Car and Motorcycle Mounts for the Motorola Moto Z

Car and Motorcycle Mounts for the Motorola Moto ZThe Motorola Moto Z also known as the Motorola Moto Z Droid in the US is the company’s latest entry in the lucrative high-end smartphone lineup.

The size specifications are average for the smartphone universe.  With a 5.5″ AMOLED touchscreen, 16M colors display using Gorilla Glass 4 this phone is 6.04 x 2.96 x 0.20 inches (very thin isn’t it).  These are important measurements to keep in mind when selecting your mount.  For those with a mount from an older phone, you may find the Motorola Moto Z will fit fine.  Most universal mounts offer options to upgrade your cradle to a larger one.  Be very aware of the size of any cradle, this is a large phone that may not fit in all cradles.  A lot of older cradles only open to 3″ so if you have a case or skin, it’s time for a new mount.

Speaking of cases,the Motorola Moto Z is an expensive phone.  Buy a case for it.  I have always liked the Otterbox Defender series which we reviewed here, but there are lots of others.  Invest about $25 or so.  A single drop on ceramic tile that results in a broken lens will cost way more than the case.  If you think insurance will cover you, think again.  Insurance policies purchased from your carrier have a deductible and for newer more expensive phones that can be $169 on up.  So to add insult to injury, you will not only be paying the monthly insurance premium, but you will then pay the deductible.  You can read our article on phone insurance here.  A case costs less than insurance and will prevent a lot of headaches involved in making a claim.

Let’s discuss mounts.  We’re going to recommend mounts that have expandable cradles.  The cradles will be large enough to hold the Motorola Moto Z along with a case or skin.

For the car, give the location of your mount some thought.  There are lots of places to mount your Motorola Moto Z.  We’re going to recommend mounts for the most popular locations to mount a smartphone.

The windshield is the most popular location to mount especially when using it as a GPS with my favorite application which is Waze.  We continue to like the Arkon Megagrip Travel Suction Cup Car Mount for this purpose.  This mount has an expandable cradle which opens to 3.4 inches by pressing the button at the lower left corner.  This will fit your phone with or without a case.  The mount comes with an adhesive dash plate so that you can attach to the mount to your dash as well as your windshield.  This dash disk is handy for states that do not permit windshield mounts which we documented in a recent article.  A photo of this mount in the dashboard configuration accompanies this article.

No way to use all the cup holders in today’s vehicles, so use one as a mount point.  Consider the iKross Car Cup Holder Phone Mount.  The cup holder base is expandable from 2.7 to 3.7 inches.  It will fit almost any vehicle’s cup holder.  There is a 12″ flexible stem that allows bending of the mount to the right angle for the driver or passenger.  The phone can rotate 360 degrees into portrait or landscape and is easy to insert and remove.  The expandable cradle opens to 8 inches so it will fit your phone with or without a case or skin.  This mount comes with a one-year warranty.

The Spigen Magnetic Vent Mount for SmartPhones is an excellent choice for your vent.  This mount can be used on horizontal and vertical vents.  Right around eye level and out of the way of potential thieves, the vent is a good location for mounting a lightweight device.  Check your vent to make sure it’s well made enough to hang a lightweight device.  A recent innovation is mounts is the use of a small magnet coupled with a very thin adhesive metal disk which sticks to the back of your phone.  The great thing about magnetic mounts is the simple process for install and removal.  It’s a simple matter of simply matching up where the metal strip is to the magnet.

For motorcycle use, it’s important to select a mount that has a well constructed cradle that is going to hold the Motorola Moto Z very tightly so that it stays put through the vibration of a ride.  We continue to recommend the RAM X-Grip line.  Most motorcycles can use the RAM X-Grip IV Handlebar Mount.  These mounts feature the expandable X-Grip IV cradle which can open to 4.5 inches which is large enough for most cases.  These are heavy-duty mounts that are mostly constructed of metal and feature a lifetime warranty.  They fit handlebar diameters up to 1.25 inches.  The mount has gone through some rigorous shake tests and holds up well on a motorcycle.  We wrote about X-Grips extensively on this site and you can view that article here.  We always recommend tethering your device for added security and RAM now includes a free tether with these mounts.