Moto Edge X teaser suggests Motorola's first gaming phone

We’re not sure if there’s a Guinness record for the number of smartphone models launched in one year but if there’s such a thing, then Motorola would be the clear winner. The portfolio of the Lenovo-owned brand is huge, and it looks like we’ll be getting yet another Moto model soon. But this time it might come with a surprise.

The phone in question is the Moto Edge X - an “infinitely powerful and full of expectations” device if we’re to believe the teaser posted on the Chinese network Weibo. The teaser itself doesn’t reveal much - it’s just a big blue X with the Motorola logo and brand underneath.

The post, however, mentions the Moto Edge S, as well as the phrase “gaming phone”. The machine translation doesn’t do justice to the meaning, though. But when you combine the two, you get an infinitely powerful and full of expectations gaming phone. We know, it’s a bit of a stretch but mobile gaming is on the rise and most smartphone manufacturers try to exploit the gaming idea in one way or another.

The Motorola Moto Edge X

The aforementioned Moto Edge S launched worldwide as the Moto G100. You can check out our full review but long story short, it’s the most powerful Moto to date. It sports the Snapdragon 870 chipset - on paper, It’s 10 to 15% slower than the top-of-the-line Snapdragon 888, but it feels much faster on the Moto G100.

What is the Moto Edge X then (or should we call it the Moto G200)? The leak also mentions some specks - it seems that Motorola has finally decided to put a flagship chipset in one of its models. The Edge X will supposedly sport a Snapdragon 888 chipset, a 144Hz screen, 8GB of RAM, a 108MP main camera (out of a whopping total of six cameras!).

Now, there’s nothing that screams “gaming phone” more than a high refresh rate display. While a Snapdragon 888 is kind of a must on any 2021 flagship, a 144Hz refresh rate takes things one step further than the 120Hz that became the new flagship norm.

There’s another rumor going around that Motorola will be one of the first companies to release a Snapdragon 898-equipped phone. The official announcement will be happening during Qualcomm’s Tech Summit 2021, running from October 30 to December 2 (rumor has it that the Snapdragon 898 will be unveiled on the first day of the event).

Our take

There are two angles to this. One, Motorola is probably going to try and enter the real flagship territory with its next phone - the Moto Edge X. Or the company will be venturing into the gaming phones territory. Both are not mutually exclusive, of course.