The do have service centers for other brands? You're a lucky guy, we need to ship our phones back to god knows where for service. My buddy's Samsung phone ended up in Korea for service.
I have only used Nokia, Sony and Samsung customer service. But I believe LG has good customer service too. I live in India. Sending to Korea would be a big pain in the ass.
Motorola Moto G is a fantastic phone, I'd say only HTC One M8 could match up to it (see http://www.consumertop.com/best-phone-guide/). I don't think you'll need much of a service center though (I've not heard anyone who's had trouble with it), but the choice is yours.
HTC has no reason to be dead any time soon. Like Apple, they will increasingly have to Focus on the premium market Segment (though for different reasons). HTC's supplier Rating and lack of Advertising Budget is the only reason they cannot compete well with Samsung, LG and Sony for the lower and mid range, but they will continue to produce superb devices for the top tier consumer segment.
They just reported their first loss ever. If they don't turn things around and keep losing money then that is the reason they'll be dead. Companies don't exist to lose money.
Yeah, it's quite a shame this is happening. The HTC One is a brilliant phone but despite everything they're just losing sales to Samsung. It's startling how they slipped from being where Samsung is now, but them consider Nokia...
I'd have even greater doubts when it comes to Motorola's promises. They've eft their previous flagship customers in the cold, as the RAZR HD is still on Android 4.1 and with no indications of ever being updated. The phone was out several months AFTER Google's acquisition, and it compares horrible with the treatment that Samsung and HTC's customers got.
Really, Motorola has been promising updates generation after generation, and never shipping them. Do not trust them, you'll get burned.
The local version that I have of the RAZR HD has several major bugs. At least a revision to 4.1 would be needed.
Notice that Googlerola has provided ZERO updates for the RAZR HD in terms of providing updates not available prior to the launch (as was the case with 4.1).
After being stuck and miserable with a buggy and heavily skinned version of 2.3.4 on my Motorola Droid X2 for 2 years, that's why I finally went for the Nexus 5 this time around (and no more 2-year contracts, either...) I've sworn to never buy another Motorola POS ever again, but I might reconsider if Google's ownership results in major changes... (so far, I'm not seeing that yet)
You haven't seen major changes? Well sir you need a couple of new glasses. Moto x is only device which actually cares about user experience, making life easier for their owners with its unique features. Moto g is TOTALLY a game changing device (worldwide) due its amazing price-quality relationship. Same goes for the updates, motorola has got 5 devices on 4.4 while other manufacturers haven't even got it yet for their flagship.
The only phone maker with long term update support is Apple. On the Android side you are still lucky to get *A* update with most phones. The Nexus will get you the most, but not anywhere close to what Apple offers in terms of hardware support (Currently 3 generations back for iOS7).
Um, what? Just did a bit of googling, the Nexus 4 had 4.4 at the end of November (25th is what I came up with most) and Moto X got 4.4 6 days ago on the 12th. Nexus 4 already has 4.4.2. So I have no idea what you are talking about, because it doesn't seem to be reality.
?? They announced some weeks ago that the RAZR HD, MAXX HD and RAZR M would all get Kitkat sometime soon-ish, even the ATRIX HD i think, all the Snapdragon S4 family
If you think a few months time is enough for a new parent company to take over and magically transform device support for phones that were in the pipeline for over a year, you don't know much about how acquisitions work or how long those kinds of transitions take in a large corporate environment.
The proof will be evident once we see how quickly, if at all, the Moto X and Moto G are updated beyond 4.4. Being the absolute first non-Nexus device with 4.4 on the X, and getting it right around the same time as the still supported Nexus line was a great start. We'll see if they can keep it up. I'm cautiously optimistic, and I say all of this as a former Atrix owner who never got some planned updates.
I should have looked it up before replying, but I was mainly responding to the "The phone was out several months AFTER Google's acquisition" comment. And what I said still holds true. Google announced plans to acquire Motorola Mobility on 8/15/2011. The acquisition didn't actually complete until 5/22/2012. The phones in question came out around September/October of 2012, which is indeed just a few months after the acquisition, and not long enough for Google to really have anything to do with their product planning.
Motorola is a Google company now no matter how they try to pretend otherwise with the whole firewall between them nonsense. I'd see how they do now. Meanwhile Google payed an idiotic sum for Motorola to get a bunch of worthless patents and is left trying to save face by still producing phones.
Moto G already had 4.4.2 shipped, and Moto X was first non-nexus device with Kit Kat. Since being bought by Google, they have turned thing around, at least with this first wave.
Well moto g already got 4.4.2 a couple days ago. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/android-4-4-... And it has been said by motorola that the RAZR HD will as well get 4.4 soon. Besides, taking into count that motorola has already got 5 devices running on 4.4 (Moto x, moto g, Droid ultra, maxx and mini) while other manufacturers haven't got 4.4 not even in their flagship talks really, REALLY well of their new update policy. P.s: Old Razr (xt910) released on 2011, worst time ever for motorola, still went from 2.3 to 4.0 and from there to 4.1. Just for you to keep it in mind :) p.s.s: Yeah, i do know that the atrix family as well as milestone didn't have the same luck, but luckily for us, they seem to have changed, for good.
Well moto g already got 4.4.2 a couple days ago. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/android-4-4-... And it has been said by motorola that the RAZR HD will as well get 4.4 soon. Besides, taking into count that motorola has already got 5 devices running on 4.4 (Moto x, moto g, Droid ultra, maxx and mini) while other manufacturers haven't got 4.4 not even in their flagship talks really, REALLY well of their new update policy. P.s: Old Razr (xt910) released on 2011, worst time ever for motorola, still went from 2.3 to 4.0 and from there to 4.1. Just for you to keep it in mind :) p.s.s: Yeah, i do know that the atrix family as well as milestone didn't have the same luck, but luckily for us, they seem to have changed, for good.
Damned good phone considering the price point. No, even compared to quite a few more expensive ones. Absolutely impressive battery life, a camera that doesn't suck and at least as fast as the last generation of top-end phones, all in a nice package and for very little money. Well done, Motorola.
A lot of phone for the money. I bought a 16GB model and will be giving it to my daughter for Christmas. She wanted good battery life, good display, and stock Android if possible. I would say the Moto G delivers all three.
"The Moto G’s goal is pretty simple – to deliver an affordable smartphone experience that doesn’t make any sacrifices"
I'd say that a maximum of 16gb of memory is a pretty big compromise. Because of those, about 12 will be available to the user, and out of those 12, at least 1 or 2 will be gone in stupid gallery thumbnails hidden files. Add 3-4 gb of music, and 2 or 3 heavy games, and you are left with less than 2 gb of free space. If you want to record videos, capture photos, or download movies, you are really screwed. And this is not a poweruser scenario at all.
True, but this is not power user phone. The Noto X is for that purpose. For normal mister Smith this is very good phone indeed. But so is/are allso Lumia 52x phone(s), so comparison would be nice as someone above allready said.
My girlfriend has a 521. It is a nice phone, but the HUGE problem is having to do a hard reset every time there is an upgrade. A hard reset looses all settings. And MS seems incapable of doing a backup that actually backs up everything. The stuff they do backup has to go to "the cloud" (to be datamined by them and the NSA). And when you do a restore it is a one-shot and can only be done over 3G since wireless isn't enabled at the time. Because of this I am thinking about getting her a Moto G.
If this is not a power use phone then why add quad core, instead of a dual core processor, and a 720p screen? Witch is cheaper and more usefull, that or a SD card slot?
Are power users interested in this phone as their main device? If 8 or 16GB was fine for the flagship Nexus 4 13 months ago, I think it's fine for a low cost phone now.
The average consumer doesn't actually use their phone for more than an hour or two a day, leaving it in sleep state 95% of the time and somehow assumes this means it has "good battery life". The average consumer does not store hours of movies on their phone, or watch movies on their phone at all. The average consumer also can't see the difference between a 5mp camera and a 13mp camera. The average consumer sees almost no benefit from 7mbit HSPA+ to 30mbit LTE. The average consumer doesn't care about front speakers or waterproofing. The average consumer doesn't use a wireless charger. The average consumer CANNOT. SEE. The difference between a 540x960 display and a 1080p display. The average consumer doesn't run more than a couple apps at the same time. The average consumer doesn't care about read/write speeds of the NAND on their phone. The average consumer doesn't know the difference between LCD and AMOLED.
Smartphones are ubiquitous now. Every grandma has a $0 iPhone that they don't know how to use. This doesn't mean we should stop making things better. For god's sake don't make us all suffer on behalf of your demented relatives.
Even my 8 GB Nexus 7 has a two GB left. Lots of storage is convenient for the lazy and the horders, but in now way something that makes or breaks a device for "normal" use. "3-4 GB of music" is about 1000 songs. Yeah, more is better, always, but don't make this into more of a limitation than it actually is. Most people don't care very much anyway.
a tablet is not at all like a phone. a tablet sits at home mostly, with WiFi and instant access to hundreds of online services. A phone goes with you everywhere, even places without -gasp- internet. And most people care, indeed, and that is why they buy galaxies instead of ones.
Do you have any proof that the majority of Galaxy S* buyers do so because of micro-SD or removable batteries? Survey data from a reasonable cross section of buyers? I like both of those features, but the idea that it is the main driver of Samsung's success with that line doesn't seem to be grounded with any facts. I'd assume marketing plays the biggest role, along with actually building a solid brand behind it (one high end line available on most major carriers updated once per year). Yes some % of users care a great deal about removable storage and removable batteries, but if you think that's the secret to their success I think you are deluding yourself. And I'm almost sorry I responded at all to the inevitable whining about removable storage. There are other cheap devices that offer those features, be happy that a quality option is available at this price point.
Well, HTC thought the same last year, after their beautiful HTC ONE X beat the Galaxy S3 in every review, but lost badly on sales. "It's the marketing!". They lost another good year blaming marketing, and now are even in worse situation than a year ago. Or do you want to convince me that HTC is not a strong brand? Or Blackberry, for what it is worth.
Yes, Samsung sells lots of Aces very cheap, but S3 and S4 and Notes are not cheap. And they outsell almost the rest of high end android devices combined. I really do not think that Samsung is that good at marketing.
Nope, HTC isn't a very strong brand outside of tech enthusiasts. Samsung/Galaxy is a lot more easily recognized... I had three HTC phones in a row (all the EVOs), very early random people would ask me if they were "the new iPhone" (never mind the massive size difference). Later on most friends would ask "did you get a Galaxy?" when they'd see I have a new phone, never mind it says HTC front and center...
Samsung is ABSOLUTELY that good at marketing, have you watched network TV or looked at print magazines lately? Geeks may not do that much anymore but the general public does and Samsung's ad campaign is all over that media, it's impossible to ignore.
Indeed you're absolutely right. Samsung is a very powerful brand just about everywhere due to marketing. That, produces free publicity through brand awareness and then word of mouth. Even in the Dominican Republic a (developing country) where i go regularly, a sacred Blackberry land, is buying in bulk Galaxy(s) and why? Huge billboards everywhere and all 4 carriers selling just about every model.
Again, what proof do you have to the contrary? Like I said, I'm sure some % of their user population does buy the Galaxy line _specifically_ for micro-SD and a removable battery. But I'd put a decent chunk of change on the size of that % being 1 in every 5 buyers or less. You think all those buyers of a mainstream device (who have no idea what SOC is in their phone or even what a SOC is) are walking into their carrier's stores with a 64GB micro-SDXC card full of stuff? There is a lot more to the success of the Galaxy line than removable batteries and expandable storage.
I do not need to give any proof at all. I am not in the industry, and I could not care less. But it is funny watching people that should really know about this stuff (like HTC spokesperson) blame it all on marketing time after time, and get worse results every year.
Also, HTC is a very strong band. A few years ago it was almost a synonym of smartphone, and they also spend a lot of money on advertising and sponsorships.
Anyway, do you have any proof that micro-sd cards are not a strong reason behind massive galaxy sales?
No, I do not. There are two sides here. Some say Samsung sells because of marketing, some say Samsung sells because they understand better what the consumer wants (micro-sd, removable batteries, etc.). Neither side is backing their arguments with any proof at all.
Well, the fact remains that you can hardly view any review of a competing product on Youtube without a Samsung ad being forced down your throat before it. They must be spending a hell of a pile of money on that.
Yes it is, for the simple undeniable truth that enthusiasts make up a tiny sliver of this market (just like is true for most markets). We (enthusiasts) are closer to a rounding error on their financial statements than an overwhelming majority. For every user who clamors for removable batteries or the ability to flash a custom kernel to overclock their phone, there are 95 others who just walk into the store and buy whatever cool phone they saw on TV, or whatever their friends use, or whatever the guy at the counter steered them toward. Samsung could bring the Galaxy S5 to market with sealed batteries and no expandable storage and it would still be the single best selling Android phone by an enormous margin. I have no idea why you are so hell-bent on convincing others, or deluding yourself, that the % of people that really care about these things (or read blogs like Anandtech clamoring for in-depth SOC analysis) make up more than a puddle vs. the ocean of people who DGAF.
The guy behind the counter is definitely a major factor, and I believe Samsung dedicates some of their money into that. I remember my sister was due for an upgrade from her Verzion Galaxy Nexus, and I convinced her to buy a G2 and even linked her the mini review from this site. She told me battery life and a good camera were priority, and to me, it was a no brainer.
In she walks into the Verizon store, and boy was the guy trying hard to sell the GS4. I told her, the LG has essentially the same features as the GS4 down to the gimmicky camera features, but the camera quality (OIS), and the 3000 mAh battery is much better than what the GS4 will deliver. If I wasn't there, there is no doubt in my mind that my sister would have a GS4.
So yeah... for the people that just don't know what all of their options are, and they go to the phone salesmen for the "expert" advice, which makes up the majority of people, what they're really getting is the phone that the employees are getting paid the most money to sell, which, in my case, was definitely the GS4. After that experience, there is no doubt in my mind that Samsung is giving extra commission to employees who sell these Samsung phones.
iPhones have literally ZERO of those features listed in number 2. They sell by the truckload. Bob Todd is spot on and said it best, Anandtech readers/tech enthusiasts make up a rounding error in the financial statements of these companies.
and that is why HTC did not sell that much. They can't compete on features with Samsung, they are competing with iPhones. And nobody can beat Apple in their own turf. At least Motorola is pricing the G way below.
Now, Apple says a truckload of iphones without removable storage or batteries. That is completely true. But Apple is on a league of its own. Neither better nor worse. Simple different. Apple users do not care that much about raw power or features. Also, Starbucks, trendy, hipster, instagram.
In crappy 64 kbps bit rate, maybe. Personally, I don't do crappy when it comes to my music: all my stuff is ripped to CD-quality at a minimum, and lossless (FLAC) when possible. For instance a single anthology collection for a single band that I have currently on my phone, takes up nearly 10 GiB.
FLAC on a phone is a massive waste of space... MP3 w/a high enough bitrate as to be indistinguishable take up like 1/10th the space and a large 100-200 disc collection takes an hour or two to transcode (on a modern laptop).
that is true, but it is also true that 1000 songs is a very low number for many people, and having to change your collection every week sucks. So yes, 16 gb may be enough. Of course, even 8gb. If you have no other option, you manage with what you got. But that does not mean that many people will find themselves cursing at the lack of internal space a short time after their purchase.
FLAC for your phone? Are you using $600 Grado cans, an amp and DAC with your phone? If you aren't, you literally have zero reason to be using FLAC over 320kbps MP3s. Hell, you'd be hard pressed to notice the difference in 256kbps even with great IEMs or cans unless your powersource/dac is good.
Nice timing on the review. I just gave my wife's mother my old N4, and her dad has been looking longingly at it. I was thinking about the Moto G for him, and in truth even it would be overkill. I think a lot of folks, myself included, were wondering what the hell Google was going to do with Motorola (beyond patent acquisition and some potential gains for Google TV...before selling the division responsible for the STB business anyway). It looks like they are going to carve out a really nice niche in the midrange. A device like this could be huge in places like India. CPU performance is more than reasonable for the price, NAND performance is good, and I was just plain surprised by the battery life showing. Excellent device for the off contract price.
The problem I have with Virgin is that they piggyback off Sprint, which has the worst coverage in my area of the big four. Plus I average about 500 minutes a month. So I'm looking at their $45 plan. Or I can go with another mvno that piggybacks off the gsm providers for the same price but with unlimited calls. And get much better coverage/speeds in my area. Which I do. Either way, this Motorola G looks like a great phone to have.
I don't know who this phone is for especially in the US. You are going to pay LTE prices and get rapidly diminishing 3G service. You can get top end smartphones for good pieces online etc...I just can't see the market. Even the Moto X which as an iPhone user I still think is a great phone, is not selling well at all. Moto
The market are people that, for example, pay only $25 a month each on a T-mo family plan and they don't want to drop an extra $30 a month for 2 years for a phone, Or sign up for a contract with ATT/Verizon and blow easily $60+ a month. 500mb of data at HSPA+ speed (9mbps in my area) with no overage charge, unlimited talk and text for $25 a month makes this phone a huge winner to those willing to look for a good experience without burning a hole in your wallet.
Every time I read reviews of this I'm surprised at how closely MSM8x26 performs to flagships from as recently as last year. Obviously it isn't really in the running compared to 8974, Apple A7, Exynos 5250, etc., much less APQ8064, so I think this says more embarassing things about companies that shipped quad-A9 flagships in mid-to-late-2012, but still, the end result is that the display and silicon leads to an experience comparable to (if not better than) a GS3 i9300. This is pretty surreal at the sub-$200 price point, while a new i9300 still goes for ~$400. Of course there are other sacrifices and if we're talking about $400 life begins and ends with the Nexus 5, but still, Motorola has really accomplished something with the Moto G. This is the phone I'd buy for my son if he were five years older; hopefully by the time he's old enough to have his own smartphone, Motorola will be still have something comparable on sale so he can get a quality device at this price point.
Brian, I am curious about the impact of operating system version on the benchmark comparisons. Presumably the results in your tables are based on whatever version was installed at the time of initial testing, which is perfectly reasonable.
However, it would be interesting to gauge the impact of, for example, new Android versions on a device's scores. Is there an appreciable change in performance going from, say, 4.2 to 4.3 or 4.4 on Nexus 4?
I realise it would be a lot of work to try to update all benchmarks on every software release across every OEM, and anyway you do not necessarily retain access to most of the devices you test, but this might be feasible on just the Nexus devices, which I have a feeling you tend to keep around. On the other hand, maybe the results aren't really very interesting.
Fascinating to see what happens with and its relatives/competition in next few years.
In a sane world this sort of thing would take huge chunks of the market for high end phones. The current market with the very expensive ultra high end models selling so much at such premiums surely can't be sustainable long term.
Only thing is that I'm not sure how rational this market is :)
With smartphones and tablets becoming a mass-market it will be as rational as any other market. Like clothing, shoes or food. Which means not very rational, there will be room for huge price spans and very different products, some of them rational and others not at all. This is hard to digest for geeks, I know.
problem is that the average person thinks s/he needs the newest shiniest most powerful device that she will probably never take advantage of, and the up front subsidy (but pay out the rear) system facilitates the impulse to purchase an overly powerful device in the US by making Americans less price sensitive. It is really annoying to listen to people who think a small very powerful computer that pushes more pixels than their laptop only costs - and should only cost - $200 at most.
"Moto G arrives without LTE and instead offers up to single carrier HSPA+ with 64QAM, for up to 21 Mbps on the downlink. Although MSM8x26 itself has a modem block capable of up to dual carrier HSPA+ and category 4 LTE, it seems as though Motorola went for single carrier HSPA+ in the Moto G for time to market reasons, with the LTE and dual-carrier HSPA+ enabled software tree likely slotting in a quarter later than the initial code drop with single carrier HSPA+."
Does this means that the Moto G will have LTE in the near future? This would put my only major reservation about this phone to rest!
I'm wondering that as well. Even if it's not officially supported, could the phone be hacked to use LTE or dual-carrier HSPA+? Guess I'll check XDA Developers, maybe they have some info on it.
As I knew Tesco were cheaper than phones 4 U for the moto g phones 4 U were selling it 16GB for £149.99 + £10 top up any network (so they are unlocked!) & had them in stock :) Phones 4 U will if you ask customer services nicely price match :-) & if you've ordered online you have 7 days change of mind policy .....so I said I don't want to return it but Tesco is cheaper than you! so they refunded me back the difference! .... & their deal was an unlocked moto g with free white phone back case & a £10 top up & entry into their Christmas giveaway draw (I got a scratch card sent to me with a code entered it online ) & won 25% off all accessories! I got these as well :0) & only paid the same as Tesco £129!!!!! Hope this helps grab a bargain....loving my Moto g ;0) Excellent Battery life BTW & Go online & read a few Android tips.... eg use auto brightness & stop apps running in background Use power saving etc etc I get 23 hours out of my phone with 8 hours of actual on screen time omg! :0) that's amazing..... Merry Christmas ppls X
Really great review Brian. This is probably the most accurate review of this device on the internet. So far I'm really enjoying my Moto G, especially the battery life compared to my old Galaxy S1.
I've been reading this review in installments and finally got to the battery life section... Wow, that's impressive. It has got to be the best battery life on any smartphone in this class. And it has Android 4.4.2 as of the writing of this comment? Way to go Motorola. They have really stepped up their game.
@Brian. Very good detailed review of most of it, but no mention of any means of getting the screen mirrored to TV, and if it plays at least 720p films smoothly. I read elsewhere it doesnt have any wired TV-out, but are you able to check if it supports Miracast ? ... and if it plays films smoothly ?
I always appreciate the extensive numbers you guys collect to lend some objectivity to your conclusions rather than offering unsubstantiated impressions and opinions like all other reviews. That said it is interesting to me that people's responses to various displays are so individual-specific. Even though the Samsung phones don't seemto score well other than in black levels of course, I still prefer their displays over most of the other phones on which you gathered data. Overall it looks like the iPhone did the best (although it looks like in some categories - whiteness, grayscale - it regressed from the 5 to the 5s) but I've never liked the displays on iphones. It is hard to evaluate on the 5s because I dislike the color scheme of iOS 7, a strange mixture of pastels and bright red.
Nice review. But you missed that the Moto G doesn't have MHL (HDMI out over USB). This feature has been on all my phones for the last few years and is a must have when visiting relatives without a smart TV. I wonder why such an easy feature was omitted?
America ,iphone,nexus updates??? well i have xiaomi mi2s and every week there is ota update, hardware-beast, snapdragon 600 2G ram ,well updates with reach feature but android version change each year .but most kitkat updates already there for monthes, add cloud service includes apps & setting,gallery,logs,sms ect backup ,firewall ,antivirus, ftp server...2 paratiton each time the other update during system on! it is possible and it is hear for 300$ camera i have very nice shoot in darkness using night mode also video in club,i think the near feuture will be chinees company like that,service....updates....every week....
No micro SD? "This is a new tendency"? That's ridiculous. This phone is automatically excluded from my next smartphone possible-upgrade lists. No quad core, 720p or "ultra-cheap price"can compensate for that. There has been 50USD phones from 10 years ago that already had micro sd support. This is utterly unacceptable. If you don´t live in US or EU you can´t count on unreliable and limited internet to rely on cloud services. Even so, you can´t install all applications or produce most content relying on remote files. What's the point of a fast processor, good gpu and large screen if you can´t install anything in it or fill it with movies and music? Net surfing and google maps? You don´t need a quad core for that... Only casual users would not see all the drawbacks of being completely limited on local storage. Cloud storage is not "the future", maybe for the casual illiterate user, but for us, power-users and non-US/EU residents, is just a nightmare. I rather expend 30% more on a similar spec phone (even a dual core) with external storage than buying this. I don´t understand how this can appeal to the "masses". Maybe the US "masses", because the rest of the world doesn´t have decent unlimited internet to rely on clound services at all.
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makken - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
" LG was arguably first to lay claim to it with its Optimus G, G Pro, G2, and now G Flex brands"Are we not counting the HTC G1 and G2 now? :(
blanarahul - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Htc is almost dead. I hope Lg buys them. That will give Samsung a run for their money.blanarahul - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Great review though. Although buying Moto in my country is just as good as buying a Chinese cellphone. There just aren't service centers around here.Flunk - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
The do have service centers for other brands? You're a lucky guy, we need to ship our phones back to god knows where for service. My buddy's Samsung phone ended up in Korea for service.blanarahul - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I have only used Nokia, Sony and Samsung customer service. But I believe LG has good customer service too. I live in India. Sending to Korea would be a big pain in the ass.spencersears - Friday, October 3, 2014 - link
Motorola Moto G is a fantastic phone, I'd say only HTC One M8 could match up to it (see http://www.consumertop.com/best-phone-guide/). I don't think you'll need much of a service center though (I've not heard anyone who's had trouble with it), but the choice is yours.puremind - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
HTC has no reason to be dead any time soon. Like Apple, they will increasingly have to Focus on the premium market Segment (though for different reasons). HTC's supplier Rating and lack of Advertising Budget is the only reason they cannot compete well with Samsung, LG and Sony for the lower and mid range, but they will continue to produce superb devices for the top tier consumer segment.Nagorak - Tuesday, December 24, 2013 - link
They just reported their first loss ever. If they don't turn things around and keep losing money then that is the reason they'll be dead. Companies don't exist to lose money.BallGum - Saturday, December 28, 2013 - link
Yeah, it's quite a shame this is happening. The HTC One is a brilliant phone but despite everything they're just losing sales to Samsung. It's startling how they slipped from being where Samsung is now, but them consider Nokia...jasonelmore - Thursday, January 2, 2014 - link
It doesn't make financial sense to buy them unless they have tons of patents which are valuable to LG,user777 - Friday, January 3, 2014 - link
HTC Desire 300/500/600 models are intended to the same market niche.carancho - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I'd have even greater doubts when it comes to Motorola's promises. They've eft their previous flagship customers in the cold, as the RAZR HD is still on Android 4.1 and with no indications of ever being updated. The phone was out several months AFTER Google's acquisition, and it compares horrible with the treatment that Samsung and HTC's customers got.Really, Motorola has been promising updates generation after generation, and never shipping them. Do not trust them, you'll get burned.
blanarahul - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Jelly Bean doesn't need a update that badly.But I guess you can't blame Qualcomm for it since the S3 is already on Android 4.3.
carancho - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
The local version that I have of the RAZR HD has several major bugs. At least a revision to 4.1 would be needed.Notice that Googlerola has provided ZERO updates for the RAZR HD in terms of providing updates not available prior to the launch (as was the case with 4.1).
RMSe17 - Wednesday, December 25, 2013 - link
Actually, I wold consider any android pre-4.4 (and thus not having pre-compilation) as completely obsolete.razorsbk - Saturday, December 28, 2013 - link
RAZR HD is officialy supported by CyanogenMod, and CM 10.1 stable is available for it.jeffkibuule - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
If you care about updates, don't get anything besides a Nexus. Simple as that.uhuznaa - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
And even then you can stop caring 18 months later.sprockkets - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Referring to the Galaxy Nexus? Guess what? The 18 month thing is a red herring.Google has updated all their phones longer than 18 months. That also *includes* the Gnex. That's right, it got 4.3 *19 months* into its life.
TI dissolved its OMAP team. No one can update the drivers for it anymore.
Still won't believe me? Google is replacing free of charge all 1st gen google glasses because it can't be updated. It also uses OMAP.
uhuznaa - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
It's Google who said that it will support Nexus phones for 18 months, not me.sprockkets - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
And that was a red herring. Did you even read the part where Google themselves updated it past 18 months with 4.3?Or would you think them saying "We can't update it because TI no longer has their OMAP team" would make sense to anyone?
Baser - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I don't think that you know what a red herring is.sprockkets - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I absolutely do.Nagorak - Tuesday, December 24, 2013 - link
You're not using the term correctly.boeush - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
After being stuck and miserable with a buggy and heavily skinned version of 2.3.4 on my Motorola Droid X2 for 2 years, that's why I finally went for the Nexus 5 this time around (and no more 2-year contracts, either...) I've sworn to never buy another Motorola POS ever again, but I might reconsider if Google's ownership results in major changes... (so far, I'm not seeing that yet)Hakuron - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
You haven't seen major changes? Well sir you need a couple of new glasses.Moto x is only device which actually cares about user experience, making life easier for their owners with its unique features.
Moto g is TOTALLY a game changing device (worldwide) due its amazing price-quality relationship.
Same goes for the updates, motorola has got 5 devices on 4.4 while other manufacturers haven't even got it yet for their flagship.
darwinosx - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
If you care about updates, don't get anything besides an iPhone. Simple as that.ESC2000 - Monday, December 30, 2013 - link
Yeah but then you have to use an iphoneStuka87 - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
The only phone maker with long term update support is Apple. On the Android side you are still lucky to get *A* update with most phones. The Nexus will get you the most, but not anywhere close to what Apple offers in terms of hardware support (Currently 3 generations back for iOS7).sprockkets - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Moto X is already on 4.4, before even the Nexus 4.This isn't your old Motorola here.
Oh and btw, the current and former generation of Droids are all getting 4.4.
Death666Angel - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Um, what? Just did a bit of googling, the Nexus 4 had 4.4 at the end of November (25th is what I came up with most) and Moto X got 4.4 6 days ago on the 12th. Nexus 4 already has 4.4.2. So I have no idea what you are talking about, because it doesn't seem to be reality.cmikeh2 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
It's dependent on the carrier, but the Verizon version of the Moto X actually got 4.4 before the Nexus 4 did.shaduck007 - Saturday, January 4, 2014 - link
thanks for Mentioning the Lumia, it's 1/3 the price of the MOTO G.Thinking of what is the best value!!
Sam
fortelv999 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
?? They announced some weeks ago that the RAZR HD, MAXX HD and RAZR M would all get Kitkat sometime soon-ish, even the ATRIX HD i think, all the Snapdragon S4 familyfokka - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
the atrix HD? i believe that when i see it.Bob Todd - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
If you think a few months time is enough for a new parent company to take over and magically transform device support for phones that were in the pipeline for over a year, you don't know much about how acquisitions work or how long those kinds of transitions take in a large corporate environment.The proof will be evident once we see how quickly, if at all, the Moto X and Moto G are updated beyond 4.4. Being the absolute first non-Nexus device with 4.4 on the X, and getting it right around the same time as the still supported Nexus line was a great start. We'll see if they can keep it up. I'm cautiously optimistic, and I say all of this as a former Atrix owner who never got some planned updates.
Death666Angel - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
"If you think a few months time" Google bought Motorola on August 15, 2011.Bob Todd - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I should have looked it up before replying, but I was mainly responding to the "The phone was out several months AFTER Google's acquisition" comment. And what I said still holds true. Google announced plans to acquire Motorola Mobility on 8/15/2011. The acquisition didn't actually complete until 5/22/2012. The phones in question came out around September/October of 2012, which is indeed just a few months after the acquisition, and not long enough for Google to really have anything to do with their product planning.trynberg - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I guess you missed the news that Moto was upgrading the RAZR HD to 4.4 in 2014? Confirmed on Moto's website weeks ago.ollienightly - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
i really don't know what you are wining about. razr hd has already been given green light for kitkat update. all you have to do now is being patient.darwinosx - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Motorola is a Google company now no matter how they try to pretend otherwise with the whole firewall between them nonsense. I'd see how they do now. Meanwhile Google payed an idiotic sum for Motorola to get a bunch of worthless patents and is left trying to save face by still producing phones.sprockkets - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
O hai appletard! Nice to see you still have a brain, somewhere.Bob Todd - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Just as a small update, 4.4.2 started rolling out for the Moto G today...InvaderC1 - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
Moto G already had 4.4.2 shipped, and Moto X was first non-nexus device with Kit Kat. Since being bought by Google, they have turned thing around, at least with this first wave.Hakuron - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
Well moto g already got 4.4.2 a couple days ago. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/android-4-4-...And it has been said by motorola that the RAZR HD will as well get 4.4 soon.
Besides, taking into count that motorola has already got 5 devices running on 4.4 (Moto x, moto g, Droid ultra, maxx and mini) while other manufacturers haven't got 4.4 not even in their flagship talks really, REALLY well of their new update policy.
P.s: Old Razr (xt910) released on 2011, worst time ever for motorola, still went from 2.3 to 4.0 and from there to 4.1. Just for you to keep it in mind :)
p.s.s: Yeah, i do know that the atrix family as well as milestone didn't have the same luck, but luckily for us, they seem to have changed, for good.
Hakuron - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
Well moto g already got 4.4.2 a couple days ago. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/android-4-4-...And it has been said by motorola that the RAZR HD will as well get 4.4 soon.
Besides, taking into count that motorola has already got 5 devices running on 4.4 (Moto x, moto g, Droid ultra, maxx and mini) while other manufacturers haven't got 4.4 not even in their flagship talks really, REALLY well of their new update policy.
P.s: Old Razr (xt910) released on 2011, worst time ever for motorola, still went from 2.3 to 4.0 and from there to 4.1. Just for you to keep it in mind :)
p.s.s: Yeah, i do know that the atrix family as well as milestone didn't have the same luck, but luckily for us, they seem to have changed, for good.
Gunbuster - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Thumbs up for not using the prefab line from what I must assume is a google/moto payoff presskit "Moto G, simply the best phone under $200"Thumbs down for no comparison with the Lumia 520/521 that have been dipping down into the $50 range off contract.
uhuznaa - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Damned good phone considering the price point. No, even compared to quite a few more expensive ones. Absolutely impressive battery life, a camera that doesn't suck and at least as fast as the last generation of top-end phones, all in a nice package and for very little money. Well done, Motorola.CatfishTX - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
A lot of phone for the money. I bought a 16GB model and will be giving it to my daughter for Christmas. She wanted good battery life, good display, and stock Android if possible. I would say the Moto G delivers all three.apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
"The Moto G’s goal is pretty simple – to deliver an affordable smartphone experience that doesn’t make any sacrifices"I'd say that a maximum of 16gb of memory is a pretty big compromise. Because of those, about 12 will be available to the user, and out of those 12, at least 1 or 2 will be gone in stupid gallery thumbnails hidden files. Add 3-4 gb of music, and 2 or 3 heavy games, and you are left with less than 2 gb of free space. If you want to record videos, capture photos, or download movies, you are really screwed. And this is not a poweruser scenario at all.
haukionkannel - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
True, but this is not power user phone. The Noto X is for that purpose. For normal mister Smith this is very good phone indeed. But so is/are allso Lumia 52x phone(s), so comparison would be nice as someone above allready said.fic2 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
My girlfriend has a 521. It is a nice phone, but the HUGE problem is having to do a hard reset every time there is an upgrade. A hard reset looses all settings. And MS seems incapable of doing a backup that actually backs up everything. The stuff they do backup has to go to "the cloud" (to be datamined by them and the NSA). And when you do a restore it is a one-shot and can only be done over 3G since wireless isn't enabled at the time.Because of this I am thinking about getting her a Moto G.
skiboysteve - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
What are you talking about? WP updates are OTA incremental and never require a hard reset...shaduck007 - Saturday, January 4, 2014 - link
thanks for Mentioning the Lumia, it's 1/3 the price of the MOTO G.Thinking of what is the best value!!
Sam
sephirotic - Wednesday, February 5, 2014 - link
If this is not a power use phone then why add quad core, instead of a dual core processor, and a 720p screen? Witch is cheaper and more usefull, that or a SD card slot?grayson_carr - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Are power users interested in this phone as their main device? If 8 or 16GB was fine for the flagship Nexus 4 13 months ago, I think it's fine for a low cost phone now.grayson_carr - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Lets not forget, the average consumer still buys a 16GB iPhone or 16GB Galaxy S4 and doesn't put in a microSD card in the case of the GS4.fokka - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
source? regarding the s4 i mean.flyingpants1 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
The average consumer doesn't actually use their phone for more than an hour or two a day, leaving it in sleep state 95% of the time and somehow assumes this means it has "good battery life".The average consumer does not store hours of movies on their phone, or watch movies on their phone at all.
The average consumer also can't see the difference between a 5mp camera and a 13mp camera.
The average consumer sees almost no benefit from 7mbit HSPA+ to 30mbit LTE.
The average consumer doesn't care about front speakers or waterproofing.
The average consumer doesn't use a wireless charger.
The average consumer CANNOT. SEE. The difference between a 540x960 display and a 1080p display.
The average consumer doesn't run more than a couple apps at the same time.
The average consumer doesn't care about read/write speeds of the NAND on their phone.
The average consumer doesn't know the difference between LCD and AMOLED.
Smartphones are ubiquitous now. Every grandma has a $0 iPhone that they don't know how to use. This doesn't mean we should stop making things better. For god's sake don't make us all suffer on behalf of your demented relatives.
apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
it was not fine for nexus 4. And I explicitly said that it was not a poweruser scenario at all.uhuznaa - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Even my 8 GB Nexus 7 has a two GB left. Lots of storage is convenient for the lazy and the horders, but in now way something that makes or breaks a device for "normal" use. "3-4 GB of music" is about 1000 songs. Yeah, more is better, always, but don't make this into more of a limitation than it actually is. Most people don't care very much anyway.apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
a tablet is not at all like a phone. a tablet sits at home mostly, with WiFi and instant access to hundreds of online services. A phone goes with you everywhere, even places without -gasp- internet. And most people care, indeed, and that is why they buy galaxies instead of ones.Bob Todd - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Do you have any proof that the majority of Galaxy S* buyers do so because of micro-SD or removable batteries? Survey data from a reasonable cross section of buyers? I like both of those features, but the idea that it is the main driver of Samsung's success with that line doesn't seem to be grounded with any facts. I'd assume marketing plays the biggest role, along with actually building a solid brand behind it (one high end line available on most major carriers updated once per year). Yes some % of users care a great deal about removable storage and removable batteries, but if you think that's the secret to their success I think you are deluding yourself. And I'm almost sorry I responded at all to the inevitable whining about removable storage. There are other cheap devices that offer those features, be happy that a quality option is available at this price point.apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Well, HTC thought the same last year, after their beautiful HTC ONE X beat the Galaxy S3 in every review, but lost badly on sales. "It's the marketing!". They lost another good year blaming marketing, and now are even in worse situation than a year ago. Or do you want to convince me that HTC is not a strong brand? Or Blackberry, for what it is worth.Yes, Samsung sells lots of Aces very cheap, but S3 and S4 and Notes are not cheap. And they outsell almost the rest of high end android devices combined. I really do not think that Samsung is that good at marketing.
Impulses - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Nope, HTC isn't a very strong brand outside of tech enthusiasts. Samsung/Galaxy is a lot more easily recognized... I had three HTC phones in a row (all the EVOs), very early random people would ask me if they were "the new iPhone" (never mind the massive size difference). Later on most friends would ask "did you get a Galaxy?" when they'd see I have a new phone, never mind it says HTC front and center...Samsung is ABSOLUTELY that good at marketing, have you watched network TV or looked at print magazines lately? Geeks may not do that much anymore but the general public does and Samsung's ad campaign is all over that media, it's impossible to ignore.
sajara - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
Indeed you're absolutely right. Samsung is a very powerful brand just about everywhere due to marketing. That, produces free publicity through brand awareness and then word of mouth. Even in the Dominican Republic a (developing country) where i go regularly, a sacred Blackberry land, is buying in bulk Galaxy(s) and why? Huge billboards everywhere and all 4 carriers selling just about every model.sajara - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
I was referring to Impulse's post btw...Bob Todd - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Again, what proof do you have to the contrary? Like I said, I'm sure some % of their user population does buy the Galaxy line _specifically_ for micro-SD and a removable battery. But I'd put a decent chunk of change on the size of that % being 1 in every 5 buyers or less. You think all those buyers of a mainstream device (who have no idea what SOC is in their phone or even what a SOC is) are walking into their carrier's stores with a 64GB micro-SDXC card full of stuff? There is a lot more to the success of the Galaxy line than removable batteries and expandable storage.apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I do not need to give any proof at all. I am not in the industry, and I could not care less. But it is funny watching people that should really know about this stuff (like HTC spokesperson) blame it all on marketing time after time, and get worse results every year.Also, HTC is a very strong band. A few years ago it was almost a synonym of smartphone, and they also spend a lot of money on advertising and sponsorships.
Anyway, do you have any proof that micro-sd cards are not a strong reason behind massive galaxy sales?
martajd - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
"I don't need to give any proof." Yeah, you doapertotes - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
No, I do not. There are two sides here. Some say Samsung sells because of marketing, some say Samsung sells because they understand better what the consumer wants (micro-sd, removable batteries, etc.). Neither side is backing their arguments with any proof at all.uhuznaa - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Well, the fact remains that you can hardly view any review of a competing product on Youtube without a Samsung ad being forced down your throat before it. They must be spending a hell of a pile of money on that.apertotes - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
So? Is it less of a fact that Samsung high end devices keep a micro-sd slot and removable battery?Bob Todd - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
Yes it is, for the simple undeniable truth that enthusiasts make up a tiny sliver of this market (just like is true for most markets). We (enthusiasts) are closer to a rounding error on their financial statements than an overwhelming majority. For every user who clamors for removable batteries or the ability to flash a custom kernel to overclock their phone, there are 95 others who just walk into the store and buy whatever cool phone they saw on TV, or whatever their friends use, or whatever the guy at the counter steered them toward. Samsung could bring the Galaxy S5 to market with sealed batteries and no expandable storage and it would still be the single best selling Android phone by an enormous margin. I have no idea why you are so hell-bent on convincing others, or deluding yourself, that the % of people that really care about these things (or read blogs like Anandtech clamoring for in-depth SOC analysis) make up more than a puddle vs. the ocean of people who DGAF.metayoshi - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
The guy behind the counter is definitely a major factor, and I believe Samsung dedicates some of their money into that. I remember my sister was due for an upgrade from her Verzion Galaxy Nexus, and I convinced her to buy a G2 and even linked her the mini review from this site. She told me battery life and a good camera were priority, and to me, it was a no brainer.In she walks into the Verizon store, and boy was the guy trying hard to sell the GS4. I told her, the LG has essentially the same features as the GS4 down to the gimmicky camera features, but the camera quality (OIS), and the 3000 mAh battery is much better than what the GS4 will deliver. If I wasn't there, there is no doubt in my mind that my sister would have a GS4.
So yeah... for the people that just don't know what all of their options are, and they go to the phone salesmen for the "expert" advice, which makes up the majority of people, what they're really getting is the phone that the employees are getting paid the most money to sell, which, in my case, was definitely the GS4. After that experience, there is no doubt in my mind that Samsung is giving extra commission to employees who sell these Samsung phones.
shaduck007 - Saturday, January 4, 2014 - link
At Best Buy, I always ask the Intel specialist his opinion.apertotes - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
That is simply not a fact. That is your poorly reasoned opinion. Facts are:1. Samsung invests a lot of money in advertising and marketing.
2. Samsung's phones have micro-sd and removable battery.
Unless you work as a high level Samsung employee, there is no way to know which of those facts affect sales in a more powerful way.
bhima - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
iPhones have literally ZERO of those features listed in number 2. They sell by the truckload. Bob Todd is spot on and said it best, Anandtech readers/tech enthusiasts make up a rounding error in the financial statements of these companies.apertotes - Tuesday, December 24, 2013 - link
and that is why HTC did not sell that much. They can't compete on features with Samsung, they are competing with iPhones. And nobody can beat Apple in their own turf. At least Motorola is pricing the G way below.Now, Apple says a truckload of iphones without removable storage or batteries. That is completely true. But Apple is on a league of its own. Neither better nor worse. Simple different. Apple users do not care that much about raw power or features. Also, Starbucks, trendy, hipster, instagram.
boeush - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
"3-4 GB of music" is about 1000 songs."In crappy 64 kbps bit rate, maybe. Personally, I don't do crappy when it comes to my music: all my stuff is ripped to CD-quality at a minimum, and lossless (FLAC) when possible. For instance a single anthology collection for a single band that I have currently on my phone, takes up nearly 10 GiB.
Impulses - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
FLAC on a phone is a massive waste of space... MP3 w/a high enough bitrate as to be indistinguishable take up like 1/10th the space and a large 100-200 disc collection takes an hour or two to transcode (on a modern laptop).apertotes - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
that is true, but it is also true that 1000 songs is a very low number for many people, and having to change your collection every week sucks. So yes, 16 gb may be enough. Of course, even 8gb. If you have no other option, you manage with what you got. But that does not mean that many people will find themselves cursing at the lack of internal space a short time after their purchase.sprockkets - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Use 160kbps ogg vorbis.160kbps = 1.2mb per minute. Avg 4 min a song gives 2560 for 12GiB capacity.
Need more music? Then you are either weird and think you need more than 2500 songs at once so spend $ elsewhere.
bhima - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
FLAC for your phone? Are you using $600 Grado cans, an amp and DAC with your phone? If you aren't, you literally have zero reason to be using FLAC over 320kbps MP3s. Hell, you'd be hard pressed to notice the difference in 256kbps even with great IEMs or cans unless your powersource/dac is good.flyingpants1 - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
What kind of stupid person are you? 8GB?Bob Todd - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Nice timing on the review. I just gave my wife's mother my old N4, and her dad has been looking longingly at it. I was thinking about the Moto G for him, and in truth even it would be overkill. I think a lot of folks, myself included, were wondering what the hell Google was going to do with Motorola (beyond patent acquisition and some potential gains for Google TV...before selling the division responsible for the STB business anyway). It looks like they are going to carve out a really nice niche in the midrange. A device like this could be huge in places like India. CPU performance is more than reasonable for the price, NAND performance is good, and I was just plain surprised by the battery life showing. Excellent device for the off contract price.Hrel - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I wonder if this will support those new LTE frequences on Virgin Mobile. Assuming of course the Delay on Virgin Mobile is due to adding LTE.I hope that's the case SO badly!
Anyone paying over $35/month for their smartphone is part of the problem. STOP doing that people. Fucking Verizon, with it's $130/month bullshit.
erple2 - Sunday, December 22, 2013 - link
The problem I have with Virgin is that they piggyback off Sprint, which has the worst coverage in my area of the big four. Plus I average about 500 minutes a month. So I'm looking at their $45 plan. Or I can go with another mvno that piggybacks off the gsm providers for the same price but with unlimited calls. And get much better coverage/speeds in my area. Which I do. Either way, this Motorola G looks like a great phone to have.gus6464 - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Moto X and G are exceptional phones that definitely got me drinking the Motorola koolaid.darwinosx - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
I don't know who this phone is for especially in the US. You are going to pay LTE prices and get rapidly diminishing 3G service. You can get top end smartphones for good pieces online etc...I just can't see the market. Even the Moto X which as an iPhone user I still think is a great phone, is not selling well at all. Motobhima - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
The market are people that, for example, pay only $25 a month each on a T-mo family plan and they don't want to drop an extra $30 a month for 2 years for a phone, Or sign up for a contract with ATT/Verizon and blow easily $60+ a month. 500mb of data at HSPA+ speed (9mbps in my area) with no overage charge, unlimited talk and text for $25 a month makes this phone a huge winner to those willing to look for a good experience without burning a hole in your wallet.teiglin - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Every time I read reviews of this I'm surprised at how closely MSM8x26 performs to flagships from as recently as last year. Obviously it isn't really in the running compared to 8974, Apple A7, Exynos 5250, etc., much less APQ8064, so I think this says more embarassing things about companies that shipped quad-A9 flagships in mid-to-late-2012, but still, the end result is that the display and silicon leads to an experience comparable to (if not better than) a GS3 i9300. This is pretty surreal at the sub-$200 price point, while a new i9300 still goes for ~$400. Of course there are other sacrifices and if we're talking about $400 life begins and ends with the Nexus 5, but still, Motorola has really accomplished something with the Moto G. This is the phone I'd buy for my son if he were five years older; hopefully by the time he's old enough to have his own smartphone, Motorola will be still have something comparable on sale so he can get a quality device at this price point.teiglin - Wednesday, December 18, 2013 - link
Exynos 5420. Not really sure where 5250 came from, but... thingssayash - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
5250 is now more than a year old, it was the soc in the nexus 10, so yeah.Bobs_Your_Uncle - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
By the way, how's that Nokia 1020 review coming?Klug4Pres - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Brian, I am curious about the impact of operating system version on the benchmark comparisons. Presumably the results in your tables are based on whatever version was installed at the time of initial testing, which is perfectly reasonable.However, it would be interesting to gauge the impact of, for example, new Android versions on a device's scores. Is there an appreciable change in performance going from, say, 4.2 to 4.3 or 4.4 on Nexus 4?
I realise it would be a lot of work to try to update all benchmarks on every software release across every OEM, and anyway you do not necessarily retain access to most of the devices you test, but this might be feasible on just the Nexus devices, which I have a feeling you tend to keep around. On the other hand, maybe the results aren't really very interesting.
Qwertilot - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
Fascinating to see what happens with and its relatives/competition in next few years.In a sane world this sort of thing would take huge chunks of the market for high end phones. The current market with the very expensive ultra high end models selling so much at such premiums surely can't be sustainable long term.
Only thing is that I'm not sure how rational this market is :)
uhuznaa - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
With smartphones and tablets becoming a mass-market it will be as rational as any other market. Like clothing, shoes or food. Which means not very rational, there will be room for huge price spans and very different products, some of them rational and others not at all. This is hard to digest for geeks, I know.Qwertilot - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
True. The special thing for the mobile market is the rather big locked in distortions via contracts/subsidies etc.Certainly nice to have this sort of option around.
ESC2000 - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
problem is that the average person thinks s/he needs the newest shiniest most powerful device that she will probably never take advantage of, and the up front subsidy (but pay out the rear) system facilitates the impulse to purchase an overly powerful device in the US by making Americans less price sensitive. It is really annoying to listen to people who think a small very powerful computer that pushes more pixels than their laptop only costs - and should only cost - $200 at most.Taracta - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
"Moto G arrives without LTE and instead offers up to single carrier HSPA+ with 64QAM, for up to 21 Mbps on the downlink. Although MSM8x26 itself has a modem block capable of up to dual carrier HSPA+ and category 4 LTE, it seems as though Motorola went for single carrier HSPA+ in the Moto G for time to market reasons, with the LTE and dual-carrier HSPA+ enabled software tree likely slotting in a quarter later than the initial code drop with single carrier HSPA+."Does this means that the Moto G will have LTE in the near future? This would put my only major reservation about this phone to rest!
Mogster - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
I'm wondering that as well. Even if it's not officially supported, could the phone be hacked to use LTE or dual-carrier HSPA+? Guess I'll check XDA Developers, maybe they have some info on it.Also, any idea if the CPU can be overclocked?
orenc17 - Thursday, December 19, 2013 - link
now that the kitkat update began seeding will you update the reviewto see if kitkat actually improved anything?
smarty69 - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
As I knew Tesco were cheaper than phones 4 U for the moto g phones 4 U were selling it 16GB for £149.99 + £10 top up any network (so they are unlocked!)& had them in stock :)
Phones 4 U will if you ask customer services nicely price match :-)
& if you've ordered online you have 7 days change of mind policy .....so I said I don't want to return it but Tesco is cheaper than you! so they refunded me back the difference! .... & their deal was an unlocked moto g with free white phone back case & a £10 top up & entry into their Christmas giveaway draw (I got a scratch card sent to me with a code entered it online ) & won 25% off all accessories!
I got these as well :0)
& only paid the same as Tesco £129!!!!!
Hope this helps grab a bargain....loving my Moto g ;0)
Excellent Battery life BTW & Go online & read a few Android tips.... eg use auto brightness & stop apps running in background
Use power saving etc etc I get 23 hours out of my phone with 8 hours of actual on screen time omg! :0) that's amazing.....
Merry Christmas ppls X
bhima - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
Really great review Brian. This is probably the most accurate review of this device on the internet. So far I'm really enjoying my Moto G, especially the battery life compared to my old Galaxy S1.metayoshi - Friday, December 20, 2013 - link
I've been reading this review in installments and finally got to the battery life section... Wow, that's impressive. It has got to be the best battery life on any smartphone in this class. And it has Android 4.4.2 as of the writing of this comment? Way to go Motorola. They have really stepped up their game.unconnectme - Saturday, December 21, 2013 - link
Moto G is a game changer for the consumer. Moto G + service from 35orless. Savings versus 2 year agrement over $1,000will2 - Sunday, December 22, 2013 - link
@Brian. Very good detailed review of most of it, but no mention of any means of getting the screen mirrored to TV, and if it plays at least 720p films smoothly. I read elsewhere it doesnt have any wired TV-out, but are you able to check if it supports Miracast ? ... and if it plays films smoothly ?blzd - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
First Nexus 5 now the Moto G. Google are on a roll here for those price:performance sweet spots.Also 4.4 Kit Kat supports screen mirroring natively.
truminspiron - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
Oh so good for see but not good for buy...ESC2000 - Monday, December 23, 2013 - link
I always appreciate the extensive numbers you guys collect to lend some objectivity to your conclusions rather than offering unsubstantiated impressions and opinions like all other reviews. That said it is interesting to me that people's responses to various displays are so individual-specific. Even though the Samsung phones don't seemto score well other than in black levels of course, I still prefer their displays over most of the other phones on which you gathered data. Overall it looks like the iPhone did the best (although it looks like in some categories - whiteness, grayscale - it regressed from the 5 to the 5s) but I've never liked the displays on iphones. It is hard to evaluate on the 5s because I dislike the color scheme of iOS 7, a strange mixture of pastels and bright red.a1exh - Saturday, December 28, 2013 - link
Nice review. But you missed that the Moto G doesn't have MHL (HDMI out over USB). This feature has been on all my phones for the last few years and is a must have when visiting relatives without a smart TV. I wonder why such an easy feature was omitted?BallGum - Saturday, December 28, 2013 - link
Does anyone expect an update to the Moto G sometime, with the new SnapDragon 410 SoC?Gothmoth - Sunday, December 29, 2013 - link
do you think writing "DELTA" all the time makes you look l33t3?you sound like a cheap wanaabe nerd repeating this "DELTA" over and over.
otherwise the article is nice....
Davidjan - Sunday, January 19, 2014 - link
Really cool! Nice gadget to add Moto G's storage- a tiny MicroSD reader: http://goo.gl/2iJ6gforenlevy - Thursday, January 23, 2014 - link
America ,iphone,nexus updates??? well i have xiaomi mi2s and every week there is ota update,hardware-beast, snapdragon 600 2G ram ,well updates with reach feature but android version change each year .but most kitkat updates already there for monthes, add cloud service includes apps & setting,gallery,logs,sms ect backup ,firewall ,antivirus, ftp server...2 paratiton each time the other update during system on! it is possible and it is hear for 300$ camera i have very nice shoot in darkness using night mode also video in club,i think the near feuture will be chinees company like that,service....updates....every week....
shmotog - Sunday, February 2, 2014 - link
I did my video review on the black flip shell for moto g here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsnWYpOjDzk&fea...Also here http://www.amazon.co.uk/review/RALAUPNHK9K8U/ref=c...
I also did a review on moto g itself here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AP9dGAzfEso
jfelano - Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - link
G stands for GOOGLE duh. Google just bought Motorola.sephirotic - Wednesday, February 5, 2014 - link
No micro SD? "This is a new tendency"? That's ridiculous. This phone is automatically excluded from my next smartphone possible-upgrade lists. No quad core, 720p or "ultra-cheap price"can compensate for that. There has been 50USD phones from 10 years ago that already had micro sd support. This is utterly unacceptable. If you don´t live in US or EU you can´t count on unreliable and limited internet to rely on cloud services. Even so, you can´t install all applications or produce most content relying on remote files. What's the point of a fast processor, good gpu and large screen if you can´t install anything in it or fill it with movies and music? Net surfing and google maps? You don´t need a quad core for that... Only casual users would not see all the drawbacks of being completely limited on local storage. Cloud storage is not "the future", maybe for the casual illiterate user, but for us, power-users and non-US/EU residents, is just a nightmare. I rather expend 30% more on a similar spec phone (even a dual core) with external storage than buying this. I don´t understand how this can appeal to the "masses". Maybe the US "masses", because the rest of the world doesn´t have decent unlimited internet to rely on clound services at all.wolfram74 - Tuesday, February 25, 2014 - link
The camera review does not speaks about speed, time to focus, lag etc. I didn't get the whole information needed about camera.