’s secret identity. Please skip the first two ideas and jump right to “Bring on the Holiday Classics.”

LOL with Santa: Text with St. Nick
To believe in Santa Claus is exciting. To believe that you’re actually chatting one-on-one with the big guy— that’s enough to blow a kid’s mind. To put your little ones in touch with Santa, temporarily change the name of your significant other or a friend to “Santa Claus” in your phone’s contacts. Then, gather the kids and start a text exchange with St. Nick. Talk about gifts, reindeer, elves, Mrs. Claus, and more.

Follow Santa with the Santa Tracker App

So, if you’re one of those sensible people who keeps an eye on the ole bank account as you go through your list, there are other options. Here are a few ideas to mull over that will put a smile on a giftee’s face and yours, too.



Gift of Music

We’ve always loved the fact that our users can use their Moto X (2nd Gen.) to capture memories in Ultra HD (4K). But how could we take a step further and capture some sweet footage? Attach the phone to a drone, of course. Professional drone operator Glenn McKenna took the new Moto X out for a drive. Don’t try this at home, kids!

It’s not often that you have the chance to shoot ultra HD on a phone.

We recently had a chance to fly our aerial rig in San Francisco using the new, lightweight Moto X. Moto X (2nd Gen.) can shoot 4K video, a super high resolution format. It’s usually used for big screens, super sharp TVs, or in filmmaking when you want vibrant images with a lot of flexibility to edit.



We were really pleased with the 4K video from Moto X. The phone’s auto-exposure and auto-focus came in handy as we flew the drone to focus on light and dark areas.

We were able to edit some of the footage on a 1080 (2K) timeline and have quite a bit of wiggle room to crop the video without losing any quality. We could shoot pretty wide and still focus in on the exact images we wanted.

And since the phone weighs 1/10th of what we usually fly, our flight time was more than five times longer than with our typical DSLR camera that only shoots 1080p footage. We’d definitely recommend it for anyone who wants the ability to shoot 4K video from a device that fits in your pocket.

All in all, we captured some stunning extended footage using this lightweight phone. We were able to weave it into this video using exceptional amount of control and versatility with the ability to shoot 4K video!

Check out some of the behind-the-scenes shots from the drone shoot:






Guest post by Glenn McKenna, Drone Operator, Float Deck Films

Though the design of your Moto 360 may be timeless, the software for the watch doesn’t have to be. Instead, it continues to get better and better. Last month we gave you more choice for your Moto 360 including new bands, watch faces, and a new feature called Moto Body. Today, we’re announcing a new update to Android Wear that brings you even more ways to customize your Moto 360 while improving the performance.

With this upgrade you can now choose from a variety of beautiful, new third-party watch faces through the Google Play Store, created by designers like Rebecca Minkoff and Xogram. You can even choose a fun watch face from the makers of one of the most popular Android games Plants vs. Zombies^TM. This is in addition to the existing ability to design your own watch face through Moto Connect. Once you receive the update, there will be a link to the watch faces collection in the Android Wear companion app.

The update also introduces new settings. Swiping down from the top of the screen brings new features like Theatre mode, which turns the display off even when receiving notifications, and Sunlight mode, which temporarily maximizes brightness. You can also manage interruptions and access deeper settings quickly. And if you have a phone running Android 5.0, Lollipop, the choices you make on your Moto 360 automatically change the Interruptions setting on your phone.

Here are some of the other highlights you can expect after installing the update:

• Undo the accidental dismissal of notification cards.
• Get more information about watch battery performance including usage by apps and features.
• Info about storage space including how much memory is available on the watch.

For more information check out the release notes. Or for more on Motorola updates and repairs, visit motorola.com/mymoto360.

Update: We are enhancing this most recent update to Android Wear with a new, optimized build that squashes a few bugs. Some users reported that some watch faces appear off center on their Moto 360. This affects users who are using different language settings on their watch and phone. It is now fixed. We are rolling out this update to users in phases, and all users should have it by the end of the week.

Ever wonder who comes up with the designs of products you use every day? Designers have the ability to shape much of the world around us, articulating the look and feel of the things we use most. Who are these people and what was the thinking behind their designs? We sat down with Motorolan Rhea Jeong, one of the designers of Moto Hint, who was recently recognized in Crain’s Chicago Business as one of Chicago’s tech 50, to pick her brain on finding inspiration in Instagram, pretending to speak Spanish, and designing Moto Hint.

How did you first get into design?
When I was a kid I loved sketching and making things, and reading comics. I was always a very visual person. Growing up I learned the things I liked to create and discover were all actually a process of designing things. Earlier in school I got into making things online like little websites and other communication design-related things, like website and album jacket concepts.

By the time I was in high school, I decided to go into industrial design for a major since I was interested in the synergy of technology and design. After graduating from Hongik University in Seoul for Industrial Design, I decided to come to the US for my career.

Where do you get your inspiration?
I like traveling around and seeing things. I think those experiences accumulate and produce creative fuel. My colleagues are also always an inspiration to me. We share design blogs and new things that pop up. A lot of daily inspiration comes from online sources. Instagram is a great way to see interesting things around the world, if you follow the right sources.

Why is design important to our everyday lives?
It’s a broad question since design can also be seen as a holistic mentality and process. I think good design is important because it can shape our ideas into impactful objects, systems, and creative solutions so we can improve the quality of our lives and create something meaningful that transcends time and location. Design can provoke different ideas and networks that ultimately transform the culture we live in.

What does design say about Motorola?
Our design language connects with the consumers in an approachable way -- it’s very “natural” in user experience and industrial design. I believe it speaks to the consumer when we are connecting the object, interaction, and graphics to a single idea and experience—which becomes the brand and identity of Motorola.

What were some of the main inspirations for Moto Hint specifically?
We were imagining people with their heads up and immersed in the moment. Moto Hint could give you the world’s information directly to your ear by asking a question and giving you a choice to hear rather than see the information. This device could be more than an accessory and more like a personal assistant.

The discreet new wear style was key to this product, to make it universally appealing and comfortable and easy to use. We believed revolutionary design and engineering and novel user experience could create its own category and break the stigma of the traditional headset category. The earbud style makes it comfortable, familiar, and easy to use.

Are there any cool details about Moto Hint that may not be immediately apparent?
Moto Hint can detect when it’s in your ear. So it turns on when it’s in your ear and turns off when it’s out. I think it’s a very magical and intuitive experience. Also, it charges when it’s in the intelligent charging case. The lanyard tag on the charging case is the notification, telling you how it’s doing. When connected to a phone like the new Moto X, you can simply start speaking to activate voice commands. When paired other phones, you can simply tap the surface of the earbud to activate voice controls.

One favorite thing I like to do with Moto Hint is ask how I speak a different language. “How do you say ‘such and such’ in Spanish?” And it will read back to you how it’s spoken in your ear. You can just follow and then pretend you speak Spanish!

What advice would you give to aspiring designers?
I think they should try to meet different people, see many things, and go different places. You can learn something from everyone and everything. But ultimately you decide what you act on. Also, try to have inspiring people around you.

Posted by Noelle Chun, Social Media

To keep you connected at all times, we built the new DROID Turbo with a huge 3900 mAh battery—the largest battery of any smartphone—that gives you up to 48 hours of battery life (assuming mixed usage of email, web browsing, apps, texting, calling, etc., that you may typically use in any given day).

Two days is a long time. And that got us thinking: What kind of fun and epic adventures could you get into on a single charge of the DROID Turbo?

Here are just a few:

For many in the northern hemisphere, the weather outside is just shifting from “Oh, it’s crisp and beautiful today!” to “Holy moly, is it winter now?” Ah, savoring—or, for some of us, remembering—the last days of autumn. But just because the days of orange and yellow leaves are quickly ending doesn't mean you can't continue to celebrate the beauty of fall colors with your phone.

One Friday every year, they roam the store aisles, bleary-eyed, mouths agape, arms outstretched as they grope for discounted items to fill their shopping carts. You can be quickly overwhelmed. Or, worse, be turned into one of these desperate souls. The single-minded, dull-eyed Black Friday shoppers shambling after the next deal.

Don’t let this happen to you. Armed with some Motorola devices and a vigilant attitude, you can survive the hordes this holiday season. Here’s how:

1. Gather intelligence. Anytime you’re standing still, locked in indecision, you are vulnerable. Never get caught wondering if you can buy the same thing for cheaper somewhere else. Apps like ShopSavvy and RedLaser let you scan barcodes and compare prices at other stores, while PriceGrabber compares in-store prices to sales across the Internet. Be aware that this level of savviness may also make you a target! Watch out for people looking over your shoulder and following you through the store.

2. Know the terrain. First, know your closest exit at all times. Second, plan your Black Friday with surgical efficiency. You will be hitting several stores, so download an app like ESPO route planner to optimize your path from place to place. You’ll get your shopping done twice as fast as everyone else, so you can be the first to get home and dive into Thanksgiving leftovers.

3. Stay on mission. It can be hard keeping track of what to buy all of your loved ones. You may find yourself in the store browsing, wondering if they would like this thing or that. Before you know it, you’re one of the zombies staggering aimlessly through the aisles. Preserve your humanity with a nifty gift list app. Dictate gift ideas the moment they strike using Moto Hint, monitor what you’ve spent and who you still need to shop for, and share lists with others. Shop like you’re on a mission. Because you are.

4. Track your vitals. The intensity of Black Friday is enough to make anyone’s heart race. Which might make you wonder what your new, accelerated heart rate is. With Moto Body, you can find out. If your signs are good, keep on shopping. To get Moto Body, just get the update on Moto Connect for your Moto 360.

5. If you’re low on juice. Panic is the enemy! Take a deep breath. You have a Power Pack Slim. It lets you charge up. It’s lightweight, compact and you can even charge a buddies phone at the same time. Wait… you didn’t get a Power Pack Slim? Okay, maybe you should panic now.

6. Or just remain indoors. If it all seems too dangerous to venture out, close the blinds, lock the doors and lie low until Cyber Monday for some sweet deals. Why fight the zombie crowds when you can shop right from your phone? Plus, you still have all those leftovers to eat…

Posted by the Motorola Blog Team

We love them dearly, but there are those people in our lives who have a talent for driving us absolutely nuts. She’s constantly late. He talks too loud. She slurps her coffee—it could be anything.

Above: A work in progress: renovations at our offices in the Merchandise Mart in 2013.

Duet is an interactive animated story. It is a synthesis of the most ground breaking virtual world technology and the most ancient of all art forms—drawing. From the beginning of this project we knew it would be a celebration of life through line. The entire production was a creative adventure. We are a small team of artists and programmers working together to accomplish the charge of ATAP’s Regina Dugan set before us. “I want you to make something beautiful and emotional,” she said. “You push yourself creatively and that will push us technologically.”

Duet is a love story between two characters, Mia and Tosh, whose paths cross throughout their lives. Different than the traditional linear story, Duet employs a multi-layered approach that could best be described as a double helix in which the characters’ story arcs literally spiral around one another. Figuring all of this out was enough to make our collective heads spin! Fortunately we were blessed with an incredible ATAP team of technical engineers led by Rachid El Guerrab. The artistic half of our creative suite was led by our producer Gennie Rim and Production Designer Max Keane. Together, my assistant Sarah Airriess and I drew over 10,000 drawings to create the animation for Duet.

Again and again, we were surprised by the freedom this interactive storytelling provided. Jan Pinkava, who pioneered and directed the first Spotlight Story, “Windy Day”, continually encouraged us to put the camera into the hands of the audience. However this is not an easy or natural thing for a filmmaker to do. The tendency is to want to control the visual composition, but with Duet we learned to coax rather than control. Because of the nature of this virtual world technology there were no individual shots cut together. It is all one continuous living moment. I think of it less as a traditional film and more as a visual poem.

Our music composer, Scot Stafford, may have had the greatest challenge of all. Not only was he tasked with creating an emotional score, but it also needed to respond at any moment to the viewers' choice and seamlessly switch themes from one character to the other. Duet is in every way a partnership between the visual and the musical.

Throughout my 40 year career as an animator I have benefitted each time new technology crossed my path because it invariably forced me to become a better artist. In a similar way, Duet has stretched all of us creatively who worked on it.

We have learned that when it comes to storytelling, everything is possible. There still remains so much more to discover.

We are thrilled to share Duet with you today.

Glen Keane
Director / Animator of Duet

Editor's note: We made a mistake in earlier version of our blogpost when it said "Duet" would be supported on Moto G (2nd gen.). Unfortunately, that was incorrect. It is currently only supported on Moto X (1st and 2nd gen.) and Moto G 4G LTE. We're very sorry for getting that wrong.

So you’re a Moto user and one of the first in the world to use Android 5.0, Lollipop, which we began rolling out recently—what should you do next with your phone?

How to Quickly Dismiss Your Notifications

Does anyone else, before leaving the house, recite the trinity? Keys, wallet, smartphone. Our phones travel everywhere with us—in all types of weather and situations.

These days, our phones must be as visually appealing as they are durable. Which is why we’ve equipped our new DROID Turbo with ballistic nylon, a first for any smartphone.

But Just What Is Ballistic Nylon?

Ballistic nylon is the strong, lightweight, tightly woven material used on the back of DROID Turbo. It’s a tough aesthetic that matches the hardcore features of the device: a 48-hour battery, a top-of-the-line quad-core 2.7 GHz Snapdragon™ 805, a 565 ppi screen, and a 21 MP camera.

The material’s history goes all the way back to World War II. Ballistic nylon was originally developed for use as flak jackets to protect airmen from flying debris in combat and served its purpose well.

But ballistic nylon didn’t disappear after that. Through the years, the materials have been used in everything such as:

• Extreme weather backpacks
• Tactical bags for the military troops
• The US Army’s combat boots
• Hunting supplies
• Super durable watch straps (Take it from this guy.)
• Skin-on kayaks (Warning: This video may be too awesome for kayak enthusiasts or ballistic nylon lovers.)
• Motorcycle jackets and pants

Why Ballistic?

Ballistic nylon, unlike other nylons, is not only known for use in tough situations, but it is also versatile. The military uses it because the fabric is resistant to tears, holes, and high temperatures, not to mention it provides a level of water resistance. Companies use it for some of those same reasons, but unlike some other highly durable materials, ballistic nylon also offers more flexibility in design and execution. We love it because of the material’s association with all of those things.

When it comes to phones, ballistic nylon offers unique visual and tactile aesthetics. It looks sleek and feels strong in your hands. Which is why bringing the ballistic fabric technology to phones for the first time makes sense.

Because why can’t your phone be built to last with a tough look to match?

Posted by Jenny Schroder, Product Marketing

Get ready for something sweet! Android^TM 5.0, Lollipop is officially here for some of our Motorola devices!

We’ve started to roll out Lollipop in phases just a week after the public release of the software to the following devices in the US:

• Moto X (2nd Gen.) Pure Edition
• Moto G (2nd Gen.) US GSM 
• Moto G (2nd Gen.) Global GSM retail versions sold in the US

The most ambitious release yet, Lollipop brings a number of tasty enhancements, including:

• A new look and feel. Google brings its all-new Material Design to life with a bold, new visual style. The new user interface is designed to enable better, more natural touch screen interactions and introduces vivid new colors, typography, and edge-to-edge imagery to make using your phone more fluid.
• Your device, your rules. Catch up with notifications on your lock screen and even dismiss them without unlocking. New "Downtime" and "Interruption" settings also allow you to decide what people and what notifications get through at times that you choose.

• Share your device. You know that moment when your kid plays with your phone or a friend needs to borrow it? Use "Guest" mode or another account you’ve set up to share your device. You can also pin a view to limit the user to a particular application. 
• Let there be light. Shine a light by using the new flashlight in Quick Settings. Just swipe down with two fingers from the status bar to see it. 
• Battery saver. The Battery settings panel now shows an estimated projection for how much time you have left even while you're charging. You can also enable a new battery saver mode that will save power by reducing performance and most background data operations to extend your battery life. 

For more about these new features, find details at our Lollipop support page and on Google’s official Lollipop page. We’re working hard with our carrier partners to bring this update to more of our devices as soon as we can. You can always check out the latest upgrade status for your phone by visiting our software updates page.

Hope you find the update as sweet as we do.

Updated November 24, 2014