Moto Z3 Play specs comparison versus OnePlus 6 and Galaxy S8: Is it worth $499?

The Moto Z3 Play, the company's latest upper mid-range device, is now official. With a Snapdragon 636, 4GB of RAM, 6-inch 18:9 Super AMOLED display, a side-positioned fingerprint sensor, and portrait mode functionality available on both the front and the rear camera, the Moto Z3 Play is a phone that shouldn't be overlooked.
The Moto Z3 Play is among the first devices with a Snapdragon 636 to be available in the US. This chipset has been lauded as being quite power-efficient, which is always a plus in our book. Other notable devices that boast the Snapdragon 636 are the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro and the Asus ZenFone 5, but you will have a hard time getting either through official carrier channels.
The whole shebang is priced at $499, but is it worth the money? Well, let's actually compare it with two other devices which could be snatched for a similar price tag. Those would be the OnePlus 6, which costs $30 more, and the Galaxy S8, last year's Samsung flagship, which can be snatched below $550 these days, or even less.
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Motorola Moto Z3 Play | OnePlus 6 | Samsung Galaxy S8 |
Design
Dimensions | ||
---|---|---|
6.16 x 3.01 x 0.27 inches 156.5 x 76.5 x 6.75 mm |
6.13 x 2.97 x 0.31 inches 155.7 x 75.4 x 7.75 mm |
5.86 x 2.68 x 0.31 inches 148.9 x 68.1 x 8.0 mm |
Weight | ||
5.50 oz (156.0 g) | 6.24 oz (177.0 g) | 5.47 oz (155.0 g) |
Materials | ||
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 3) Frame: Aluminum | Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5) Frame: Metal |
Back: Glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5) Frame: Aluminum |
Resistance | ||
Splash | Splash | Water, Dust; IP68 |
Biometrics | ||
2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) | 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) | Iris scanner, 2D Face unlock, Fingerprint (touch) |
Features | ||
Notification light | ||
Keys | ||
Right: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key | Left: Volume control; Right: Lock/Unlock key, Other | Left: Volume control, Other; Right: Lock/Unlock key |
Colors | ||
Black | Black, Red, White | Midnight black, Orchid gray, Arctic silver, Coral blue, Maple gold, Rose pink, Burgundy red |
Display
Size | ||
---|---|---|
6.0-inch | 6.3-inch | 5.8-inch |
Resolution | ||
2160x1080px, 18:9 ratio, 402 PPI | 2280x1080px, 19:9 ratio, 402 PPI | 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 570 PPI |
Technology | ||
Super AMOLED | AMOLED | Super AMOLED |
Screen-to-body | ||
77.92 % | 83.81 % | 84.26 % |
Colors | ||
16 777 216 | ||
Features | ||
Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 3), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor | Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor | HDR support, Scratch-resistant glass (Corning Gorilla Glass 5), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor |
Hardware
System chip | ||
---|---|---|
Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 SDM636 (14 nm) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 MSM8998 (10 nm) |
Processor | ||
Octa-core 1800 MHz Kryo 260 |
Octa-core 2800 MHz Kryo 385 |
Octa-core 2350 MHz Kryo 280 |
GPU | ||
Adreno 509 | Adreno 630 | Adreno 540 |
RAM | ||
4GB (LPDDR4) | 8GB (LPDDR4) | 4GB (LPDDR4) |
Internal storage | ||
64GB | 256GB | 64GB |
Storage expansion | ||
microSDXC up to 2000 GB | not expandable | microSDXC up to 256 GB |
OS | ||
Android (9.0 Pie, 8.1 Oreo) | Android (8.1 Oreo), OxygenOS UI | Android (9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo, 7.0 Nougat), Samsung One UI |
Battery
Capacity | ||
---|---|---|
3000 mAh | 3300 mAh | 3000 mAh |
Type | ||
Li - Ion | Li - Polymer | Li - Ion |
Charging | ||
Motorola TurboPower | OnePlus Dash Charge | Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0, Qi and Powermat wireless charging |
Camera
Rear | ||
---|---|---|
Dual camera | Dual camera | Single camera |
Main camera | ||
12 MP (PDAF) Aperture size: F1.7 Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm | 16 MP (OIS, PDAF, CMOS image sensor) Aperture size: F1.7 Focal length: 25 mm Sensor size: 1/2.6" Pixel size: 1.22 μm |
12 MP (OIS, PDAF) Aperture size: F1.7 Focal length: 26 mm Sensor size: 1/2.55" Pixel size: 1.4 μm |
Second camera | ||
5 MP (Depth information) | 20 MP (PDAF, CMOS image sensor) Aperture size: F1.7 Focal Length: 25 mm Sensor size: 1/2.8" Pixel size: 1 μm |
|
Flash | ||
Dual LED | Dual LED | LED |
Video recording | ||
3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps) Time-lapse video, Video calling, Video sharing | 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (60 fps), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (240 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (480 fps) Time-lapse video, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing | 3840x2160 (4K UHD) (30 fps), 2560x1440 (QHD), 1920x1080 (Full HD) (60 fps), 1280x720 (HD) (240 fps) HDR, Time-lapse video, Hyperlapse, Continuous autofocus, Object tracking, Picture-taking during video recording, Video light, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing |
Front | ||
8 MP (Wide Angle), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD) | 16 MP (HDR), Video capture: 1920x1080 (Full HD) | 8 MP (Wide Angle, Autofocus, HDR), Video capture: 2560x1440 (QHD) |
Connectivity & Features
Bluetooth | ||
---|---|---|
5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0, Yes |
WLAN | ||
802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot | 802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot | 802.11 a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot |
USB | ||
Type-C | Type-C, USB 2.0 | Type-C, USB 3.1 |
Hearing aid compatible | ||
M3/T3 | ||
Location | ||
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, BeiDou | GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou | GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Galileo, BeiDou, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning |
Sensors | ||
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass | Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers) | Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer |
Other | ||
NFC, VoIP, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync | NFC, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), VoIP, Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync | NFC, ANT+, UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync |
Multimedia
Headphones | ||
---|---|---|
No 3.5mm jack | 3.5mm jack | 3.5mm jack |
Speakers | ||
Earpiece, Loudspeaker | Earpiece, Loudspeaker | Earpiece, Loudspeaker |
Features | ||
aptX-HD | aptX-HD | 32-Bit DAC, aptX-HD |
Screen mirroring | ||
Wireless screen share | Wireless screen share | DLNA,Wireless screen share,MHL |
Additional microphone(s) | ||
Noise cancellation | Noise cancellation | Noise cancellation, Video recording |
Cellular
4G (FDD) | ||
---|---|---|
Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 32(1500 L-band), 66(AWS-3), 71(600) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(AWS-1), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700 a), 13(700 c), 17(700 b), 18(800 Lower), 19(800 Upper), 20(800 DD), 25(1900+), 26(850+), 28(700 APT), 29(700 d), 30(2300 WCS), 66(AWS-3) |
4G (TDD) | ||
Bands 38(2600), 40(2300), 41(2600+) | Bands 34(2000), 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+) | Bands 38(2600), 39(1900+), 40(2300), 41(2600+) |
3G | ||
Bands 5(850), 8(900), 4(1700/2100), 2(1900), 1(2100) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 8(900) | Bands 1(2100), 2(1900), 5(850), 8(900) |
Data Speed | ||
LTE-A Cat 12 (600/100 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA, UMTS | LTE-A Pro Cat 18 (1200/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s | LTE-A Pro Cat 16 (1000/150 Mbit/s), HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS |
Dual SIM | ||
Yes | ||
SIM type | ||
Nano SIM | Nano SIM | Nano SIM |
HD Voice | ||
Yes | Yes | |
VoLTE | ||
Yes |
Phone Features
Notifications | ||
---|---|---|
Haptic feedback, Music ringtones, Vibration, Flight mode, Silent mode, Speakerphone | ||
Other features | ||
Voice dialing, Voice commands, Voice recording |
Regulatory Approval
FCC approval | ||
---|---|---|
Date approved: May 17, 2018 FCC ID value: 2ABZ2-A6003 | Date approved: Apr 06, 2017 FCC ID value: A3LSMG950U | |
Measured SAR | ||
Head: 1.26 W/kg Body: 0.90 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.53 W/kg Wireless Router: 1.29 W/kg Phablet: 3.50 W/kg |
Head: 0.49 W/kg Body: 0.48 W/kg Simultaneous Transmission: 1.53 W/kg Wireless Router: 0.46 W/kg |
Buyers information
MSRP | ||
---|---|---|
$ 500 | $ 629 | |
In The Box | ||
TurboPower charger, USB-C cable, headset adapter, guides | Screen protector (pre-applied), Translucent case, OnePlus fast charge Type-C cable, OnePlus fast charge power adapter, SIM tray ejector, Quick start guide, Safety information |
Availability
Officially announced | ||
---|---|---|
Jun 06, 2018 | May 16, 2018 | Mar 29, 2017 |
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Motorola Moto Z3 Play vs OnePlus 6 vs Samsung Galaxy S8 specs comparison
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