Motorola confirms X-phone launch for October

Speaking at the D11 conference in California, Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside has confirmed the existence of the company's long-rumoured X-phone. The device is to be called the Moto X and is set to launch in October.

This is the first major product launch from the company since it was bought by Google in 2011. Woodside teased delegates saying, "It's in my pocket but I can’t show it to you." He did confirm that the phone will be packed with sensors so that it will be able to detect when it’s taken out of a pocket or when it’s travelling in a car, for example, allowing it to adapt its behavior. No details of exact specs have been released.

The new phone will be assembled in a 45,000 square foot factory in Fort Worth, Texas -- previously used to build Nokias. This will make it the first smartphone to be built in the US and 70 percent of the manufacturing will take place there, although many of the components, including processors and screens, will still be sourced from the far east.

Making the phone in the US should give the company an advantage in terms of reduced shipping costs. It will also help to create a positive image by boosting the domestic manufacturing sector.