Motorola have lost their way a bit in the last couple of years but 2020 was going to be their year. The year they finally released another premium flagship. The year they returned to the glory days where they were one of the top smartphone manufacturers in the world.
Unfortunately COVID-19 had other plans but like every other manufacturer, Motorola is playing the hand its been dealt and by all looks playing that hand well.
Overnight they have launched two new smartphones — the Edge+, a premium smartphone, and a mid to high end smartphone, the Edge.
On paper the specs look impressive:
| Motorola Edge+ | Motorola Edge | |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Android 10 My UX |
Android 10 My UX |
| Display | 6.7-inch OLED Full HD+ 90Hz refresh rate HDR10+ certified |
6.7-inch OLED Full HD+ 90Hz refresh rate |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Adreno 650 GPU |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 Adreno 620 GPU |
| Memory | Storage: 256GB UFS 3.0 RAM: 12GB LPDDR5 |
Storage: 128GB (microSD up to 1TB) RAM: 4GB |
| Rear Cameras | 108MP main —f/1.8, OIS16MP ultra-wide & Macro Vision camera —f/2.2, 117° FOV 8MP telephoto |
64MP main —f/1.816MP ultra-wide & Macro vision —f/2.2, 117° FOV 8MP telephoto |
| Front Camera | 25MP —f/2.0 |
25MP —f/2.0 |
| Battery | 5000mAh 18W wired charging 15W wireless charging 5W wireless power sharing |
4500mAh 18W wired charging |
| Connectivity | 5G (5G mmW, Sub-GHz) 4G LTE WiFi 6 (802.11ax) Bluetooth 5.1 NFC |
5G (Sub-6Hz) 4G LTE WiFi 802.11ac Bluetooth 5.1 NFC |
| Other | USB-C (USB3.1) 3.5mm headphone Dual Stereo Speakers Fingerprint reader Water repellent design |
USB-C (USB2.0) 3.5mm headphone Dual Stereo Speakers Fingerprint reader IP54 water repellent design |
| Size | 161.1 x 71.4 x 9.6mm 203g |
161.64 x 71.1 x 9.29mm 188g |
| Colours | Smoky Sangria, Thunder Grey | Solar Black, Midnight Magenta |
Motorola Edge+
The Edge+ is the premium flagship of the two with the top end Snapdragon 865 (with 5G support) powering it along with 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.0 storage. That much power would need a fair battery and Motorola have provided it in the form of a 5,000mAh battery with support for 18W wired and 15W wireless fast charging.
The display looks to be a feature with a 6.7-inch waterfall AMOLED display with support for 90Hz refresh rate and a hole punch for the selfie camera. If curved displays are not your thing then you may struggle with this display as the waterfall display has quite a large curved around its front. This is the Edge that Motorola refer to — they call the display an “Endless Edge” display. The display also houses an in-display fingerprint sensor.
Camera-wise the Edge+ houses a triple rear camera setup including a 108MP main camera (pixel binning to create 27MP images), a 16MP ultra-wide angle lens with 117 degree FOV, and an 8MP telephoto lens. The front-facing camera is a decent 25MP.
Available in Smokey Sangria and Thunder Grey it will set you back around €1,199 in Europe (it’s a Verizon exclusive in the US). At this stage Australian availability and pricing are unknown.
Have you seen the #new motorola edge+? You’ve never had a faster phone. #fastest5G #hellomoto https://t.co/0emg67B6tE pic.twitter.com/0BfW0cFH8Y
— motorolaus (@MotorolaUS) April 22, 2020
Motorola Edge
The Edge is extremely similar to the plus version housing the same “Endless Edge” display — same size, same resolution, same hole punch and same refresh rate.
The difference between the two is mostly with the power. Powered by a Snapdragon 765G (the same CPU expected in the Pixel 5), 4GB or 6GB of RAM (6GB for the international version, 4GB for US) and 128GB of storage the battery is slightly smaller at 4,500mAh and lacks wireless charging but still supports 18W wired charging.
At first look the Edge appears to have a quad rear camera but looks can be deceiving. It has a triple rear camera — 64MP main camera (pixel binning for 16MP images), 16MP wide-angled lens and an 8MP telephoto lens. The last circle in the camera module is actually for the laser autofocus. The front of the device though does house the same selfie camera as the plus version — a 25MP lens.
The Motorola Edge will available Solar Black and Midnight Magenta in May for €599 which is a lot more enticing than the price for the Plus. At this stage Australian availability and pricing are unknown.
Motorola looks to have regained their mojo with these two devices — hopefully their sales end up reflecting this. The devices looked to be decent devices with all the specs you would need from each price range and they are certainly good looking devices. The pricing is unknown as Euro pricing is often more than a direct conversion due to their taxes etc — time will tell though.
We will be hassling Motorola Australia today to find out as much as possible about local pricing and availability — check back here if you are interested in either of these.
Can you ask them when the Moto G8 Power will be released in Australia?
What’s this, a flagship phone WITH a headphone jack? Between that simple fact, Motos useful additions to Android, decent battery … Dare I say I may be tempted by this, that is if it comes to Australia. Here’s hoping!
Moto have outdone themselves with colour names this time! “Smokey Sangria…Thunder Grey…Solar Black…Midnight Magenta” Also nice to see them back in the flagship phone business!