Motorola, in collaboration with Verizon, took centre stage today to unveil two new entrants to the Droid lineup, the mid-ranger Droid Maxx 2 and the top specced Droid Turbo 2.
Starting off with the Droid Maxx 2, this phone is essentially a carrier-branded version of the Moto X Play, bearing the same design and aesthetics along with the same specs. Only difference is the addition of the Verizon logo at the back, along with the Droid branding.
The Droid Turbo 2 is the beast amongst the two, as it comes out clear at the top by a wide margin. The phone sports a 5.4″ QHD P-OLED display, which if Motorola is to be believed, is shatterproof. The phone also bears the torch of Motorola’s recent design language, but to differentiate itself from the other Moto phones, it does sport a different metallic frame. Under the hood, you have the Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor clocked at 2.0 GHz, flanked by 3GB of LPDDR4 RAM. There are options of 32GB and 64GB variants for internal storage, along with microSD card slot which supports expansion up to 2TB.
For the camera, the phone houses the same rear camera setup as the Moto X Play (and the Droid Maxx 2), featuring a 21 MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture and PDAF, also capable of 4K video as well as video HDR in 1080p and 4K as well. On the front is a 5MP snapper with f/2.0 aperture and a wide-angle lens. Interestingly, there is also a front-facing flash to aid those low-light selfies.
Another plus point of the Droid Turbo 2 is its massive 3,760 mAh battery. Not only is it big enough that it could last you a considerable amount of time (if the rest cooperates), but it also supports TurboPower charging, claiming to juice up the device for 13 hours worth of power in just 15 minutes of charging. The phone also supports wireless charging under PMA and Qi standards. For some more cherry on the top, the phone also has NFC and front facing speakers, with microphone holes for active noise cancellation. And for the first time, Moto Maker option is available for a Droid device, with some back cover samples available for viewing here. There is also an option to get a design refresh within two years of purchase, albeit with a fair bit of fine print and applied conditions, which you can find here.
All of this sounds too good to be true? Well, the Achilles heel of both, the Droid Maxx 2 and the Droid Turbo 2 is that they come with Android 5.1 Lollipop out of the box. This would not have been a big deal, if it weren’t for the fact that these phones are under complete control of Verizon. America’s top wireless carrier is extremely notorious for locking down its devices, and also for acting as the prime roadblock for various software updates. Verizon devices tend to be the poorest of the pack when it comes to Android updates, so launching a top end device with an already outdated OS version on Big Red is nothing but a setup for future frustration and disappointment. Verizon has promised that Android 6.0 Marshmallow will come to the Droid Turbo 2, but without any concrete timeline (as well as no mention on this end for the Droid Maxx 2), this does not bode too well for the device.
The new Droids will be available online and in stores from October 29 2015. The Maxx 2 will retail for $384 off contract, and $16/month for 2 years on contract. The Turbo 2 will retail for $624 off contract, and $26/month for 2 years on contract. If you are opting for the design refresh option, you have to shell out $720 off contract, or $30/month for 2 years on contract.
What are your thoughts on the new Droids? Do the phones have enough going for them to look past the Verizon branding? Are you willing to trade software update for a good contract offering? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Read on for related content:
- Verizon Announces New, Simplified Plans for Data Devices
- Verizon Plans to Increase Monthly Rates for Grandfathered Unlimited Data Users
- The Low-End Gap: Quick Updates After Motorola’s Betrayal
- Motorola Releases the 5.1.1 Kernel Source Code for the Moto Maxx
- Motorola Releases Source Code for the Moto X Play Kernel
Check Out XDA’s Droid Turbo 2 Forum >>
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