Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review 2024: cameras are decent

Motorola is known more for its cheap phones than for its high-end ones, which makes sense. The company has sold so many cheap phones that it is now the third largest in the United States. Its 2022 models weren’t too bad, so we were optimistic about 2023. But the new Moto G Play (2025) seemed to dash those hopes, and we wouldn’t exactly call it a good start for Motorola.

The company didn’t make a new Moto G Play in 2021, so you might think that when it comes out in 2023, it will have a lot of new features to keep up with other Android phones under $200. But even though there are some improvements, there aren’t enough after a year. In fact, there are some very obvious downgrades.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Design

When we picked up the Moto G Play (2023), it almost felt like a small tablet instead of a big phone. For comparison, it is a little bit bigger than the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and the iPhone 14 Pro Max, two of the biggest phones on the market.

The Moto G Play was a little bit hard to hold. The power and volume buttons were easy to reach and press on the right side of the phone’s frame, but we couldn’t say the same for the fingerprint reader on the back. Motorola has decided, for some strange reason, that it should be as high as it looks good on a device that is very tall. You can buy this smartphone from its official website.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Display

One of the best things about this cheap Motorola phone is probably the screen. Even though it only has a resolution of 720 x 1600 pixels, it is at least 6.5 inches long. If you don’t mind the lower resolution that much and are willing to make that trade-off, this is a huge plus.

It’s important to note that the viewing angles aren’t great, but let’s be honest: most people look at their phones’ screens straight on. It’s hard not to talk about the 90Hz refresh rate, which is unusual in this price range. But there is a big catch here, which we will talk about when we talk about how well the Moto G Play works.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Cameras

The Moto G Play (2025) has a camera system with three cameras, but only two of them actually work as cameras. The main camera has 16 MP and, for the price of the phone, takes pictures and videos that are surprisingly good. In short, it works fine for taking quick photos or videos to share with your friends, as long as there is enough light.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Performance

The Moto G Play (2025) has a MediaTek Helio G37 processor, 3GB of RAM, and Android 12 right out of the box. It’s important to remember that the Helio G37 came out in late 2020, so the chip in the Moto G Play (2025) is already more than two years old.

This has a big effect on how well the device works. Even with simple tasks and navigation, we found the device to be slow. And, as we said before, we saw a lot of stuttering and drops in frame rate. When we need to type something into the Moto G Play.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Battery life and charging

The biggest problem with most flagship phones, which are usually on the list of best smartphones, is that their batteries usually only last for 24 hours at most. But those tend to happen around the 18-hour mark. I’d like to use phones more often that we could take off the charger at night and not worry about the next day.

But the Moto G Play has a weakness when it comes to power: charging. In the box, Motorola gives you a USB-A to USB-C cable and a 10W wall adapter. But because the phone’s battery is so big and the maximum charge rate is only 10W, it takes a long time to charge it. It also can’t be charged wirelessly, which is a small problem given how much it costs.

Motorola Moto G Play (2025) review: Price and availability

The Moto G Play (2025) was announced on December 8, 2022, and it came out on January 12, 2023. The phone costs $169.99 and can be bought at Motorola.com, Amazon, and Best Buy, among other places. The phone will also be sold by T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile, among other carriers.

THE GOOD AND THE BAD

THE GOOD

1. Affordable pricing
2. Large display
3. Long-lasting battery life

THE BAD

1. Low-resolution display
2. Average front camera quality

Final Words

It has some good points, but most of them are ruined by the fact that it has a very slow processor. This means that the phone can’t even do the bare minimum to make sure the user experience is smooth and uninterrupted.

If you can get past the new Moto G Play’s major flaw, it might still be worth it to you for all the good things it has to offer. If you don’t want to do that, you should probably focus on something else around $200.

FAQS

Does Moto G play have Gorilla Glass?

The Moto G7 Play has a 5.7-inch HD+ display that goes all the way to the edges but still fits in your hand. The 19:9 aspect ratio makes movies, games, photos, and other things look like they are on a big screen.

Is it worth it to buy a Moto G play?

There is a market for devices like the Moto G Play that don’t have 5G, especially if you live somewhere where 5G isn’t yet common. Also, there aren’t many full-featured smartphones under $200, which makes the Moto G Play a good choice for people on a tight budget.

Does Moto G play have fast charging?

This cheap phone has a big 5,000 mAh battery, a big 6.5-inch screen, and fast data, including LTE Cat. 13 and dual-band Wi-Fi. A fingerprint reader, fast charging, a slot for a memory card, and a headset jack are some of the other features.