Motorola’s 2015 flagship phone comes in two versions. Both are smartphones with high-end specs, and customizable designs.

But the Moto X Style has a 5.7 inch, 2560 x 1440 pixel display and 3GB of RAM while the Moto X Play has a 5.5 inch, 1920 x 1080 pixel display, 2GB of memory, and a price tag that’s about $100 lower.

The Moto X Play goes on sale in 55 countries starting in August, while the Moto X Style launches in September.

Want to buy one of the new phones in the United States? So far Motorola has only announced plans to offer one model: An unlocked version of the Moto X Style called the Moto X Pure. It launches later this year for $400.

moto x_01

One of Motorola’s new phone may have a larger screen than the 5.5 inch display on the iPhone 6 Plus, but the phones have a smaller body. Motorola says that’s because its new phone has a 76 percent screen-to-body ratio.

The phones feature 21MP rear cameras, 5MP front-facing cameras, Motorola Turbo Charge quick-charging technology, and big batteries.

Both phones run Android 5.1 Lollipop software with Motorola features including Moto Voice commands, Moto Assist, Moto Display, and Moto Actions.

Motorola says the Moto X Style will sell for about $200 to $300 less than a typical flagship smartphone, has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 processor, offers up to 30 hours of battery life from a 3,000 mAh battery, and features a microSD card slot for additional storage. The phone will be available with 16GB to 64GB of built-in storage.

The Moto X Style ships standard with a coated silicon rubber back, but it’s also available with leather, natural wood, and other options. The phone has a water-repellent coating as well.

The phone supports 4G LTE networks, and Motorola will offer customers a chance to buy a carrier-unlocked Pure Edition phone that works on all major US wireless carriers including Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, and T-Mobile.

Motorola says that the Pure Edition will be available this fall for $400, which is a pretty great price for an unlocked phone with flagship-level specs. Of course, it has some competition in that space from devices like the $329 OnePlus 2 and $299 Asus Zenfone 2.

moto x play_03

Motorola says the Moto X Play, meanwhile, will sell for $300 to $400 below the price of a typical flagship, and it features the same software as the Moto X Style, plus a bigger, 3,640 mAh battery.

On the other hand, this model sports just 2GB of RAM, a Snapdragon 615 processor, and a lower-resolution display.

Another thing that sets the Moto X Style and Moto X Play apart from one another? The Style has a front-facing flash for snapping selfies in the dark.

Motorola has also updated it’s Moto G budget smartphone. The new model features a 5 inch, 720p display, 13MP rear and 5MP front cameras, a Snapdragon 410 processor, and up to 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. It’s also waterproof.

The new Moto G is now available for $179 and up.

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18 replies on “Meet the Moto X Style and Moto X Play smartphones”

  1. I give moto credit for adding microsd (especially to flagships) while others take it away, but elsewhere, they just get further and further away from what really set that first generation model apart. The first was perhaps the smallest 4.7″ smartphone before or since after the oversized trend had already kicked into gear. It not only had AMOLED, but the highest PPI non-pentile AMOLED display during an era where I was starting to wonder if non-pentile AMOLEDs had gone extinct. The next generation went bigger and switched to pentile, and now this generation is gargantuan with LCD.

    I hope Moto’s offspring, Ara, survives and saves us from one-size-fits-none. There are some overpriced minis out there, but I’m always wary about what their support cycle will be and to what extent they’ll lock out 3rd party development either intentionally or through sheer lack of value.

  2. I was thinking about this but it doesn’t have fingerprint scanner.
    Oneplus 2 is a flop with no nfc.
    I will just have to wait for the next nexus.

    1. Just curious. I have never used NFC on my Nexus device. What do you use it for?

      1. Some developed countries like UK/US/JP etc.. people use it for trains or food purchase etc… well I don’t use much NFC either but without the implement of NFC, it means that, there is no AndroidPay coming for OnePlus Two.

    2. Um, how on earth can the OnePlus 2 be a flop without NFC when OnePlus says it dropped NFC from the OnePlus 2 because OnePlus One owners weren’t using it?

      1. I don’t agree the excuse that take off the NFC because nobody is using, is because no handy fingerprint scanner and AndroidPay yet to be arriving in Android M.

        The major flop is the Charging time. 3 hours 20min to fully charge with only 4.30 hours SOT claimed by MKBHD. Mine OnePlus One only need less than 2 hours to fully charge with nearly 6 hours SOT!

  3. Glad I got the “old” version a month ago. 5.7″ is way too big for me. So far the 2014 MotoX has been great. It’s fast, has good battery life. Some of the extra Moto software stuff seems a little silly to me but it’s not annoying.

  4. Story typo:
    You’ve got two different ship dates for the ‘Play’ in 3rd paragraph and none for the ‘Style’.

    1. Thanks… the dangers of typing quickly while watching the live stream. 🙂

      The Play launches in August. The Style is coming in September. The Moto G is available now.

  5. I like the one that’s cheaper, but with a humongous battery. I want epic battery life.

    1. Yupe, cheaper and bigger battery is definitely is a better choice.

      I just hope they can consider to make the 720p HD version with even cheaper price.

      Coz i’m old already and my eyes not as good as before, it is just too small for me too see such high resolution on such small screen.

      And hey 720p is also can prolong the battery better than those 1080p or higher.

      1. 2GB of RAM is more than enough for the vast majority of Android users, even today.

    2. Same here. Unfortunately the Play (the cheaper version) isn’t coming to the US. Which is a bummer because specs wise it would compete well with other midrangers being sold now (Idol 3 for example).

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