Moto Z2 Play: Shiny and slim, but should you buy it?

The isn’t a step down version of a flagship (or at least isn’t launched in such a way) like the Moto Z Play was. So a lot of attention has been put to the mid-range phone this time. The phone comes with a 5.5 inch display in a metal unibody design, like most other phones. But it packs a new camera, and the design is much more refined.

Thinning the chassis down to 6mm, the new Moto phone weighs 145g, much lighter and slimmer than the original Z Play. It also has rounded edges for a more ergonomic and friendly feel in the hands. But the camera bump is now more pronounced and the phone can’t be kept flat on a table.

But in a way, the phone is not build as sturdy as the old Z Play. Some may think that the Z2 Play has got a better overall design, which also might be true to an extent. But the Z Play was, and will remain a sturdier phone with much more solid feel in the hands. Moreover, it also packed a heftier battery, which sadly on Z2 Play is reduced to 3000mAh from 3510mAh.

The fingerprint sensor at the front takes an elongated shape like the G5 which makes much more sense now. The square fingerprint button, was the worst thing about the Z Play’s design. It still isn’t a button, as you would be using on-screen keys for navigation, but a much better thing to see and use.

The display on Moto Z2 Play looks improved as well. Though specs-wise, it is the same 5.5inch AMOLED display with Full HD resolution and a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 on top. But it surely looks brighter and much more vivid when you keep the older version beside it. In fact, the screen on Z2 Play is a delight and the first thing to impress you when you pick up the phone. The build and weight, not much, but the display is fabulous.

Under the hood, the phone packs a Snapdragon 626 chipset, which is decent. In fact, it is more than enough when paired with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. It is not a powerhouse of course, like the OnePlus 3T, but will handle majority of your phone’s payload quite easily, be it extensive browsing, gaming or media playback.

A bigger advantage is the phone’s clean stock Android Nougat 7.1.1 interface. It’s fast and works like a charm on the Moto Z2 Play. You get the Pixel launched for the app drawer, some Moto specific gestures like launching flashlight with shake and swiping on fingerprint sensor to switch between apps. Gaming is not a problem with the phone and in fact the phone doesn’t heat up while you use the camera or multi-task. As with any Nougat phone, it supports multi-window, reply on popup notifications to messages among others.

Coming to the camera department, the Z2 Play doesn’t have a dual camera setup. But it does get the best camera Moto has in its kitty. It is a 13MP sensor with an f/1.7 aperture on lens, which by the way is very wide, and laser autofocus. There is no optical image stabilization which is obviously a loss. But shutter is quite snappy, even in HDR mode.

The front flash is still there alongside the front camera and the sensor is also probably the same at 5MP. But the lens has a wider f/2.0 aperture. Specs aside, it’s a nice camera with better low light capability than before and very much comparable to the Apple’s iPhone 6S.

Though both cameras capture good color and considerable amount of details, it is the display that works wonders here. The images appear crisp, bright and colorful when viewed on the phone.

At 27,999 there may not be many phones to beat the Moto Z2 Play. There is the Galaxy C7 Pro that has the same chipset and is surely built more solid but its rear cameras aren’t as good and you would also miss out on the smooth stock experience. With OnePlus expected to move to a higher with its next flagship, the OnePlus 5, the under 30k space would remain vacant. And the Moto Z2 Play only fill it too well.

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