Motorola Moto X4 hands-on review: First impressions

Introduction

The Moto X had a reputation of being one of the best Androids you can buy. This beloved line has been resurrected - not as a flagship, but as a premium mid-ranger. Its claim to fame is a dual camera (with a wide-angle lens) and highly advanced audio features. Sound familiar?

The Moto X4 is one of the few non-LG phones to feature a wide-angle lens on its dual camera setup. Specifically, the wide-angle cam has an 8MP sensor, which complements the 12MP sensor of the main camera. The selfie cam doesn't fail to impress either, with a 16MP sensor and a dedicated LED flash.

How many headsets or speakers can a phone connect to over Bluetooth? The answer is 4 - if you get the X4, that is. They each have individual controls for volume and you can even toggle channels (left/right) on and off! In short, this phone is a party in your pocket.

The Moto X4 is not a large phone, but the original Moto X was smaller than the mainstream phones of the day as well. Anyway, the 5.2" screen can still be considered "average-sized" and it's a 1080p panel. Sharp enough and it won't strain the GPU of the Snapdragon 630 too much.

Moto X4 at a glance:

• Body: Aluminum and Gorilla Glass; IP68 waterproof
• Display: 5.2" IPS, 1080p (424ppi)
• Platform: Snapdragon 630 chipset; 8x Cortex-A53 at 2.2GHz; Adreno 508
• Memory: 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage -or- 3GB of RAM and 32GB storage; microSD slot
• OS: Android 7.1 Nougat
• Camera: Dual 12MP (main) + 8MP (wide-angle); phase-detection AF, dual-LED flash; 2160p video
• Selfie camera: 16MP, LED flash
• Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0, can send audio to up to 4 speakers simultaneously; dual-SIM, LTE, Wi-Fi ac, FM radio; USB-C
• Battery: 3,000mAh (sealed); fast charging
• Misc: Amazon Alexa, fingerprint reader; no MotoMod support
• Price: €400 (for Europe)

The company is planning to sell the Moto X4 at a price of £400 - less than most flagships, though not by much. And if you can put the chipset out of your mind for a second, you'll find that there's not much missing from the X4 spec sheet.

The phone boasts a premium design with an aluminum frame and Gorilla Glass panes. The body is waterproof as well with an IP68 rating.

But circling back to what makes the X4 special, the camera can record 2160p and 1080p/60 video. The 12MP sensor has fairly large 1.4µm pixels to boot. And this Bluetooth magic sounds impressive, though its practical value is yet to be seen.

So, perk up your ears and join us in finding out if the Moto X4 will sink or swim.