Moto Z Play review

The longer-lasting modular phone with a headphone jack

Moto Z Play review
Moto Z Play review

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Moto Z Play review

Bright, sunny days make the Moto Z Play appear sharp and full of bright colors. You're not going to get as much detail as a flagship phone, including the Moto Z (better) and Moto Z Force (best), but in these conditions, the differences are minimal to the untrained eye.

Moto Z Play review

Digital zoom doesn't provides the best photo of the castle (seen in the distance in the very first photo above). That's where the Hasselblad MotoMod comes in handy.

Moto Z Play review

The 10x zoom on the Hasselblad TrueZoom attachment takes a much clearer photo from a long distance. It's still a little washed out, but the right amount of detail is here.

Moto Z Play

However, turn down the lights and you'll notice a bunch of noise. There are cameras that handle common taken restaurant much better than this, you'll have to spend more money than you would on the Moto Z Play.

Moto Z Play

Obligatory food photo. It gets the colors right, but the detail leaves a lot to be desired in this shot. Even with close up subjects, photos can look really good, but not great.

Moto Z Play

Outdoors at night and in awkward light, the camera doesn't keep up with the right color toning. It's a tough shot, to be sure. But the Moto Z and Moto Z Force, not to mention the iPhone 6S Plus and Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge, handled this one better.

Moto Z Play

Details here appear to be on point, but the colors come out a little duller than that do on other phones.

Moto Z Play

Again, it bright conditions, the Moto Z Play camera works just fine. It's more than acceptable in sunlight, good enough in artificial light and grainy in low-light conditions.

Matt Swider