Motorola Moto G (3rd Gen)

“Motorola again delivers a good mid-range smartphone with its new Moto G, which convinces with strikingly good key features. The battery life and primary camera are really good, and are looking for their match in this price range. The HD screen is also appealing. However, some aspects have been neglected slightly for the price of starting at 249 Euros. The storage is quite tight, and the memory expansion options are limited. In particular, the Lumia 640 (starts at 159 Euros) does a much better job here. Other manufacturers, such as ZTE in its Blade S6, offer a 16 GB flash memory straight away. This option costs extra in the Moto G, but that also involves one more gigabyte of working memory. We recommend investing the additional 30 Euros because storage frustration will otherwise quickly evolve.”

“The Moto G is probably the most important phone Motorola makes. The Moto X is a good halo model and this year’s looks even better than last year’s, but the market has been unkind to high-end Android phones for the last couple of years. The Moto E is respectable, but it cuts more corners and isn’t all that much cheaper than the Moto G. In Motorola’s lineup, the G represents the best value for the price (and as intrigued as we are by the midrange Moto X Play, we won’t be getting it in the US). And that’s the place it occupies in the wider Android ecosystem, especially in countries where Xiaomi isn’t selling phones. Like the other Moto Gs, it does a few things pretty well and it does nothing particularly badly. We could wish for better graphics performance, a more satisfying camera, and a more striking screen. But the new version of the Moto G is enough of a step up that it’s a great upgrade for users of dumbphones, old Android phones, and even first-generation Moto G buyers. That said, we'd strongly recommend purchasing the $220 model—16GB of internal storage is more comfortable for files and apps, but the extra gigabyte of RAM is an even bigger improvement that you can't solve with an SD card. The fact that the Moto G is so competent drives home the superfluousness of so many flagship phone features—the move from 720p to 1080p to 1440p and beyond, faster SoCs, ever-thinner metal-and-glass slabs. Those things are all nice to have, but you’d be hard-pressed to argue that any of them are essential.”

“With so many rivals vying to steal the Moto G’s thunder these days, we reckon that the latest generation of the smartphone won’t have a cakewalk in its segment. However, by adding beefier hardware, IPX7 rating, and Moto Maker to the product family, Motorola has done plenty to keep the newcomer in the mix. Therefore, we believe that once again, the new Moto G will deservedly be one of the top choices in its price range.”

“Of course, the Moto G isn’t for everyone, but it strikes that perfect balance of value, design, and performance – while still staying true to the foundational principles of the series. There’s a reason why the Moto G series is constantly a mainstream, it just keeps on getting better. And obviously, we continue to see that with this latest iteration. Power users might not take fancy in this phone, but it still generates a broader appeal. Don’t underestimate the intensity of what it offers!”