Of late, many Chinese phones have emerged in entry-level and mid-segment with fairly good hardware features. In such a scenario, the reputed brand Motorola which entered the Indian market with a bang with its highly succcessful Moto G and Moto E and to some extent Moto X, has now come out with another mid-segment Moto X Play. The Moto X Play boasts of very good harware features and as usual this phone provides very convincing users experience as it runs on stock Android 5.1.1 OS without any clutters.
Design
Motorola believe in simple design and this is quite evident on the Moto X Play. Like the latest Moto G, the back has a rubberized pattern which make it look impressive and also helps for firm gripping. The rear cover of this phone can be replaced with different colors of your choice to look it different from the other phone. You can personalise the phone as per your choice.
Although this phone weighs 169g and its thickness is 10.9mm yet it does not look bulky thanks to its thin bezels surrounding the screen and its curved design. You can easily tuck it in your pocket and operate comfortably with one hand. The volume rocker and screen lock button have been provided on the right edge, which are quite thin. The only minus point is that these are made from plastic and are devoid of a premium feel. The headphone jack is provided on the top edge plus a removable Nano SIM slot.
The Moto X Play is water repellent and not waterproof device which means that it can withstand odd splahes of water but can not be submerged in water.
Display
The Moto X Play features a full HD 1080p display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 coating and 403ppi pixel density. During our short time spent on this device, the colors it reproduces are vivid and vibrant. You will enjoy watching videos and playing games on its bright and lively screen.
Camera
One of the highlights of Moto X Play is its high-powered rear camera which is 21MP shooter with f/2.0 aperture and several very useful features such as Burst Mode, Night mode, Auto HDR and Panorama. For selfie crazy users, the front snapper is of 5MP. If you recall, there is great improvement on imaging front on Moto X Play compared to its earlier mid-range smartphone Moto X, which was equipped with 12MP Rear and 2MP Front cameras.
During our fiddling with Moto X Play, we have observed that images clicked are very sharp and their detail and contrast is excellent. We shall be able to comment further on camera qualities when we will review this smartphone in details. Appartently, the cameras of this smartphone look quite impressive and is a deal at this price.
Software
One thing we love the most in Motorola devices is that they provide very good users experience as their devices are not cluttered with any sort of skin. In Moto X Play also, the same philosophy has been followed as it runs on stock Android 5.1.1 Lollipop OS and it is a treat to operate this device without any problem whatsoever. Moreover, Motorola will update Moto X Play with Android M at the first available opportunity.
Battery
One of the biggest USP of Moto X Play is its massive 3630mAh battery capacity, which is claimed to have two days back-up. This battery is non-removable. We have seen many high-end devies which fail you even after spending so much money and they do not last for full day if you are heavy users of videos, play games and stay connected via 4G. The latest example is Galaxy S6 which I am using and does not last for more than 8 hours with a single charge. If Moto X Play lasts for full day with single charge then I shall be more than happy with this device. The other advantage with this phone is that with Turbo Power Charging, an optional accessory, 8 hours of usage can be achieved with 15 minutes of charge. The Turbo Charger is an optional accessory and will be available for approxiamtely Rs. 1,000.
We can give our verdict about the performance of the battery once we use this device extensively.
Performance
Motorola is famous for making devices which are sturdy and give performance to your entire satisfaction and Moto X Play is not different. It is powered by a 1.7GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 octa-core processor with Adreno 405 graphics combined with 2GB RAM and 16GB/32GB of storage which can be extended upo 128GB. We have played few games in very short time available with us and did not face any glitche. Switching of apps and navigation of apps is very smooth. After using many Motorola devices, we can say with confidence that you can trust this company for trouble-free performance.
Verdict
The Motorola X Play is an excellent smartphone for mid-range consumers who are looking for good design, pure Android experience and value for money. At Rs. 18,500 for 16GB and Rs. 20,000 for 32GB, it is a deal of the season plus Motorola is throwing lot of freebies and details of which can be seen at http://www.techvorm.com/motorola-moto-x-play-with-5-5-hd-display-21mp-camera-3630mah-battery-launched-at-rs-18499/
