Motorola Moto E (Gen 2) With Android 5.0 Lollipop and LTE Variant Launched

Motorola's publicised "exciting announcement" has been made. The company on Wednesday launched the next generation of its popular budget Moto E smartphone in two variants, the Motorola Moto E (Gen 2) and the Motorola Moto E (Gen 2) 4G. The unlocked 3G model is priced at $119.99 (approximately Rs. 7,400) and the 4G LTE model at $149.99 (approximately Rs. 9,200).

Starting Wednesday, the new Moto E (Gen 2) and Moto E (Gen 2) 4G will begin rolling out in more than 50 countries in North America, Latin America, Europe and Asia, announced Motorola in a blog post.

"We're introducing the next generation, packed with more features and functionality to give people around the world even greater access to life's possibilities - without a hefty price tag," claims the company. The company says it is also bringing some software features from its Moto X flagship, and includes Moto Display and Moto Migrate.

The new Moto E (Gen 2) and Moto E (Gen 2) 4G run Android 5.0 Lollipop out-of-the-box. Both the variants support single-SIM and are identical in terms of specifications, except that the 3G variant Moto E (Gen 2) packs a quad-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 SoC (with Adreno 302) whereas the Moto E (Gen 2) 4G features a 64-bit quad-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 SoC (with Adreno 306). Both feature 1GB of RAM.

Upfront, the Motorola Moto E (Gen 2) and its 4G LTE variant feature a 4.5-inch qHD (540x960 pixel) display with a pixel density of 245ppi, and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection along with anti-smudge coating. The previous generation Moto E bore a 4.3-inch qHD display with a pixel density of 256ppi.

Both Moto E (Gen 2) variants pack a 5-megapixel rear camera, and this time Motorola has included the much-lamented front camera onboard, in the form of a VGA (0.3-megapixel) sensor. The 8GB of built-in storage (twice that of the original Moto E) on both Moto E (Gen 2) handsets can be expanded via microSD card (up to 32GB).

(Also see: Motorola Moto E (Gen 2) vs Motorola Moto E in comparison)

Connectivity options on the Moto E (Gen 2) include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0LE, GPS/ A-GPS, GLONASS, FM radio, and Micro-USB. The handset measures 129.9x66.8x12.3mm, and weighs 145 grams. It is backed by a 2390mAh battery, significantly larger than the previous generation.

Users can choose from a Black or White base colour, with the choice interchangeable Motorola Bands (Golden Yellow, Turquoise, Blue, Raspberry, Purple, Red) and Grip Shells (Golden Yellow, Charcoal, Turquoise, Blue, Raspberry).