Motorola ThinkPhone review

Alternatives

The Motorola ThinkPhone is primarily a business-to-business product that's meant for the enterprise crowd. Hence all of the advanced additional security and remote/fleet management features included onboard. Pricing typically works a bit differently on enterprise products too. Usually, these get bought in bulk with additional services and support plans.

All that being said, Motorola did kind of release the ThinkPhone to the general public in a limited fashion. If you really want one as an end user, it can be found in certain stores retailing at an MSRP of EUR 1000. As such, the ThinkPhone is not cheap in any context.

That budget is almost enough to get you something like Samsung's Galaxy S23+. Some highlights of the S23+ include excellent build quality with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and an IP68 rating, stereo speakers, an excellent Dynamic AMOLED 120Hz display, the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy chipset, a potent triple camera setup, very similar to the one on the Xiaomi 13 and a large 4,700 mAh battery. Of course, all of this is topped by the company's signature One UI experience.

Samsung Galaxy S23+ • OnePlus 11 • Google Pixel 7 Pro • Xiaomi 13

The OnePlus 11 is also another easy recommendation. You are getting a phone with a 6.7-inch excellent LTPO3 Fluid AMOLED, 120Hz display, but the extra size does also come with a bigger 5,000 mAh battery with 100W wired charging. Other highlights of the phone include an IP64 rating - not quite IP68, but still good, stereo speakers, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset and a very potent triple camera setup.

EUR 1000 is plenty of budget to get yourself a Google Pixel 7 Pro and even have plenty left over for some other gadgets or accessories. Google's flagship has a downright competitive price tag these days and is not shabby at all in terms of specs. You get a sturdy phone with an IP68 rating, stereo speakers, a 5,000 mAh battery (though not necessarily great battery life) and a 6.7-inch LTPO, 120Hz AMOLED display. Google is second to none in computational photography and makes great use of the triple camera setup on the Pixel 7 Pro. All of this is tied together by a clean AOSP software experience.

The Xiaomi 13 is also a viable candidate. With a 6.36-inch, 120Hz AMOLED display, it is a bit smaller than the ThinkPhone, but other than that, it offers a distinctly 2022 flagship experience. This includes Qualcomm's latest and greatest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset, IP68 ingress protection, stereo speakers, a 4,500 mAh battery with fast charging and a versatile LEICA-branded camera setup including a 10MP telephoto camera.

Our verdict

It is pretty hard to properly describe the ThinkPhone in all of its nuances. One thing is certain, it is not your run-of-the-mill smartphone, but a unique and very particular product, both in its essence and intent. Although you can technically buy one as an end user, the ThinkPhone is, first and foremost, a business-to-business enterprise product. Corporate criteria, requirements, contracts and services work a bit differently than what we are used to on the open market. Hence, judging the actual value of the ThinkPhone and its pricing competitiveness is a tough task.

There is definitely a lot to love about the ThinkPhone, starting with its exceptional build, which includes aluminum, aramid fiber and Gorilla Glass Victus. Together earning the phone an IP68 and MIL-STD-810H rating. Though highly subjective, the ThinkPhone looks gorgeous in our book as well. Its overall design is iconic and exudes plenty of high-level corporate charm.

The ThinkPhone also offers an excellent all-around display with great performance and dynamic and cohesive high refresh rate handling. Also, great battery life and decently fast charging. However, the real cherry on top of it all has to be the clean Android OS imbued with plenty of additional features like the "ready for" platform, courtesy of Motorola and some advanced security, onboarding and remote management features. The kind of stuff that will make the corporate IT department happy.

The ThinkPhone is far from perfect, though. Its camera setup, in particular, left us wanting. Same for the stereo speaker setup. At EUR 1000, we frankly find it hard to justify the ThinkPhone as an end-user purchase on the current open market. It just falls short in a few important areas. That being said, if you end up with one through your work or are looking to purchase a fleet of devices for your business, the ThinkPhone might be a viable option under the right circumstances.

Pros

• Premium build, IP68, MIL-STD-810H, Gorilla Glass Victus, aramid fibre and iconic look.
• Bright, extra fluid 144Hz display, straightforward and dynamic HRR handling.
• Great battery life.
• Fast charging with standard USB Power Delivery peripherals.
• Clean Android 12 interface, additional Moto custom bits, 'ready for' PC-like capability, advanced security and remote/fleet management software.

Cons

• Main camera performance is lackluster - both in photos and videos.
• No telephoto camera.
• Stereo speakers are mediocre.