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

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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.

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, 77.92% screen-to-body 6.3-inch, 83.81% screen-to-body 5.8-inch, 84.26% screen-to-body
Type
Super AMOLED AMOLED Super AMOLED, HDR
Resolution
2160x1080px, 18:9 ratio, 402 PPI 2280x1080px, 19:9 ratio, 402 PPI 2960x1440px, 18.5:9 ratio, 570 PPI
Colors
16 777 216
Protection
Corning Gorilla Glass 3 Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Corning Gorilla Glass 5

Hardware

System chip
Snapdragon 636 SDM636 (14 nm) Snapdragon 845 SDM845 (10 nm) 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
Memory
4GB (LPDDR4)/64GB
4GB/32GB
8GB (LPDDR4)/256GB
6GB/64GB
8GB/128GB
4GB (LPDDR4)/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) Android (9.0 Pie, 8.0 Oreo, 7.0 Nougat)

Battery

Type
3000 mAh, Li - Ion 3300 mAh, Li - Polymer 3000 mAh, Li - Ion
Charging
Motorola TurboPowe 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
4K UHD (30 fps)
Time-lapse video, Video calling, Video sharing
4K UHD (60 fps), 1080p (240 fps), 720p (480 fps)
Time-lapse video, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing
4K UHD (30 fps), QHD, 1080p (60 fps), 720p (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: 1080p
16 MP (HDR)
Video capture: 1080p
8 MP (Wide Angle, Autofocus, HDR)
Video capture: QHD

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
5.0 5.0 5.0, Yes
WLAN
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band
MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Hotspot
802.11 a, b, g, n, ac
USB
Type-C Type-C, USB 2.0 Type-C, USB 3.1
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Hall (for flip covers), Barometer, Ambient light sensor, Proximity sensor
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
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, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 66, 71 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 32, 66, 71 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 66
4G (TDD) Bands
38, 40, 41 34, 38, 39, 40, 41 38, 39, 40, 41
3G Bands
5, 8, 4, 2, 1 1, 2, 4, 5, 8 1, 2, 5, 8
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

Availability

Officially announced
Jun 06, 2018 May 16, 2018 Mar 29, 2017
Prices (MSRP)
$500 $629


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