If you've got a Moto Z2 Force in the United States and were patiently waiting for your Android 9.0 Pie update, don't hold your breath. Motorola posted in Lenovo support forums this week that unless you have the Verizon unit, you won't get the update in the U.S.
The reason that the Verizon will still get it is because it's necessary to enable support for the 5G Moto Mod. While the Moto Z3 was branded as the first 5G-upgradeable phone, Motorola had promised that it would bring the functionality to older devices like the Z2 Force. Presumably, it's more work than its worth to create a separate Android Pie update that doesn't support the 5G Moto Mod.
After all, the 5G Moto Mod only works with Verizon variants of the Moto Z series of handsets. Even unlocked models won't work.
The real disservice to consumers here though is that Motorola really hasn't offered much of a reason to upgrade from the Moto Z2 Force. The Moto Z3 has the same internal specs but it had a taller display, moving the fingerprint sensor to the side. This year's Moto Z4 swaps out the Snapdragon 835 for a Snapdragon 675, turning what was once decidedly a flagship smartphone lineup into a mid-range device. It would seem that the driving factor to upgrade at this point would be for software updates.
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