Motorola One Action launched with a GoPro-like camera

Motorola released its “One” budget line of smartphones last year. Today it announced its latest smartphone in the series: the Motorola One Action. However it’s not the specs of the smartphone that makes it stand out from the crowd, it’s the action-camera like video quality on a smartphone.

GoPro in a Smartphone

The “Action” tag in the name refer to the third camera sensor on the phone. It’s a dedicated ultra-wide video camera with 117-degree field of view that can shoot videos like a GoPro. Motorola made a few tweaks to make it different from a regular smartphone.

Apart from the super-wide field of view, Motorola also physically rotated the camera. This means you can hold the handset vertically, while the camera’s frame records video horizontally (and vice versa). Though a small change, it allows users to get the best out of the hardware. The company has embedded a software-side algorithm calling it “Enhanced Video Stabilisation”.

Motorola One Action specs

The Motorola One Action features a 6.3 inch FHD+ display with a hole-punch cutout at the top left corner. It is powered by a Samsung Exynos 9609 paired with 4GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. The other two sensors at the rear are ordinary sensors of 12MP and 5MP. The front offers a 5MP camera for selfies and video calling. It is backed by a 3,500 mAh battery and has a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. The 3.5 mm headphone jack is also retained.

The device will ship with Android One internationally despite the “One” tag. The North American version running a customized Android 9 Pie will go on sale in US and Canada in sometime in October. The handset with pure Android will be available from today in Brazil, Mexico and various European countries from today starting at €259 (Rs 20,500 approx).

The Motorola One Action is certainly not your average smartphone. The company is aiming for a new kind of customer by offering something new on the table. The smartphone is a clear indication of Motorola’s ambition and desire for something different.