Earlier in September, Apple announced the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, marking the introduction of the company’s latest flagship devices. Before that, though, Motorola announced the Moto X Style (and Pure Edition for the U.S.), its latest attempt at creating a noteworthy flagship among plenty of other Android-based hero devices.
Motorola has been working hard towards a goal of creating what they believe is the perfect device: A handset with impressive hardware and specifications, which can get customized to an owner’s liking, all the while without breaking the bank in the process. Motorola’s latest attempt, the Moto X Style, was recently reviewed by our sister site,Android Beat, and the takeaway seems to be that Motorola may have reached that goal.
The Moto X Style features plenty of hardware worth considering, including a 5.7-inch QHD display that’s LCD and not AMOLED, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, 3GB of RAM, and a 21-megapixel camera on the back with a two-tone LED flash. There’s plenty of storage, which can also be expanded with a microSD card, and a semi-stock Android experience without any staggering proprietary software getting in the way.
Here’s how it all breaks down:
Performance
“The Moto X Style is all about hitting top specifications, with (ahem) ‘style’, without requiring a top end price, and the Snapdragon 808, combined with the 3GB of RAM and QHD screen, produce an experience that’s almost identical to that on the (also Motorola-made) Google Nexus 6. In other words, top notch. Internal storage on the review device was 32GB, of which somewhere around 23GB were available out of the box, though you can also get 16GB and 64GB variants in some other countries (or, in the USA, any combination of specs and appearance you want, thanks to Moto Maker!)”
Camera
“On the back is a 21MP, f/2.0 camera inset into metal detailing, along with a two-tone LED flash. Driven by a powerful Snapdragon 808 chipset, this produces very decent photos in all light conditions, with some examples and 1:1 crops shown below. Performance, especially in HDR modes, was much better than on the Moto X Play, which in theory shares the same optics and sensor – I suspect that the difference is partly down to software updates since my Play review and partly down to the much greater power available for image processing here.”
Hardware
“The design language is very familiar now – the metal chassis, plastic inserts and moulded, textured back, feeling great in the hand and providing maximum space for battery capacity. In some markets you’ll be able to use Motorola’s ‘Maker’ service to customise your own Style in their factories, choosing almost every external element, but in most world markets you’ll have to make do with ‘black and grey’ (as here) or ‘white and champagne’. The black’s perfect though – understated and, as they say, ‘goes with everything’.”
Software
“As with the Moto X Play, it’s virtually ‘stock’ Android, i.e. equipped and set up like a Nexus, updated regularly and with just a few Moto tweaks over the top. There’s the Moto application suite, introducing a double-twist gesture for starting the camera, which make you look a little odd but does work, plus a slightly dangerous ‘double-karate-chop’ to launch the torch function. Dangerous to others should they be in the way(!) but mainly dangerous to your phone in case you let it slip to the ground in the process!”
And, finally:
The Verdict
“It really does feel that, with the Style (or ‘Pure Edition’, if you’re in the USA), Motorola has fully rounded off the vision for the original ‘X’. The form factor, capabilities, software load-out, imaging, and media playback, are all stunning, especially for the price. In the UK, the Moto X Style retails at £360 including VAT, significantly undercutting a number of big-brand competing flagships. With the caveat that you’ll need to be prepared to do a little ‘plugging-in’ each day for ‘Turbo Power’ top-ups, it’s hard to think of a better all round package than the Moto X Style and it’s terrific value overall. Recommended.”
At the end of the day, it looks like the Moto X Style is certainly worth looking at for anyone that might not be tied to iOS, or simply wants to try Android out. After all, if you’re going to try out the leading competition, might as well do it on a device that’s as powerful, customizable, and stock as the Moto X Style.
[via Android Beat]
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