Where you may need to consider buying an upgrade is when it comes to storage. The Moto G50 only has 64GB of space and that feels much smaller once you factor in Android 11's requirements. Fortunately, you can always expand your storage via the microSD card slot. The resolution is perhaps a more substantive issue. 720p phones like the Moto G50 can and do still look pretty sharp, but on switching from the Oppo A54 5G, there was a clear step down. I went from a screen that looks – in many situations – almost indistinguishable from that of a far pricier phone to one more clearly lower-end. The Motorola Moto G50 also has just one speaker, down on the bottom edge of the phone. It’s moderately loud and not too thin-sounding, but a stereo array is always preferable. In addition to three rear cameras, there’s also a single 13mp selfie camera on the front of the device. As is the case with the rear cameras, it doesn’t produce highly detailed photos. But it’s adequate for taking the odd selfie. You can, however, use a beautification slider to make your skin look smoother in selfies. The moto G50 provides 1080p video capture at either 30 or 60fps, too. Other features

A few specifics are worth noting. The Motorola Moto G50 has a rear finger fingerprint scanner, rather than one mounted on the side. It works well, is fast enough and reliable. This does mean it can feel a bit excessive for those with small hands though, with a bit of stretching needed when reaching for the fingerprint sensor in particular. Fifth is the durable wallet case for the Motorola Moto G50. Made with high-quality durable retro synthetic leather and inner TPU case, the case provides a soft touch and adequate protection to your phone from dust, scratches, bumps and accidental falls and gives it an aesthetic look. The magnetic closure keeps your phone, credit cards and money secure inside. Precise cut out design allows easy access to all the buttons and charging port so you don’t have to take out your phone from your cover every time you charge. I find it hard to care too much about this when the iPhone 12 Pro Max costs more than four times as much and still has a huge notch. But bear it in mind if you prefer the punch hole style, seen in the Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite and Oppo A54 5G. According to Motorola, the moto G50’s 5000mAh battery can provide up to two days of battery life. During our time testing the device, it certainly lived up to these bold claims and consistently had plenty of battery life left after a full day.

Performance

There are two good reasons to buy the Moto G50. The first is to get 5G on the cheap. The second is its excellent battery life. It has, like almost every phone in this class, a 5000mAh battery. But judging by my experience it even outlasts top performers like the Oppo A54 5G, perhaps because it has a 720P screen rather than a 1080p one.

The Moto G50 has a 6.5-inch IPS LCD display that's only disrupted ever so slightly by the notch for the selfie camera on the top-center of the screen.

In This Article

So, you could easily go a day without charging it. But, of course, the battery life will drain faster when using the device regularly for power-hungry activities like gaming and streaming. While the reality is that you might not have 5G in your area yet, it’s still a great feature to have on an affordable Android handset. For starters, Apple only announced its first 5G-capable smartphones late last year in the form of the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro. And they cost considerably more than the moto G50.