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Motorola Moto G4 Play review: Our second-favorite super-budget phone

Motorola Moto G4 Play review: Our second-favorite super-budget phone

If the Moto G4 didn't exist, the stepped-down (and even cheaper) Motorola Moto G4 Play would be the deal of the century. For just $150 (or $100 for Amazon Prime members who submit to Amazon Prime ads, like this), £130 and AU$279, you get a budget phone that's surprisingly pleasant to use, for a rock-bottom price.

But there is a Moto G4, and it comes with a larger screen, a better camera and a much faster processor. Best yet, it only costs a little more -- $50 or £39 -- than the G4 Play (it doesn't sell in Australia, but the G4 Plus does). So for my money, I'd invest a little more and get the G4 over the G4 Play.

That said, the G4 Play is actually a great budget find on its own merit. I never encountered a moment where I thought, "I can't use this." The G4 Play is the Toyota Corolla of phones; it has that wonderful balance of price and value to do real-world things like text and email, upload photos and snap pictures of cute little Fifi.

The Moto G4 Play is pretty much identical to the Moto G4, just a tad smaller (see how specs compare over the page). Despite having a relatively low 1,280x720-pixel resolution for its 5-inch screen, images and websites looked fairly crisp and sharp. But even with adaptive brightness enabled, you might have trouble reading in the noontime sun.

Then there's the 8-megapixel rear facing camera. Honestly, I was surprised by its better-than-average performance. Is it the best phone camera out there? No way. But in good light, it takes good photos. In mixed light, it takes OK photos. And in low light, it struggles and images tend to have some noise. Skin tones looked fairly natural in selfies, and for those who like such things, there is an optional beauty mode. The Moto G4 Play shot serviceable 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution video at 30 frames per second (fps). Take a look at some of the snaps I took with the Moto G4 Play in the gallery below.

During my time with the G4 Play, I found it responsive in general use. I didn't experience any lags when opening or switching apps. However, playing games like Pokemon Go and Monument Valley really slowed things down, and so did taking panoramic photos. On the plus side, this little guy gets great battery life. In our looping video drain test, the Moto G4 Play lasted 13 hours, 36 minutes.

Storage is on the slim side -- 16GB -- which you expect for a low-cost phone. Luckily, a microSD slot supports an additional 128GB. Another perk: The Moto G4 Play comes with two years of free storage on Google Photos. Between photos and videos, it's easy to use that 16GB up pretty fast. I would definitely recommend getting a microSD card.

So what's it missing? A fingerprint sensor and color customization through the Moto Maker website. While the US and Australian models are missing NFC, the UK model is NFC-enabled. The G4 Play does have a headphone jack, unlike the higher-end Moto Z and Moto Z Force (US-only).

Take a look below to see how the G4 Play compares to the similarly specced (and priced) Moto G4, Samsung Galaxy J3, Sony Xperia XA and Huawei Honor 5X.

Phone spec comparison

	Motorola Moto G4 Play	Motorola Moto G4	Samsung Galaxy J3	Sony Xperia XA	Huawei Honor 5X
Display size, resolution	5-inch; 1,280x720 pixels	5.5-inch; 1,920x1,080 pixels	5-inch; 1,280x720 pixels	5-inch; 1,280x720 pixels	5.5-inch; 1,920x1,080 pixels
Pixel density	294ppi	401ppi	294ppi	294ppi	401ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	5.7x2.8x0.39 in	6.0x3.0x0.39 in	5.6x2.8x0.3 in	5.7x2.6x0.31 in	6x3x0.32 in
Dimensions (Millimeters)	144.4x72x9.9 mm	153x76.6x9.8 mm	142x71x7.9 mm	144x67x7.9 mm	151x76x8.2 mm
Weight (Ounces, Grams)	4.83 oz; 137 g	5.47 oz; 155 g	4.87 oz; 138 g	4.8 oz; 137.4 g	5.6 oz; 158 g
Mobile software	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Android 5.1 Lollipop
Camera	8-megapixel	13-megapixel	5-megapixel	13-megapixel	13-megapixel
Front-facing camera	5-megapixel	5-megapixel	2-megapixel	8-megapixel	5-megapixel
Video capture	1080p HD	1080p HD	720p	1080p HD	1080p HD
Processor	1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410	1.5GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 617	1.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410	2GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio P10	1.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615
Storage	16GB	16GB	16GB	16GB	16GB
RAM	2GB	2GB	2GB	2GB	3GB
Expandable storage	Up to 128GB	Up to 128GB	Up to 128GB	200GB	Up to 128GB
Battery	2,800mAh (removable)	3,000mAh (removable)	2,600mAh (removable)	2,700mAh (nonremovable)	3,000mAh (nonremovable)
Fingerprint sensor	None	None	None	None	Back cover
Connector	Micro-USB	Micro-USB	Micro-USB	Micro-USB	Micro-USB
Special features	Splash-resistant	Water-resistant	N/A	N/A	Dual-SIM card slots
Price off-contract (USD)	$150	$199	$110-$180 (varies by carrier)	$280	$200
Price (GBP)	£130	£169	£140 (8GB version)	Converts to £195	Converts to £135
Price (AUD)	AU$279	Converts to AU$260	AU$329	Converts to AU$390	Converts to AU$275

This review originally published September 15 at 6 a.m. PT and updated at 12:12 p.m. PT with results from our second battery test. It was updated September 20 at 10:30 a.m. PT with more information about carrier connectivity as well as NFC.

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The race to build AR glasses is heating up, and Samsung is surprisingly quiet

The race to build AR glasses is heating up, and Samsung is surprisingly quiet

It's only January, but 2022 is already shaping up to be a big year for augmented and virtual reality. It was one of the most prevalent themes at CES, which featured AR and VR announcements from Sony, Microsoft and Qualcomm (among others). Apple is also rumored to finally make its anticipated move into the smart headset space this or next year.

Yet, one company has been unusually quiet on the AR and VR front in recent years: Samsung. 

The South Korean tech giant made a name for itself early on primarily through its line of Gear VR smartphone-based headsets, which launched in 2014. But companies like Meta, Microsoft and Snap have made bigger strides in the past couple of years. 

Samsung has a reputation for experimenting with new technologies early and often, typically before other major competitors like Apple. Its decision to enter the Android smartphone market early -- more than a decade ago -- also helped it become the world's largest mobile device maker in terms of market share. That makes Samsung's relative absence from the smart glasses discourse all the more puzzling. 

Smart glasses and VR are moving forward... without Samsung

Meta's (former Facebook) Ray-Ban Stories smart glasses.

Scott Stein/CNET

Although it will likely be a long time before smart glasses become useful enough to earn a place in our everyday lives, the industry seems eager to get there. This year kicked off with a slew of announcements at CES, which included a partnership between Microsoft and Qualcomm to make custom chips for AR glasses and a glasses concept from TCL that look like an evolved version of Google Glass. Sony also teased the second-generation PlayStation VR, although it didn't reveal a price or launch date.

We also saw some pretty significant developments in the AR and VR space throughout 2021, perhaps the biggest of which was Facebook's rebranding as Meta. The change reflects its larger goal to expand beyond social networking and focus on building the "metaverse," a blanket term for digital communities which also encompasses AR and VR.

Meta announced its Project Nazaré concept AR smart glasses last year, too, and released its first pair of connected spectacles: Ray-Ban Stories. Those shades don't have AR functionality and are designed primarily for taking hands-free photos, but they could still be a step toward future smart glasses. 

Meta is also currently leading the VR market thanks to its popular Oculus VR line. The company accounts for almost 75% of the market for AR and VR headsets, according to the International Data Corporation.

Snapchat parent Snap also debuted in 2021 its first wireless AR spectacles, which can display 3D effects over real surroundings and track hand movements. These glasses aren't available for the general public without an application and are primarily aimed at developers. But Snap has already released three generations of its photo-taking Snapchat Spectacles, a signal that it's serious about wearable tech.

Microsoft, meanwhile, was one of the early players in the AR and VR market with its first HoloLens AR headset back in 2015. It launched the second-generation model in 2019 and added 5G support in 2020.

Apple hasn't released VR or AR eyewear yet, but rumors that it could launch a headset this year are already making waves. The iPhone maker is expected to announce an AR and VR-capable headset mostly geared towards developers in 2022, which could lay the groundwork for a more ambitious pair of consumer-friendly AR glasses in the future, according to Bloomberg. But Apple may delay the headset's debut by several months because of development issues, possibly pushing it to 2023, according to a more recent Bloomberg report. 

While we don't know when or if we'll ever see an Apple AR headset, CEO Tim Cook has been vocal about his enthusiasm for augmented reality. He told journalist Kara Swisher in April 2021 that he's seeing AR "take off" when used with phones and that the technology is critical to the company's future. The company has long offered tools for developers to build better AR apps for the iPhone in its ARKit platform, but it recently started building depth-sensing Lidar sensors into certain iPhone and iPad Pro models, too.

Snapchat's AR Spectacles are compact, but they're entirely developer-focused and have a very short battery life.

Scott Stein/CNET

Samsung, meanwhile, hasn't released a new version of its Gear VR headset since 2017. But that doesn't mean it's been completely quiet; the company is seemingly focusing on different executions of AR. At CES 2022, for example, one Samsung concept showed how AR could be incorporated into a car's windshield to display the weather, tire pressure levels, maps and other information. The company also worked with the 3D avatar and social app Zepeto to create a virtual home filled with its products during CES, an effort to prove it's paying attention to the metaverse hype.

Meanwhile, an older Samsung concept from CES 2020 involved pairing AR glasses with an exoskeleton to provide virtual workout experiences. And back in 2017, it showcased a computer glasses concept called Monitorless at Mobile World Congress.

Still, it's been a while since Samsung has made announcements around concrete AR or VR products, while companies like Meta and Snap are moving full steam ahead. But that doesn't mean Samsung isn't thinking about it. Two leaked videos from 2021 suggested Samsung is working on a pair of AR glasses that could project a giant screen before your eyes or place 3D virtual objects in your surroundings.

Samsung said its research team "continues to develop related core technologies for smart devices including AR glasses, next-generation wearables and more" when CNET asked about its plans for AR and VR products. The company also pointed to the website for Samsung's research division, which mentions AR glasses specifically and discusses the technology's potential benefits and industrywide challenges.

"AR glasses are expected by many experts as a next-generation IT device because they have the advantages of large-screen immersiveness compared to smartphones, unfettered freedom of not having to hold it, immediacy of not having to take it out of one's pocket, and a truly private display," Samsung Research's website reads. 

Being early has worked to Samsung's advantage

The Galaxy Z Fold 3 has nearly all the refinements you could ask for but still feel like it's missing a purpose.

Patrick Holland/CNET

Samsung isn't usually one to sit on the sidelines when it comes to emerging technologies. It launched its first modern smartwatch, the Galaxy Gear, back in 2013 when the industry was still new and wearables were scarce. Apple didn't launch the first-generation Apple Watch until 2015, by comparison.

The story is similar for other technologies like curved screens and foldable smartphones. Samsung announced the Galaxy Round in 2013, which had dramatic curves along its sides, long before it integrated rounded edges into its more recent Galaxy phones. 

Samsung was also among the first major companies to release a smartphone with a foldable screen in 2019 with the Galaxy Z Fold, a phone that's already on its third generation. Years before we had the Galaxy Z Fold or Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung also showcased its flexible display technology prototypes during events. It's still cranking out new concepts, as we saw at CES 2022. 

The rest of the industry hasn't quite caught up with Samsung when it comes to foldable phones. Motorola, for example, has launched two versions of its foldable Razr, the last of which debuted in 2020, while Samsung has already released several foldables. Huawei, another early front-runner in the foldable space, only sells its flexible Mate X2 phone in China. Samsung, meanwhile, said it sold four times as many foldable phones in 2021 as it did in 2020.

Being early is a strategy that's paid off for Samsung in the broader smartphone space beyond foldables and in the smartwatch market. Samsung is the global leader in smartphone shipments, according to Counterpoint Research, and the second-largest player in the wearable device market, says the International Data Corporation. 

Showing up early has also given Samsung the flexibility to experiment, see what customers respond to and incorporate that feedback into future products. Take the Galaxy Round, Samsung's curved screen phone from 2013, as an example. That phone never caught on, but maybe it wasn't supposed to. 

Instead, the Galaxy Round helped pave the way for Samsung's later phone designs with more subtle curves, like the Galaxy S10 series. Samsung's early bet on larger-screened smartphones with the original Galaxy Note in 2011 not only influenced its own direction, but also helped usher in an industry-wide shift to bigger phones. And who knows if we would have the Galaxy Watch 4 without the original Galaxy Gear, which was deemed clunky and expensive nearly 10 years ago. 

Smart glasses still face many challenges

Amazon is also trying its hand at smart glasses with the Echo Frames, which provide hands-free Alexa access. 

James Martin/CNET

That we haven't heard much from Samsung on the smart glasses front makes me wonder if it'll skip that experimental phase and keep its earlier iterations behind closed doors. Of course, that's if Samsung is working on smart glasses at all, which is a big assumption. 

And more broadly, smart glasses face challenges that must be solved before they can become as mainstream as smartphones or smartwatches. Those include improving battery life, phone compatibility and working easily with eyeglass prescriptions. 

Does Samsung want to risk entering the market early, or wait out what could be a years-long process? Or could they launch simpler glasses in the meantime, similar to audio glasses from Amazon and Bose? Samsung is clearly thinking about some of these questions, as it says on its research website. What we don't know is when those efforts will materialize into a real product, if at all.

Who knows how long Samsung can afford to wait when companies like Meta and Microsoft are pushing forward. Those tech giants missed out on the smartphone boom for the most part and are seemingly determined to prevent the smart glasses market from becoming yet another two-horse race between Apple and Samsung. But the AR glasses landscape is still conspicuously missing some of the biggest players in the consumer tech space -- Samsung being one of them -- and that absence looms large.

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Motorola Razr 2020 review: The iconic flip phone has done it again, this time with 5G

Motorola Razr 2020 review: The iconic flip phone has done it again, this time with 5G

The new Motorola Razr 2020 addresses most of the issues I had with the Razr (2019) that came out in February. Overall it's a better phone. The new Razr gets a slew of upgraded specs, but lacks the top of the line ones found in the Motorola Edge Plus and Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. But neither of those phones can fold into something incredibly small.

With the Razr you're paying $1,400 (£1,399, which is about AU$2,470) for a foldable screen. And that's important to remember because there isn't wireless charging or a high refresh rate display, or a gigantic battery or IP-rated water and dust resistance, or a headphone jack or headphones or the most powerful Snapdragon processor. If you want to fold a 6.2-inch phone into something the size of a small drink coaster in 2020, you're going to pay a lot of money. 

The Razr's refined foldable flip phone feels fantastic to use. With the new cameras, addition of support for 5G and all the useful enhancements to the external display, the Razr feels like a "normal" phone that can do "normal" everyday stuff with its "anything but normal" foldable build. If I were to compare the Razr to a car, it would be a fun two-seat convertible.

But not everything is rosy with this new Razr. The speaker in the chin is OK, but doesn't produce great-sounding audio at louder volumes. The glass on the back of my review unit has accumulated a few scuffs over 10 days. They're barely visible, but they're there. A case could have prevented these and Motorola will sell a nifty $50 case for the Razr.

Also, when I opened and closed my 2019 Razr review unit in February it made this weird loud squeak. For the most part, this new one didn't. I say for the most part because when I was filming the unboxing video for the Razr, I didn't hear a squeak. But when reviewing the footage, one of my video producers noticed that my mic picked up a small squeak.

Aside from the squeak (more on that below) my experience overall has been good with the new Raz. I have to give Motorola a ton of credit for all the changes and implementations they made.

As far as the price, this isn't a phone for everyone, especially with the financial hardship so many people are enduring right now. If you were seriously considering the Motorola Razr (2019) and didn't get it and you have the cash, you should consider this version. It's a refinement in nearly every way over that phone. But know that you're paying a lot of money for a phone that folds in half.

The body of the new Razr is made of aluminum and Gorilla Glass 5.

Patrick Holland/CNET

The new Razr's aluminum and Gorilla Glass 5 body feels solid

During my time with the new Razr, I used it like a regular phone. I didn't feel the need to be careful with it. I wiped the foldable screen on my jeans. I keep the phone in my pocket or in my bag.

Some of that assurance comes from its build. When you close the phone, the sides sit flush, encompassing and protecting the display. But some of that is my perception. I want to be confident that if the Razr is in a pocket with my house keys, that it won't get destroyed. That confidence and trust is huge, and I didn't feel that all-the-time when I reviewed the 2019 Razr. 

The new Razr is built from aluminum and Gorilla Glass 5 and feels solid compared to the prototype feel of the February version. Also that plastic back is gone!

To reinforce the phone's robustness, Motorola invited me to visit one of their testing labs and see one of the 40 different testing machines it uses to test the Razr (wearing a mask and socially distanced, of course). I got to see a machine that folds the Razr in half to simulate years of use in just a matter of days. The idea is most people will never fold this phone enough to hit Motorola's 200,000-fold lifespan.

Read more: Motorola claims the Razr can fold 200,000 times. We get a peek at how the phone is tested

This is one of four new Motorola Razr phones on a machine that opens and closes it once every four seconds. Over the course of 10 days the phones will be folded 200,000 times.

Patrick Holland/CNET

My time with the Razr has largely been squeak-free… until Friday. I don't know if it's the humidity or what, but there's a little squeak anytime I open or close it. The only time I don't hear it is when I flick the Razr open one-handed. The squeak isn't as loud as the 2019 Razr. But when I hear it, I feel conflicted. I feel disappointed.

I asked a friend how they felt about the squeak and they said it didn't bother them. I guess when it comes to screen notches, foldable screen creases and now foldable phone squeaks, some of you will get used to these things while others will be wildly annoyed. 

I should add that the squeak comes from the hinge mechanism, but doesn't indicate any mechanical problems.

Quick View display separates the Razr from the Galaxy Z Flip 5G

Perhaps my favorite feature is the Quick View display which got a lot more useful with the new Razr. Fundamentally this is where the Razr and the Galaxy Z Flip couldn't be more different. There are basically three modes to the outside display: The first is a Peek Display mode that lets you see notifications just by pressing and holding on an icon. The next is like a Peek Display plus mode where you can press and hold an icon, then swipe up to reveal multiple notifications and respond to them. The keyboard basically takes up the entire screen, but after a few uses I got better at typing on it.

But it's the third mode -- let's call it mini-Android mode -- where the true power of the Quick View display gets unleashed. When the Razr is closed and unlocked, you can swipe down to get to the control panel, swipe up to see something similar to the notification shade, swipe to the left to go to the camera and swipe right to see a grid of apps and swipe to the right again, to see contact favorites.

The Quick View display on the Razr is officially the smallest screen I've ever played PUBG Mobile on.

Patrick Holland/CNET

The phone can curate a list of apps that work well on the smaller external screen. Apps like Gmail, YouTube and Messages can be used complete with a mini keyboard. Also, you can go back and forth between the Quick View display and the interior display and pick right up where you were at.

You can also do what I did and go into the Manage apps setting and turn on unlimited which allowed me to try pretty much any app I wanted on the Quick View display. So I decided to try PUBG Mobile. I could barely make out the controls, but it is possible to play PUBG on the Quick View display. I also played Alto's Odyssey and Super Mario Run. Not every app is optimized for that small of a display. But this iteration of the Quick View display marks an enormous step in the right direction for Motorola.

Razr has a new 48-megapixel main camera

Then there are the cameras both of which got a solid upgrade. The selfie camera atop the internal display is much better and works great for Zoom meetings and taking selfies. Though video recording on the selfie camera does top out at 1080p.

The exterior camera has 48-megapixels and uses pixel-binning to create good 12-megapixel photos. This camera is much better than the 2019 Razr. And thanks to the optical image stabilization and a time-of-flight sensor, I got an acceptable rate of in-focus and sharp photos.

The HDR mode works rather well without it being too heavy-handed. It kept the faded blue of the pickup just right.

Patrick Holland/CNET

This was taken with the digital zoom at 2x. It's remarkable the detail it was able to capture. It also shows off the lens' natural bokeh.

Patrick Holland/CNET

Here's another photo where the Razr went into HDR mode.

Patrick Holland/CNET

This is a selfie I took with the exterior 48-megapixel camera with the phone closed.

Patrick Holland/CNET

But the Razr's cameras are not on the same level as the iPhone 11 or Google Pixel 4A. Unless Motorola added a Note 20 Ultra-sized camera bump onto the Razr (please don't do that) there is only such room for a sensor and lens inside something this small.

Low-light and zoomed in photos are soft and look like a painting because of noise reduction. There is a Night Vision mode that can help, but I find it works best in medium-to-low lighting versus situations where it's dark.

Here is a 5x digital zoom of the John Hancock building off in the distance. The details are definitely soft.

Patrick Holland/CNET

This photo was taken in the regular photo mode.

Patrick Holland/CNET

This photo was taken with Night Vision. This is the best Night Vision photo I took with the Razr. That said, the sky looks painted on.

Patrick Holland/CNET

The main camera also shoots 4K video and the quality is decent. Video definitely doesn't have the same dynamic range as photos and suffers from image noise and artifacts. But I'm happy with the clips I was able to record. Check some out video clips I shot below:

OK battery life, sub-6 5G and Snapdragon 765G

Motorola claims a benefit of using the Quick View display more is it doesn't tax battery life as bad as using the main display. And that's good news. In my use, the new Razr gets me barely through a day. I typically find myself topping off at dinner time. And that's while I'm connected to 5G. I'm getting about 7 hours, 30 minutes of screen-on time and in a test with continuous video playback on Airplane mode the Razr lasted 15 hours, 53 minutes, that's 1 hour, 50 minutes more than the 2019 Razr lasted in the same test. And that's 53 minutes more than the Galaxy Z Flip.

The new Razr has a larger battery than the 2019 Razr and some of that is to compensate for use on 5G, which can eat up battery life. The Razr can work on sub-6 flavors of 5G like on AT&T and T-Mobile. I've been testing this Razr on T-Mobile's 5G here in Chicago. Sometimes I get speeds over 100Mbps for downloads (that's outdoors) and other times I get speeds that are 4.55Mbps (that's also outdoors). Both of those results were well within the 5G coverage on T-Mobile's map and speaks more to T-Mobile's 5G network than it does the phone.

Powering all this is 8GB of RAM and a Snapdragon 765G processor. There will be some who will write the new Razr off because it doesn't have a Snapdragon 865 processor. But as we've seen in other Android phones this year, the 765G is a solid processor. In the Razr, it handled gaming, videos, photo edits, multitasking really well. And in benchmark tests, the Razr scored right on par with the LG Velvet.

3DMark Slingshot Unlimited

Motorola Razr (2020)

Motorola Razr (2019)

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

Geekbench v.5.0 single-core

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

Geekbench v.5.0 multicore

Motorola Razr (2020)

Motorola Razr (2019)

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip

Note:

Longer bars indicate better performance

Even with all these improvements, it's hard to recommend a $1,400 especially one that is still very much a concept waiting to live up to its hype in the real world. The same can be said about the Galaxy Z Flip 5G. That said, I'm excited for Motorola and hope they make as big a step forward with the next Razr as the company did with this one.

Motorola Razr (2020) specs verus Motorola Razr (2019), Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2

	Motorola Razr (2020)	Motorola Razr (2019)	Samsung Galaxy Z Flip	Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2
Display size, resolution	Internal: 6.2-inch, foldable pOLED; 2,142x876p pixels (21:9) / External: 2.7-inch glass OLED, 800x600-pixels (4:3)	Internal: 6.2-inch, foldable pOLED; 2,142x876p pixels (21:9) / External: 2.7-inch glass OLED, 800x600-pixels (4:3)	Internal: 6.7-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED; 2,636x1,080-pixels / External: 1.1-inch Super AMOLED; 300x112-pixels	External 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED; Internal: 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED; External: 2260 x 816 pixels Internal: 2208 x 1768
Pixel density	373ppi (internal screen)	373ppi (internal screen)	425ppi (internal) / 303ppi (external)	386ppi + 373ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	Folded: 2.86x3.61x0.63 in, Unfolded: 2.86x6.66x0.31 in	Unfolded: 6.8x2.8x0.28 in / Folded: 3.7x2.8x0.55 in	Folded: 2.99x3.44x0.62 ~ 0.68 in / Unfolded: 2.99x6.59x0.27 ~0.28 in	Folded: 2.67x6.26x0.6 in (Hinge) ~ 0.54 in(Sagging), Unfolded: 5.04x6.26x0.27 in(Frame) ~ 0.23 in(Screen)
Dimensions (Millimeters)	Folded: 72.6x91.7x16mm, Unfolded: 72.6 x 169.2 x 7.9mm	Unfolded: 172x7 2x6.9mm / Folded: 94x72x14mm	Folded: 73.6x87.4x15.4 ~17.3 mm / Unfolded: 73.6x167.3x6.9 ~ 7.2 mm	Folded: 68.0x159.2x16.8mm (Hinge) ~ 13.8mm(Sagging), Unfolded: 128.2x159.2x6.9mm(Frame) ~ 6.0mm(Screen)
Weight (Ounces, Grams)	6.77 oz; 192g	7.2 oz; 205g	6.46 oz; 183g	9.95 oz; 282 grams
Mobile software	Android 10	Android 9 Pie	Android 10	Android 10
Camera	48-megapixel (exterior)	16-megapixel external (f/1.7, dual pixel AF), 5-megapixel internal	12-megapixel (wide-angle), 12-megapixel (ultra wide-angle)	12-megapixel (main) + 12-megapixel (wide angle) + 12 megapixel (telephoto)
Front-facing camera	20-megapixel (interior)	Same as main 16-megapixel external	10-megapixel	10-megapixel, 10-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G	Qualcomm Snapdragon 710	Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus	Snapdragon 865 Plus
Storage	256GB	128GB	256GB	256GB
RAM	8GB	6GB	8GB	12GBRAM
Expandable storage	No	None	None	No
Battery	2,800 mAh	2,510 mAh	3,300 mAh	4,500 mAh
Fingerprint sensor	Back	Below screen	Power button	Side
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
Headphone jack	No	No	No	No
Special features	5G enabled, Foldable display, Dual SIM, Time of flight sensor, OIS exterior camera, splashproof	Foldable display, eSIM, Motorola gestures, splashproof	Foldable display; wireless PowerShare; wireless charging; fast charging	5G enabled, Foldable display, 120Hz refresh rate, wireless charging support,
Price off-contract (USD)	$1,400	$1,499	$1,380	$2,000
Price (GBP)	£1,399	£1,000	£1,300	£1,799
Price (AUD)	Converts to AU$2,470	AU$1,799	AU$1,999	AU$2,999

Originally published Sept. 14

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Motorola Moto Z Play review: A battery beast

Motorola Moto Z Play review: A battery beast

Motorola's Moto Z is a premium phone that made waves with its magnetic snap-on accessories. Unlike the LG G5, which also had swappable components, Motorola's take on modularity made a lot more sense and was easier to use.

With its Moto Z Play, the company trimmed down the hardware but beefed up the battery, retained the quirky Moto Mod feature and slapped on a cheaper price. And what can I say? I'm all for it. Affordable, reliable and boasting super-long battery life, the Z Play is an excellent midrange phone even without the Mods.

The device is available in the US on Verizon for $408, but an unlocked version that's compatible with GSM networks will be available globally in October for $450 (or £347 and AU$590, converted). Compare that with the original Z and its other counterpart the Z Force, which costs an additional $200 or more, the Z Play offers you all the goodies from Motorola's Z series, without breaking your wallet.

What makes this phone unique again?

The Z Play is a fully functioning handset, but on its back are two rows of magnetic bumps that let you attach and swap out accessories called Moto Mods. These Mods have a variety of uses and can be as simple as a decorative back cover (those covers come in a variety of patterns and textures) or as complex as an extra battery case, a snap-on speaker with kickstand or a projector. Motorola's newest Mod, a point-and-shoot camera accessory with a 10x optical zoom, is called the Hasselblad True Zoom.

The Mods are incredibly easy to use. With the audio speaker, music automatically starts playing when attached,and the projector requires hardly any setup. Even the True Zoom takes only a few seconds to ramp up and start capturing pictures.

Connecting the point-and-shoot camera accessory with the Moto Z Play.

Josh Miller/CNET

What's the difference between this Z Play and the Moto Z and the Moto Z Force?

The Z Play looks like the Z and Z Force (they share that annoying fingerprint sensor on the front that can be mistaken too easily for the home button), but as the more affordable midrange option, its specs vary. For one, instead of ditching the 3.5mm headphone jack like the other two, the Z Play still has its jack. That means its USB Type-C port and headphone jack exist side by side, together and happy, and you don't need a dongle adapter to listen to your music. You can also charge your phone while listening to beats. With even the Apple iPhone 7 losing its jack, maybe there's hope for your wired headphones in this cruel post-headphone-jack world, after all.

Though Z Play's 5.5-inch display is the same size as the other two, but it has a 1,080-pixel resolution compared with the others' 1,440p, and it isn't as durable as the Z Force's ShatterShield display. The Z Play also has a less powerful processor and a bit less RAM and its 16-megapixel rear camera sits between the Z and the Z Force's in terms of megapixels (compare all specs below). The camera lacks optical image stabilization too, so your photos might look blurrier if you have an unsteady hand.

From left to right: Motorola's Moto Z Play, Z and Z Force.

Josh Miller/CNET

Lastly, the Z Play is a tad thicker and heavier than the already weighty Z Force. This is because the former packs a slightly larger battery. Motorola says this is the "longest-lasting phone battery" on a Moto phone, which I'll get to later. For a quick comparison, check out our chart below:

Motorola Moto Z series

	Motorola Moto Z Play	Motorola Moto Z	Motorola Moto Z Force (US only)
Display size, resolution	5.5-inch; 1,920X1,080 pixels	5.5-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels	5.5-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels
Pixel density	403 ppi	535 ppi	535 ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	6.16x3x0.28 in	6.11x2.96x0.2 in	6.14x2.98x0.28 in
Dimensions (Millimeters)	156.4x76.4x6.99 mm	155.3x75.3x5.19 mm	155.9x75.8x6.99 mm
Weight (Ounces, grams)	5.82 oz; 165 g	4.79 oz; 136 g	5.75 oz; 163 g
Mobile software	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow	Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Camera	16-megapixel	13-megapixel	21-megapixel
Front-facing camera	5-megapixel	5-megapixel	5-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K
Processor	2.0GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625	2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820	2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820
Storage	32GB	32, 64GB	32, 64GB
RAM	3GB	4GB	4GB
Expandable storage	Up to 2TB	Up to 2TB	Up to 2TB
Battery	3,510 mAh (nonremovable)	2,600 mAh (nonremovable)	3,500 mAh (nonremovable)
Fingerprint sensor	Below screen	Below screen	Below screen
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
Special features	Headphone jack, Moto Mod snap-on accessories and dedicated accessory port on back	Moto Mod snap-on accessories and dedicated accessory port on back	Moto Mod snap-on accessories and dedicated accessory port on back
Price off-contract (USD)	$450 unlocked	$699 unlocked	$720 (on Verizon)
Price (GBP)	£347 converted	£499	£555 converted
Price (AUD)	AU$590 converted	AU$905 converted	AU$944 converted

How's the camera?

The phone's 16-megapixel camera took clear, decent photos and its shutter operated quickly. Though I didn't have as a noticeably rough time with the camera's white balance as I did with the Z and Z Force, some images I captured still had white hues that were slightly tinted blue. Dimmer environments understandably featured more graininess, but the camera was altogether satisfactory for quick, casual shots. For more about photo quality, check out the images below and click on them to view them at their full resolution.

A sunny outdoor shot shows objects that are bright and in focus.

Lynn La/CNET

In this well-lit indoor image, you can see a few blue tints against the white background.

Lynn La/CNET

In this closeup image, you can see the fine detailing of the shrimp cakes.

Lynn La/CNET

The small text in this picture is still readable, especially at full resolution.

Lynn La/CNET

Does it perform well?

The most outstanding thing about the Z Play is its battery life. For our lab tests (we conducted two trials) of continuous video playback in Airplane mode, the device lasted an eyebrow-raising 23 hours and 3 minutes. Outside the lab, with mild usage it lasted four whole days without a charge. Four! The handset also comes with a 15W Turbo Charger for fast charging. Within an hour it regained 56 percent of its power and it was fully charged after 1 hour and 48 minutes.

As for its processor, the Z Play's Snapdragon 625 chipset isn't as advanced as the Snapdragon 820 on paper. Our benchmark tests confirmed this when I compared it with the Z and Z Force. The OnePlus 3, which also has the 820 processor but costs the same as the Z Play, outscored the Z Play as well on all tests, and the Alcatel Idol 4S, which has a 652 processor, beat the Z Play too.

But with day-to-day usage, you won't be able to discern much of a difference. The Z Play is fast enough to satisfy your common phone needs, and I didn't notice any sluggishness or delay with real-world tasks like opening the app drawer, calling up the keyboard, and launching apps like games and the camera.

Motorola Moto Z Play Benchmark Scores

Motorola Moto Z Play 810 2640 14168 Motorola Moto Z 1733 4093 29675 Motorola Moto Z Force 1730 4181 30468 OnePlus 3 1750 4089 30337 Alcatel Idol 4S 1459 3415 17627

• Geekbench 4 Single-Core
• Geekbench 4 Multi-Core
• 3DMark Ice Storm Unlimited

Note: Longer bars indicate better performance

Should I get it?

Although it isn't as fast on paper as its Z and Z Force brethren, or its fellow $400 rivals like the OnePlus 3, Alcatel Idol 4S or ZTE Axon 7, the Motorola Moto Z Play is still worth your consideration. Sure, if you're on a tighter budget and don't find its Moto Mods completely necessary, I say go for the OnePlus 3. You'll be saving some dough and you'll have a more attractive handset by far.

Of the three Moto Zs in the series, the Z Play has the most value.

Josh Miller/CNET

But if $450 is still within your price range (or £347 and AU$590, converted) and you want a phone that you can go days without charging, get the Moto Z Play. You won't have to use its Mods if you don't want to buy them (though they are fun to play around with), and you'll still get an enduring handset (with a headphone jack!) that'll outlast the next $400 or even $700 phone by far.

Motorola Moto Z Play comparison chart

	Motorola Moto Z Play	OnePlus 3	Alcatel Idol 4S	ZTE Axon 7
Display size, resolution	5.5-inch; 1,920X1,080 pixels	5.5-inch; 1,920x1,080 pixels	5.5-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels	5.5-inch; 2,560x1,440 pixels
Pixel density	403 ppi	401ppi	534 ppi	538 ppi
Dimensions (Inches)	6.16x3x0.28 in	6.01x2.94x0.29 in	6.06X2.97X0.28 in	5.97x2.95x0.31 in
Dimensions (Millimeters)	156.4x76.4x6.99 mm	152.7x74.7x7.35 mm	153.9x75.4x6.99 mm	151.8x75x8.7 mm
Weight (Ounces, Grams)	5.82 oz; 165 g	5.57 oz; 158 g	5.26 oz; 149 g	6.53 oz; 185 g
Mobile software	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow	Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
Camera	16-megapixel	16-megapixel	16-megapixel	20-megapixel
Front-facing camera	5-megapixel	8-megapixel	8-megapixel	8-megapixel
Video capture	4K	4K	4K	4K
Processor	2.0GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625	2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820	1.8GHz + 1.4GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 652	2.2GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820
Storage	32GB	64GB	32GB	64GB, 128GB (varies by region)
RAM	3GB	6GB	3GB	4GB, 6GB (varies by region)
Expandable storage	Up to 2TB	None	Up to 200GB	Up to 128GB
Battery	3,510 mAh (nonremovable)	3,000mAh (nonremovable)	3,000mAh (nonremovable)	3,000mAh (nonremovable)
Fingerprint sensor	Below screen	Home button	Back cover	Back cover
Connector	USB-C	USB-C	Micro-USB	USB-C
Special features	Moto Mod snap-on accessories and dedicated accessory port on back	Notifications toggle, dual-SIM, Dash Charging	Boom Key (programable key), reversible OS, dual-SIM	Dual-SIM
Price off-contract (USD)	$450	$399	$400	$400
Price (GBP)	£347 converted	£329	£385	Converts to £345
Price (AUD)	AU$590 converted	Converts to AU$530	AU$470	Converts to AU$605

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