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When you’re deciding on Android phones, you have a copious quantity of choices. If you’re in the market for a phone with top specs and robust battery life, then take a look at the Motorola Droid Turbo.
Hardware
The Droid Turbo has a solid build with curved edges that nestle in your hand and comes with a water-repellent nano-coating. Weighing in at 5.96 oz (169 g), the phone comes in:
- red and black with a Kevlar back cover reinforced with a metalized glass fiber
- black with ballistic nylon back cover reinforced with aluminum
Verizon lent me a black Kevlar phone for testing.
The back Kevlar cover feels like a rubberized plastic that’s comfortable to hold and gives a secure grip. The design seems more functional than fashionable but you can add a case if you’re going for a “wow” factor.
Gamers will especially appreciate the 2.7 GHz Quad Core processor that gives this phone turbo performance. Opening apps, moving between pages and using the features of the phone were all fluid and fast. I never experienced lagging or stuttering when making calls, watching videos or playing games on the phone.
Storage for the black and red Kevlar phones is 32 GB while the nylon phone has both 32 and 64 GB models available. No SD slot is available to expand the phone’s storage.
The speaker is on the front of the phone, a favorite spot of mine for speakers to be located (why can’t all phones have front speakers?). The sound is mono, not stereo, but chances are you’ll be using headphones or a Bluetooth speaker for maximum music enjoyment. Phone calls could be heard loud and clear over Verizon’s 4G/LTE network.
Display Features
The Turbo comes with a 5.2″ Gorilla Glass 3 screen packed with pixels, 565 ppi to be exact. The colors are crisp and bright and you can view the screen from any angle.
Battery Life
Plain and simple, battery life is the killer feature of the Turbo. The phone is equipped with a 3900 mAh battery, enough to give it 48 hours of use and a whopping 675 hours of standby time, according to Motorola. Your usage time may vary, depending on how heavily you use the phone for streaming video, surfing the Net, etc. But the good news is you don’t have to panic about this phone running out of juice before the end of the day.
The battery can’t be removed but you can always get an external battery if your need for power exceeds the capacity of the Turbo’s battery.
Turbo Charge
More good news: you can charge the phone quickly to get you out of a jam. If you do run down the battery and need to charge it in a flash you can do just that. With the included Turbo Charger, you plug the phone in for 15 minutes and get up to 8 hours of battery life, enough for a trans-Atlantic plane flight.
Going from zero to 100% charge takes about two hours when the phone is plugged into the Turbo Charger.
Inductive Charging
The Turbo also has inductive charging so you don’t have to plug it in to charge the battery. Lay the phone on the inductive charging mat (sold separately) and let it charge overnight. Note that inductive charging isn’t Turbo Charging, charging the battery takes longer this way.
Camera
If the extra-long battery life doesn’t convince you to take a look at this phone, then maybe the 21 MP camera will. Just flick your wrist or use a voice command to open the camera app and start taking pictures. You can shoot HD and 4K video with up to 30 frames per second.
Here’s a gallery of photos taken with the Droid Turbo:
For a full-scale view of many more photos I took with the Turbo, check out my Droid Turbo Flickr album.
Software
The Turbo runs Android 4.4 KitKat and will be upgradable to 5.0 Lollipop. The phone comes with Amazon apps preloaded which can be very handy if you’re a fan of the Amazon Appstore, Kindle books, Audible audiobooks, etc.
Softcard
You can use your Turbo as a digital wallet with Softcard. Add your credit card to the Softcard app and tap your phone to pay at checkout using a Softcard terminal.
See the Softcard website for more details.
Voice Commands and Hand Gestures
You don’t even need to touch the Turbo to use its features. Wave your hand over the phone to silence a call, see recent notifications, and check the time. Use your voice to open apps, check the weather, search the Internet, and more.
Availability
The Motorola Droid Turbo is available exclusively from Verizon in black ballistic nylon or Kevlar red or black for:
With a 2-year contract:
$199 for 32 GB
$249 for 64 GB
Without a contract:
$599 for 32 GB
$649 for 64 GB
Your Thoughts
Which features of the Droid Turbo appeal to you? Do you like the extra long battery life? Are you impressed by the 21 MP camera? Let us know your thoughts in the Comments section below!
Hi Carolyn,
Oh my…what awesome features and such a smart looking phone as well 🙂
I wish I knew it a few days back as we just got a new one for my younger one’s birthday, though I don’t think I’d purchased such a costly one for her! It’s not of any known brand, but it does have ALL the features you mentioned, except for the looooong battery life and camera specifications.
3200 mAh battery and a 21 MP camera wow! My girls would die for this I know…ssh…I better not tell them about it! Knowing how much they love their mobiles and the limited time we allow them to use it, they’d just fall for this one if they read about it. 🙂
You sure are lucky and I’d love to see your album some day – I’m sure must be a collection of awesome pics.
Thanks for sharing. Have a nice weekend 🙂
Hi Harleena, The Droid Turbo actually has a 3900 mAh battery, so impressive for a smartphone. Imagine never having to worry about running out of a charge. That really is the killer feature of this phone. But the Turbo has a lot of other great features and is selling for a reasonable price too.
I’m sure your daughter will be thrilled with her new phone, Harleena. But you’re right, there always will be a phone that seems better than the one you have. The grass may seem greener on the other side of the fence! The key is to be satisfied with what you have or you’ll always be chasing new tech.
You can check out the album in the link below the gallery or here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/wonderoftech/sets/72157649378480811/
I had a lovely day at gardens near our house and took the opportunity to take the Turbo’s camera out for a spin!
Thanks so much for taking the time to comment and share, Harleena. You have a lovely weekend too!
Hi Carolyn,
This looks like a good phone. The processor speed is what impressed me. Many phones do seem very slow. The weight of the phone caught my eye too! I think you meant 169 grams not 1.69! The advantage of living in a decimalised country! I’ll be looking at Android tablet computers later. I’ll be comparing the processor speeds. I only want one for my photos. I might buy one from Amazon, they have fingerless thermal gloves that I might be needing soon! I’m photographing am event at night next week. I did it last year and got good pictures, but hope to do even better this year!
Hi Mike, Thank you for being my best editor, Mike. You’re right, I moved the decimal point not just one but two places! I will correct that error right away.
Yes, definitely give the Kindle Fire tablet a look. The screen on that tablet is very impressive and the price is excellent (at least here in the US!).
Hi Carolyn Nicander Mohr,
I am back again 🙂
In these days most of the persons are searching about Motorola. Here I would like to tell you that Motorola is a very popular and technical company in terms of smartphones. So the features and specifications of Motorola’s smartphones are very unique and powerful. So according to me in this article most of the points and most of the specifications are so unique regarding from other smartphone companies. This article is very unique for Motorola’s fans.
Thanks fro sharing 🙂 Respected Carolyn Nicander Mohr 🙂
Best Regards
Monu Kumar
Hi Monu, Welcome back to The Wonder of Tech! You’re right, Motorola makes quality phones and this phone is no exception. They really packed a lot under the hood with the Droid Turbo and are selling it for a very reasonable price.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us, Monu!
I have to concede I have been very intrigued by this phone. It is substantially less than the iPhone 6 Plus I have been looking at and the features are quite interesting to me.
I am still inclined to get the iPhone anyway but…
Hi Joshua, Yes, the 64 GB iPhone 6 Plus is $399 with a 2-year contract, $150 more than the Droid Turbo. Verizon has a handy, interactive comparison chart for the Droid Turbo versus other phones. Go to http://www.verizonwireless.com/droid-does/ and scroll down to the bottom of the page to compare the Droid Turbo to other phones.
Good luck making your decision! I’m sure you’ll be happy with your phone no matter which one you get.
I’ve had the same Android smart phone going on five years now and never had a problem with it (knock on wood). The battery life of the Motorola Droid Turbo is very impressive and so are the pictures you took. I can’t justify spending this kind of money on a new phone though as long as my old one still works.
Hi Silke, You’re very wise to stick with what works for you. That’s great that your five year old phone still works well for you. No need to upgrade tech that still satisfies your needs!
It’s another mobile phone that many cannot wait to buy this one. This Motorola Droid Turbo is a Phone that’s Fast and Formidable. I loved the whole features. The camera is so alive. Thanks for sharing the article. Great post!
Hi Alexis, I’m glad you like this post and the Droid Turbo. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment!
It is really nice phone but i don’t think so it will compete with xiaomi device.
Two more phones one plus one and xiomi mi4 are competing themselves.
In these for survival for other companies, they should make abudget device, so that everyone can buy.
Hi Robin, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Yes, the Droid Turbo has premium features but the price isn’t top-of-the-line. You’re right, there are lots of budget Android phones people can consider that may be a better fit for them. This phone is for people who want a phone with top specs and a great battery life!
I’m a big fan of the new Moto series, all the 2nd gen devices and no doubt Motorola is the top player in the smartphone market, only after Apple as we all know, but Motorola designs have been repetitive in the recent times, considering Moto X and Turbo and now if we have a look at Nexus 6, its pretty much the same. I feel Moto should try out some design modifications and up-gradation, and it can move to the top spot for sure!
An avid reader of your blog, love your work! 🙂
Hi Rajat, Always great to have an avid reader of The Wonder of Tech visit and leave a valuable comment. Yes, the design of this phone isn’t a “wow” but the specs are. Hey, you can always get a case to make the design more personal for you but you can’t improve the specs of a phone.
Hallo Carolyn
I think this awesome phone , good design and nice specifications . i really want this phone hahaha and than camera have 21 MP waaaww really nice . i like this artikel .
Hi Devan, Welcome to The Wonder of Tech! Yes, this phone has a lot to offer. If you don’t like the specs of this phone then I really don’t know what phone will satisfy you. Motorola really went all out with this phone and it shows. I hope you get this phone and I’m glad you liked this review. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts with us, Devan!
thanks for the welcome. I hope you continue to write great articles like this article. I love the specs, and I certainly satisfied if you have this phone. thanks to the approval of my comments carolyn 🙂
Hello Carolyn,
I’ve been a moto fan ever since the StarTAC for reason that the Moto line of phone has always gaven me great radio call reception. But when Turbo arrived with the faster processor speed, 64gb of storage and 3gb of memory, I had to upgrade from my Droid Maxx which I love as well. I have really been enjoying the Turbo which I purchase on the day of release. Understanding the battery life would be base on usage, and being Droid Turbo is still on KitKat 4.4.4, I have not had no problems with getting a full 2 days of phone usage since all in the OS was the same. That may not be the case once we receive Lollipop – Android 5, since I will be spending at least a few days of joy getting to know Lollipop. So I will be keeping my charger handy during that time.
But knowing my battery usage will return to normal once I’m use to Lollipop, I am looking forward seeing how battery life will be since Android 5 is going to be better on managing apps battery usage so I’m hearing good report of it.
I’m enjoying my Droid Turbo.
Ross
Hi Ross, Wow, it’s great to hear from a Droid Turbo fan. Yes, when Lollipop is released we will be like kids in a candy store (ha ha!) testing the new features. While that may put batteries to the test, the Turbo should hold up longer than most!
Thanks for sharing your experiences with the Droid Turbo with us, Ross. 🙂