When Motorola first launched the Moto X, many service providers offered the phone for $199 with a two-year subscription plan. While some providers such as AT&T, Sprint, and US Cellular cut the price to a mere $99, one big exception had been Verizon Wireless—until now. Verizon has announced it's now selling the Moto X for $99 with a contract, and $499 without, just like most everyone else.
You can now purchase the discounted Verizon smartphone online at the Verizon Wireless website. Now the only carrier that has the Moto X at its original price is T-Mobile, which sells the phone for $599 unlocked.
With the Moto X's price lowered substantially, attention again turns to the possibility that other carriers besides AT&T will soon get to use the MotoMaker website to allow users to design their own versions of the phone. AT&T users have had the exclusive privilege of being able to choose from a wide variety of colors to decorate the backplate, accents, and other parts of the Moto X to make their phone unique. Motorola then builds the user's phone in a plant in Texas and ships anywhere within the continental United States in four days. Meanwhile, Verizon Wireless, Sprint, and other service providers were only able to offer the phone in black or white.
This may all change soon. It's rumored that the exclusive deal between AT&T and Motorola for the MotoMaker website is set to expire in November. The price drop may be an effort to drum up more interest in the Moto X before more users can start customizing their own models of the phone and keep the device at the forefront of the industry despite the rash of newer devices on the market.
The Moto X is one of the best smartphones released in 2013, and with the device now being offered at $99, Verizon Wireless customers may want to look into the device if they need an upgrade. However, they may want to delay slightly to see if the MotoMaker website becomes available to them in the near future.