Best Motorola phones (December 2019) - Android

Lenovo-owned Motorola covers all the bases with its smartphone lineup, giving consumers choices at every price point. Whether you’re looking for a high-end, mid-range, or an entry-level device, Motorola has you covered.

Here’s our list of the best Motorola phones you can get right now.

Best Motorola phones:

Editor’s note: We will update our list of the best Motorola phones as new devices launch.

1. Motorola Moto Z3 — High-end

For whatever reason, Motorola doesn’t currently offer a smartphone with the Snapdragon 845 or Snapdragon 855. Instead, the company’s most recent phone with flagship-level internals is 2018’s Moto Z3 with the aging Snapdragon 835.

Even with a two-year-old processor, the Moto Z3 still churns out good performance. There’s also a dual camera system, side-mounted fingerprint scanner, and support for Motorola’s snap-on Moto Mod accessories. That means you can attach everything from a battery pack to a projector to the back of the Moto Z3.

Also read: Motorola Moto Z3 review: Is the promise of 5G enough?

Also, the Moto Z3 supports Verizon’s 5G network through the 5G Moto Mod. The accessory provides a good bit of future-proofing, though the $349.99 price tag will scare away most people. Speaking of price, the Moto Z3 is available for $480. Alternatively, you can pay $20 per month over 24 months.

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Motorola Moto Z3 specs:

2. Motorola Moto Z4 — Mid-range

The Motorola Moto Z4 is the newest Z-series smartphone, but Motorola curiously equipped the phone with mid-range specs. In this case, we have the Snapdragon 675, 4GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, and a 48MP camera. Wait, what?

Yes, that’s right — the Moto Z4 is one of those mid-range smartphones with flagship aspirations. There’s an aluminum frame sandwiched between two glass panels, a sharp 6.4-inch AMOLED display, and an in-display fingerprint scanner. There’s even a headphone jack, something most flagship smartphones live without.

Also read: Motorola Moto Z4 review: Are Mods still worth buying into?

The main rub is Moto Mod support. The rear magnets are here and accounted for, but Mods aren’t as secure on the Moto Z4 as they do on other Moto Z smartphones. As a result, our Eric Zeman found the Moto Z4 a bit uncomfortable to use when also using a Moto Mod.

You can buy the Moto Z4 with the Moto 360 camera Mod for $489.99.

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Motorola Moto Z4 specs:

3. Motorola One Zoom — Mid-range

In some ways, the Motorola One Zoom is the company’s true affordable flagship. The smartphone comes with a quad camera system, a satin finish for the rear glass panel, a FHD+ OLED display, and a huge 4,000mAh battery with fast charging support. There’s also a headphone jack and an in-display fingerprint scanner.

However, the One Zoom leaves us with a few questions. The One Zoom features the same Snapdragon 675 found in the Moto Z4, which left us wanting in the performance department. We’re hoping Motorola optimized the processor better for the newer phone, but we’ve yet to give it a proper look.

Also read: Motorola One Zoom boasts quad-camera array and is coming to the US

Also a question is the software. Even though the One Zoom is part of Motorola’s One series, the phone is not part of the Android One program. That means you’ll have to hope Motorola delivers timely updates to the One Zoom, something the company’s struggled with for years.

Otherwise, the One Zoom looks to be a solid mid-range smartphone. It’s available for $449.99.

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Motorola One Zoom specs:

4. Motorola Moto Z3 Play — Mid-range

It’s getting a bit long in the tooth, but the Motorola Moto Z3 Play is the most recent entry in the company’s Z Play series. It’s also the cheapest entry into the Moto Mod ecosystem, so long as you’re not looking at older Moto Z smartphones.

The Moto Z3 Play flirts with the high-end, thanks to its use of glass for the front and back. The phone’s flagship aspirations begin and end there, however, as the Snapdragon 636 keeps it firmly entrenched in mid-range territory.

Also read: Moto Z3 Play review: The value is still in the Moto Mods

Also featured are 4GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage, and a dual camera system. The 3,000mAh battery is on the small side, but the Moto Z3 Play includes a battery pack Moto Mod in the box.

The Moto Z3 Play is available for $269.99.

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Motorola Moto Z3 Play specs:

5. Motorola Moto G7 — Mid-range

If you’re looking for one of the best affordable Android smartphones available, look no further than the Motorola Moto G7. You can get more battery life with the Moto G7 Power or a lower price tag with the Moto G7 Play, but the Moto G7 is arguably the better buy.

The Moto G7 features a 6.2-inch IPS display, dual rear camera system, rear fingerprint scanner, USB-C, and a headphone jack. The 3,000mAh battery seems small on paper, but delivered great endurance in our review. Also impressive was the performance from the Snapdragon 632 and 4GB of RAM, along with the clean software.

Also read: Moto G7 and Moto G7 Power review: Still the best affordable Android phones money can buy

Motorola made some sacrifices to get the Moto G7 to its price tag, one of which is the exclusion of NFC. There’s also no waterproofing, though the same goes for most other Motorola smartphones. Otherwise, we have a hard time not recommending the Moto G7 to anyone looking for a good and affordable smartphone.

The Moto G7 normally costs $299.99, but is available for $249.99 for a limited time.

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Motorola Moto G7 specs:

6. Motorola Moto G8 Plus — Mid-range

The Motorola Moto G8 Plus is the latest in the long-running G series of mid-range smartphones from Motorola. It has the same basic design as the last phone family in the series, the Moto G7, but the Moto G8 Plus has some interesting additions, including to its camera setup.

The Moto G8 Plus features a 6.3-inch IPS display, three rear camera sensors, a rear fingerprint scanner, USB-C, and a headphone jack. The 4,000mAh battery inside the Moto G8 Plus is a big step up from the 3,000mAh battery on the G7, so this phone should last all day on a single charge. It also has 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 processor.

Even though the Moto G8 Plus has three rear cameras (48MP, 16MP and a 5MP depth sensor), our review of the phone shows that the actual pictures that are made with them are “lackluster”. The 16MP sensor is an “action camera” that takes video landscape clips while you hold your phone vertically. The phone has a 25MP front-facing camera, which is great for taking selfies. The phone does come with Android 9 Pie out of the box, instead of Android 10.

The Moto G8 Plus costs £239.99 in the UK. It’s also available in other parts of Europe, Australia, Mexico, and Latin America. At the moment, it’s not scheduled to be released i