Moto is sucking it dry, but Google stays X-cited for coming phone

Moto X assembly
'This guy is building exactly what you think he is'

Earnings season is in full swing, with Nokia posting not-so-awful results earlier today.

Google took the mic with investors later on, and while we'll get to its second quarter 2013 numbers in a minute, there's one device the collected Mountain View crew mentioned more than once.

"I know you're eagerly anticipating what Motorola is launching soon, and having been a tester for awhile, I'm very excited," CEO Larry Page said as he opened the company's earnings call.

He's referring of course to the Moto X phone, a device we've heard much about yet are still waiting to see (out of Eric Schmidt's hand, that is). The wait is likely over soon as Motorola itself tweeted a photo today showing production is underway at the Texas factory where the handset is being built.

Mo-mo-movin' on

This is the second earnings call in a row where Page touted what hardware Motorola has on tap. The last time around, he discussed better battery life and anti-splat durability in wishful terms.

He was light on specifics today, perhaps a sign that there's actually more to share on the device, info that is being kept close to the chest.

CFO Patrick Pichette took a broader view of Motorola as he ran through figures, saying Google is "very excited" about the subsidiary's "upcoming product line." Motorola CEO Dennis Woodside dished in May that a "handful" of devices are due by October.

Things were less rosy on the earnings side, however, with Motorola hitting $998 million (about £655m, AU$10.8m) in revenue. It's a nice number, but the company took a huge loss of $342 million (about £224m, AU$373m). The same quarter last year, Moto losses sat at $199 million (about £130m, AU$217m).

Google posted $14.11 billion (about £9.27b, AU$15.3b) in Q2 consolidated revenue, up 19 percent year-on-year.

However, net income was $3.23 billion (about £2.12b, AU$3.52b), down from $3.35 billion (about £2.2b, AU$3.65b) last quarter. Net revenue was $11.1 billion (about £7.2b, AU$12.1b), missing expectations of $11.4 billion (about £7.49b, AU$12.4b).

Not a huge miss, but a rare one.

  • While we're waiting for the Moto X, we're also anticipating the Nexus 7 2
Michelle Fitzsimmons

Michelle was previously a news editor at TechRadar, leading consumer tech news and reviews. Michelle is now a Content Strategist at Facebook.  A versatile, highly effective content writer and skilled editor with a keen eye for detail, Michelle is a collaborative problem solver and covered everything from smartwatches and microprocessors to VR and self-driving cars.