Moto Z2 Play Camera Mod

Battery life

Impressive battery that lasts a whole day with intensive use
Only 3,000mAh battery, but can be doubled with a Moto Mod

Motorola is advertising the Moto Z2 Play as a phone that offers all-day battery life, and we've found that to be the case. Despite the thin design of the phone – usually, the thinner the device the worse the battery life – it still managed to last a full day from a single charge.

Even with intense usage we found the Z2 Play would make it most of the way through the day, perhaps needing a bit of a top-up - towards the end of the day.

The Z2 Play has a 3000mAh battery, which is quite large considering the size of the phone. It's a similar size to the cell used in the Samsung Galaxy S8, and it provides a similar level of battery life.

We ran our TechRadar battery test on the Z2 Play, where we play a 90-minute Full HD clip at full brightness to see by how much this depletes the battery.

The Z2 Play finished the test with 90% of its battery left – and that's a phenomenal score considering we were impressed when the Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus completed the same test with 89% of its battery remaining.

The Moto Z2 Play also impressed when it came to charging, going from 0% to 50% in only half an hour. It'll take longer than half an hour to go from 50% to 100%, but it's great for when you just need a quick injection of juice.

If you're desperate for more power, you can also get a Moto Mod which slides on the back of your phone to add extra battery capacity – it'll make the phone a bit thicker, but if extra stamina is your priority you probably won't mind.

Camera

12MP rear camera with larger pixels than Z Play can take some great photos
5MP front-facing camera can leave a little to be desired
Can attach expensive Hassleblad Moto Mod, which gives you 10x optical zoom

The camera may be the weakest area on the Moto Z2 Play, but it's still quite impressive considering the price point of the phone. There's a 12MP rear shooter, which is a spec downgrade from the 16MP sensor on the original Moto Z Play.

The individual photosites, or pixels, are bigger on this phone though, which means they suck in more light, which in turn means better image quality – and the difference is notable when you compare it with last year's device.

It's not a phenomenal shooter, but it can take a good photo with relatively little effort, and it's fast in operation, which means you don't have to worry about the moment passing you by as you wait for the shutter to fire.

Pixel-peeping on images taken with the Moto Z2 Play show it can't match the levels of detail captured by the OnePlus 5 or Samsung Galaxy S8 cameras, but if you're just taking the odd image to share on social media you'll be happy with what it can produce.

HDR is on by default, and most of the photo we took in that mode displayed good levels of color and detail, and stood up to scrutiny when viewed on a bigger screen.

Compared to a lot of phones made in recent years we found the Moto Z2 Play to have limited camera features, restricting what you can do. There's a Pro mode on the Z2 Play, but it doesn't add much in terms of functionality.

There's also no optical image stabilization for when you're shooting video, which means your footage can end up a little bit shaky if you're not using a tripod.

Moving around to the front of the phone, you'll find a 5MP selfie shooter that gets the job done but won't impress you in any way.

Some cheaper phones are now including higher-resolution front-facing sensors, but the Moto Z2 Play isn't concerned with improving the quality of your selfies; however the front-facing camera is fine for video calling or the odd pic to share on social media.

It's worth noting here that you can give the rear shooter a major upgrade by fitting the Hasselblad Moto Mod. This costs $299.99/£199.99, which isn't cheap, but it will give you a 10x optical zoom and the ability to shoot in raw for superior quality.

We haven't had the opportunity to try the Hasselblad Mod with the Moto Z2 Play, but we expect it to be similarly effective to the version we tested on the original Moto Z.

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James is Phones Editor for TechRadar, and he has covered smartphones for the best part of a decade bringing you news on all the big announcements from top manufacturers making mobile phones. James is often testing out and reviewing the latest and greatest mobile phones, smartwatches, tablets, virtual reality headsets, fitness trackers and more. He has also worked on other leading tech brands, such as T3 and Gizmodo UK, as well as appearing as an expert on TV and radio for the BBC and other publications. Be sure to follow him on Twitter for all the latest smartphone news.