Moto E launched - Should you buy it?

Did you know that Motorola's last smartphone, the Moto G was out of stock on Flipkart within the first 18 minutes of its release?

Motorola recently made a comeback into the smartphone market when they released the Motorola Moto X and the Motorola Moto G. Both these smartphones did really well, with Moto G selling like hot cakes. Motorola launched its newest smartphone in the Indian market today called the 'Moto E'. This smartphone has been specifically designed for emerging markets like India and Brazil. India, however is the first country this phone is being released in.

The dual-sim Moto E is primarily based on its predecessor Moto G. You can't help but notice the similarities between the look, feel and the first impression of both these devices. On the inside however, there are a lot of differences. The Motorola Moto E is targeted at the budget oriented smartphone buyers and Motorola has aggressively priced it at INR 6999 in the Indian market. This device has been launched today and should be available on Flipkart, Motorola's sole online retailer in India effective midnight.

The hardware specifications on the Moto E are very different from that of its other releases. To be able to cut costs and keep its final price as low as possible, Motorola has made few sacrifices. Here are the key specifications as released by Motorola:

- Powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 200 processor along with an Adreno 302 GPU.
- 4GB of internal memory which is expandable upto 32GB through a micro SD card.
- 1GB of RAM.
- A 4.3 inch qHD 540x960 pixel display with a pixel per inch (ppi) density of 256.
- Android 4.4.2 KitKat operating system (take notice, not the latest 4.4.3)
- A 1980mAh Li-ion non-removable battery.
- A 5 Megapixel rear facing camera, no forward facing camera.

With the above specifications, the Moto E sits tight on top of all the other budget smartphones in India in this price range. With serious competition only from Lava 406Q, this device is smartly poised to create a stir in the next few days. The Moto E will be available in two colours, Black and White with colourful back cases available separately.

With a scratch-proof Corning Gorilla Glass 3 in front and a water resistant nano-coating all around, Motorola has essentially focussed on its durability. The only downsides so far that I've noticed in the Moto E are the video camera resolution of 480p and the lack of a front facing camera. But these are the sort of things you give up when you're running on a tight budget. It is a neat, flawless device otherwise.

Some of the featured deals that Flipkart will be offering for this device for the launch day (14th May) are:

- Flat 50% off on Transcend 8GB memory card bought along Moto E.
- Flat 50% off on original Moto E cases bought along Moto E.
- Preloaded eBooks worth Rs.1000 free on installing the Flipkart eBooks app.

If you need to buy a new smartphone and are limited by budget, do look at the Moto E. It is a serious contender and I'm sure will excite a lot of people looking for a device in this price segment.