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Moto Z4 Play could still be on the cards with upper mid-range SoC and hefty battery

By Adrian Diaconescu

Published: Mar 21, 2019, 5:45 AM

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Motorola Android

Moto Z4 Play could still be on the cards with upper mid-range SoC and hefty battery

Is this the Moto Z4 or Z4 Play? It could be both

The rumor mill is swirling with talk of several interesting Motorola smartphones in the pipeline, including a foldable reborn Razr that may or may not be a flagship model, a mid-ranger with an odd choice of processor and a trendy hole punch design, as well as a high-end new Moto Z-series product that was rumored just yesterday to fly solo to the market, without a Play variant by its side.

Even renowned leaker Steve H., aka @OnLeaks, now seems to believe what he initially assumed to be a Moto Z4 Play could ultimately go official as a flagship Z4. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean the Z4 Play is not happening. In fact, the folks over at XDA Developers have it on good authority that Motorola is preparing a device codenamed "foles" or "stingray" with a Snapdragon 675 SoC in tow.

Not a flagship, but certainly no pushover either

If the information revealed today via a trusted XDA source, as well as public FCC documentation, pans out, which feels all but guaranteed at this point, folks looking to spend no more than $500 this year on a robust and versatile handset with respectable specs should be pretty excited about the Moto Z4 Play. The aforementioned Snapdragon 675 processor is one of Qualcomm's newest and fastest mid-range models, undoubtedly providing a massive performance upgrade over the 636 silicon found inside last year's Z3 Play.

The Moto Z3 Play is no powerhouse

We're talking an octa-core affair with six Kryo 460 CPU cores focused on saving energy during "everyday interactions", while two high-performance cores clocked at 2 GHz take care of raw speed for gaming and other intensive tasks. Built on 11-nanometer process technology, the hot new upper mid-end chipset is expected to be great for battery life, which wasn't exactly the Z3 Play's biggest strength.

Impressively, the Z4 Play is tipped to bump up the battery capacity of its predecessor from 3,000 to 3,600 mAh, while screen size could jump from 6 to around 6.4 inches. The resolution of the display is likely to remain largely unchanged, circling the Full HD mark, with either a hole or a small notch housing an impressive-sounding 25MP selfie shooter. There might even be a "hidden" in-screen fingerprint sensor (the optical kind, not ultrasonic, as on the Galaxy S10), which is still rare in the price bracket we expect the Moto Z4 Play to sit.

Where does that leave the "regular" Moto Z4?

In short, in a pretty awkward position. Without a doubt, if all the above is true, the non-Play Z4 has to pack a state-of-the-art Snapdragon 855 processor. But will that be enough to set the flagship model apart from a very interesting Play variant? Probably not, so we're beginning to think the Moto Z4 could be hiding a few extra tricks up its sleeve. Like a secondary rear-facing camera.

Moto Z4, Z4 Play, or both? The question remains

All these confusing recent rumors and leaks have been calling for a single (albeit beastly) 48MP imaging sensor, but something tells us that's only part of the photographic package mounted on the back of the Z4. After all, both the Z2 Force and Z3 (and even the Z3 Play) came with dual rear shooters. The number of cameras is not everything, of course, but neither is the number of megapixels, and it just doesn't make sense for Motorola to go back to a single lens setup when it badly needs something (more than a processor) to separate its two impending Z-series releases.

The Moto Z4 Play is reportedly coming with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB internal storage space as well, so there's definitely a good chance the Z4 will cap off at 8 gigs of memory, taking on most of today's heavyweights. Naturally, both the Z4 and Z4 Play are expected to support Moto Mods, but we're curious to see if perhaps that Verizon-exclusive 5G accessory will spread its wings to this year's lower-end variant. Basically, many questions are left unanswered, but at least we know more today than 24 hours ago.

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Adrian, a mobile technology enthusiast since the Nokia 3310 era, has been a dynamic presence in the tech journalism field, contributing to Android Authority, Digital Trends, and Pocketnow before joining PhoneArena in 2018. His expertise spans across various platforms, with a particular fondness for the diversity of the Android ecosystem. Despite the challenges of balancing full-time parenthood with his work, Adrian's passion for tech trends, running, and movies keeps him energized. His commitment to mid-range smartphones has led to an eclectic collection of devices, saved from personal bankruptcy by his preference for 'adequate' over 'overpriced'.