News: Moto's New Phones Are Fast Charging, Shatterproof, & Modular—But Are Missing One Big Thing

Moto's New Phones Are Fast Charging, Shatterproof, & Modular—But Are Missing One Big Thing

Lenovo unveiled the latest Motorola smartphones, Moto Z and Moto Z Force, today at Tech World '16. As expected, both models include strong magnets on the back that allow users to snap on various Moto Mods attachments such as a battery pack, projector, or JBL speakers.

Apart from the Mods, the biggest revelation about the new phones is one that wasn't mentioned during the keynote address—neither the Moto Z nor the Moto Z Force will include a 3.5 mm headphone jack. While some of the Moto Mods will likely include a headphone jack, Lenovo is also shipping the phones with a 3.5 mm-to-USB C adapter so that you will be able to use an old pair of headphones right out of the box.

Image via Motorola

Lenovo said the new phones will be able to last up to 30 hours on a full charge, but you'll also be able to charge the phones up extremely fast should the need arise. Using Turbo Charge technology, you can charge the Moto Z Force's 3,500 mAh battery from 0 to 50% in just 15 minutes, giving you 15 hours of battery life. The standard Moto Z's battery is only 2,600 mAh, and a 15-minute charge will give you 8 hours of life.

The Moto Z Force also has a five-layer ShatterShield display, which is guaranteed not to crack or shatter. The phone includes a four-year warranty on the screen from the date of purchase, so you should be covered in the event that it does crack or shatter (the warranty doesn't cover minor nicks and scratches though).

Image via Motorola

Other than the batteries and the ShatterShield display on the Moto Z Force, both smartphones are pretty similar. Each has a 5.5 inch Quad HD AMOLED display and run on Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 with 4 GB RAM. You can get either model with 32 GB or 64 GB on-device storage, with microSD storage expandable up to 2 TB.

Moto Z Force is a little bulkier, measuring 6.99 mm wide to the Moto Z's 5.19 mm, but both handsets are still quite thin. The Force also packs a higher megapixel rear camera at 21 MP compared to Moto Z's 13 MP shooter. The Moto Z Force's camera also features Phase Detection Autofocus.

Image via Motorola

Both phones are set to be released this summer as Verizon exclusives (yuck), but you'll be able to get an unlocked version once they're released this fall.

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Cover image via Motorola

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