With the Moto G, Motorola not only brought a real bestseller onto the market in 2013, but also the “best-selling mobile phone in Motorola history” according to the manufacturer. Can the successor build on the successes? This review will tell you.
With the second generation of the Moto G, Motorola is relaunching the bestseller of the past few months and has given the smartphone some optimizations such as a larger display, a better camera and many other little things. How the new Moto G performs in everyday life and whether an upgrade from the Moto G from 2013 is worthwhile can be found in this review.
General
Nothing has really changed under the hood, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 processor with a clock frequency of 1.2 GHz with four cores is still used. In addition, Motorola has built in the option of using two SIM cards as standard in the second generation Moto G. So it is possible to have the professional number in the same smartphone as the private one, or to combine contracts and networks. LTE is not supported by the current G, so we expect Motorola to push a version with LTE support in this regard. Optionally with 8GB or 16GB internal memory, the new Moto G also has a micro SD card slot to expand the memory. Motorola does without the fast WLAN ac standard in the Moto G, the device supports Wifi 802.11 b / g / n. From the technical side, some improvements can be seen, the highlight should definitely be the new display and the improved camera.
Design and workmanship
From the outside, the Moto G 2.0 does not differ that much from the first Moto G, the Moto X or the Moto E. The Motorola-typical interchangeable, matt back with curvature and the piano lacquer sides give a high-quality feeling that comes from a qualitative workmanship is underlined again. In terms of material, plastic is used everywhere, only the buttons on the right-hand side and the speakers are a little less valuable. In this price range, however, this is completely okay. Compared to the previous Moto G, the device has become longer and slightly wider due to the larger display.
The new form factor and the thickness reduced by 0.6 centimeters ensure a pleasant feel, which we prefer to that of the old Moto G. With the new Motorola smartphone, you get a sleek, handsome smartphone that has nothing to complain about in terms of design and workmanship.
As with the Moto E, the speakers are placed on the front of the new Moto G. This has the immense advantage that the sound is really output towards the listener when it is used. In addition, the two speakers are not covered by the table or hand. The sound is good for smartphone speakers, but they sound a bit tinny in high volume ranges.
Performance and software
The Moto G uses a version of the original stock Android that has only been slightly modified by Motorola. Motorola has added three of its own to the normal Google apps, “Alert”, “Assist” and “Motorola Migrate”.
Alert shares its own location with friends and acquaintances and notifies them in an emergency, Assist automates voice switching during meetings or while sleeping and Motorola Migrieren helps new users move their data from another Android device or iPhone to the Moto G. Device with Android KitKat 4.4.4. Since Motorola has only made minor changes to the Android system, it runs very smoothly and with high performance. For example, even graphically complex games such as Dead Trigger 2 or Smash Hit run on the Moto G without any problems. Animations are no longer quite as smooth on higher graphics settings in games, but if you want to play something every now and then, you can do this with the Moto G.
The operating flow and the general performance are astonishing in view of the somewhat older processor and give an insight into how fast Android smartphones can be when manufacturers keep software slim.
Display and camera
Motorola has definitely made the biggest leap compared to its predecessor model with the display. The previous 4.5 inch display has grown to a full 5 inches and continues to have a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels. This results in a pixel density of 294 ppi. The constant resolution with an increase in size turns out to be sufficiently sharp in everyday use. Although the display of the Moto G can be clearly distinguished from a Full HD panel, the display of the Moto G is definitely in a class of its own in the mid-range / entry-level segment. Brightness, colors and viewing angles are really great for a device of this price, even if it cannot be compared with a high-end display.
Motorola has also improved the camera in the new Moto G. The new version of the rear camera, which used to have a resolution of 5 megapixels, shoots images with 8 megapixels and the front camera has a resolution of 2 megapixels. In addition, the 2nd Moto G has an auto focus on board; the first model only supported Tap to Focus. The quality of the images is okay; in poor light situations, noise occurs relatively quickly. The camera app known from other Motorola smartphones is well structured and offers basic functions. In addition, features such as HDR recordings, panorama images and slow motion videos are available. The Moto G still lacks a Photosphere function.
Battery power
The Motorola smartphone’s battery has remained the same with a capacity of 2070 mAh, but it is convincing despite the larger display. Motorola manages to adapt the software so well to the device that the consumption of the Moto G of the second generation in stand-by mode is negligible. If you don’t spend the whole day in front of the screen, you will get through the day with the new Moto G without any problems, and two full days are possible with little use.
Conclusion
With the second edition of the Moto G, Motorola is successfully updating its products and introducing the new edition just in time for the Christmas business. The improvements are clearly noticeable in everyday life, and things like the larger display come to be appreciated over time. You have to know for yourself whether the upgrade from the first Moto G to the second generation is worthwhile just because of the larger display, dual SIM support and better camera. De facto, the hood works the same hardware, so there is no more horsepower. But if you are only looking for a good entry-level device for a maximum of 200 euros, you can stop looking at the Moto G. There is no better smartphone for the money.
