Motorola Signature 27 brings a 7,000mAh battery and seven years of Android updates for $1,600

Motorola has never been afraid to experiment with smartphone design, and its latest flagship is another good example. After weeks of teasers and an early preview at the Snapdragon Summit, the Motorola Signature 27 is officially here. And while its unusual camera design will probably be the first thing you notice, there’s much more to this phone than its looks.

What’s interesting is that Motorola isn’t trying to make another flagship that looks and feels like everything else on the market. It’s clearly going after people who want something a little different, without necessarily compromising on the things that make a phone great to use every day.

The Signature 27 comes in two Pantone finishes, Coal Smoke and Capulet Olive, with a slim aluminum frame and curved edges. I’m particularly fond of the Olive option, which looks refreshing compared to the usual black, white, and gray phones we see every year. And despite its more fashion-focused design, Motorola hasn’t forgotten durability. You get Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3 protection and IP68 and IP69 ratings for dust and water resistance.

Under the hood, the Signature 27 runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipset, making it one of the first phones to use the new processor. Motorola has also upgraded its ArcticMesh cooling system with a 40% larger thermal chamber and diamond-infused thermal gel to help manage heat. That could be useful if you spend your evenings playing demanding games or frequently record long 4K videos. Of course, we’ll have to see how well the cooling system actually works before giving Motorola too much credit.

The cameras are arguably where things get more interesting. There’s a 50MP Sony LYTIA L910 main sensor, a 200MP periscope telephoto camera with up to 100x zoom, and a 50MP ultrawide camera. You also get a 50MP selfie camera.

But the feature I’m most curious about is Motorola’s new dedicated EVS action sensor. It’s designed to work alongside Action Shot to capture moving subjects with less blur. Think about photographing your dog running around the park or your kid playing football. Those are exactly the moments when smartphone cameras can struggle, particularly when the lighting isn’t ideal.

Motorola is also using AI to adjust colors, contrast, and dynamic range while recording videos, with Dolby Vision support thrown in. Whether these additions can help the Signature 27 compete with the best camera phones remains to be seen, but the hardware is certainly interesting.

On the front, you get a large 6.8-inch AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+ support, and a claimed peak brightness of 12,000 nits.

Motorola has packed in several AI features, too, including Gemini, Rambler, Create My Widget, and Sign-to-text. There’s also Motorola Qira, which aims to connect AI experiences across supported Motorola and Lenovo devices.

What I appreciate more is Motorola’s commitment to software support. The Signature 27 ships with Android 17 and promises seven years of OS updates. That’s a welcome change for a company that hasn’t always been particularly generous with updates, and it puts Motorola alongside Google and Samsung in terms of promised software longevity.

What’s more, Motorola has squeezed a whopping 7,000mAh battery into the phone, a claimed 35% increase over its predecessor. It also supports 90W wired charging, with Motorola advertising a quick 12-minute top-up, plus wireless charging. The large battery is probably one of the biggest reasons I’d be interested in this phone, though we’ll need real-world testing to see how much endurance that extra capacity delivers.

Motorola will announce the Signature 27 globally, but there’s a catch if you’re planning to buy one outside the US. For now, the phone will be available exclusively in the US.

US buyers can pre-order the Signature 27 starting November 19 through Motorola, Amazon, and Best Buy, with unlocked sales beginning November 26. The phone is also priced at £1,299.99 in the UK. At $1,600, it’s certainly not cheap, and Motorola will have to do a lot to justify that price.

Still, the Signature 27 looks like an interesting alternative for anyone who wants to try something beyond the usual flagship choices.