MOTOROLA 5G-UPGRADABLE MOTO Z4

The 19:9 OLED screen goes almost right up to the bezel (with a teardrop notch) measuring 6.4 inches Motorola

Motorola has launched the mid-priced 5G-upgradable moto z4 this week, the successor to last year's moto z3. With a 48-megapixel camera, night shooting mode, 2-day mobile life, and a few other comfortable advancements, the z3 is remarkable for the price; nonetheless,

This comes at the expenditure of CPU grunt. At first glance, the moto z4 seems to suffer slightly from an identity crisis. It's a kind of 5G phone with a kind of 48-megapixel camera, and while it's definitely a step-up from the moto z3, the processor is very much a step-down.

Though some might find the offering a tad wishy-washy, that would be an underestimation. There are very few 5G-ready phones around, and even fewer at this price-point and Motorola's clip-on moto mods give the phone some useful flexibility. More on those later.

The 5G moto mod clips onto the back of the moto z4 (and also compatible with the z3)

So, first to the 5G aspect. It's not a 5G-phone per se, it's a 5G-upgradeable phone. This is made possible with the optional 5G moto mod (with a built-in 2,000-mAh battery) which retails for US$349.99.

This quickly pushes the moto z4 out of the mid-priced smartphone category, but Verizon is currently offering the mod at only $50 with certain plans.

It would seem Verizon and Motorola are keen to get as many folks onto 5G as possible. Next on the list is the camera.

Yes, it's a 48-megapixel camera (the front camera sports an equally impressive 25-megapixel sensor) but this doesn't mean you get 48-megapixel photos.

Motorola's Quad-Pixel method combines four pixels into one larger pixel, which it claims results in far less noise in your photos – since it has four times the light sensitivity – spitting out the final image at a still respectable 12 MP.

This extra sensitivity is behind the z4's dedicated Night-Mode and going by the images on the moto z4 landing site (an example can be seen below), it does the job admirably, no doubt aided by the optical image stabilization.

Artificial Intelligence has been added to the camera functions too, with an option to shoot as soon as people smile, a Smart Composition mode which frames your snaps better, a portrait lighting mode and a quirky Spot Color mode.

Choose the color you want to keep, and everything else becomes greyscale.

Z4's dedicated Night-Mode feature: Motorola

Physically, the moto z4 isn't too dissimilar from its predecessor. While the z4 is almost the same size (perhaps a millimeter wider and taller), the 19:9 OLED screen goes almost right up to the bezel (with a teardrop notch) measuring 6.4 inches compared to the 6.01 inches of the z3.

Motorola has also wisely ditched the side-mounted fingerprint sensor and integrated it into the display instead. Oh, and in a move which will be music to the ears of many, the headphone jack is back.

The current range is wonderfully diverse, from battery-packs to JBL speakers, a game-pad and a projector. Even a camera add-on from Hasselblad. The biggest problem is where to put them when you're not using them.

Internally, the z4 boasts a 3,600-mAh battery (for which Motorola claims 48 hours per charge usage), 4 GB of RAM, 128 GB of storage, an SD-card slot (for up to 2 TB of storage) and a Snapdragon 675 processor running Android 9 Pie.

Now, this 600-series processor has caused a fair bit of chatter online. Yes, it's a step down from the 800-series processor in the moto z3, but this means Motorola can offer the z4 at an attractive price-point while giving the phone its impressive battery life in the bargain. You lose some but you get some.

The 360-degree camera moto mod- which is free just now with the moto z4

Motorola is selling the unlocked z4 for $499.99 in a bundle that includes the 360-degree camera moto mod ($199.99 RRP) for free.

This deal will also be available at Best Buy, B& H Photo and on Amazon. As of yesterday, Verizon began offering the moto z4 in Flash Gray for $499.99, with a Frost White version expected later this summer.

For those hoping for a Force version (shatterproof), the company has stated on twitter that – for this year at least – there'll be no other moto z variants.

Source: Motorola US

LINK OF MOTO Z4 AD:[ https://youtu.be/n8j04xLMP_E]