DPReview: Lenovo unveils Moto Z, Moto Z Force and Moto Mods attachments

At its annual TechWorld conference today, Lenovo announced two new Motorola smartphones, the Moto Z and Moto Z Force. The two models are very similar but differ in some key ways – including the camera specifications. The Moto Z is only 5.2mm thin and comes with a 2,600 mAh battery and a 13MP rear camera with fast F1.8 aperture, optical image stabilization, laser-AF and a dual-tone LED flash. The 5MP wide-angle front camera has an F2.2 aperture. 

At 6.99mm the Force is a little thicker and can fit a 21MP camera with F1.8 aperture, on-sensor phase detection, laser-AF and OIS into its body. It also comes with a shatterproof display and a larger 3,500 mAh battery. 

The remaining device specifications are pretty much identical. Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset and 4GB of RAM. 32 or 64GB of storage are expandable via microSD card. The 5.5" AMOLED displays offer a Quad-HD resolution and both devices come with fingerprint scanner and water-repellent coating. There is no 3.5mm headset jack but a USB Type-C to 3.5mm adapter is included.

While the devices look very sleek and elegant, their unique selling proposition are the Moto Mods attachable accessory modules. They connect to the back of the phones via 16 connection points on the rear plate. So far there are the InstaShare projector which can project a 480p image up to size of 70", the JBL Soundboost 6 Watt speaker and a 2220 mAh battery pack. Unfortunately the rumored camera grip has not materialized yet, but hopefully that is something to look forward to in the future. 

The Moto Z Force will, at least initially, be exclusive to Verizon in the US and be marketed as the Moto Z Force Droid edition. Verizon will also sell the Moto Z Droid Edition but consumers can buy an unlocked version directly from Motorola. Both models will be available in the US this summer; in other regions the Moto Z will become available in September.

from Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com) http://ift.tt/1XJ4VFr
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