Alina Lewis

The successor to one of our favourite mid-range smartphones might go on shelves later this year, if recent leaks are to be believed. The rumoured Moto G successor was spotted after a leaked Brazilian FCC document showed an approval of three new devices from Motorola: the XT1063, XT1068 and XT1069.

The Moto G's claim to fame was its perfect amalgamation of affordability and functionality. Coming from the house of Google (then, before the sale to Lenovo), for the first time people could buy a smartphone running on pure Android OS at a modest price. And the bloatware-free smartphone worked brilliantly for a mid-range smartphone. Close on the heels of Moto G's success, Motorola launched the Moto E and the Moto X in the entry-level and premium segments respectively, in India.

Looks like we might soon see a second iteration of the Moto G, Moto E and Moto X smartphones, after reports of the same went online. AndroidPit was one of the first ones to report the upcoming variants of the Moto range. It said that the first will have a single SIM, the second dual-SIM, and the third dual-SIM and digital TV features. It also added that they could not be versions of the Moto X+1, as none of them support 4G networks.

Soon after the FCC document was leaked, a Spanish website Mallandonoandroid confirmed the specs of the 1068 XT model along with its photos. The model resembles the original Moto G and features an improved 8 Mp rear camera instead of a 5Mp one. It might also run on a faster processor, though the display resolution remains the same at 1280 x 720 pixels.

Since the Moto G has gone on sale, it has met strong competition such as the Sony Xperia M2 and the Asus Zenfone 4. Chinese manufacturers such as Gionee, ZTE and Xiaomi have also pooled the mid-range smartphone segment with powerful yet affordable devices.

So it's not going to be easy for Motorola to carve a niche with the next Moto G this time. The successor will have to be strategically priced and strike a balance with features and functionality in order to be just as attractive a purchase as the original Moto G.