Overall and Final Verdict
The worst part about putting two phones like the MotoX 2014 and the Droid Turbo against each other is they really are both great phones. Both phones share a LOT but the biggest thing to remember is both phones give you as close to a pure Android experience that you will get without buying a Nexus device. What does that mean? Well both phones skip out on skins and software that make upgrading in the future harder. It isn’t a pure experience because you still do get all of the software that the Verizon installs and the Turbo also has a few Droid brand specific things as well.
So in the end it is nearly all about the hardware. While the MotoX performed extremely well, in most of our benchmarks the Droid Turbo did pull away with its faster CPU and GPU. Ironically, the biggest hardware difference between the two phones was the Turbo’s high capacity battery but the MotoX’s last minute upgrade to Android 5.0 managed to give enough of a boost in battery performance to put up numbers very close to the Turbo. That said, next month with the Turbo gets 5.0 it should perform even better in battery life. Where the MotoX did perform better was in most of the camera testing, the Turbo’s higher megapixel camera didn’t translate to better photographs in 3 out of our 4 tests.
Aesthetically they are both great looking phones. The Droid Turbo does have a little more beef to it with its larger battery though. The MotoX also has the advantage of allowing full customization. I mean how many other phones will let you order any trim color, back panel, and even etch your name or a quote onto the back.
So to figure out what phone I prefer I had to ask myself two questions. What phone would I buy if I were shopping for a new phone right now? Also what phone did I use more when I had both on me while testing. If I were buying a new phone right now I would go with the Droid Turbo without a question. I love its performance and the large battery capacity is extremely important to me. What phone did I use the most? LOL Well that was the MotoX, beyond wanting to toy with 5.0 more I also found it a little easier to hold in hand. But picking the MotoX was easy to do when I knew I had the Turbo right there with its rock solid battery life. In the end the Droid Turbo > the MotoX 2014 by a small margin.