Gadgetory

every year we seem to run into one phone which is just a bit more controversial than all the rest this year would seem motorola has inherited that honor the comments on our z2 force videos have been pretty divisive at the phone that makes us question what we should expect from a flagship is this a system you should invest in here's our review of the Moto z2 force starting off with design holding the z2 is still impressive it's a shockingly thin gadget and there is a fun wow factor at play when you hand it off to other people the brushed rear panel nicely updated over last year's phone but motos current design language feels incomplete function complements form the pins on the rear encourage some kind of add-on but no style mod is included in the box the advertised Elan moto cyant is a rebate for a projector mod which is not exactly the kind of hardware we imagined people using as their daily driver instead a style mod is going to cost an additional twenty dollars if you want to hide those pogo pins a slap on back just doesn't quite have the same charm as the customized phones of Motorola's past the internals have also raised a fair bit of discussion chipset RAM in storage are all par for the flagship course but there have been some concerns over battery capacity which we'll discuss later in this review the force auto lacking rated water resistance durability has become a more important talking point for consumers the trade-off is the shatter shield screen a flexible plastic instead of a brittle glass the z2 should do a terrific job of surviving drops which would crack other displays what plastic is not good for though is surviving daily lifestyle abuse only a week of moderate activity our review unit already showing fine scratches and Nick's on the front face you're always conscious of how you handle this phone it's not really a big deal for other devices anymore if they end up in a pocket with keys every now and then for the z2 force though that could be a really bad day the AMOLED panel behind that plastic is vibrant contrast II and respectively viewable in direct Sun many folks in our audience will no doubt be happy to see that you can tone down the candy color saturation that and I do want to send a personal thanks to the folks in our comments who helped point me in the right direction for the fingerprint sensor controls I'm not a fan of Moto's out-of-the-box implementation only acting as a second power button below on-screen controls I'm too programmed to use hardware like this as a home button so switching to a multi-function setup eased some of the muscle confusion from using other phones where several Hardware points might generate debate moto software remains terrific subtle enhancements to a largely stock build of Android this is becoming our preferred method for using a smartphone moto has been on this track for several years and it shows with a wonderfully refined clean pixel like user interface nearly all software augmentation can be found through this moto app or they're activated by a moto mod this is beautifully tidy significantly reducing the look of manufacturer app bloat though I wish that these options could also be found in the main settings list users forced to remember a specific setting is in a different location that attention this streamlining software delivers liquidly smooth performance the force really is a joy to use and daily interactions are accomplished fantastically fast alongside phones like the oneplus 5 are you eleven there's very little which can slow this puppy down and it's one of the stronger performers for the games we use to benchmark the phone's audio however is something of a mixed bag and we have a full separate review of the speaker and headphone performance for a closer look the z2 force delivers one of the better mono speakers we've heard thanks to pointing that speaker directly at your face unfortunately this dongle for headphone output is disappointing not just for being inconvenient as a proprietary solution but also producing mediocre audio quality it's a shame moto couldn't deliver some nicer earbuds or a high-quality DAC moto mod as an accessory what's impressive for the z2 force camera is how moto packs in a dual sensor shooter the same housing is previous zphones there's no zoom gimmick here these two sensors work in tandem on every photo you take one color sensor one black and white it's not as nicely refined as Huawei's partnership with Leica but it does serve to improve contrast and clarity we've also published our real camera you for this phone for folks you really want to see what the system is capable of on the whole it's a competent camera with excellent exposure but prone to subtly over saturating shots especially warmer colors software stabilization smooths out video well until we get to lower light conditions the phone can make some interesting choices with your framerate at night of course the signature feature for several phone cameras this year artificial background blur this is a first generation feature for Motorola and it unfortunately shows the only issue we had with a poor UI performance depth of field mode turns your camera viewfinder into a choppy slideshow emoto's app for editing however it's a lot of fun to use giving you control not only over the blur effect but the ability to easily create black-and-white and color pop images based on that depth information the slim frame delivers concerns for runtime this is a smaller battery capacity than we're used to for a product in this price range but it's a distinctly moto lenovo aesthetic to deliver we all remember the razor right well actually both razors now that I think about it this company loves thin and there's an idea that people who need extended power options can shop specific solutions for themselves you can't make a phone thinner after you manufacture it I was pleasantly surprised how well does e2 Force handled our short media bench reinforcing the idea that this phone on its own can be a solution for consumers who value brief interactions with their tech but even on a light day I was running on fumes after dinner we were hoping to see speedier recharging thanks to the smaller capacity but top off numbers were simply good we've seen phones with bigger batteries recharged a larger percentage of that bigger battery in the same amount of time lastly the crown jewel feature of the Moto Z line is the ability to slap on moto mods this is the best implementation of modular phone hardware available to consumers we did not get a comprehensive batch of mods - review this year but one of the newer mods including a 360 degree camera is a compelling look at where this hardware could go still we faced some difficulty in addressing whether this system delivers a significant benefit over Bluetooth and USB peripherals you're buying into a phone much like you would invest in a nice camera ecosystem there is a tangible consumer peace of mind knowing that you're buying an accessory with the best possible compatibility for your phone whether that's enough to justify additional costs is a question only individual customers can answer so let's wrap this up where's that leave us with the Moto z2 force I keep coming back to the word incomplete out of the box we've got a shockingly thin frame but exposed tech guts and a battery many in our audience will feel is inadequate we've got a shatter resistant display that could really benefit from a piece of glass stuck on top we've praised several phones this year for including a complete experience in the box by contrast this moto feels like a platform to encourage value add on accessory purchases still I can't write this device off there's definitely an audience for what the z2 force offers the user experience is simply phenomenal and even without a style mod this is a brand which still resonates as hardware for grownups and professionals with the popularity of the Moto G for example this could be a great upgrade path for people seeking familiarity while migrating to a more premium tier those individuals will certainly want to invest in a screen protector though as always thanks so much for watching be sure to subscribe to this channel for more reviews like these and help us out with the share on your favorite social networks for pocket now I'm on Carlos bag now some gadget guy on Twitter and Instagram and I will catch you all on the next review