Moto Z4 Announced...

[maxman1]

Seems a decent performer for the price. Thoughts?

 

[benjamminh]

I agree. It will likely be seriously discounted if you're on Verizon on Black Friday. Hopefully the Z4 Force actually exists and will be announced soon.

 

[Scott337]

Looks like another good Moto phone for under $500. People are already complaining about the chip. If a 670 is good enough for the Google Pixel 3a, why is a 675 not good enough for a Z4? And who needs more than 4GB of RAM in an Android. Android is not Windows, more RAM does not equal faster performance in Android. As soon as Verizon has them in stock, around the 13th, I want to see one in person and see if this new "lip" around the Moto Mods is OK with me. If so, I'm buying one as soon as Veriozn has them. I love my Z2 Force, it has been a truly great phone. But after seeing the near full screen on my wife's new Z3 I really like the full screen look & feel of the phone. I didn't think it would make a difference, but it really does when using her Z3 side by side to my Z2 Force.

As far as the Z4 Force ...I highly, highly doubt it. There was no Force model last year. I doubt they can put an in screen fingerprint scanner in Shattershield. And a Shattershield phone is much more expensive to manufacturer. So with their new "nice phone and you don't have to spend a grand..." campaign I doubt we will ever see Shattershield again. I have owned all three Shattershield phones and love it. But I think it's dead.

 

[benjamminh]

It would be a Force without shatter shield if it happened. $10 a month for new customers or a new line of service is a good deal otherwise I would wait. I'm also interested to see how the camera performs. Motorola is always a step or two behind when it comes to photo quality.

 

[Scott337]

The "Force" model indicates Shattershield

 

[Scott337]

When asked via Twitter if there were plans for a Moto Z4 Force at some point later this year, the Lenovo-owned company revealed that it “will not be announcing additional Moto Z devices this year.” As a result, there will be no Moto Z4 Force.


From Phone Arena: https://www.phonearena.com/news/Motorola-Moto-Z4-Force-no-release_id116475

 

[benjamminh]

A rose by any other name. It has in the past, yes. I could look at one right now if I wanted to do so.

The "Force" model indicates Shattershield

 

[benjamminh]

Thanks for sharing that. I had not seen that. That's unfortunate.

When asked via Twitter if there were plans for a Moto Z4 Force at some point later this year, the Lenovo-owned company revealed that it “will not be announcing additional Moto Z devices this year.” As a result, there will be no Moto Z4 Force.


From Phone Arena: https://www.phonearena.com/news/Motorola-Moto-Z4-Force-no-release_id116475

 

[maxman1]

I currently have a Z3, unlocked retail version on Verizon. I like a lot about the Z4 but probably not enough to "upgrade". I think if I had any older version I would definitely take the plunge. Now if Black Friday comes calling....?

 

[benjamminh]

It would be a downgrade in processor at least for raw power, but probably more efficient. I'm very interested to see how the camera performs given Moto phones generally struggle there.

 

[Scott337]

The chip may be a lessor number range but I would not call it a downgrade, and I also would not call it an upgrade. Just a new phone....with more screen real estate, more internal storage, newer camera and in screen fingerprint scanner

 

[benjamminh]

^All true. It's just sad that Moto had given up on having a true flagship phone, but it may be a good business decision.

 

[Scott337]

True. But if they can't sell in that area, why even bother? Apple has reported declining sales, Samsung reported less than expected sales last year, Google reported less than expected sales of the Pixel 3, etc. I think consumers have spoken....they (me included) don't want phones pushing $1000 and above. As soon as you buy that $1000 phone a new one from some other manufacturer is out the next month with something newer, higher spec "numbers" that don't really mean much, etc.

 

[maxman1]

True. But if they can't sell in that area, why even bother? Apple has reported declining sales, Samsung reported less than expected sales last year, Google reported less than expected sales of the Pixel 3, etc. I think consumers have spoken....they (me included) don't want phones pushing $1000 and above. As soon as you buy that $1000 phone a new one from some other manufacturer is out the next month with something newer, higher spec "numbers" that don't really mean much, etc.

Good points. IMHO, the technology has advanced to the point that the differences are negligible between good midrange phones & the flagships. Top tier will have more perks of course but it's a bit dubious whether they merit the price or not.

Case in point, my wife destroyed her iPhone 6 Plus in virtually new condition by leaving it out in a rainstorm while out of town. I wasn't about to pony up for another iPhone so I bought her a new Moto G7 & had it tweaked out for her when she returned home. After learning the Android system a few days she loves it & says she'd never go back. FWIW, this is someone who has used iPhones since there have been iPhones. She has been pleasantly surprised how good a $300 Moto performs.

Side Note: The thing that seems to perplex her about Android is the choices, so many different ways to do the same thing. She's been locked down so long the freedom to choose is confusing.

 

[1901Madison]

Good points. IMHO, the technology has advanced to the point that the differences are negligible between good midrange phones & the flagships. Top tier will have more perks of course but it's a bit dubious whether they merit the price or not.

Case in point, my wife destroyed her iPhone 6 Plus in virtually new condition by leaving it out in a rainstorm while out of town. I wasn't about to pony up for another iPhone so I bought her a new Moto G7 & had it tweaked out for her when she returned home. After learning the Android system a few days she loves it & says she'd never go back. FWIW, this is someone who has used iPhones since there have been iPhones. She has been pleasantly surprised how good a $300 Moto performs.

Side Note: The thing that seems to perplex her about Android is the choices, so many different ways to do the same thing. She's been locked down so long the freedom to choose is confusing.

This is where Moto really shines. They are excellent at producing a quality phone for $300 or less. It's also where they are raking in money these days. Moto has become a heavy hitter in Latin America and India.

 

[Scott337]

This is where Moto really shines. They are excellent at producing a quality phone for $300 or less. It's also where they are raking in money these days. Moto has become a heavy hitter in Latin America and India.

Someone that "gets it" and understands their current market plan. Nice!

 

[msatlas]

In some ways I like this more than the Pixel 3a XL.

The SD675 is bigger step up from the SD670 than the naming would suggest, as the 675 actually out-benchmarks the 710.

I still hate Google's gesture controls and there's no way around them on the 3a. You're stuck with them. Motorola has much better gesture controls and you can always use the old 3 button nav if desired.

The Z4 camera has OIS so as long as there's a decent Google Camera port for it that should yield great results.

The big question, as always with Motorola, is software updates.

But...at the $500 price point, I'd have a hard time picking the Z4 over the OnePlus 6T at $549. With a discount the Z4 becomes a great pickup.

 

[chaddlesokc]

I'm in. Though $499 could be seen as a tad-bit overpriced, what phone isn't? Has a lot of features for the money and any phones these days in this price range is a good thing. I'll be picking mine up from Best Buy tomorrow.

 

[dsw1519]

I'm in. Though $499 could be seen as a tad-bit overpriced, what phone isn't? Has a lot of features for the money and any phones these days in this price range is a good thing. I'll be picking mine up from Best Buy tomorrow.

Good luck with the Z4. I'm seriously considering getting one to replace my Z2 play. I would be really interested in hearing your thoughts and impressions once you get the 4. Please post once you get the phone. Thanks.

 

[Scott337]

I plan on getting one next week as soon as Verizon has them in stock. As long as that lip around the Moto Mods isn't too awful bad. Rumor has it that Verizon will have some nice discounts right off the bat, one for new lines and one for upgrades & their monthly payment plan. I usually don't pay through the Verizon 24 month plan, but will if the deal is good. You don't get the 360 Camera with the Verizon version but I don't take pics so I'm not really interested in the camera Mod (I already own almost every other Moto Mod, including many batteries). I am also looking forward to hearing others initial impressions.