Moto G 5G (2024) review: Great price with a few caveats

One thing you’ve got to know about me is that when it comes to gadgets, I love ostentatious things. They have to be crammed with plenty of power and a heaping helping of bells and whistles on the side, so much so that I’ve got no qualms about plunking down nearly $2,000 for a premium smartphone.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate a budget phone. Case in point: I’m looking at the Moto G 5G (2024), one of Motorola’s newest smartphones targeting the more budget-savvy among us. For $200, you get a smartphone that looks more premium than its price, with some surprisingly powerful speakers and solid performance.

However, such a low price is bound to have caveats. The Moto G has a dim display and a glut of unnecessary pre-installed apps. While the camera is social media-ready, those with more discerning tastes will take issue. But if affordability is tantamount, the Moto G 5G is one of the best cheap Motorola phones you can get.

Price, availability, and specs

The Moto G 5G is currently available for $199 on various carriers, including AT&T, Verizon, Cricket, Boost Mobile, and Straight Talk. However, T-Mobile customers can get the phone for a whopping price of free with a phone trade-in. If you don’t want to be locked into a specific carrier, you’ll have to wait until May 2, when the smartphone becomes available on Amazon, Motorola.com, and Best Buy.

Those expecting a bevy of color options will be disappointed, as Motorola only offers the Moto G in Sage Green. This is the first of many compromises to keep things affordable.

What’s good about the Moto G 5G?

Faux leather and powerful speakers

The design, with its vegan leather rear, gives me a nice hit of nostalgia. The grayish-green hue is unique and provides a nice tactility while making the phone feel more expensive than it is, especially since the rest of the chassis (except the screen) is plastic. Motorola also says the Moto G is water-resistant against spills and splashes, which is always a great thing. Whether the device is $200 or $2,000, the pain of water damage is real.

Another thing I love is that the Moto G actually has a SIM/microSD slot. I miss the days when I could expand my smartphone’s memory, and you can’t do that with today’s premium phones. Another throwback you’ll find is the bottom-mounted headphone jack, which seems almost like a novelty these days.

And speaking of audio, these speakers knock. I did a double take as I started listening to Beyoncé’s “Daughter” as the lilting guitar came out of the speaker on the phone’s bottom, buoying the singer’s full vocal. Even at full volume, there wasn’t a hint of distortion. Now, are you going to get a lot of bass? No, but you won’t get much better on a more expensive phone. You’ll want to invest in a pair of headphones or earbuds for better sound.

On the battery life front, the phone’s 5,000mAH battery lasted about 8 hours and 2 minutes with heavy usage. That means web surfing, watching videos, looking for houses on Zillow and StreetEasy, streaming music, and playing Genshin Impact. The phone does have Quick Charge capabilities, as it played well with my Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5G 45W charger.

Finally, those of us who use Tap to Pay will be happy to know that Motorola has started adding NFC to its budget smartphones, which I quickly took advantage of at the local bodega.

What’s bad about the Moto G 5G?

A pot full of meh

When it comes to budget devices, I expect some compromises. I just wish it wasn’t the display. The Moto G 5G’s 6.6-inch, 1612 x 720 LCD display is colorful, but it isn’t the brightest phone on the market. Even on a cloudy day, the display’s dimness made it difficult to read outside. And this was at max brightness, so I can only imagine the results when it’s a full-blown sunny day.

Viewing angles are incredibly shallow. A twist too far to the left or right, up or down, and you’ll see unsightly color shifting, which severely affects the viewing experience. It’s sad because the colors are compelling despite the dimness and angles. You have to look at it dead on, or it’s a wash.

When it comes to budget devices, I expect some compromises. I just wish it wasn’t the display.

The 120Hz refresh rate is okay. Swiping between apps was relatively smooth with the mid-level Qualcomm Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 Mobile Platform, but I saw some stuttering as I made my way through Genshin Impact. You’d be better off playing something less taxing like Marvel Snap or adjusting the refresh rate to 60Hz.

I’m used to encountering a few carrier and smartphone-maker-branded apps on phones. But it’s been a while since I’ve seen so many superfluous apps on a smartphone. Out of the box, you have your T-Mobile apps (Visual Voice, Scam Shield, and T-Mobile), which are more helpful. Then you have the Moto apps, which are a mix of customization, entertainment, and utilities.

And then, there’s everything else, and I mean everything. In addition to Weather, Booking.com, and Mistplay, a loyalty rewards app for Android games, you have folders labeled Shopping and Entertainment. Pop open the Entertainment folder, and you’ll see apps for Amazon Prime Video, Google TC, Newsbreak, and Spotify. Instead of preinstalled apps, the Shopping folder has many suggestions, including Walmart, Nike, GoodRX, Gap, Instacart, Victoria’s Secret, and Torrid.

Still not enough bloatware? Then don’t forget to give Glance a go. If you opt in, this sponsored ad platform will take over your lock screen, serving up news that can be helpful and informative. But more often than not, you’ll get ads and sponsored shorts, which are not something that most people want to see when they’re checking a notification.

But Motorola’s biggest software blunder lies in the support. The Moto G 5G will only get one operating system upgrade and three years of security upgrades. That’s unacceptable today as competitors like Samsung offer four OS updates with five years of security for its budget phones.

I got excited when I saw a 50MP camera on the rear of the Moto G 5G. Silly, Sherri, I forgot about the compromises. You’ll get decent daytime shots by sporting the same 50MP f/1.8 primary sensor as the Motorola G Power 5G and a 2MP f/2.4 ultra-wide camera. Most pics will be social media passable, but if you’re more discerning, you won’t be happy.

For instance, the first pic of my puppies (yes, they’re only seven months old) is seriously blurry, but they were yanking me down the street. The shots I got of them lying down at the dog park were better, allowing you to get a better look at their brindle patterns. However, things get muddy as you zoom in while some details look oversharpened. The shot I took of the mother and child mural vacillates between too-soft detail and oversharp, depending on the lighting.

Things don’t get better in low light, as you can see. You can barely make out some of the detail in some of my figurines. You can barely see any of Sully’s face, for instance, and the edges are soft on many of the other dolls, and not because some of them are plushies.

A couple of the selfies from the 8MP f/2.0 front camera look good. I’m probably going to post a few on my Instagram. But I couldn’t help but notice how fuzzy the trees in the background of my close-up shot looked. And the sky in the shot with my boyfriend was completely blown out (we’re still cute, though!) not to mention that our skin tone looks slightly off.

Should you buy the Moto G 5G?

The Moto G 5G is a good choice for certain groups of people. There are bargain hunters who don’t need a bunch of bells and whistles, people who want an inexpensive backup phone, and people who want a starter phone for a kid. For $200, the Moto G 5G will deliver solid performance with decent battery life and knock-your-socks-off audio. It can also take passable social media pics and videos in the right lighting conditions.

It doesn’t come without some major caveats in the form of a dim display and a whole lot of unnecessary bloatware. And shutterbugs looking for more premium photos should ignore this smartphone completely. Plus, I’m not too thrilled with Motorola’s short support window. But again, for those looking for an inexpensive smartphone that can do a bit more than the bare minimum, the Moto G 5G is worth a look.