Mod My Moto

Moto Z.

byLiu Hongzuo December 2016

Moto Z.

The first thing that stood out to us was the Moto Z’s thickness, which measures just 5.2mm-thin. A cursory glance at the flagships we’ve fondled within this year showed that the Moto Z is almost 2mm thinner than the typical 7 – 9mm Snapdragon 820 phones around. Using the slim Moto Z truly felt like operating a device of a new age. A quick glance at specifications showed that Moto (actually Lenovo) did not make any major performance compromises to adopt this form factor, save for a smaller battery.

The slim design is not without its flaws though – the rear camera module has a busty protrusion, so it’s virtually impossible to have the phone lay flat on a desk. That can be rectified with Style Shells – customizable snap-on backs – which add approximately 1.5mm to the phone’s overall girth. Even with a Style Shell, the Moto Z is one of the thinnest 2016 flagship smartphones around. Another major sore point would be the lack of a headphone jack, the second high-profile device this year to do without one.

The Moto Z is one of the thinnest phones we’ve seen this year, at just 5.2-mm without any of its modules attached.

Moto Z’s body is made from aircraft-grade aluminum and stainless steel, with a rear that’s polished to a premium, glossy appearance. The Moto Z has a water-repellant nano coating that protects against moderate water exposure such as splashes and light rain, but isn’t actually water-proof.

Volume and power/lock buttons are found on the phone’s right flank, and the buttons are nearly identical, save for the power button’s ridges. The ridges are not deep enough for intuitive handling – you’d be fumbling for the lock when putting the phone away. Otherwise, the Moto Z’s design is visually attractive, emphasized with commendable build quality.

The phone comes with a 5.5inch Quad HD (2,650 x 1,440 pixels resolution) AMOLED display at ~535 PPI. From our tests, the phone oﬀers vibrant colors, with a warm temperature. However, the display’s maximum brightness appears slightly dimmer than the Galaxy S7 Edge we had on hand, and it’s not as sharp, too. The Moto Z uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 SoC clocked at 1.8GHz. It packs 4GB RAM and 64GB internal storage, expandable by another 2TB via microSD card. Web surfing was blazingly quick as we flitted from page to page without issues. With a flagship processor, gaming was smooth, but its thin body makes the processor’s heat output rather obvious. From our real-world experience though, it’s not much diﬀerent from other flagship Android smartphones today thanks to its smooth experience and great performance.

The rear camera on the Moto Z packs 13-megapixels of resolution with an f/1.8 aperture. It’s helped along with optical image stabilization, laser autofocus and a dual-LED flash. Other perks include zero shutter lag, and color correlated temperature (CCT). The front camera is a wide-angle 5-megapixel shooter (admit it, it’s just for selfles) and an extra flash. It oﬀers vibrant and sharp images, with average detail.

On its own, the 2,600mAh Moto Z lasted 580 minutes in our benchmarks, outperforming in duration, against higher capacitiy phones such as the Sony Xperia XZ (2,900mAh) and HTC 10 (3,000mAh). While the Moto Z sits squarely the middle of the pack, with top battery performers pulling in at 700 minutes or more, it is quite a feat for Moto to eke out this duration from a smaller capacity battery.

Its key feature, however, is a hot-swappable modular design that works with a variety of Moto Mods. Moto Mods are rear attachments that enhance the Moto Z - each attachment usually boosts one aspect of the smartphone at any given time, and can be snapped on and oﬀ while the phone is running. This is much more convenient than the LG G5’s modules, which require powering oﬀ the smartphone every time you replace a mod. Also, while the catch-and-lock system for the LG G5’s modules may be more secure, they are certainly less intuitive than the Moto Mod’s magnetic design. Since the mod experience is an integral part of the Moto Z, we’ll be incorporating the initial batch of Moto Mods in this review as well.

The phone connects to each module attachment via a 16-pin connector located at the bottom.

AT A GLANCE

OS Android 6.0 (Marshmallow).

DISPLAY 5.5-inch Quad HD (2,560 x 1,440 pixels resolution) AMOLED.

PROCESSOR Qualcomm Snapdragon 820.

DIMENSIONS 155.3 x 75.3 x 5.19mm.

PRICE $899.

INCIPIO OFFGRID POWER PACK

There isn’t much you can say about a 2,200mAh battery pack, other than the fact that Moto has both the wired ($139) and wireless ($159) versions available here.

One plus point to the battery module would be its eﬃciency control. You can set the Power Pack to “Default” and “Eﬃciency” modes. The former keeps your phone at 100% at the cost of having a shorter Moto Mod battery life, while the latter mode keeps the phone at a constant 80%, giving us a longerlasting battery pack.

Weirdly, the module doesn’t come with its own USB input port, which means that you can’t charge the battery pack separately while you go about your business with the phone. Moto did not provide us with the wireless version of the mod, so we can’t comment on its ease of use. Even then, the Incipio oﬀ GRID Power Pack is a no brainer for the Moto Z, and unlike regular battery packs, works seamlessly with the phone without cables or too much additional bulk.

A big step up from built-in speakers, but has a tough fight against regular Bluetooth speakers that has more universal support.

INSTA-SHARE PROJECTOR

This $399 projector attachment has its own 1,100mAh battery to provide up to 60 minutes of projection time. Despite its size and weight (just 125g), the Insta- Share Projector module can create 70-inch projections.

There’s a physical dial for located next to the lens for getting your projection into focus. While the module can automatically set its keystone (tilt compensation), you can use the slider in the settings to adjust the keystone to your preferred orientation. Finally, the mod has its own adjustable stand.

Do note that it has a maximum 854 x 480 pixels resolution. Even so, Full HD videos from YouTube are watchable once you’ve configured its focus. The projection is good for personal, handsfree video-watching, but you wouldn’t want to do presentations for work or school on this accessory.

The Insta-Share Projector is one of the better Mods, but it’s tough to say if $399 is a good purchase for 480p projection on your ceiling.

Having snap-on access to a projector is actually quite handy for easy video sharing and personal entertainment.

JBL SOUNDBOOST SPEAKER

The $139 speaker module is Moto Z’s solution to folks who like having a portable speaker wherever they go. On its own, the module is pretty slim at 13mm and weighs 145g. It features 27mm stereo speakers at 3W each.

Audio output is a decent grasp over a wide range of low-, mid-, and high- frequencies. Bass notes sound full, but can be bloated at times. Treble notes however, felt muddy. That said, the Soundboost has good directional projection, and it’s able to throw audio across a study room, unlike the phone’s default speakers. Lenovo claims that the built-in 1,000mAh battery gives the JBL Soundboost up to 10 hours of playtime, but our first 15 minutes of testing saw an 11% battery drain.

While this mod can certainly beat many alternatives with its relatively compact form factor, it’s still possible to get ultra-portable speakers (like an X-Mini Uno capsule) with a better price, sound quality and battery lifespan. So your choice is between the compatibility of general Bluetooth speakers, or the ease of use of the JBL Soundboost with the Moto Z.

The Hasselblad True Zoom adds an amazing 10x optical zoom to a smartphone, but could have had a more capable sensor for its price.

HASSELBLAD TRUE ZOOM

Eﬀectively, the S4459 Hasselblad True Zoom is a branded camera attachment module. It features a conventional compact camera appearance, with a functional Xenon flash, some room for better grip, a physical shutter button, a physical jog dial for zoom, and a power button. The grip is slightly more comfortable compared to the LG G5’s camerarelated module, and it permits one-handed operation. It autofocuses on your subject when you half-press the shutter (full presses would make the attachment snap photos at its current focus). In essence, it transforms your Moto Z’s photography into a point-and-shoot experience.

CONCLUSION

A great modular concept. Grab the Moto Z for the phone, but first generation Moto Mods has kinks to be worked out.

The BSI CMOS sensor has 12-megapixels resolution in 1/2.3-inch size, with a pixel size of 1.55-micropixels. For reference, the Sony Xperia XZ has a builtin 1/2.3-inch sensor with nearly double the megapixel count. There’s no sugarcoating the fact that the Hasselblad True Zoom oﬀers a smartphone-quality camera for an additional $459. Its saving grace is the 10x optical zoom lens at 4.5 – 45mm (25 -250mm, 35mm equivalent), with an aperture range of f/3.5 –f/6.5.

Hardware All in, the Moto Z actually a great flagship smartphone even without any module attachments and at $899, aﬀ ordable too. The equation becomes a touch messier when you start throwing Moto Mods into the mix and their value versus performance.

PICTURES MOTO.

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