Summary
Review Price £144.99
Key Features: Android 4.4 KitKat; 5-inch 720pHD display; 1.2GHz Snapdragon 400 processor; Dual SIM; 8GB and 16GB models; microSD card support up to 32GB; 8-megapixel camera; 2-megapixel front-facing camera; dual front-facing stereo speakers
Manufacturer: Motorola
Moto G 2 goes bigger and better
When the Moto G launched, it became the barometer to judge all other cheap phones against. The 4.5-inch smartphone is by no means perfect, but it showed that you don't have to make so many compromises on features like screen quality and performance.Now faced with the equivalent of that difficult second album, the new Moto G has a tough act to follow. Motorola says it has taken on board the feedback from Moto G owners and fed that into the next iteration of the handset, which still falls under £150.
It's made some big changes and some are certainly going to be more popular than others. The good news is that the new Moto G will still offer excellent value for money.
The first big change is the size. Motorola has moved to a 5-inch display. One of the most appealing aspects of the original was how easy it was to use in one hand. You can't really say the same about the next gen Moto G. That's not helped by the fact that the new Moto G is bigger, wider and just slightly slimmer than its predecessor.
It's still all black with a soft touch matte finish on the back to give it the same kind inoffensive ordinariness. There's a white option as well now although it has the kind of cheap look we normally associate with Samsung's mid-range phones. It still has the removable back, which can be swapped out for different coloured shells if you are still into the whole customization thing.
Behind the cover you'll find the same 2,070mAh non-removable battery and a micro SD card slot. A feature many were disappointed didn't make the cut on the first Moto G especially when opting for an 8GB model, which is actually closer to 5GB. Whether you go for the 8GB or 16GB model you can now expand storage up to 32GB.
Something that's also entirely new is a dual SIM option. It's a phone feature that hasn't really taken off in the UK but maybe the Moto G could change that. Aimed at regular travellers and people with friends and family abroad, it allows you to store two different SIM cards you can manually change between when you are in different locations. Motorola additionally includes intelligent calling where the phone learns which SIM to use depending on the call.
Move to the front and there's more new things to find. Dual front-facing speakers sit above and below the screen. A quick play of some YouTube videos suggests these aren't going to match HTC's Boomsound speakers for quality although they are reasonably loud.
Despite the jump in screen estate the resolution stays the same. It's sill 720p HD, which is better than what most phones can offer at this price although it's now spread across a larger screen. The pixel density is down to 294 ppi as well but it does still have Corning Gorilla Glass to fend off scratches and improve viewing angles. This is still a sharp screen although some of the fuzziness is more noticeable on the homescreens and it's perhaps not as impressive as the 720p HD screens on the likes of the more expensive S5 Mini and One Mini 2.
- Moto G 2 next to the Moto G
One of the most disappointing aspects of the Moto G was the camera. This is where the cost cutting was felt the most. Now the new Moto G moves from a 5-megapixel up to a 8-megapixel sensor for the main camera and has a 2-megapixel for selfie action.
The camera app works similarly hiding away the settings and gallery access which can be displayed by swiping left or right on the screen. You can use gestures to zoom in and out and press an hold the screen to quickly take multiple shots. There's still an LED flash and a HDR mode to help brighten up dreary shots. Video recording is still 720pHD adding a new slow motion shooting mode. Here's a sample shot to give you an idea of the image quality.
The new Moto G runs on pure Android 4.4.4 KitKat and Motorola is guaranteeing it will be updated to Android 5.0 L when it lands later this year. Motorola's suite of apps are on board including Assist and Migrate along with the new Connect to send texts from a computer and the Alert emergency locator app. Aside from that, this is the clean, slick version of Android we know and love and it runs smooth as well. That's largely down to using the very same Snapdragon 400 CPU and 1GB RAM setup as the first Moto G.
First Impressions
As an upgrade to one of the best phones we've had the pleasure of reviewing, the new Moto G still packs in a whole lot for less than £150. The bigger screen, improved camera and addition of a microSD card slot provides more good reasons why this is still the budget phone to go for.One disappointing factor is the lack of 4G. I'd happily have taken that over Dual SIM, which has limited appeal. Hopefully Motorola will offer a 4G option in the future to add to what is already another formidable handset.
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