Moto Z review

Moto Z battery life is where it falls short, and that slender size is to blame. It includes a 2,600 mAh battery capacity that just isn't enough for modern phones.

It got us through the day with mixed use, but not to the 30 hours that Motorola had claimed. It died after 24 hours in most cases. The 3,500mAh battery of the Moto Z Force, however, carried us through the day and beyond, meeting its 40-hour promise.

Backing this up, we ran our standard battery life test, which includes an HD video loop for 90 minutes. When the video expired, the phone was down to 77% from a full battery. Contrast that with the Moto Z Force, which dropped to 86% in the same amount of time.

All of a sudden the Motomods battery case accessories make convincing arguments. There's also reason to keep around the TurboCharger that's supplied with the Moto Z. It provides fast charging for the phone with a USB-C cable on the end.

We found that the Moto Z regained 27% of battery life in just 15 minutes and that it was up to 100% by the end of 74 minutes. The only issue is that Motorola's TurboCharger in the box is tethered to its power wall brick. It doesn't separate with a USB or USB-C connection that you can separate from the wall end.