Lenovo has just announced the new modular Moto Z and Moto Z Force smartphones with swappable MotoMods, available later this fall, and would come to Verizon first as Droid Editions.
Both the Moto Z and Moto Z Force have a 5.5-inch Quad-HD 2560x1440 pixels AMOLED display but the latter has a shatter-proof display. Both run on the Snapdragon 820 quad-core processor with 4GB RAM, 32GB/64GB onboard storage which is expandable with a microSD card and all of this is taken care off with Android Marshmallow. You have an aluminium and stainless steel construction on the phones which means the battery is non-removable.
You also have a fingerprint sensor in the front on both the Moto Z smartphones and the design is what is different about these phones apart from the modularity. The normal Moto Z is just 5.2mm in thickness and therefore packs a paltry 2600 mAh battery which does seem a bit less given the quad-HD panel and the 13MP rear camera (with laser autofocus) protrudes a bit. But you can increase the battery life with slim battery MotoMod which also hides the camera hump.
The "thicker" Moto Z Force apart from having a ShatterShield display also gets a massive 3500 mAh battery and a 21MP rear camera all tucked in a 7mm thin body. You have Optical Image Stabilization on both phones for the rear camera, and if you were wondering both have a 5MP front-facing camera. Although there is no IP-rated water resistance, but both have water repellant coating to protect from light splashes. Another thing to note here is that both of them don't have a 3.5mm headphone jack and instead audio will be routed through the USB Type-C port. Lenovo will pack a USB Type-C to 3.5mm audio jack convertor within the box.
But the most interesting thing about the Moto Z smartphones are the 16 pins at the back which enable MotoMods. These modular accessories simply snap in place on your phone with magnets and augment the functionality of your phone. Among the ones demoed at the Lenovo Tech World, were a JBL SoundBoost MotoMod which is equivalent to a Bluetooth speaker but its attached to your phone and has its own power to run 10 hours on a single charge.
Then you have several stylish battery MotoMods to increase battery-life on your phone, similar to cases we have seen earlier but Snapping them on is a much easier process. Next up was a Projector MotoMod which converted your Moto Z into a 70-inch projector. The normal Moto Z with its 2600 mAh battery would last about 2.5 hours on a single charge with the Projector Moto Mod while the Moto Z Force about 4 hours. Neat stuff!
Now, the MotoMods are more accessories than modules for the Moto Z. Instead of augmenting what's already on your phone they offer additional functionality. Curiously, we had heard of a Camera MotoMod with Optical Zoom, which wasn't showcased at the event.
At present there is no word on the pricing of the Moto Z or the Moto Z Force, but they will be exclusive to Verizon in the US when they launch later this year. Moto Z will be available globally in September while the Moto Z Force will not be available outside US for now.
