Introduction

We have a good one for you today – the new Motorola Droid Turbo goes up against the ever-elusive Sony Xperia Z3.  Once again, we find the Droid Turbo as the ‘ugly duckling’ of plastic and Kevlar with its familiar ‘chin’ facing off against the beauty of rounded metal edges and glass…although both devices are solid and comfortable to hold.

There are a few areas where these two devices a similar – they both use a 5.2-inch display, both use a Qualcomm Snapdragon branded processor and both have 3GB of RAM and a 32GB option for internal storage.  Both devices use the same Sony sensor in their cameras, and they both have the usual Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 and a microUSB 2.o port for charging and data transfer.  The Droid Turbo and Xperia Z3 are both water resistant (the Sony more so), both have front-facing speakers, both are running Android 4.4.4 KitKat and both are only available on one carrier.

Please take a look at the detailed specifications listed below in the chart and then we will take a closer look at each individual device to try to determine the winner in this comparison.

Specifications

Motorola Droid Turbo

The new Motorola Droid Turbo is the newest addition to the Verizon line of Droid devices, but unlike previous devices, this time Motorola pulled out all of the stops (almost all) and delivered a high-end flagship that should make Verizon and its Droid heritage proud.  It is unmistakably part of the Droid line and still has the black and red plastic with Kevlar to back up its strength, although they also added a ballistic nylon backing in black that is very nice looking.

As I said in the introduction, these two devices both have a 5.2-inch display – but that is where it ends.  The Droid Turbo has a new Quad HD (QHD) AMOLED display with a resolution of 2560 x 1440 pixels and 565 pixels-per-inch (PPI)…enough to give you a real nosebleed versus the FHD LCD display on the Xperia Z3 with only 424 PPI.  They also both use the Snapdragon processor, but the Droid Turbo uses the newest 805 quad-core model clocked at 2.7GHz versus the last generation 801 clocked at 2.5GHz, as found in the Xperia Z3.  They both have 3GB of RAM, but when it comes to internal storage, the Droid Turbo offers either a 32GB or 64GB model with no expansion option.  The Xperia Z3 offers a 16GB or 32GB model, although there is a microSD card slot to add an additional 128GB.

The camera on both devices are almost identical – they each use the same 20.7 (21) MP Sony sensor with auto-focus and the Droid adds a dual-LED flash and the Xperia Z3 a single LED flash.  The Droid Turbo uses a 2MP front-facing camera and the Xperia Z3 uses a 2.2MP, used for social selfies and video chatting.

Both devices are very similar in size, although the weight of the huge 3900mAh battery versus the 3100mAh battery in the Xperia Z3 does add about 17 grams to the Droid Turbo.  The Droid Turbo uses a single front-facing speaker, has a nano coating for water repellency, wireless charging built-in and the price includes a Motorola Turbo Charger – able to give you a 60-percent charge in only 15-minutes.  It is available only on Verizon for $199 on a two-year contract or $599 off-contract for the 32GB model – you need to add $50 for the 64GB model.

Sony Xperia Z3

The Sony Xperia Z3 is a sixth month refresh of the Xperia Z2 to update it a bit to make it more competitive with the Galaxy S5 and LG G3.  It is a great looking device, except for the larger Sony bezels, with a rounded metal band that holds the display and the glass backing together.  Sony has always made a great device, but has always had trouble getting it on a U.S. carrier – this time around, T-Mobile will be selling the device and Verizon will be selling a Z3v that will be very similar to the Z3.

The Xperia Z3 comes with the same size display, however, this 5.2-inch display is only a FHD IPS LCD with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels and 424 PPI versus the 565 PPI on the Droid Turbo.  It uses the Snapdragon 801 quad-core processor clocked at 2.5GHz and 3GB of RAM.  It is a terrific processor, but not as technically advanced as the 805 found in the Droid Turbo – it has better power management, Quick Charge 2.0 and a better GPU for graphics.  The Xperia Z3 only goes up to 32GB of internal storage versus the 64GBs available on the Droid Turbo…however, the Xperia Z3 has a microSD card slot for expanding that 32GB by an additional 128GB.

The cameras have identical Sony 20.7 (21) MP sensors and they both offer auto-focus – the Xperia Z3 uses a single LED flash and the Droid Turbo uses a dual-LED flash, although the Xperia Z3 does have more options in its UI.  It uses a 2.2MP FFC and the Droid Turbo uses a 2MP FFC for social media selfies and video chatting.  Neither device includes Optical Image Stabilization (OIS).

As I mentioned earlier, both devices are about the same size with the Droid Turbo about 17 grams heavier – the difference may be because of the larger battery…the 3100mAh in the Xperia Z3 versus the 3900mAh battery found in the Droid Turbo.  The Xperia Z3 is fully IP65 and IP68 certified for dust and water resistance – much more so than the nano-coating found on the Droid Turbo.  It also has an FM radio built-in and front-facing stereo speakers, compared to the single one on the Droid Turbo.  If you are a PS4 gamer, than you will also appreciate the fact that with the purchase of a special game controller, the Xperia Z3 can snap in and be used for Remote Play.  The Xperia Z3 is on T-Mobile for $630.

…And The Winner Is…

Summary

I had to pick the Motorola Droid Turbo as the winner in this comparison – it has the better display, the better processor, about the same cameras, a larger battery, VoLTE calling, wireless charging, the Motorola Turbo Charger, almost pure Android for faster updates…all of this and it costs about the same money (actually a little cheaper).  With all of that going for it, how could I not pick the Droid Turbo?

The Sony Xperia Z3 is a beautiful device and other than Sony’s desire for large bezels, it is certainly prettier than the Droid Turbo.  It does offer Wi-Fi calling, stereo front-facing speakers, an FM radio, more water-proofing than the Droid Turbo and the PS4 Remote Play capability…but those features do not make up for the important specs of the display and processor.  Its biggest coup is the room for internal expansion.  It too is stuck on only one provider, T-Mobile, but at $630 is no bargain…and you have to ask yourself, “Do I want to pay more money to get an outdated processor and display?”

Please hit us up on our Google+ Page and let us know which device you would chose as the winner and WHY…as always, we would love to hear from you.