When Motorola launched the original Moto G, the company tried to make the device as low-cost as possible while still offering enough performance and features that appeal to customers in emerging markets. LTE chips still add significant cost to a device, so early on, Motorola decided to put a 3G modem inside the Moto G. However, due to high demand for LTE support, Motorola later went back on its decision and launched a more expensive LTE version a few months later.
Motorola launched the 2nd-generation Moto G last fall, and now the company is launching a 4G LTE version, as well. As expected, the device doesn't come with major changes other than LTE support, although it does get a much-needed increase in battery size. The new Moto G 4G gets a 2,390 mAh battery, compared to the original Moto G 2nd gen, which had the same 2070 mAh battery as the smaller 1st-gen Moto G.
Adding a bigger screen but keeping the battery size the same has led to criticism of the Moto G 2nd gen, and that's likely the reason for the change. Motorola didn't put a bigger battery in the first Moto G 4G, so LTE must not have a significant impact on battery life compared to 3G on that device.
The other specs for the Moto G 4G (2015) are the same as for the Moto G 2nd-gen. It has a 5-inch 720p screen, quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex A7 CPU from Qualcomm (the Snapdragon 400 -- still no Cortex A53-based Snapdragon 410, unfortunately), 1 GB of RAM, microSD support, 8MP rear camera, 2MP front-camera, FM radio and dual-SIM support. There won't be an 8 GB version, so the device comes with 16 GB by default. The phone will run Android 5.0.2 out of the box, which should make potential customers happy. (Motorola has already started updating older Moto Gs to Lollipop, so it wouldn't have made much sense to release the latest model with KitKat, anyway.
The Moto G 4G has only started selling in Brazil so far, on Motorola's local website, for a price of R$ 899, which is $336 USD. That's significantly more than a regular Moto G 2nd gen, although that price includes the upgrade to LTE, more storage, a larger battery and VAT and high Brazil tax imports.
Despite higher prices than in the U.S. or even Europe, previous Moto G models have been popular with Brazilians because they are still great, relatively low-cost options. Motorola hasn't said yet when the Moto G 4G will be available in other countries, but we don't anticipate that it will be much longer.
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