Moto Z2 Force review

The force is definitely within this phone

Moto Z2 Force

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 What I don't like... 

Really the only thing I don't like about this phone is actually holding and using it. I'm too accustomed to 18:9 displays now, and that form factor is much better. The Moto Z2 Force is wide, looks dated and feels unwieldy. Sure, I don't have to worry about dropping it, but the ergonomics are off here.

My finger doesn't reach the other end of the screen, so I'm almost always using this with both hands. You tend to get used to a phone's form factor over time, but after a week with this phone, I'm certainly not used to it.

Even so, the phone is impressively light. So much so that I don't mind carrying it in my pocket even when the mod is strapped to its back.

 Free mod! 

Cutting margins wasn't enough for Motorola. The company even threw in a TurboPower battery charging mod with this phone. The promotion has been running in the US for a while and will run in India as well. That means the Moto Z2 Force effectively has a near 6000 mAh battery. And it easily lasts a full 24 hours. 

In fact, over the weekend, when my phone is comparatively underused, it lasted for two days without any charging at all. All you need to do is ensure that the battery mod is always charged.

To that end, it's worth noting that the mod can't actually charge the battery from zero to 100%. But it's still enough to have the phone last the whole day. Both, the phone and the battery, charge using Motorola's Turbo charger, taking under an hour to charge completely.

Camera

The two 12MP cameras on the Moto Z2 Force use the monochrome and RGB combination. In well-lit conditions, the camera takes some excellent photos. Where as it stutters is low light shots, producing quite a bit of noise and losing details.

When shooting in outdoor conditions, daylight and natural light, the Moto Z2 Force is quite dependable. It produces vibrant colours, though sharpness levels are somewhat low. You will see undersaturated colours often and lots of noise.

The major problem with this camera is how slow it is. There's a noticeable shutter lag, which increases in low light situations. It also leads to a lot of blurry photos, which is a problem.

This is the one dark mark on a camera that would otherwise have been great. The Moto Z2 force has a great camera, but it could have been so much more.

Verdict

The Moto Z2 Force is a legitimate contender against the OnePlus 5T, but the company still has work to do. It is indeed a good phone to buy, especially given that it's almost impossible to destroy. 

If you don't want the OnePlus 5T, this is certainly an alternative you should be looking at.

Prasid Banerjee
Prasid Banerjee is the Editor-In-Chief at TechRadar India. Like all of us here, he is fascinated by technology and he yearns to simplify it for the masses. He was Assistant Editor at Digit and has worked for publications like Electronics for You and Hindustan Times.