Motorola has released a new video via YouTube titled “Hello World's Largest Phone Drop” that is clearly a marketing ploy to try to show off their shatterproof screen technology used on the Moto Z2 Force. Motorola's shatterproof screens – branded as ShatterShield – have turned out to be a bit of a double-edged sword for consumers. They seem to perform as intended in drop tests and protect the screen from shattering. However, as we have discovered along with many buyers and owners, the plastic used is easily scratched which makes for a difficult tradeoff. In light of the criticism Motorola has been receiving over this particular weakness of the plastic screens, the company appears to be trying to generate some positive press with the new video.
The video itself may go down as a bit of a ridiculous vanity project for Motorola instead of a useful, effective marketing gem. In the video, Motorola has 100 of their employees perform a couple different drops – at least, that is what we are led to believe. Described as the “largest phone drop” in the title, this is apparently meant to refer to 100 people dropping their devices at once. That feat actually occurs towards the end of the video as the first portion is consumed by a successive drop stunt – think a row of dominoes falling – involving the Moto Z2 Force phones.
One problem with the video is that we never really get a chance to see whether all of the screens survived intact. That is probably a given as the ShatterShield tech does seem to be effective at the job it was designed for, stopping shattered screens from dropped smartphones. It should be noted though that at least of portion of the drops occur on what appears to be a wood deck – a relatively soft landing surface – so that may not be the most persuasive test.
If you want to see Motorola's latest marketing effort, you can view the video below. Just don't expect to finish having learned anything you probably were not already aware of.
