The Moto Z keyboard Mod has been canceled

We really thought the keyboard Moto Z Mod might actually ship, but yesterday, the company behind it — Livermorium — issued a final update on Indiegogo saying it’s not happening. The mod’s creators chalk its demise up to supply chain issues, a lack of Moto Z phone owners, and zero retailer interest. That combination does sound pretty damning. However, Livermorium says it’s now focusing its efforts on an actual phone, called the “Q-device,” which will be a “high-end and premium landscape slider phone.” People who backed the keyboard mod on Indiegogo can automatically roll their pledge over to this new phone and then buy it at a discounted rate. (But I don’t know why you’d put faith in this company a second time.) Backers can also request a full refund through PayPal, and they have until September 30th to do so.

This campaign failing to ship is particularly disheartening because the company even won Motorola and Indiegogo’s Transform the Smartphone Challenge, after which it was put through Motorola’s Accelerator Program where the phone company collaborated on the device. Even with full corporate support, crowdfunded campaigns can’t make it. It’s a downer. Motorola still has plenty of its own Mods to choose from, but none are a keyboard. And we might have already seen the last of the Moto Z phones.