Motorola Moto G Power Review: Heavy battery life
"The durable Moto G Power offers long battery life, but is too heavy for most buyers."
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Two to three days of battery life
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Nice display for budget phone
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Feels solid and durable
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Using an Ultrawide camera is fun
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Heavy and thick
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No NFC for Google Pay
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Main camera is just OK
Do you want a cheap Android phone? Motorola is probably your first stop. The experienced smartphone manufacturer has two new releases, the Moto G Stylus and the Moto G Power, each aimed at very specific users.
They do what they say. The G-pen has a pen and the G Power tested here has electricity. Battery power. I know your child may be looking over your shoulder. Let's just call it a metric fudge ton – 5,000 mAh, to be exact.
That is much! The iPhone 11 has a 3,110 mAh battery and the Google Pixel 4 XL has a 3,700 mAh battery. Some phones, like the Asus ZenFone 6, are the same size as the G Power battery, but most are not.
What makes the G Power so exceptional is the price you pay for this battery. Motorola is selling this unlocked phone for $ 250. This brings you the huge battery, 4 GB RAM and 64 GB internal storage (MicroSD cards with up to 1 TB can improve this number). This is the only version available.
Is this durable budget phone worth finding a place in your pocket? Let's have a look.
Design and display
If you've ever hit a battery case on a phone, you know that the extra endurance comes with the price of extra weight and a thicker profile. The Motorola Moto G Power bundles the battery inside, but is not excluded from this problem.
The Moto G Power is 0.38 inches thick and weighs over 7 ounces when touched. The older Moto G7 Play is 0.31 inches thick and weighs only 5.3 ounces. The Samsung Galaxy A50 is only 0.3 inches thick and weighs about 5.9 ounces.
So, as Twitter could say, the G Power is THICC.
Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
You will feel it. It is a powerful, extensive phone. On the plus side, this offers an aura of quality that is not often found in inexpensive phones. On the other hand, it is difficult. I noticed it most when I was holding the phone in bed or lying on my sofa. After a short while my arm felt tired.
Yes, I am a saggy wrist tech reviewer who couldn't put a big house cat on the bench. Still, the extra weight was annoying. I wouldn't buy the phone for that reason alone. This is not a problem I want to deal with in an everyday device.
As Twitter could say, the G Power is THICC.
The weight of the G Power does not only depend on its battery. It also includes a 6.4-inch display with an aspect ratio of 19.17: 9. It is a large display, although this is not uncommon for the category. The Samsung Galaxy A50 and Samsung M30 both have 6.4-inch displays.
It's an attractive screen that's vivid and bright enough to use on a sunny day. You will surely see a better contrast to the OLED panel, and here the cheapest devices from Samsung can achieve an undeniable victory. However, the Moto G Power's display is solid and I think most buyers will be impressed.
Turn it over and you will find the Moto G Power in the conservative new look from Motorola. Moto used to be synonymous with quirky design (I bought and loved a blue-and-orange Moto G3), but the company's newer phones are more elegant and frankly boring. Like many new phones, the G Power is shiny, subtle, and sophisticated. Moto hopes you will be mistaken for glass some distance away.
A fingerprint reader for secure login is included. It is quick and seldom possible to read a fingerprint like I am used to from similar readers on other devices.
Ports? You will receive USB-C and a headphone jack. I have no complaints there. I wish Motorola made the phone waterproof. It is sold as "water repellent" but is not designed to be submerged for any length of time. Don't let it fall into the toilet.
The design of the Moto G Power is okay. The display even has somewhat slim bezels. It's a bit boring and a step back from Moto's more ambitious previous cell phones, but I understand. People want to buy cheap phones that look like expensive phones. From this point of view, the design of the Moto G Power is successful.
Battery life
The Moto G Power is all about battery life. It has 5,000 mAh of juice to be precise, and Motorola promises up to 72 hours of battery life.
That would have seemed a few years ago. Today it is still a lot, but not unusual. The Asus ZenFone 6, Samsung Galaxy M30 and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra all have batteries of a similar size, although their endurance requirements are not that extreme.
It's an impressive battery for the price, to be sure. While the Galaxy M30 is available at low prices on Amazon, the ZenFone 6 costs $ 500 and the Galaxy S20 Ultra "How much do you have?" The large battery is an outstanding feature.
The battery lasted two full days and a few thirds.
I used the Moto G Power lightly in my first week on the phone when I turned my attention to the Moto G stylus. The battery lasted five days. After I switched mainly to the G Power, the battery lasted two full days and a few thirds. I admit that I am not the most demanding user. Nevertheless, this is an outstanding result.
In fact, it's over the top. I don't think charging a phone overnight is a problem. Therefore I think a battery is sufficient for a day with heavy use. Most modern phones can do this. The Moto G Power could take two, but I have to ask. What's the point Why should you put up with a heavier, thicker phone all day every day?
If your answer is "well, I need it because of …", then for sure. I understand that. The Moto G Power deserves recognition for bringing extreme endurance to a low price. But let's be real. This is a niche device. It was developed for people who want to talk a lot on the phone, but also don't want to spend a lot on it.
performance
The Moto G Power has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 octa-core processor and a Qualcomm Adreno 610 GPU. This is an option for a budget phone that will be sold in 2020.
Performance is usually not a problem. Most applications are started in no time and run well when active. While the phone's 4 GB of RAM on paper may be fine, there have never been any problems switching applications.
The Moto G Power has proven itself in benchmarks
- Geekbench 5: 312 single-core, 1388 multi-core
- 3DMark Sling Shot Extreme (volcano): 1.133
The Geekbench 5 score offers a modest improvement over last year's budget phones. A Moto G7 reaches 268 in single-core and 1,183 in multi-core. The result of Sling Shot Extreme is a huge upgrade over the older Moto G7, which only reached 543 when we tested it last year. Another one-year-old Samsung Galaxy A50 beats the Moto G Power with a score of 1,368 in the Sling Shot Extreme from 3DMark.
I only noticed the limits of the Moto G Power when scrolling quickly through long content lists such as news feeds or podcasts or when visiting websites that (frankly rather intrusive) elements such as pop-up video players or extensive animations put a lot of strain. In these situations there was an occasional jerk or a moment of pause. Even the fastest phones can have problems here, but I think the Motorola G Power feels a lot less fluid than, say, a Google Pixel 4 that shipped with a Snapdragon 855 late last year.
Still, it's a bit silly to be obsessed with the Moto G Power's performance. Modern smartphones, like laptops sold ten years ago, are fast enough for most people today. I had no problem using the Moto G Power every day. Is a Google Pixel 4 or iPhone 11 faster? Yes. With the G Power (or another phone with this SoC) you can get along easily.
Obsessed with being a bit silly about the performance of the Moto G Power.
Gaming is a mixed bag. Most cell phone games are designed to run on a variety of cell phones and not to press hard on a cell phone like the Moto G Power. Even Call of Duty: Mobile and SimCity Build went well enough that I didn't notice any hesitation. Demanding games like Injustice 2 and Asphalt 9 were a different story. These were playable on the Moto G Power, but occasionally stuttered and were rendered at a frame rate that was well below 30 frames per second.
It is important to know that G Power does not have an NFC. This means that Google Pay is not supported. This is almost certainly an unfortunate omission to keep the price down, but contactless payment is always helpful – and is even recommended in these days of social distancing – and is overlooked here.
Audio quality
Stereo speakers tuned by Dolby are on either side of the phone (when held horizontally). One speaker is above the display, the other on the bottom lip of the phone. This means that audio is stronger on one side than on the other. It stands out, but is not annoying.
The sound is loud and clear. There is not a lot of bass and the maximum volume is not what flagship phones can produce, but it is enough to keep you entertained in a room with little to no ambient noise. Audiophiles should bring headphones, earphones, or a Bluetooth speaker.
Camera quality
Despite its price, the Moto G Power does its best to emulate the camera functions of more expensive competitors. It comes with a 16MP main camera on the back, an 8MP Ultrawide with a 118 degree field of view and a 2MP macro camera. There is also a 16 megapixel front camera.
For me, the 8MP Ultrawide is the outstanding feature. This is unusual for low-cost phones and offers a lot of versatility. With this camera, you can take more convincing landscape shots or better capture a narrow space. The camera delivers subdued colors and extreme lighting issues, but a decent smartphone photographer could use it for some outstanding shots. It's also fun to play around with.
Moto G Power ultra-wide field of view Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
Moto G Power Standard FOV Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
The 16 megapixel main camera is what I would expect from an affordable smartphone in 2020. It takes neutral, balanced shots that often lack the vibrancy and sharpness that you find in the best phone cameras. Quality is best with excellent lighting and noticeably drops in dark situations, but excellent lighting can also affect color balance, so you can fumble with the rather delicate manual controls.
Although the main camera didn't set my hair on fire, I should note that this is a massive step over the inexpensive phones sold a few years ago. The main camera of the Moto G Power can be used for great photos if you have some skill.
Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
With this option, the 2MP macro has the same difficulties as other smartphones. The ability to enlarge a subject is offset by reduced sharpness, poor performance in low light, and color balance issues. To be honest, I'm not sure if most macro shots look better with the 2MP macro camera enabled. Macro mode works when very, very close to very small objects, but how often do you take such photos? I'm not sure I will ever do that.
Moto G Power macro lens Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
Moto G Power macro lens Matthew Smith / Digital Trends
What about the 4MP (Quad Pixel) selfie camera? It works well enough. The quality depends on the lighting. However, if you have the right angle, your shots can look great. However, I am annoyed about the relocated camera location. It's in the top left corner of the phone, not the center, making finding the best angle less intuitive.
Video quality
The main camera of the Moto G Power can record 4K videos at up to 30 frames per second (fps) or 1080p videos at up to 60 fps. Slow motion videos can record up to 120 frames per second at 1080p or 240 fps at 720p.
This is solid for a budget phone, though you shouldn't plan to use anything other than 1080p frequently. 4K video can look sharp in ideal lighting, but quickly fall apart in more demanding situations. The same applies to slow motion.
If you stick to 1080p, you can expect a sharp picture with a generally neutral color balance that, like photos taken with the main camera, will struggle with very dark or excessively bright situations. Taking the budget into account, I think the video of the Moto G Power is solid.
software
The Moto G Power has a slightly skinned version of Android 10. My unlocked test device was delivered without any noteworthy bloatware, unless you count the slim and mostly unnecessary Moto and Moto audio apps. As with previous Motorola smartphones, the G Power greets you with a happy “Hello Moto” when you switch it on.
Moto Actions are back. They allow you to activate certain functions with certain gestures. For example, you can activate the camera by turning your wrist twice or turning on the flashlight with two quick cutting movements. Moto promotions are convenient and fun.
The camera app is Motorola’s only misfire. It looks fussy, with tiny control icons at the top of the app and a record button that looks like a camera shutter. Placed next to a Google Pixel 3a, the difference is day and night and not at all in favor of G Power.
Price, guarantee and availability
The Motorola G Power costs $ 250 and will be released in April. You can order one directly from the Motorola website. It is also sold through Verizon, Republic Wireless, US Cellular and Google Fi. If you live in Europe, Motorola has confusingly launched the G8 Power instead of the G Power. It's almost identical to the G Power in every way, but with an additional 8-megapixel telephoto camera on board. It costs £ 220 or about $ 270.
Motorola grants a one-year warranty on its phones in the United States. Buyers can also purchase an additional MotoCare plan to cover water and accidental damage. Prices vary between $ 23 and $ 64 a year, depending on coverage.
Our opinion
The Moto G Power is a good phone that sells at an affordable price but is a niche by nature. I don't think the transition between "power users who need a multi-day battery life" and "budget phone buyers" is wide.
Is there a better alternative?
Yes, but you have to pay more. If your budget isn't incredibly tight, it's worth spending more on a phone because it can be used longer regardless of whether your usage changes. If you can reach up to $ 400, Google Pixel 3a has a great camera and guaranteed software updates for several years. Spend $ 500, and the Asus Zenfone 6 is an excellent buy with its near-flagship specs and a fun flip camera.
If you only want to spend less than $ 300, have a look around and try to purchase the Samsung Galaxy A51 for this price. The international version, which is compatible with GSM networks, is often offered on Amazon for less than $ 300. Samsung also announced the new Galaxy A21, which will sell for $ 250. We don't have it in our hands yet.
If you choose Motorola, you can check out the Moto G stylus, which is only slightly lighter.
Finally, here is my professional tip. Wait to see what Google does with the rumored Pixel 4a that is expected in the coming weeks. It is certainly desirable, and even if your budget is not exhausted, the still excellent Pixel 3a can lead to significant price reductions. In addition, Apple is expected to show the iPhone SE 2 / iPhone 9 soon, which can be affordable for around $ 400. It's also worth seeing how long it takes for the Nokia 5.3 from HMD Global to reach the US in April. At this point, it will be launched in Europe for $ 205
How long it will take?
The G Power has no water-repellent housing, but is made of plastic and should therefore be slightly better off in the event of a fall than one made of glass. However, it is not a "hard" phone.
Budget Android phones also have a short lifespan because they don't get the latest Android updates quickly or at all. Motorola’s Android update schedules are confusing. It is promised that the Moto G Power will get through an operating system upgrade and frequent security updates. Better support would be excellent, but this is typical of an Android phone in this price range.
Should you buy one?
No. The Moto G Power fits into a certain niche of power users who are short of money, but is too heavy and too thick for most people.
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