Motorola Will Officially Unveil The Moto X In New York On August 1

Well, here we go. After a considerable amount of teasing (not to mention cheerleading from Google execs during earnings calls), Motorola Mobility is finally ready to unveil its long-awaited Moto X smartphone to the world, and it’s going to do it at a special event in New York City on August 1.

Actually, you know what? “Unveil” may not exactly be the right word — the veil has basically been off for months if you go the sheer number of leaks we’ve seen make the rounds. At this point we’ve got a pretty good understanding of what the device will look like, what sort of components it’s going to pack inside that peculiarly-curved frame, and what it’s capable of in terms of software. That’s not to say that Motorola hasn’t kept some surprises for the main event — I don’t think anyone has managed to piece together the entire picture yet — but those leaks have taken some of the shine out of the device’s debut.

Even the fast-approaching reveal was hinted at, and by a Google executive no less — CFO Patrick Pichette mentioned during the company’s most recent earnings conference call that the “new Motorola” would reveal itself in the coming weeks.

So, what’s there to get excited about now that the most of the device’s particulars have been picked apart by so many journalists, pundits, and fans like vultures feasting on carrion? Here’s something: the price tag. Motorola Mobility pulled in $998 million in revenue this past quarter, and that number has been sliding for the past few months. And that’s to say nothing of the operating losses the company has been posting — Motorola lost $342 million in Q2 2013, up from the comparatively mild $299 million loss from this time last year. In short, Motorola could use a hardware hit, and a competitive price tag could definitely help the company out there.

Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside has said that he’s very interested in the concept of powerful low-cost devices and many have taken that as proof that the Moto X won’t cost much at all. Still others believe that, for one reason or another that those low-cost rumors are just that: rumors. There’s been little agreement on where the X will land in terms of price, but it won’t be long before that (along with everything else) becomes clear.