Motorola ThinkPhone Review: First Impressions

Phones designed for business are rarely the most interesting devices, but the ThinkPhone has something to offer. Expanding such an iconic brand into the smartphone space is a smart move, even if the device itself is standard priced.

prologue

ThinkPad is one of the most iconic laptop series ever. Now Motorola and its parent company Lenovo are expanding their brand into the smartphone arena with the ThinkPhone.

Designed for business users and large enterprises, ThinkPhone is a high-spec Motorola Android phone with additional features for the security-focused target market.

The ThinkPhone isn’t going to be widely available to general consumers, but I got the chance to use it for about an hour ahead of its launch at CES 2023.

screen and design

• red shortcut button
• Sturdy build

The DNA of the ThinkPad series is evident in ThinkPhone in several ways. The most obvious is the red shortcut button on the side. It’s a nod to the iconic nub found in the middle of ThinkPad laptops to this day.

The finish on the back of the phone should be familiar to ThinkPad users, but the ThinkPhone brand reflects what you’d find in a laptop. It’s safe to say you did a good job.

The rest of the phone is a little more generic, but I think it looks great in a professional way. That’s really the point here: it’s almost iPhone-flat on the sides and covered by a 6.6-inch display on the front. The main body is made of highly rigid aluminum alloy.

It has both an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance and a MIL-STD 810 rating for drop protection. A device that can be handed to multiple possibly clumsy employees has two welcome features. But don’t expect a slot for expandable storage or a headphone jack here.

When it comes to display technology, the ThinkPhone ticks most of the basic boxes, but doesn’t offer much new. This is an OLED panel that delivers pristine blacks and excellent contrast, with a 120Hz refresh rate for smooth scrolling. The resolution is FHD+ with basic HDR support.

performance

• Focus on security
• Not the latest Qualcomm chipset, but plenty of power
• 68w fast charging

ThinkPhones are primarily enterprise-oriented, with many software features tailored to specific markets.

There’s a strong focus on security, for example, with a feature called ThinkShield that works with a dedicated security chip to enhance pin and passcode protection. Motorola also promises his four years of security updates from Google.

Another feature of note is the Think 2 Think, a version of the Ready For software available on some of Motorola’s high-end phones.

This lets you use your phone’s camera as your laptop’s webcam, create an integrated clipboard for easy copy/paste between devices, and easily share files. In addition to sharing notifications with your Windows PC, Think can also extend your phone screen across connected monitors.

Powering the phone is Qualcomm’s 2021 flagship 8+ Gen 1 chipset, which pairs 8GB of RAM with 256GB of storage. Of course, it supports 5G, and if you use a compatible router, it also supports Wi-Fi 6E.

I’ve only had the phone for about an hour and haven’t been able to run any benchmark tests, but it should be more than a capable performer. More time is needed to properly test battery life. All I can say is that there’s a 68w fast charger in the box (which can even charge a recent ThinkPad at full speed) and onboard slow Qi wireless charging to complete the package. .

camera

• Same camera array as Moto Edge 30 Fusion
• Multiple rear cameras, one front camera

It’s a business-first device, so I doubt the camera was a priority, but there are still multiple sensors dotted around the phone. It consists of a 50MP main camera with OIS and a 13MP ultra-wide and depth sensor.

There’s also a 32MP camera on the front, which we feel is more important for a device that will likely be used more for things like video calls.