After Apple lead designer Jony Ive appeared to attack Motorola's Moto Maker program, Motorola President Rick Osterloh fired back at Apple.
In an interview with the New Yorker magazine, Ive issued harsh words in his criticism of the thought of giving customers the choice on what color their smartphones would be. While Ive did not specifically name Motorola, his description of the program that he was criticizing matched the Moto Maker campaign that the company launched in late 2013.
Ive said that such a scheme abdicates the company's responsibility as a designer for its products.
In an interview with BBC, Osterloh said that Motorola and Apple have different philosophies in developing their products, with the Motorola chief stating that the company believes in involving the end user directly in the design process of their devices.
Osterloh then criticized Apple for selling their devices with "outrageous" prices.
The Moto Maker program allows customers to choose from "thousands of ways" for the customization of the Android-based Moto X mobile phones. Some of the components that customers can customize include the color of the back of the phone, the metal trim type for the body and the inclusion of leather components to the design.
Motorola launched the Moto Maker campaign back when it was still owned by Google. Since then, the company has been acquired by China-based Lenovo.
Osterloh added that the difference in strategies between the two companies went deeper than the process of designing their products.
"We do see a real dichotomy in this marketplace, where you've got people like Apple making so much money and charging such outrageous prices. We think that's not the future," said Osterloh.
"We're making the entire product line accessible," Osterloh added.
Osterloh said that the company believes that the future is being able to offer the same experience along with wider choices for consumers at more affordable prices.
Osterloh adds that great smartphones and great mobile Internet experiences should not be a luxurious service, but rather a simple commodity that everyone can access.
Ive also criticized Toyota in his interview with the New Yorker, calling the Echo model, also known as the Yaris, as "insipid."
Ive praised luxury car maker Bentley, however, saying that he "loved" the designs of the company's vehicles.
Motorola has returned to China after the completion of its acquisition by Lenovo. To mark the move, the company unveiled three new smartphones, namely the Moto X, the Moto X Pro and the Moto G with 4G LTE.
