The Motorola Signature 27—the follow-up to the original Signature we spotted at CES 2026—offers a tactile, automotive-inspired finish reminiscent of a luxury car’s interior. Under the hood is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chip, making the Signature 27 one of the first phones to hit the road with the agentic AI-focused processor. Revving up its appeal are a massive 7,000mAh silicon-carbon battery, a 200MP periscope telephoto camera, and what Motorola claims is the brightest display in a smartphone. However, getting behind the wheel of this fancy flagship will cost you a pretty penny—160,000 pennies, to be exact.
Feels Good, Lasts Long
If there’s one thing Motorola does better than other rivals, it’s making phones that actually feel interesting to hold. Pantone Coal Smoke has an inky hue and a rugged, woven texture inspired by automotive design, while Pantone Capulet Olive leans more green with a softer, textile-inspired look.
(Credit: Motorola)
The Signature 27 seems built to take a few hits, thanks to its dual IP68 and IP69 ratings, which mean it’s dust-tight and designed to withstand everything from a 30-minute dunk in 5 feet of water to high-pressure, high-temperature washdowns. Plus, it’s MIL-STD-810H tested, meaning it’s rugged enough to withstand extreme physical stresses. That’s on top of the fact that it’s got an aerospace-grade aluminum frame combined with Corning Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3 on the exterior, so durability appears to be top-tier on the Signature 27.
The Signature weighs 0.50 pounds, which matches the Google Pixel 11 Pro XL, but it’s slightly heavier than the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra (0.47 pounds). It measures 6.38 by 3.03 by 0.31 inches, matching the S26 Ultra in thickness but coming in thinner than the Pixel 11 Pro XL.
Record-Breaking Display Brightness
Motorola boasts that the Signature 27 is a record-setter, delivering the world’s brightest smartphone display, peaking at 12,000 nits.
(Credit: Motorola)
The 6.8-inch, 1,272-by-2,772-pixel resolution display, called Extreme AMOLED Duo, features tandem technology (i.e., two stacked layers) that reportedly delivers up to 34% greater energy efficiency. In other words, this display should be less of a strain on battery life. The Signature 27’s screen supports a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate, Dolby Vision, and HDR10+.
Catching Motion Before It Blurs
Motorola claims that the Signature 27 features its “best camera system yet.” On the rear, you’ll find a 50MP Sony LYTIA L910 main shooter, a 200MP periscope telephoto lens with 100x Super Zoom, and a 50MP ultrawide camera.
(Credit: Motorola)
However, the star of the show is the first-ever dedicated EVS action sensor on a smartphone. This motion-tracking hardware helps capture fast-moving subjects with greater clarity and precision, working in tandem with the “Action Shot” feature on the Signature 27. The Motorola phone also packs a 50MP front-facing camera, along with support for up to 8K/30fps video capture on the rear.
Massive Battery
The Signature 27 features a huge 7,000mAh silicon-carbon battery, reportedly lasting for 66 hours of mixed usage. For video playback, the Signature 27 can survive a claimed 47 hours. The latter best matches our PCMag battery test, so I can’t wait to secure a review unit and see if our results match Motorola’s figures.
(Credit: Motorola)
The phone also supports up to 90W wired charging, up to 50W wireless charging, and up to 5W reverse charging.
Silicon That Runs Errands
The Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chip helps power the Signature 27’s contextual, personalized, and agentic AI experiences through Google’s Gemini Intelligence. For example, you can ask Gemini to handle real-world tasks, such as requesting an Uber ride or booking a table through OpenTable. Rambler also makes dictation more forgiving, capturing your intended meaning even when you stumble over your words or use filler phrases. And with Create My Widget, you can generate personalized home-screen widgets using conversational prompts.
Recommended by Our Editors
(Credit: Motorola)
The processor works alongside Motorola’s redesigned ArcticMesh cooling system, which uses a 40% larger vapor chamber to dissipate heat during intensive workloads such as gaming and video recording.
Industry-Leading Audio
Phone speakers typically take a back seat, but not on the Signature 27. The Motorola phone is the only in-market smartphone that currently features Bang & Olufsen-tuned audio.
(Credit: Motorola)
The coaxial speakers (i.e., two sound drivers built into one speaker) have two drivers in the bottom speaker: one for bass and another that acts as a tweeter. A second speaker sits at the top of the phone. Motorola claims that the Signature 27’s sound system delivers deep bass, clear vocals, and high fidelity across music, movies, and games.
Price and Availability
Are you ready for this? The Signature 27 will set you back a whopping $1,599 and comes with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. The Motorola phone, launching with Android 17, will be available for preorder on Nov. 19 and will hit store shelves on Nov. 26.
About Our Expert
Kimberly Gedeon
Senior Writer, Mobile
Experience
I’m PCMag’s Senior Writer for Mobile on the Consumer Electronics team, diving into the latest phones, tablets, Bluetooth speakers, audio devices, and other portable gear. I’ve been covering consumer technology for six years. Before joining PCMag, I contributed my tech expertise to Laptop Magazine, Mashable, Tom’s Guide, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, and more.
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