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Is a Hasselblad camera module coming to the Moto Z? Leak says it’s possible

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When the Moto Z was first launched, a number of great Moto Mods were launched alongside it, including a projector, battery pack, and a JBL speaker. One thing, however, was missing — a more extensive camera.

Sure, smartphone cameras are getting better, but they’re not on the same level as purpose-built DSLR cameras — not by a long shot. It seems, however, as though we may be getting a Moto Mod camera module in the near future, at least if a new leak is anything to go by.

camera-module
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The camera module will reportedly be built by Hasselblad, and speculation was that the module would be announced alongside the Moto Z and Moto Z Force. According to the leak, which includes a photo, the camera module will include a True Zoom Camera, offering up to 10x optical zoom, a xenon flash, a physical shutter and zoom, and even support for RAW photos.

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The leak comes from well-known Motorola leakster HelloMotoHK, which got the photo from Weibo user @ucanup. Additional photos emerged in late August.

For those needing a portable camera option, this mod will most certainly be a helpful one, and will seriously improve the capabilities of the phone’s camera.

Of course, there’s no official information about the mod just yet, so it’s important to take everything with a grain of salt. We don’t know anything about the price at this time, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see it come in at a few hundred dollars, especially given the fact that Sony has produced modular camera attachments for its phones in that price range.

The modular smartphone concept has started becoming a lot more popular of late, and could add a lot more functionality to our smartphones. The camera has always been a big part of the smartphone, and an improved camera could really boost the quality of photos being taken on the fly.

Updated on 08-25-2016 by Kyle Wiggers: Added leaked image of the reported Hasselblad mod. 

Article originally published in August 2016. Kyle Wiggers contributed to this report. 

Christian de Looper
Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…
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