I'm no phone reviewer, so this will be pretty jumbled. I've owned quite a few devices over the years, from cheap-o Tracfone devices all the way to a few iPhones, a Nexus 5x (RIP), and several others. This is by far the best device I own.
It might be helpful for me to qualify the type of usage I have. I'm on my device relatively often throughout the day, but never doing anything really intensive. Social media, emails, occasional video watching, browsing the web, sports tracking, and some games. Games are Fire Emblem: Heroes and Scramble with Friends.
SIZE:
The phone is pretty beastly. I came to this from the Honor 5x, which I felt was too big. The MZP is bigger. It's wide, it's long, it's thick, and it's hefty. 5.5" is really too large for the 'normal' phone size IMO. 5" really is the sweet spot for my medium-sized hands. If thing phones are your thing, you'll probably want to look elsewhere. It isn't distractingly large, but it's thicker than average and has a substantial camera bump.
BUILD QUALITY:
I was extremely impressed by this. I mentioned that it feels hefty, but I like it. The metal ring around the outside is pleasing to the touch, so much so that I no longer use the case I bought with it. The glass back gives off a premium feel, but that comes at the cost of TONS of finger smudges. I purchased a Moto Style Shell to snap on the back. It gives it a unique look, adds the extra protection, and smooths out the back with the camera bump. Sure, it's a bit thicker, but well worth the trade-off. On that note, the device looks great, though a bit boring. The camera bump is a bit strange, but I don't look at that side of the camera too often anyhow.
OS:
The MZP was updated to Android Nougat 7.0 in early March, and since has also received the March security patch. If timely, up-to-date OS software is key for you, Motorola is not going to work. They're just slow. However, short of a Pixel/Nexus (and maybe Nokia now?), this is the closest to a 'stock' version of Android you will find. The inclusions made by Moto are great and actually add to the experience. The actions in particular, I find myself using often, most specifically twisting to open the camera and chop twice for flashlight. They work seamlessly. Short of that, the interface is about what you'd find on a Google device. The default launcher is the Google Now Launcher, but I switched over to Nova Launcher. I have trouble using the device one-handed, so the gestures in Nova help minimize the inconvenience.
SCREEN:
The 1080p is perfect for my use, but I was also plenty happy with the 720p screen on my Blu Studio HD i.e. I'm not picky. I do love having the AMOLED screen vs an LCD, if for nothing else than the deeper blacks. I don't care about it enough for it to be a deciding factor, but it's firmly under 'nice to have'. The MZP can struggle a bit in direct sunlight, but generally, it's fairly usable. The 5.5" unit has bright colors that are not overly saturated, and displays in the classic 16:9 aspect ratio, which means your favorite videos will take up the entire screen.
PERFORMANCE:
The Moto Z Play is powered by a Snapdragon 625 processor and 3GB of RAM. As mentioned, I don't do anything graphically challenging. My tasks are not demanding on the hardware. That being said, this thing flies. I cannot notice any difference between this and the Nexus 5x, which ran on a Snapdragon 808. In fact, I've noticed fewer hangups, especially when exiting apps. Will it open apps as quickly as a Galaxy S7/S8? Nope. But hey, I can wait a few extra seconds and spend half the cash. So let me state this simply: this phone performs about as well as any flagship model device I've ever played around with (Nexus 5x, iPhone SE, Galaxy S7, Honor 8). If you're a productivity user or just a general user who doesn't play many games, this thing will knock it out of the park for you.
BATTERY LIFE:
Admit it, this is why you're here. It's why I'm here. I'm writing this review having unplugged my phone at 6:43 a.m. It's currently 9:08 a.m. My battery is at 88% and has 1 hour 10 minutes of screen on time so far. I know that's not a great universal standard (see above for my usage. I've also been doing a lot of downloading with the screen off). However, that means this phone is cruising towards 10 hours SOT today. That's just ridiculous. This phone does not quit. If you've ever needed a phone that just went all day long, you need the Moto Z Play. Plus it's turbo charging capable, meaning that if you someone are a battery demon who burns through your massive battery life during the day before going out at night, you can fully charge up in about 90 minutes. I really can't say enough.
CAMERA:
Meh. It's great when you have lots of light. It shoots video in 4K. It has a slow-mo. It struggles in low-light. It's pretty average. I'm kind of a camera snob because of my professional work, so I don't put a ton of stock into the camera on phones. It's a step-up from the Honor 5x, it's a step-down from the Nexus 5x and iPhone SE. It's fine for me, since all I use it for is taking snaps of my kids. If you care a lot about picture quality, you'll be disappointed. If you just want something for occasional snapshots and selfies, you'll be content.
Others:
-NFC works great with Android Pay.
-It has a headphone jack! No courage necessary.
-It uses USB-C.
-You have 3 buttons: 2 volume buttons and a textured power button.
-Front-facing flash for selfies/looking like a tool at the club.
-100% Moto Mods capable. I haven't purchased any because I don't want to buy a phone-specific accessory for that much money.
One thing to note:
I get somewhat worse reception on AT&T on this phone than on previous ones. Now, this might be because I just switched to Tracfone from Consumer Cellular and lost roaming/extended network, but I frequently am running into dead spots in my house that I never had before. YMMV.
Overall, I'm extremely satisfied with this device and is doubtlessly my favorite phone I've ever owned. If you're looking for a day-to-day phone that lasts all day (maybe 2 days if you're a light user!) and is perfectly capable at everything else, this is right up your alley.
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Get it May 15 - 16
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From the manufacturer
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Transforms with Moto Mods.With Moto Mods, do things you never thought were possible with a phone. Through interchangeable backs that snap onto your phone with powerful integrated magnets, make your imagination reality. Whatever your passion, there’s a Moto Mod for you. |
Moto’s longest lasting smartphone battery ever.There is nothing worse than scrambling to find an outlet to charge your phone after only a few hours of use. Thankfully, Moto Z Play gives you up to 50 hours of battery life*, so you can go further and play on—all with just a single charge. * All battery life claims are approximate and based on a mixed use profile (which includes both usage and standby time) under optimal network conditions. Actual battery performance will vary and depends on many factors including signal strength, network configuration, age of battery, operating temperature, features selected, device settings, and voice, data, and other application usage patterns. |
Any light. Camera. Action.With a 16 MP camera and two auto-focus technologies built in, Moto Z Play gives you crystal clear images, faster. Laser autofocus and phase detection autofocus (PDAF) work fast, so you never miss the shot—day or night. |
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See the bigger picture.Moto Z Play packs a beautiful 5.5" 1080p HD Super AMOLED display into a thin metal frame. Photos, videos, and games appear bright and beautiful, with vivid colors and intricate details complimented perfectly by a sleek, elegant design. |
Touch. And go.Remembering your password can be hard. Remembering your fingerprints, well, Moto Z Play makes that easy. Instantly and securely unlock your phone to access the home screen, log-in to your banking applications or make mobile payments. All it takes is a simple touch using the fingerprint reader. |
More control means more freedom.From voice control to quick motions, enjoy a phone that is so remarkably intuitive and incredibly easy to use, it feels like an extension of you. |
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This Item  Motorola Moto Z Play 32GB 4G LTE GSM Global - NO CDMA - Black (Unlocked) |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $249.99 | $393.77 | $113.98 | -7% $139.99 Typical price: $149.99 | $69.99 | $296.69 |
| Delivery | Get it May 15 - 16 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 | Get it as soon as Tuesday, May 14 | — | Get it May 14 - 20 | Get it May 15 - 22 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Fingerprint reader | ||||||
| Battery life | ||||||
| Value for money | ||||||
| Face recognition | ||||||
| Screen quality | ||||||
| Sold By | 212 Distributors (blue light serial #'s recorded) | Amazon.com | TeeEra Shop | wireless4cheap08 | Amazing Saving Center | MINHA-NY |
| display size | 5.5 inches | 6.6 inches | 6.8 inches | 6.4 inches | 5.7 inches | 5.5 inches |
| memory capacity | 32 GB | 256 GB | 6 GB | 128 GB | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| model name | XT1635 | ThinkPhone by Motorola - 2023 | Motorola Moto Edge UW | Motorola Moto Z4 | Moto G6 | Moto Z Play Droid |
| operating system | Android 6.0 | Android 13.0 | Android 11.0 | — | — | google android |
| connectivity tech | Wi-Fi | NFC, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi | Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB | Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi |
| display type | LCD | OLED | OLED | OLED | — | AMOLED |
Reviews with images
Incredible phone with great power/performance ratio (not to mention modular design)
The photos I provided are outdoors with shade, and indoors under artificial light for anyone curious about camera quality. I find it's HDR to be of exceptional quality, surely deserving of flagship comparisons. The battery is indeed as people have claimed it to be, and after about 1 and 1/2 weeks of use, I can assure anyone that no matter your level of usage, from 8am to 8pm you won't even be worrying about topping up, unless you're using 3d gaming for more than 4 hours. I bought this phone in order to have my end all-be all for the next 3 years, and so far I'm definitely finding that to be the case. I did benchmarks on about every tool there is, and found that even attempting a battery benchmark (20% of battery) would have me hung up for at least several hours!!!! Tasking is smooth, despite it's generally middle of the road scores, and I've never seen any sort of stutter in ANYTHING. I use this machine to play Pokemon Go, and if I so chose, I could run that game with this device for hours on end, while many other devices struggle to hold a charge. The speaker quality is a slightly mixed bag, I find that I love the placement but the top two notches on media volume have you losing some general audio quality. Talk quality and antenna strength is exceptional, as I was able to pick up some signal in a hotel Lower Level, while others sometimes could not. Charging times? You'll never have this phone stuck on the charger (provided) for even 2 hours. Make sure to buy a USB C cable for data syncing.Performance 4/5, scores fairly below most other flagships in benchmark scoresBattery Life 6/5, outperforms absolutely every other mobile device on the market currently, (even the Moto x Power, yes.) if benchmark estimates are to be believedCamera 4/5, have trouble taking Low light images, and stabilization could be better. Incredible Xeon flash makes up for losses, can take 4k video!!!!Build quality 5/5, may vary. Huge phone for some, I have big hands so phablets feel natural in my hands. For contract, I can one hand carry and operate the Nvidia Shield K1 so this is very comfortable. Phone has a nice chromium plastique finish on the edges, and feels and looks premium where it needs to. Antenna band is never ever obstructive.Display 4/5, but personally I think 1440p (or otherwise called qHD) does not belong on any screen under 10 inches. (I have a 1080p laptop, and it never disappoints me with a 17.3 inch display.) Color does diminish greatly on lowest brightness but that's for optimizing the display more than anything. Only noticable on low light images.Overall: 5/5 just can't say any of it's shortcomings are going to detract. The battery life excellence and performance compromises for that are nothing short of incredible. I feel like this phone will last me and will last upon me for the coming 3 years.
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Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
Happy with purchase
Reviewed in Canada on November 20, 2019Style: Phone OnlyVerified Purchase
Cameron McNab
Months in and going strong
Reviewed in Canada on September 27, 2018Style: Phone OnlyVerified Purchase
