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These are the first Moto Mods for the new Moto Z range

Motorola has unveiled four new attachable Moto Mods accessories for its Moto Z line: a speaker attachment, mini-projector, extended battery and style covers.

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Published onJune 9, 2016

Motorola’s modular future has arrived and it’s called Moto Mods. Appearing alongside the new Moto Z series at Lenovo TechWorld today, there’s a lot to like about Moto Mods. They simply snap into place using magnets, there will be continued compatibility with future Motorola phones and everything has been opened up to developers – with a sexy cash prize enticement – for new module ideas.

Motorola just schooled LG on how to do modular design

Features

But what about the here and now? What does the first phase of Moto Mods look like and how do they work? Motorola has announced four Moto Mods to launch with the Moto Z: a projector, an extended battery pack, a style swap cover and a speaker. Here’s a closer look at the Moto Mods modules Motorola already has in store for you.

JBL SoundBoost speaker

This is my favorite Moto Mod so far. It’s a very simple idea: a speaker attachment for your Moto Z that snaps on and turns the back of your phone into a huge speaker. It even packs its own battery so you can get up to 10 hours of playback without draining your phone’s internal battery. It also has a nifty kickstand so you can prop it up and get a comfy multimedia experience in bed or on the move.

Incipio Off-Grid Power Pack

A bulky external battery isn’t anything new, but this is definitely a new way to make it work. The Incipio Off-Grid Power Pack snaps into place and, using the Moto Z’s 16-pin connectors, adds an impressive 22 hours of additional battery life. It also adds wireless charging capabilities to the Moto Z and while it’s bulky, it isn’t as ugly as most battery cases we’ve seen (note that this isn’t a case though, so the Moto Z’s edges aren’t protected).

Moto Insta-Share Projector

It’s pretty safe to say that built-in smartphone projectors haven’t exactly taken off but they are still a cool accessory to have. This is where the Moto Insta-Share Projector comes in. Following the same form factor as the other Moto Mods, the Insta-Share Projector includes a built-in battery for an hour of projecting time, a kickstand and 70-inch field of view. It’s just a shame they couldn’t have squeezed in enough battery to get you through a full movie.

Moto Style Shell

Moto Style Shells are simply replaceable back covers with a variety of different colors, designs and textures. For the Moto Z they are also available in real wood and leather and their slightly thick build means the Moto Z camera bump won’t be quite as noticeable. We’ll be interested to see just how snug the fit is though, considering the magnets on the back of the Moto Z are right at the bottom edge.

Wrap up

So that’s it. Nothing too revolutionary but an interesting first batch to launch the Moto Mods idea. It’s easy to see the JBL speaker mod will be the most popular, alongside the shells, but if the $1 million prize for the best module design has any impact we might see some pretty cool new modules in the very near future.

Which module do you think is best? What module would you design?

Up next: Moto Z and Z Force will be exclusive to Verizon until this Fall