Motorola Droid Ultra Review

Motorola Droid Ultra Review: Slim, Durable, and Feature-Packed

The Motorola Droid Ultra, released in 2013, was designed as a fast, durable, and slim smartphone exclusive to Verizon’s Droid lineup. With its sleek design, strong performance, and unique Motorola features, the Droid Ultra was aimed at users who valued both aesthetics and functionality.

Design & Build

The Droid Ultra was notable for being incredibly thin, at just 7.18mm, making it one of the slimmest smartphones available at the time. It featured a Kevlar-reinforced back, giving it a durable and sturdy feel while still keeping it lightweight at 137 grams. The Kevlar coating also made it resistant to scratches and general wear and tear. However, the glossy finish was prone to fingerprints.

Display

The 5-inch Super AMOLED display with a 720p resolution (1280×720) delivered rich colors, deep blacks, and excellent contrast, typical of AMOLED screens. While it wasn’t Full HD, the display was still vibrant and suitable for media consumption, although it lagged behind competitors offering 1080p at the time.

Performance

The Droid Ultra was powered by Motorola’s custom X8 Mobile Computing System, featuring a 1.7GHz dual-core Snapdragon S4 Pro processor paired with 2GB of RAM. The X8 architecture included dedicated cores for tasks like natural language processing and contextual computing, enabling features like Touchless Control and Active Display. Overall, the Ultra handled multitasking and everyday tasks smoothly, although it wasn’t as powerful as some higher-end competitors.

Software Features

  • Touchless Control: One of the standout features, Touchless Control allowed users to interact with the phone via voice commands, even when the screen was off. Saying “OK Google Now” would activate voice search, make calls, or send texts, providing a hands-free experience.
  • Active Display: This feature displayed notifications on the screen in a power-efficient manner, lighting up only the necessary pixels to show the time and alerts, reducing battery drain.
  • Motorola Assist: The phone could automatically adjust its behavior based on your activities, such as silencing notifications during meetings or reading texts aloud while driving.

Camera

The 10MP rear camera with Motorola’s ClearPixel technology promised better low-light performance by capturing more light than typical sensors. The camera produced decent images in daylight but was hit-or-miss in low-light conditions. The 2MP front camera was functional for video calls and selfies, but not particularly impressive.

Battery Life

The Droid Ultra came with a 2130mAh battery, which provided solid but not exceptional battery life. It could last a full day of moderate use, but heavy use of features like Touchless Control and Active Display could drain the battery faster. Motorola’s software optimizations helped conserve battery life, but the non-removable battery was a limitation for some users.

Connectivity

The phone supported 4G LTE, ensuring fast data speeds on Verizon’s network. It also included NFC, Bluetooth 4.0, and wireless charging capability, although a wireless charging pad was sold separately.

Conclusion

The Motorola Droid Ultra was a sleek, durable smartphone with innovative features like Touchless Control and Active Display that enhanced the user experience. While its 720p display and 10MP camera weren’t the best in its class, the phone’s thin profile, strong build quality, and unique software features made it an attractive option, particularly for Verizon users. It was a great choice for those who wanted a durable, feature-rich smartphone without sacrificing style.