Motorola Moto Z3 hands-on review

03 August 2018
We've been waiting for the flagship model ever since the Moto Z3 Play was announced. Well, the wait is now over and the Moto Z3 is here. Announced last night as a Verizon exclusive, for the time being, the Moto Z3 doesn't bear the Force moniker and there are no claims of shatterproof glass. Moto has instead opted for a more conventional Gorilla Glass 3. The compatibility to the MotoMods as we know them is still in place, and as it turned out, they even have a brand new 5G Moto Mod in the works.

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  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • 2Au
  • 04 Aug 2018

Geric.770, 04 Aug 2018Nope. Not really. Just only asking why Motorola stepped ba... moreI dont care about the SOC, i been using flagship devices for the last 4 years and I cant even tell the difference of the SD 801 TO SD 835. They are fast enough and can do everything I want. The only noticeable is the heating issues of the phones chip set.

    Anonymous, 04 Aug 2018The question is, can you you feel the difference between th... moreThis is a highly competitive market. Maybe right now the differences are subtle but this is the flagship market and customers are more discerning.

      Anonymous, 04 Aug 2018The question is, can you you feel the difference between th... moreNope. Not really.
      Just only asking why Motorola stepped back the SoC game like LG.
      Sometimes, I don't even bother those Geekbench numbers too since it doesn't give a huge impact in real world usage.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • 2Au
        • 04 Aug 2018

        Geric.770, 04 Aug 2018I don't really bother about the last year's SoC, but yeah. ... moreThe question is, can you you feel the difference between the SD 835 and 845? Without using nonsense Gickbench?

          I don't really bother about the last year's SoC, but yeah. It's a flagship for this year still running SD835. Same goes from LG's G6 running SD821.
          Wew.

          How's your company running, Lienovo?

            These kind of specs are usually seen on LG phones, but...

              • a
              • akala
              • Sj@
              • 04 Aug 2018

              I don't expect good things from that camera. Look at the flowers picture, isn't that shutter speed quite low there? it had be much higher i think.

                LG Superfan, 04 Aug 2018Why SD835?They pulled an LG

                  • D
                  • AnonD-632062
                  • 3Yf
                  • 04 Aug 2018

                  The sad demise of a historical & once great company....

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                    • Can't post name
                    • n1V
                    • 04 Aug 2018

                    stanley77, 04 Aug 2018motorola they decided do the same step like nokia this year... moreI only hope they sill release at some point next year a Force edition. I like having the peace of mind that I can use it without a cover on and it won't shatter.

                      Can't post name, 03 Aug 2018No Force Edition this year, confirmed to me today by a frie... moremotorola they decided do the same step like nokia this year they didnt announced any flagship for 2018 year, only renewed look of already old fashioned last year flagships.. in case of nokia its nokia 8 2017 vs nokia 8 sirrocco 2018 ,same like motorola moto Z2 force 2017 vs. motorola moto Z3 2018 ,same processors ,almost same equipment but only modern 18:9 different look cover..

                        big shame and disapointing for motorola/lenovo and nokia for this year they dont have any competitive /compareable flagship phone in this class like samsung S9+/xiaomi Mi8/Oneplus 6/HTC U12+/LG G7/V35+, sony xperia XZ2/XZ2 premium, asus zenfone 5Z or huawei P20/P20 pro or honor 10 /note/ (V10) , Oppo find X, Vivo Nex S, and i could continue.. but nokia and motorola -simply nothing.. flagship for 2018 year missing ,also Meizu or ZTE-only renders promises and fairytale articles about new powerful modern flagships ,but in reality-also nothing..

                          As per usual, no 3.5mm jack, no buy. But the reason I think this has a Snapdragon 835 is because there may be some type of Z3 Plus which may contain the 845. That, or this chipset was the only one available during development and compatible with that whole 5G connection. Though this is all speculation from a mind who's just spouting nonsense, at this point.

                            Why SD835?

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • pQr
                              • 03 Aug 2018

                              "this could either be considered an improvement or not so much, compared to the cheaper Moto Z3 Play and its brighter f/1.7 main camera. No doubt, having a secondary black and white unit is potentially more functional than a simple 5MP depth sensor, but the jury is still out on whether the extra data from the black and white camera can make up for the f/2.0 main one." That's not the only difference, the sensor is also ≈ 22% smaller which leads to additional 22% less light.

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                                • Can't post name
                                • 3bG
                                • 03 Aug 2018

                                Love the Community, 03 Aug 2018The Z Force series is the flagship. Z3 Force will get the S... moreNo Force Edition this year, confirmed to me today by a friend that works at Motorola after what Motorola tweeted. They will work on midrange phones this year. Maybe they will launch the Z4 Force early next year with Snapdragon 855.

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                                  • Aloof
                                  • tZj
                                  • 03 Aug 2018

                                  WOuld appreciate if they had gone with 2nd gen back designs, the 3rd gen Moto Z Play design isn't too appealing.

                                    • L
                                    • Love the Community
                                    • Fv4
                                    • 03 Aug 2018

                                    paco2x, 03 Aug 2018What a letdown really, it supposed to be a flagship device.The Z Force series is the flagship. Z3 Force will get the SD845 as it should be.

                                      What a letdown really, it supposed to be a flagship device.

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                                        • MigratingCompetition
                                        • 9xu
                                        • 03 Aug 2018

                                        Disappointed. One innovation (5G) presented and it is not working. No improvement in RAM or internal storage. Nor the use of the last processor. Just more of it. Really VERY dissapointed.

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