Google Pixel 10 and its Qi2 magnets could be the perfect device to revive the magic of Moto Mods

While every leaked render and marketing tease for Google upcoming smartphone launch might make the Pixel 10 feel like a year-old rerun, the devil’s seemingly in the details. Even setting aside the usual round of software enhancements — only some of which have just begun to leak — it’s clear Google does have some hardware tricks up its sleeve Chief among them is native Qi2 support, which should bring support for magnetic chargers, wallets, stands, and much more to every device in the Pixel 10 lineup.

If you’ve used anything newer than the iPhone 12 — or you’ve splurged for a MagSafe-compatible case for all sorts of Android devices — you already know how great magnetic-based accessories are. We’ve seen a handful of brands, including Samsung and OnePlus, dip their respective toes into the world of Qi2 support, but that sense of excitement is seriously dulled when you realize you need those cases for any of these tools to work. Aside from an outlier or two, the Pixel 10 lineup will be the first major Android device to include Qi2’s magnet array within the smartphone itself, with the only sacrifice being a minor (and in my eyes, worthwhile) increase in thickness.

But I want more. See, Google’s decision to reuse the design language from last year’s Pixel 9 lineup comes with some added potential now that all four phones have embedded magnets hidden right below the surface: the chance to bring back an idea Motorola abandoned at the tail end of last decade. That’s right, Pixel fans — it’s time for Google to revive Moto Mods.

Moto Mods felt way ahead of its time, which is probably why they didn’t work out

Moto Mods, for those who don’t remember, arrived with the Moto Z in 2016. Motorola’s one-time flagship series had some pretty slick tricks up its sleeve, combining a shockingly slim chassis — even by today’s standards — with a magnetic accessory lineup. Unlike previous attempts to design a modular smartphone, Moto Mods were hot-swappable; while LG’s “Friends” required cracking open the battery compartment on the G5, Moto Mods were, in many ways, more like the MagSafe and Qi2 accessories we’ve come to know and love today.

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Really, the downfall of Moto Mods had nothing to do with how well they worked, but rather, the limitation of such a product lineup. Motorola only offered Mods on the Z-series, which saw several mainline and spin-off entries released from 2016 to 2019. Early excitement from the company — including the promise of a million dollar offer to the best third-party Mod developer — had fizzled out by 2018, resulting in layoffs from its Chicago-based team and the eventual death of the Z-series after its fourth-gen model.

Frankly, Motorola was the wrong company to go about this. At the time, the company’s biggest success — both critically and commercially — was its budget-friendly G-series. Even after its split from Google, Motorola was making solid entry-level and midrange smartphones well before the Galaxy A-series and Pixel A-series stole its thunder. The Moto Z and its various follow-ups weren’t bad, but the focus on expensive accessories and the compromises from the magnetic modular system were apparent from the jump.

But there were a lot of good ideas, especially with the Mods themselves. Hasselblad developed a point-and-shoot-esque camera system long before it would partner with OnePlus and Oppo on their respective phones, providing 10x zoom and a real flash. JBL made add-on speakers that ran circles around any built-in offerings at the time. Battery packs, game controllers, photo printers, and even a projector — Moto Mods produced a lot of cool concepts, even if the entire ecosystem never quite managed to go mainstream.

And that’s to say nothing of Motorola’s “Style Shells,” which transformed the joys of Moto Maker into something you could do in your home. The Moto Z’s 5.2mm chassis could easily support additional material padded onto the back without feeling too bulky, eliminating the need for a case for plenty of users while delivering an early sense of those fashion-forward vibes the company would later adopt with the Moto Razr.

If anything, I think Moto Mods’ inability to score any mainstream success really boils down to timing. The original Moto Z shipped a year before the iPhone X, Galaxy S8, and Pixel 2 XL all started to move towards taller, edge-to-edge panels, while Motorola found itself boxed into a design it promised to support for at least two additional generations. By the end of the Z-series, the company’s devices looked wildly dated next to practically any other smartphone on the market, to say nothing of the (fairly ugly) pogo pins that stuck out like a sore thumb whenever a Mod wasn’t in active use.

A good idea poorly executed, in other words — and that’s exactly where Google can swoop in to pick up the pieces.

Google can make good on the Moto Mods promise — even if it’s not a perfect recreation

The Pixel 10 lineup seems tailor-made for a Moto Mods-style reboot. Obviously it’s got built-in magnets, just like the original Moto Z had. It’s got a splashy, memorable name in “Pixelsnap,” one that should include various optional first-party accessories in addition to every third-party MagSafe/Qi2 accessory already on the market. And rather than starting with an entirely fresh smartphone series, Google appears to be building this support directly into its entire 2025 flagship lineup, practically guaranteeing far more attention than Moto Mods ever got.

But for me, the biggest factor is the Pixel 10’s design. Leaks and teases alike show Google reusing last year’s design, complete with the same squared-off, protruding camera bump that is, when paired with magnets, surprisingly reminiscent of the Moto Z. That phone series used its large, circular camera bump to help hold accessories in place, something that could be easily recreated on the Pixel 10, 10 Pro, and 10 Pro XL. Google’s got plenty of new colors , but I’d love to see a series of first-party Style Shell-type add-ons to deliver just a bit more personalization.

It seems, to me, like a match made in heaven. Still, I’m not going to pretend there aren’t some obvious shortcomings here, both compared to Moto Mods themselves and with how something similar would play with the Pixel 10.

First, the design. The entire Pixel 10 series, like the Pixel 9 lineup before it, is pretty chunky. While adding on a magnetic backplate might not be that much bulkier than any random case off Amazon, it’s going to pale in comparison to a chassis so sleek, OEMs today are manufacturing “ultra-slim” phones that still can’t compete. A magnetic shell flush with the camera bar would make the entire device over 12mm thick, and that might be a touch too far for those of us who live a caseless lifestyle.

Second, we don’t totally know how Pixelsnap works at the moment when pairing Pixel hardware with a magnetic accessory. MagSafe supports some communication between various accessories through NFC, but it’s a far cry from the pogo pin implementation on the Moto Z. Say what you will about its appearance, but there’s a reason pogo pins are still relied on for accessories like tablet keyboards to this very day. I think we can safely say some of the coolest Moto Mod accessories — projectors, game controllers, etc. — simply could not work just through a magnetic connection on its own.

But that still leaves plenty of room for Google and third-party partners to really innovate on some excited accessories. Build a hybrid power bank-meets-Bluetooth speaker that aligns perfectly with the shape of either the Pixel 10 and 10 Pro or the Pixel 10 Pro XL. Design a wallet add-on that feels as though it’s part of the device’s design rather than awkwardly protruding from the back. Make a crazy slider QWERTY keyboard just because you can. Hell, even just Style Shell-like back covers would be a worthy endeavor in making the Pixel feel a little more customizable than in years past.

I’m struggling to see a reason here for Google to skip out on embracing some of Motorola’s best concepts from a decade ago in a more modern fashion. Not every accessories needs to be perfectly flush with the phone — we’ve seen that for years with MagSafe and Qi2-compliant battery banks. The opportunity is there, though, for both Google and other casemakers to lean heavily into some half-forgotten ideas from 2016. While I doubt we’ll ever see Moto Mods come roaring back to life with the same sort of surprising capability, the Pixel 10 certainly feels like the right time to try.

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