With the Motorola G 5G Plus, the company ushers its most popular series in the 5G era. The company aims to rekindle its old glory by delivering the best value for money mid-ranger much like the original Moto G did back in its day.

 

 

 

 

 

For starters the Moto G5 5G Plus is supposed to be one of the most, if not the most, affordable 5G-compatible smartphone in the European market and at a price of around €350. Of course the 5G penetration greatly varies from market to market, so it can’t rely on that alone to propel it to fame. Here’s what else it has going for it:

 

 

 

 

Motorola G 5G Plus

• Body: 168.0×74.0x9.0mm, 207g; Plastic frame and back; Splash resistant.
• Display: 6.70″ LCD capacitive, 1080x2520px resolution, 21:9 aspect ratio, 409ppi; 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SDM765 Snapdragon 765 (7 nm): Octa-core (1×2.3 GHz Kryo 475 Prime & 1×2.2 GHz Kryo 475 Gold & 6×1.8 GHz Kryo 475 Silver); Adreno 620.
• Memory: 64GB 4GB RAM, 128GB 6GB RAM; UFS 2.1; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
• OS/Software: Android 10.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 48 MP, f/1.7, 26mm (wide), 1/2.0″, 0.8µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 118˚ (ultrawide), 1.12µm; Macro: 5 MP, f/2.2, (macro), AF; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.2, (depth); Dual-LED flash, panorama, HDR.
• Front camera: Wide (main): 16 MP, f/2.0, (wide), 1.0µm; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, (ultrawide), 1.12µm; HDR.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 5000mAh; Fast charging 20W.
• Misc: Fingerprint (side-mounted), NFC; FM radio.

The huge 6.7-inch LCD panel offers 90Hz refresh rate and HDR10 support, it has two cameras on the front and a generous 5,000 mAh battery with fast charging support and last. That’s an area where Motorola was behind for the past couple of years often using older, less competitive chipsets.

 

 

 

 

In fact, the Moto G 5G Plus costs as much as Xiaomi’s phones with the same chipset, which hasn’t been the case for a while. We now need to run our usual tests, because specs can often be deceiving.

Unboxing the Motorola G 5G Plus

The box contains all the usual user manuals along with the 20W-rated charging brick and a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging and data transfer. There’s also a transparent, silicone protective case in the box. Not a bad set of accessories, considering the price point.

 

 

 

 

Competition

As we said earlier, the Moto G 5G Plus is here to take the affordable lineup to 5G land, so support for the next gen networks is one of its biggest selling points. Its availability is limited to Europe for now but will likely reach other markets soon. This comes with a key advantage because there’s a shortage of affordable 5G phones in Europe, but on the other hand the 5G penetration isn’t nearly the same as in China or the US.

 

 

 

 

The most obvious alternative is the Xiaomi’s Mi 10 Lite 5G. It sports the same chipset, the same set of cameras, but has far inferior battery life. The Xiaomi phone trades the 90Hz smoothness for the superior contrast of an OLED display with HDR10+ support. Oh, and also costs €50, which is no small sum in these price tiers. At the end of the day picking between those two will probably largely depend on your preference of lighter stock Android and the feature-heavy but occasionally clumsy MIUI.

There’s also the freshly released OnePlus Nord. With essentially the same chipset and camera setup, the Nord offers a 90Hz OLED panel and faster charging, but smaller battery. Its UI looks similar to what Moto G 5G Plus has, even if underneath OxygenOS is customized beyond recognition. You’ll be losing the 3.5mm jack and splash resistance too, while you’ll also need to pay €50 more and, again, that can make a difference in this price range.

 

 

Xiaomi Mi 10 Lite 5G • OnePlus Nord

 

 

Of course, dropping 5G from your priority list would open up some more options like the Realme 6 Pro. It’s a great all-rounder, perfectly fitting in the €350 price category with a proper telephoto camera in addition to the 64MP regular and 8MP ultrawide cameras, faster charging, similar battery life and still has that 90Hz smoothness. Its Snapdragon 720 is inferior to the 765, even without accounting for the modem, though.

Then there’s the Snapdragon 730G-powered Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite, which offers an OLED screen and better camera than the Moto G 5G Plus and a similar battery life. It’s €50 cheaper too, but only has a 60Hz screen and the question of MIUI versus stock will inevitably come up again.

 

 

Realme 6 Pro • Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite

 

 

Verdict

If you are in market for a 5G phone now, but have a limited budget the Moto G 5G Plus is certainly shaping as a very sensible all-rounder. You get a decent 90Hz IPS panel, great battery life, clean Android with a couple of cool customizations and features on top and a capable chipset. And if the cameras didn’t need some extra work and the screen was OLED, this phone would have been an outright steal at that price.

 

 

 

 

As things stand now it’s trading blows with competitors from Xiaomi and Realme, which in itself is a great achievement for Motorola. The stock Android, 90Hz panel and great battery life will be enough to entice a lot of potential buyers, while a small price reduction similar to what Xiaomi did after the launch of its phones has every chance of turning this into a proper box office hit.

Pros

• Rather sturdy build.
• Smooth 90Hz IPS panel without visible halos around the cutout or the bezels.
• Great battery life, adequate fast charging.
• The main camera snaps good daylight photos, records great videos.
• Clean Android but with more Moto features and customizations than ever before.
• Has microSD card slot, 3.5mm jack.

Cons

• No telephoto camera.
• Mediocre camera performance in low light.
• Some competitors offer OLED screens.