It’s great to get a news break from the exploded-then-recalled Samsung Galaxy Note 7 and Google Pixel from the Android world. This time, it’s coming from Motorola with the release of two new flagship phones – the Motorola Moto Z and Moto Z Play, with the funky, new Moto Mods.
They will all be available today (13th of October) in Australia at Harvey Norman, the Good Guys, Officeworks, and Motorola Australia website.
Motorola Moto Z
With just 5.2mm in thickness, Motorola is happy to claim that the Moto Z is the world’s thinnest premium smartphones ever (the recent iPhone 7 Plus that I reviewed is 7.3mm in thickness). It features a 5.5″ Quad HD AMOLED display powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and 4GB of RAM.
The phone is equipped with a 13MP, f1.8 rear camera with optical image stabilization and laser autofocus for instant focusing on your subjects. With such a good aperture, more lights can go in and you shouldn’t have any trouble in taking pictures in low lit condition. We’ll have to wait for the official reviews and tests for this though.
The front-facing camera is 5MP, has a front flash and wide angle lens. Selfie (and Groupie) lovers should be rejoicing over these.
As with most premium smartphones nowadays, the Moto Z also has a fingerprint reader to unlock your phone without having to enter your PIN or unlock pattern.
Fast charging gives the Moto Z an extra 7 hours of power in just 15 minutes of charging with Motorola TurboPower technology. The 2,600 mAh battery gives the Moto Z around 24 hours of battery usage – which of course, depends on what you are doing with the phone.
Moto Z is available for AU $999.
Motorola Moto Z Play
Moto Z Play is $300 cheaper than the Moto Z, more affordable if you don’t always need a top end device. Its 5.5″ 1080p Full HD Super AMOLED display is powered with 2.0 GHz octa-core processor and slightly lowered 3GB of RAM.
It has a more massive 3,510 mAh battery compared to the Moto Z which gives the Moto Z Play around 45 hours of battery usage. It also has the TurboPower charging that gives the phone an extra 8 hours of power in just 15 minutes of charging.
Moto Z Play is available for AU $699.
Moto Mods
Now, the interesting one is the announcement of new Moto Mods that can transform your Moto Z or Moto Z Play smartphones magically to do something better suited for your needs. The Mods will magnetically attach to the phone which adds advanced functionalities in an instant. It’s a similar concept to the LG G5 mods that transform your phone into a modular phone.
Listening to music or watching a movie? Attach the JBL SoundBoost mod (AU $159) for a better sound experience. Want to watch a movie on Netflix with a group of friends? Attach the Moto Insta-Share Projector (AU $429) which transforms your Moto Z into a 70-inch movie projector.
Going away from a power point for a while? Attach the Incipio offGRID Power Pack ($119) to add 20 hours of extra battery life to the Moto Z or Moto Z Play.
Going to see something cool while you are on a holiday or about to watch the grand final in a stadium? Attach the Hasselblad True Zoom (AU $399) that adds 10x optical zoom into your smartphone’s camera.
There are definitely more Mods available and in the future to come, if the community takes it. If you want to get them all, it’ll be an expensive investment, sure. However, you can always pick the one that matters you the most and we are also hoping that the Moto Mods will be compatible to future Motorola smartphones.
Motorola Moto Mods Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2L1zQkJ8UA
