Droid Turbo 2 Review: Definitely Shatterproof, But Also an Eyesore

There is no shortage of gamy carrying into action Android phone out there , and it can be hard to encounter a good understanding to go with one over the other . The Droid Turbo 2 has a span of features that say hey over here , pick me . pick me ! ! But a majuscule phone has to finger right in many unlike ways , and this one might catch a nerve or two .

What Is It?

An Android phone with a 5.4 ” display that costs $ 624 for the 32 GB or $ 720 for 64 GB . It ’s only uncommitted for Verizon customer , and its based off of the Moto X ( 2015 ) and the new international - only Moto X Force . It ’s got the specs for great performance , like a 2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor and 3 GB of RAM . But it ’s star are a shatterproof display and claim of 48 - hour barrage fire life-time .

Why Does it Matter?

If you ’ve ever broken a phone , chances are it was either because of water damage or a shattered covert . The Droid Turbo 2 is n’t waterproof , but it will ease the pain of continuing speech sound droppers everywhere . That ’s a passably major practical benefit that could preserve you a good bit of money in the prospicient run .

Design

dreadful . I ’m a stickler about design and this phone pain me to take care at it . But most masses plausibly would n’t get hang up on the same design detail that annoy me . The curves of the plastic rim on the back , the width of the front bezel — it ’s all just clunky . It ’s like Verizon took the nice appear Moto X and just had to do a bunch of prick to it , which inevitably made it ugly . The Droid logo on the back ? despicable . The Verizon check - mark on the front ? Even uglier .

If I could buff it all off with a belt - drum sander , I would .

you could attempt to amend the Turbo 2 ’s aesthetic by choosing your own color scheme and bet on material on the Moto Maker website . Have fun trying make this thing handsome with ballistic nylon or leather . It wo n’t shape .

Using It

If you want an Android phone with really neat specification that will run tight , the Droid Turbo 2 will not disappoint but neither will a host of other top - tier Android phones like the Moto X or Nexus 6P. Fast is equation for the grade these Day . What ’s more authoritative is the user experience , and that ’s where the Turbo 2 is a assorted suitcase .

The all - around look is akin to the Moto X Pure Edition , just more or less downgraded a half - dance step . It ’s mostly the design component I mentioned above , but other things stand out as well . The display does not lack for pixels at 2,560×1440 , that ’s Quad HD if you ’re continue track , but it ’s abrasive and contrasty , and quite dim liken to the Moto X. Also , its colors skew greenish - yellow . I found the Moto display much more pleasing to seem at , although the Droid Turbo 2 has much good viewing angles .

The surface of the display is the most unique aspect of this phone . Drop the Droid Turbo 2 . Throw it . have it hard — on cementum , asphalt , or metal . The projection screen will not shatter or crack . I nonchalantly tossed this phone onto a grainy concrete story over 70 time and it came out in one piece ( aside from the SIM tray which popped out a bunch of meter ) . This is one area where Verizon / Motorola ’s claim absolutely hold true . That ’s not to say that the screen remains unblemished . scratch and scratch do become visible with enough abuse , but they are just obtrusive once the showing is turned on .

Starship Test 9

Another grand call about this phone is that the battery will last an excess foresightful time . Verizon specifically said it lasts “ two daytime . ” There ’s some truthiness to that . It depends , of course , on what you do with the phone . I ’m pretty trusted most phones can last two day if you do n’t use it much . If you see a slew of video then prance around townspeople using location services and LTE all day , no it will not last two days .

My own casual enjoyment consists of mayhap a few telephone set birdcall and texts , reading on the Kindle app , checking the ol’ social media feeds , browse the web in Chrome . Under this duress ( or want of ) , the Turbo 2 did indeed last two days . But so did my iPhone 6 . I did a short test where I played the same video on the Turbo 2 and the Moto X side - by - side , with similar options on both headphone and starting from a full charge . After one hour , the Moto drain to 83 % , and the Turbo 2 drained to 89 % . So , ok . My point is that the assault and battery life is very good , but it ’s not like holy bullshit good .

One shrewish annoyance about this telephone set is the bloatware courtesy of Verizon . There ’s sooo much , including ludicrous games and utility you ’ll never use . It ’s not fun spending 20 minutes removing and disabling apps when you bribe a new phone . I do n’t like how these bundled apps do good Verizon . They are nonsense for the consumer .

Lilo And Stitch 2025

Once you get beyond that , it ’s Android Lollipop as usual . At least they did n’t manure with the interface . Who knows when Marshmallow will arrive for the Droid Turbo 2 . credibly not for a while .

If photograph are your thing , the camera on the Turbo 2 is pretty good ! It ’s got 21 megapixels of solvent that make for nicely detailed daytime injection . downhearted swooning shots are not as serious , with colour and particular recede into mush . Weirdly , there ’s no option for Night Mode which proved useful on the Moto X for good low light shot .

But I was never a fan of the stock Android camera interface . The motion driven fundamental interaction often get in the way of just wanting to take a picture . But you ca n’t blame the Droid for that . you could do that stupid milkshake - to - active motion and shoot 4 K telecasting . As smartphone tv camera go , it can fall .

CMF by Nothing Phone 2 Pro has an Essential Key that’s an AI button

Like

It actually give birth on the hope of a shatter - proof screen . Battery life is honorable than other Android phones in standardised cost ranges . It ’s enough tight .

Dislike

It looks horrific . Verizon crapware and branding saddle an otherwise pure - ish Android experience .

Should You Buy it?

The only ripe reason to by the Droid Turbo 2 is if you are clumsy with your sound , or want to have the freewheeling life-style that results from not having that constant fear of The Drop in the back of your mind . If you are good at keeping your phone safe , the fact is that there are other Android phones out there that offers just as much but with much much better figure . Yes , the stamp battery life is better than most , but not astronomically so .

The Moto X Pure Edition is the most obvious choice . It ’s a enceinte phone and does n’t give a shit what carrier you go to , and the Nexus 6P is a human dynamo that ’s getting near - universal praise . You have alternative !

What ’s interesting is that the Droid Turbo 2 may recover a upstanding niche in the market of shoppers who waltz around into a Verizon computer storage and need a new earpiece . They need something “ good ” and are n’t uptight about design . My guess is that once those customers hear that they will never have to worry drop their phone again , they will be sold on the Turbo 2 . Hey , that ’s big !

Photo: Jae C. Hong