I can’t remember being this excited about an Android device in a long time and while I know many of you will look at me and say “David, what about the One or S 4?” Well, it’s the size and hardware of the Moto X that really has my interest and there’s a bit of good (or bad) news for those of you looking to buy the device in the future.

While the HTC One and Samsung Galaxy S 4 each have their own “Google Edition,” Motorola’s new flagship device will keep its Moto specific features. That’s according to Leo Laporte from “This Week in Tech,” who mentioned a conversation with Motorola evangelist Guy Kawasaki.

According to Laporte, Kawasaki confirmed that the Google Play version would not be “Google Play edition” device ala the stock Android version of the HTC One and Galaxy S 4 now on sale through Google. Instead, the Moto X will be the very same device sold through its subsidized carrier partners when it launches in the very near future. That means all the Motorola customizations will remain intact. Features like touch-less control, Active Display and the Quick Capture camera feature will be available through the model sold directly through Google. In my opinion, that’s a good thing because the device still runs a near stock version of Android anyway.

So, let’s assume for a moment that the version(s) sold through Google Play is T-Mobile compatible on both AWS HSPA+ and LTE, will the lack of a “Google Play edition” affect your buying decision? I’m guessing that price might, but in my eyes this won’t make much of a difference. Perhaps the real question is how the lack of a GPe device will affect the timetable in which Motorola (and Google for that matter) deliver Android updates to the X. That’s the real question.

Phandroid via This Week in Tech