DROID Turbo Goes Global as Motorola Moto Maxx

The international version of Verizon’s DROID Turbo leaked several days ago when an invitation to a Motorola launch event popped up in Brazil.

The so-called Motorola Moto Maxx would be launched in Brazil with exactly the same specs and the same design. Even though there were rumors about Motorola launching different versions of the DROID Turbo at other US-based carriers, we didn’t think the global version would go official so soon. Verizon made the DROID Turbo available for purchase less than a week ago and the smartphone has already been launched in other countries. It looks like the Big Red was only able to secure exclusivity over the smartphone in the United States. It will be interesting when exactly the smartphone will be introduced at other carriers in the US, such as AT&T. There’s a high chance that it will happen before the end of the year.

Until then though, it looks like customers in Brazil will be the only ones able to grab Motorola’s new flagship smartphone. Today, Motorola officially confirmed the Moto Maxx would also arrive in Mexico in mid-November. In addition, the smartphone will also be available in other Latin American countries by the end of the year.

It may be launched in Europe and/or Asia by the end of the year

Unfortunately, no details on Moto Maxx’s availability in Europe or Asia have been unveiled yet, but we suspect more info will be shared in the coming weeks. The Moto Maxx, Motorola’s latest flagship smartphone was thought to be the next Nexus smartphone. Given the fact that Google chose to go with a phablet instead, the smartphone has been released under Motorola’s brand and is now being rolled out worldwide. The smartphone boasts a stunning 5.2-inch Quad HD capacitive touchscreen display that supports 1440 x 2560 pixels resolution and features Corning Gorilla Glass coating.

In addition, the top-tier handset is armed with a powerful 2.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor, an Adreno 420 graphics processing unit and 3GB RAM. The handset lacks microSD card slot for memory expansion, but packs 32GB of storage inside. Another selling point of the Moto Maxx besides the impressive display would be the 21-megapixel rear-facing camera that can capture 4K video. It’s also worth mentioning that the Moto Maxx is powered by a huge 3,900 mAh battery, which should provide 24 hours of continuous usage, according to Motorola.

Just like DROID Turbo, Motorola Moto Maxx ships with Android 4.4.4 KitKat operating system out of the box, but it has already been confirmed for a Lollipop upgrade soon. The Moto Maxx has been priced at $870 (€700) in Brazil, but the outright price may be different depending on carrier and region.

Motorola Moto Maxx (front)

Motorola Moto Maxx (front angle)

Motorola Moto Maxx (left side)

Motorola Moto Maxx (right side)

Motorola Moto Maxx (back)
Image credits to Motorola Mobility

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MSI's A68HM-P33 and A68HM-E33 FM2(+) Motherboards Are Both Cheap and Strong

Even though Intel's Core i5 and i7 central processing units rule the high-end market, it's still very much possible to create gaming systems with AMD hardware. In fact, it is a lot more convenient to do so for many people, given how cheap the hardware is in comparison.

Mid-range gaming systems may as well be high-end conventional PCs, but if you only look at the gaming front they are well behind the big names indeed. Nevertheless, even “mid-range” gaming PCs have what it takes to run even the latest games, even if they can't quite go beyond Full HD, or even that far in some cases, not without some advanced setting compromises. Micro-Star International has just unveiled a pair of motherboards that will let you create such a system: the A68HM-P33 and A68HM-E33.

MSI's A68HM-P33 and A68HM-E33 FM2(+) motherboards

It's not really clear what the difference between the two products is. The press release doesn't really say. It may be that one of the models will be sold in the Americas and the other in the rest of the world, or some other global plan. It may also be that one of them will be sold through retail, to DIY PC makers, while the other will be reserved for OEMs to make full pre-configured PCs with. Whatever the case may be, the specs are mostly the same across the board. There is a PCI Express 3.0 slot, for example, where you can install one video card. Since AMD's latest Kaveri APUs have Radeon GPUs with Dual Graphics support, you'll be able to get good performance even if you buy a mediocre board, since the resources will combined with those of the on-board graphics chip. It's a variation of AMD EyeFinity technology.

The 7000-series APUs aren't the only ones supported. The Richland and Trinity, 6000, and 5000 series work on FM2/FM2+ sockets just fine too. Onboard LAN is available as well, as are SATA 6.0 Gbps ports (for HDD or SSD storage), with a Dothill RAID controller there to help combine multiple drives into one) and USB 3.0 connectors. Furthermore, MSI included the OC Genie 4 (one-touch overclocking) and Click BIOS 4, plus the Command Center software to let you monitor, tune, and control the hardware parameters.

Availability and pricing

Unfortunately, the information isn't available. With MSI Military Class 4 components and protection mechanisms (humidity, high temperature, electromagnetic fields), the tag probably won't be as low as it could be, but it will surely not be too high either.

Press Release:MSI, world leading in motherboards, launches 2 new AMD A68H series FM2+/FM2 socket based motherboards, the MSI A68HM-P33 and MSI A68HM-E33. The new MSI A68H motherboards support the latest AMD Kaveri APU (7000 series) and are backwards compatible with FM2 processors (Richland and Trinity, 6000 and 5000 series). Featuring onboard LAN, PCI Express 3.0, SATA 6Gb/s, USB 3.0 and multiple display support, the MSI AMD A68H series motherboards present a rich blend of features and technologies, offering the most stable and best cost/performance solution available.
MSI A68H series motherboards are available in microATX form factor and offer a great choice in connectivity with a Dothill RAID controller, onboard LAN, PCI Express 3.0, SATA and up to 10 USB ports. When combined with today's processors featuring advanced integrated graphics, such as the AMD 7000 series APUs, MSI A68H motherboards support AMD Eyefinity. All these features come at a very attractive price point, making MSI A68H series motherboards the most comprehensive and best cost/performance solution available.
MSI uses award-winning Military Class 4 components, composed of high quality components such as Solid CAPs and Dark Chokes, which ensure your PC runs stable under extreme conditions. These key components have all passed testing to MIL-STD-810G standards, ensuring stable operation in the harshest environments.
The core of Military Class 4 is based on the essential elements which increase your stability in the worst conditions. Humidity protection and high temperature protection ensure system stability in each environment, no matter what. The new structure of the PCB limits EMI emission. On top of that, all connectors have ESD protection in order to prevent short-circuiting.
The MSI A68H series motherboards are equipped with many exclusive technologies, including the one-second overclocking OC Genie 4, the easy to use Click BIOS 4 and the Command Center software that combines features such as monitoring, tuning and controlling of your hardware. The unprecedented level of flexibility and control offered in MSI's unique hard- and software design puts you in the driver's seat of your motherboards configuration.

MSI A68HM-P33 / A68HM-E33
Image credits to MSI

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