Motorola updates G and E series, adds new One Macro, as foldable Razr looms
All eyes may be on Motorola's upcoming Razr relaunch, but shoppers beyond the US have some new nonfolding options.
Motorola has a host of new phones, but none are coming to North America.
While anticipation builds ahead of Motorola's Nov. 13 event in which it teases a "highly anticipated unveiling of a reinvented icon," the company isn't putting all of its eggs in a foldable basket. Instead, on Thursday the Razr creator announced a host of new devices destined for countries beyond the US that are more traditional phones than the expected folding Razr .
Read: The inside story behind the remaking of the new Motorola Razr.
The devices -- a new G8 Plus and G8 Play, E6 Play and One Macro -- will all be available Thursday and ship with Android 9 Pie, though none are coming to the US. They're traditional nonfolding touchscreen phones with updated specs formulated for shoppers who don't want or need to spend several hundred dollars on a device.
Two new G8s
Motorola's G8 Play.
The G8 Play has a 6.2-inch display, 2GB of RAM with 32GB of storage (expandable via microSD card) and a MediaTek octa-core processor that Motorola says is 30% faster than the G7 Play's. It'll have three rear cameras, including an 8-megapixel, 117-degree ultrawide-angle lens, a 2-megapixel depth sensor and a 13-megapixel main shooter plus an 8-megapixel front lens. A 3.5mm headphone jack is present, as is a 4,000-mAh battery that the company claims will provide two days of battery life.
The device is also "water-repellent" which means it should survive some light drops in the rain but don't wash it in the sink or take it into the pool.
Available in Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Peru at first, the device will roll out over time to other Latin American countries. No prices were announced.
Motorola's new G8 Plus.
Those looking for a step up will find it in the G8 Plus, which has a 6.3-inch display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 processor and double the RAM and built-in storage (4GB and 64GB, respectively, with the storage expandable by microSD). It has a souped-up rear camera headlined by a 48-megapixel main lens, 16-megapixel 117-degree ultrawide-angle "action" camera and 5-megapixel depth sensor to go with a 25-megapixel front camera. The cameras, with the exception of the depth sensor, take advantage of Moto's "Quad Pixel" pixel binning tech to allow for better low-light and night shots.
Like the G8 Play, it has a 3.5mm headphone jack, water-repellent design and 4,000-mAh battery, but with a 15-watt fast charger included it can be charged to 8 hours of life in 15 minutes.
The G8 Plus will launch first in Brazil, Mexico and India before expanding later this month throughout Europe with a starting price of 269 euros (roughly $300, £230, AU$440). Motorola says it will "roll out by end of this month in Australia and in the coming month across Latin America."
A new Moto E6 Play
Motorola's new Moto E6 Play.
On the low end, Motorola is introducing a new E6 Play to its lineup. At a starting price of 109 euros (roughly $120, £95, AU$180), the phone isn't going to rival a Galaxy or an iPhone , but it is a much more affordable alternative to seemingly ever-rising smartphone costs.
The E6 Play has a quad-core MediaTek processor, 5.5-inch display, 2GB of RAM and 32GB of storage that is expandable via microSD. A single 13-megapixel rear camera can be found on the back while a 5-megapixel shooter is on the front. Unlike the other phones, the E6 uses Micro-USB to charge as opposed to USB-C, but it does have a fingerprint sensor.
Brazil and Mexico will get the phone first, with Europe set to get it "from mid-November" throughout the continent. Motorola says it will "roll out over the coming months in other countries in Latin America and select countries in Asia."
Moto One Macro
The Moto One Macro is designed for closeups.
Following up on its adventurous Moto One Action from earlier this year, Motorola is adding a new phone with a dedicated macro lens that the company says will allow you to "focus 2cm away from your subject" or "5x closer than a normal lens for capturing intricate details."
Beyond the new lens, the phone is similar to the G8 Play, with the same MediaTek processor and a 6.2-inch display. Like the G8 Plus, however, it will ship with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of built-in, expandable storage. The device is also water-repellent.
On the camera end, it will have a triple-camera setup around back centered around a 13-megapixel main sensor, 2-megapixel depth sensor and the 2-megapixel macro with laser autofocus around to assist. There is also an 8-megapixel sensor around the front.
It will launch today in Brazil, Mexico, Australia, India and throughout Europe with a starting price of 199 euro (roughly $220, £170, AU$325). Motorola says it be bringing the phone in "the coming months in various countries in Latin America and select countries in Asia."