Smart Android And Trik-Commenting on Andorid indeed never endless, because smart devices this one is often updated every certain amount of time. So that the market can always be garapnya menerinya with pleasure. And it is not denied if this device has become the lifestyle of each society. To not wonder if the 6th business information and many are turning to mobail smartphone. With Android which thoroughly dominated the mobile industry, choosing the best Android smartphone is almost identical to choose the best smartphone, period. But while Android phones have few real opponents on other platforms, internal competition is intense.
Introduction
The Moto G lineup has come a long way since its first release in 2013. The original Moto G is still one of the most iconic handsets ever created as it jump-started a new era of mid-range smartphones. It was quite frankly the first budget phone to make sense with a fairly powerful SoC for the asking price, decent battery life and clean, fast and clutter-free Android experience. But seven generations in, does the Moto G7 lineup still have it? Or the focus had shifted so much, it's hard to recognize the new Motos, for better or worse?
We take a closer look at the most expensive and capable of them all - the Moto G7 Plus. It's a solid mid-range device on paper, but it's hard to compete with the likes of Xiaomi and Honor these days especially with a high price tag of around €300. Still, the Moto G7 has a few standout features that some users will definitely appreciate and will probably make them overlook the flaws - the clean Android OS, the added Moto Action gestures, Motorola's TurboPower 27W fast charging and the 16MP OIS-aided main camera on the back are all rare sightings. That last one makes it a unicorn of some sort as not every manufacturer squeezes in OIS when building a handset on a budget.
Motorola Moto G7 Plus specs
- Body: 157 x 75.3 x 8.3 mm, 176 grams, Gorilla Glass 3 front and back panels, plastic sides.
- Screen: 6.2" IPS LCD, 1080 x 2270px resolution (19:9); ~405 ppi.
- Chipset: Qualcomm SDM636 Snapdragon 636 (14 nm) chipset: octa-core CPU (8x 1.8GHz Kryo 260); Adreno 509.
- Memory: 4GB RAM, 64GB built-in storage, microSD slot support.
- OS: Android 9.0 Pie.
- Rear camera: 16MP f/1.7, 1.22µm, PDAF support, OIS + 5MP depth sensor, dual-tone LED flash; 1080p@30/60/120fps and 4K@30fps video recording OIS.
- Front camera: 12MP, 1.25µm 1080p@30fps and 4K@30fps video recording.
- Battery: 3,000mAh, Quick Charge 4.0 and Power Deliver 3.0 support 27W (9V/3A).
- Connectivity: Dual-SIM; LTE Cat.12 download/ Cat.13 upload, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n/ac, Dual-band MIMO, 2x2 antennas, GPS; Bluetooth 5.0 A2DP, LE, EDR, aptX, USB-C 2.0.
- Misc: Rear-mounted fingerprint reader, FM radio support, water-repellent nano-coating p2i, stereo speakers.
But some corners had to be cut, unfortunately. The most obvious one is the chipset. If you are on the market for raw power, the Moto G7 Plus probably won't cut it. There are plenty of alternatives out there with more powerful SoCs at an even lower price, but as we all know, the specs sheet isn't enough to assess a smartphone. The Moto G7 Plus might turn out to be a well-balanced midranger with more than satisfactory overall user experience.
Unboxing the Moto G7 Plus
The handset comes in a generous box containing headphones, a transparent silicone protective case and a 27W-capable TurboPower charger, which is great news as you don't have to look for a third-party charger.
And since the charger and the phone support the Quick Charge 4.0 standard, which in turn is also compatible with Power Delivery by design, the data/charging cable is USB-C to USB-C. It's nice to see the new standard being brought to the masses. So far only a few high-end smartphones come with USB-C to USB-C cords and Power Delivery charging bricks.
The usual user manuals and SIM ejection tool are at hand.
Design, build and 360-degree view
The Moto G7 Plus might be a bit more expensive than other competing handsets, and it shows. The build quality on this thing is excellent and incorporates high-quality materials like glass on the front and back. To be exact, Motorola says Gorilla Glass 3 has been used for both sides, but it didn't mention anything about the frame. We can confirm that it's made of plastic, but that doesn't take away the premium feel of the phone.
And since we are talking on the subject of protection, we should mention the p2i water-repellent nano-coating that has been used in Moto G phones since the first generation came out in 2013. Note that this makes the Plus and the vanilla versions just splash resistant, not water and dustproof.
Also, the design hasn't changed a lot since the previous generation, so it retains the rather sleek appearance. The new colors spice things up a little - the red one looks stunning in person while the subtle blue version goes well with the overall premium appeal.
As we go around the sides, we see the volume rocker and the power button on the right side. The on/off button has a textured surface so you can easily reach for it.
All the keys are clicky and responsive. The top is where the dual SIM card slot is located along with the microSD card bay.
The left side remains clean while the bottom holds the second speaker grille along with the 3.5mm audio jack and the USB-C connector.
As we've already pointed out, the back panel is made of glass, and it's slightly curved to the sides seamlessly flowing into the side frame. There's a small gap in between, but you have to look for it to see it. The rounded back helps with the grip although all-glass phones will always be slippery.
The fingerprint scanner can be found in the middle of the back with Motorola's logo on it, and since it's slightly recessed and the surface has a different texture, it's easy to feel your way to it without looking.
Right above the reader sits the dual cameras in the Motorola's trademark circular camera bump. The latter is slightly protruding and holds a dual-tone LED flash as well.
A little design quirk that stood out was the secondary noise-cancelation microphone. It's located on the lower back. It's quite prominent, and it's also not centered but that may or may not bug.
The front 6.2-inch screen is also protected by a Gorilla Glass 3 but misses on the rounded edges. Bezels appear to be a bit thicker than we would like - particularly the side ones and the top. The chin, on the other hand, is quite alright and it's just big enough to accommodate the Motorola branding. Speaking of the chin, there's also the main mic under the Motorola inscription.
Some may argue that the top bezel is big because of all the hardware there. After all, Motorola had to fit the earpiece that doubles as a loudspeaker. We also have the proximity sensor placed on the notch along with the ambient sensor, which answers the question of why this waterdrop notch is a bit bigger than we are used to seeing.
To be honest, the Moto G7 Plus isn't the easiest one to handle with one hand, and the tall 6.2-inch display doesn't help with the situation too. However, the phone retains a solid feel in hand.
Here's how it looks from all sides.
IPS LCD display with a rather big waterdrop notch
The Plus in the name is no longer just an indication for a bigger screen. The vanilla Moto G7 is carrying the same 6.2-inch IPS LCD screen, so the Plus here stands for added features and functions that other Motos don't have. Anyway, the panel offers a 1080 x 2270 pixels (FHD+) resolution making for a tall 19:9 aspect ratio. The notch is a bit longer than we expected making the status bar taller as well.
In any case, the display went through our usual tests and the results are a mixed bag. The maximum recorded brightness is 473 nits, which is good for comfortable outdoor use while the 1425:1 contrast ratio ensures deep blacks. At least for a mid-range IPS display that is. Setting the display on Adaptive Brightness will trigger the Max Auto mode when needed and boost the maximum brightness to 573 nits for a short period of time although, it will need some cool off time before it kicks in again.
Unfortunately, color reproduction is where the Moto G7 Plus falls short. The system provides three color presets - natural, boosted and saturated with the latter being the default setting out of the box. None of the presets offered any significant change to the dE2000. Surprisingly, the boosted mode had the lowest average dE2000 of 5.6 while the saturated preset returned an average dE2000 of 6.2. The blue-ish whites can be observed in all settings, so this is something you have to keep in mind.
Overall, the display quality compared to the Moto G6 Plus is definitely a step back. Last year, we were impressed with the color reproduction and the maximum brightness. It was one of the standout features of the handset whereas this year, the Moto G7 Plus just settles for "average".
| Display test | 100% brightness | ||
| Black, cd/m2 | White, cd/m2 | ||
| 0.564 | 776 | 1376 | |
| 0.418 | 610 | 1459 | |
| 0 | 590 | ∞ | |
| 0.469 | 590 | 1258 | |
| 0.306 | 537 | 1755 | |
| 0.358 | 479 | 1338 | |
| 0.332 | 473 | 1425 | |
| 0.314 | 461 | 1468 | |
| 0.313 | 460 | 1470 | |
| 0.254 | 432 | 1701 | |
| 0.346 | 427 | 1234 | |
| 0 | 390 | ∞ | |
Despite the rather high maximum brightness, the reflectiveness of outer layer of the panel keeps the sunlight legibility score a bit lower than we would like to. Still, it's enough for a comfortable outdoor use.
Sunlight contrast ratio
- Apple iPhone XS
5.171 - Apple iPhone X
5.013 - Huawei Mate 20 Pro
4.965 - OnePlus 5T
4.789 - Samsung Galaxy S8
4.768 - Asus ROG Phone
4.765 - Samsung Galaxy S8+
4.658 - Samsung Galaxy S9
4.63 - Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+
4.615 - Samsung Galaxy S9+
4.537 - Samsung Galaxy Note9
4.531 - Apple iPhone XS Max
4.516 - Sony Xperia XZ3
4.502 - Motorola Moto Z2 Play
4.459 - Oppo R11
4.454 - Samsung Galaxy S7 edge
4.439 - Oppo RX17 Pro
4.434 - OnePlus 3
4.424 - Samsung Galaxy S7
4.376 - Google Pixel 3
4.35 - Huawei Mate 20 X
4.337 - Samsung Galaxy A7 (2018)
4.324 - OnePlus 6
4.321 - Xiaomi Mi Mix 3
4.291 - vivo NEX Dual Display (second display)
4.289 - HTC One A9
4.274 - LG V40 ThinQ
4.256 - Oppo R15 Pro
4.251 - Samsung Galaxy Note7
4.247 - Samsung Galaxy A3
4.241 - Nokia 8
4.239 - Google Pixel 2 XL (pre-update)
4.234 - OnePlus 3T
4.232 - Samsung Galaxy A9 (2018)
4.22 - Google Pixel XL
4.164 - ZTE Axon 7
4.154 - Samsung Galaxy Note8
4.148 - Meizu Pro 7 Plus
4.147 - OnePlus 6T
4.138 - Samsung Galaxy S6 edge
4.124 - Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
4.124 - vivo V11
4.113 - vivo NEX Dual Display
4.108 - Huawei Mate 10 Pro (normal)
4.096 - Samsung Galaxy Note5
4.09 - Huawei P20 Pro
4.087 - Xiaomi Mi 8
4.086 - Meizu 15
4.082 - Nokia 6 (2018)
4.052 - Google Pixel 2 (pre-update)
4.023 - LG V30
4.022 - Huawei Nexus 6P
4.019 - vivo NEX S
4.012 - Honor Magic 2
4.01 - Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
3.998 - OnePlus X
3.983 - Vivo Xplay5 Elite
3.983 - LG G7 ThinQ (outdoor)
3.978 - Oppo R7s
3.964 - Apple iPhone 7
3.964 - Apple iPhone 8 (True Tone)
3.957 - i>
- Oppo Find X
3.954 - OnePlus 5
3.914 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
3.901 - Samsung Galaxy C7
3.896 - Samsung Galaxy A5
3.895 - Samsung Galaxy J7 outdoor
3.879 - Samsung Galaxy J2 outdoor
3.873 - Motorola Moto G6 Plus
3.865 - Samsung Galaxy A8
3.859 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
3.842 - Apple iPhone 6
3.838 - Microsoft Lumia 950XL
3.837 - Samsung Galaxy A6+ (2018)
3.834 - Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016)
3.817 - Motorola Moto X (2014)
3.816 - Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
3.812 - Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
3.804 - Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) outdoor mode
3.802 - Xiaomi Redmi Pro
3.798 - LG V20 Max auto
3.798 - Sony Xperia XZ
3.795 - Apple iPhone 6s
3.783 - Xiaomi Mi 6
3.767 - Nokia 8 Sirocco
3.745 - Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact
3.729 - Apple iPhone 8 Plus (True Tone)
3.725 - Huawei P20
3.683 - Apple iPhone SE
3.681 - Huawei Mate 9
3.68 - Samsung Galaxy A7
3.679 - Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact
3.675 - BlackBerry Priv
3.645 - Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra
3.597 - Huawei Honor View 20
3.597 - Apple iPhone 7 Plus
3.588 - Sony Xperia XZ2
3.58 - LG G6
3.556 - Apple iPhone 6s Plus
3.53 - Motorola Moto Z Play
3.526 - Acer Jade Primo
3.521 - Microsoft Lumia 950
3.512 - Oppo R7 Plus
3.499 - Nokia 7 plus
3.479 - nubia Z11
3.466 - Huawei P10 Plus
3.456 - HTC U Ultra
3.453 - Motorola Moto G6
3.448 - Sony Xperia XA2 Ultra
3.445 - Sony Xperia XA2 Plus
3.445 - Samsung Galaxy J7
3.422 - Motorola Moto G6 Play
3.419 - Meizu MX5
3.416 - LG V20
3.402 - Samsung Galaxy A6 (2018)
3.397 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 AI Dual Camera
3.393 - LG G7 ThinQ
3.39 - Huawei P10
3.379 - Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)
3.378 - Oppo R9s
3.352 - Honor Play
3.349 - Honor 8 Pro
3.341 - Oppo F7
3.333 - Oppo R7
3.32 - Lenovo P2
3.316 - Archos Diamond Omega
3.305 - Honor 9
3.289 - Xiaomi Mi 5s
3.276 - Nokia 5
3.261 - Nokia 6 (Chinese version)
3.244 - Nokia 6 (Global version)
3.238 - Samsung Galaxy J2
3.235 - Oppo Realme 2 Pro
3.235 - Sony Xperia X Performance
3.234 - Xiaomi Mi Note 2
3.228 - Motorola Moto X Play
3.222 - Oppo F3 Plus
3.218 - BlackBerry KEY2
3.212 - Huawei Mate 9 Pro
3.206 - Huawei P9
3.195 - Xiaomi Mi Mix 2
3.19 - ZTE Nubia Z17
3.159 - Oppo R11s
3.153 - Lenovo Vibe Shot
3.113 - Honor 8X
3.113 - HTC U11 Life
3.108 - Motorola Moto X Force
3.105 - LG Nexus 5X
3.092 - HTC U11
3.089 - Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite
3.087 - HTC U12+
3.085 - Xiaomi Redmi S2 (Y2)
3.077 - Huawei Mate S
3.073 - Oppo F9
3.069 - Huawei P Smart 2019
3.069 - Microsoft Lumia 640 XL
3.065 - Xiaomi Mi Max 3
3.061 - Xiaomi Pocophone F1
3.059 - Huawei Mate 20
3.052 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
3.051 - Motorola One (P30 Play)
3.026 - Apple iPhone 6 Plus
3.023 - Asus Zenfone 4 ZE554KL
3.019 - Sony Xperia XA1
3.012 - Motorola Moto X4
3.012 - Motorola Moto G7
3.011 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
3.01 - Oppo Realme 2
3.006 - Sony Xperia L1
2.994 - Sony Xperia X
2.989 - LG Q6
2.987 - Huawei P10 Lite
2.974 - Samsung Galaxy Note
2.97 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 6 Pro
2.966 - Huawei P20 Lite
2.952 - Xiaomi Redmi 5
2.951 - Huawei Mate 8
2.949 - Sony Xperia XA2
2.938 - Oppo Realme 1
2.932 - Razer Phone 2
2.932 - Xiaomi Redmi 4
2.92 - Xiaomi Redmi 3S
2.913 - Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
2.913 - Sony Xperia XA Ultra
2.906 - LG G5
2.905 - Huawei Honor View 10
2.896 - Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime
2.893 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
2.893 - Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
2.884 - Sony Xperia XZ Premium (sRGB)
2.877 - Sony Xperia XZ Premium
2.877 - Sony Xperia Z5
2.876 - Nokia 3
2.871 - Sony Xperia XZ2 Premium
2.867 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
2.862 - Microsoft Lumia 550
2.851 - Nokia 3.1
2.837 - Realme U1
2.815 - Lenovo Moto M
2.813 - Nokia 7.1
2.804 - Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro
2.803 - Sony Xperia Z5 compact
2.784 - Honor 10 (Vivid)
2.757 - Nokia 2
2.752 - Meizu MX6
2.751 - LG V10
2.744 - Huawei Mate 10 (normal)
2.742 - Motorola Moto G5S Plus
2.737 - Xiaomi Redmi 3
2.735 - Huawei Honor 7X
2.734 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
2.714 - Meizu M5
2.71 - Xiaomi Mi A2
2.696 - Sony Xperia M5
2.69 - Xiaomi Mi A1
2.689 - Huawei P9 Lite
2.679 - Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime
2.679 - vivo V7+
2.671 - Vivo V3Max
2.659 - Xiaomi Mi Mix
2.658 - Huawei Mate 10 Lite
2.654 - Oppo F5
2.653 - Doogee Mix
2.642 - Xiaomi Mi 4i
2.641 - Xiaomi Redmi 4a
2.635 - Sony Xperia Z3
2.618 - Xiaomi Mi 5X (Standard)
2.616 - Sony Xperia XA
2.609 - Motorola Moto G4 Plus
2.582 - Motorola Moto G4 Plus (max auto)
2.582 - Meizu M5s
2.58 - Xiaomi Mi 4c
2.574 - LeEco Le Max 2
2.567 - Microsoft Lumia 640
2.563 - Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL
2.563 - Huawei P Smart
2.563 - Xiaomi Mi Max 2
2.561 - HTC U11+
2.556 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1)
2.556 - Lenovo Moto G4
2.544 - Lenovo K6 Note
2.544 - Oppo F1
2.528 - Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
2.525 - Huawei Honor 7 Lite / Honor 5c
2.506 - Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
2.503 - Huawei Honor 10 Lite
2.497 - BlackBerry Motion
2.494 - Oppo F1s
2.481 - Motorola Moto G
2.477 - Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus
2.473 - Huawei G8
2.471 - Huawei nova
2.467 - Sony Xperia Z
2.462 - Xiaomi Mi 4
2.424 - Xiaomi Mi 5X (Auto)
2.417 - HTC 10 evo
2.407 - Sony Xperia E5
2.386 - ZUK Z1 by Lenovo
2.382 - HTC 10
2.378 - Oppo F3
2.376 - vivo V5 Plus
2.371 - Razer Phone
2.328 - HTC U11+ (EU)
2.253 - Xiaomi Mi Note
2.234 - Motorola Moto G (2014)
2.233
Battery life
Battery life is pretty underwhelming and we expected more from the 3,000 mAh battery and the rather efficient Snapdragon 636 SoC. Perhaps the big 6.2-inch screen took a toll on the battery, then again, the standby and the talk time tests weren't impressive either. Our overall endurance rating is just 59h and it's lower than last year's Moto G6 Plus. Fun fact - it's actually a tad better than the original Moto G from 2013 but that's of little consolation.
Our battery tests were automated thanks to SmartViser, using its viSer App. The endurance rating above denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Motorola Moto G7 Plus for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We've established this usage pattern so that our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you're interested in the nitty-gritty. You can check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we've tested will compare under your own typical use.
The fast 27W TurboPower charging will surely come in handy here as it fills up the battery from 0 to 79% in just 30 minutes, which is super fast. That's downright impressive and could potentially change your charging habits for the better - no more overnighting. You do have to carry the included charger with you if you start relying on quick top-offs, though.
Our testing reveals that unlike other Moto phones, the TurboPower charging here is actually utilizing the USB Power Delivery protocol and it reaches the advertised 27W power output.
Loudspeaker
The loudspeakers' loudness is right up there with the best and we've tested them in all Dolby Audio modes available - Smart audio, Music, and Movie. The movie preset was the loudest one while the music preset was the quietest.
Dolby Audio settings
Sound quality is pretty good as well - the bottom-firing speaker does sound a bit fuller than the other one but that's to be expected. Regardless, we can confidently say it's one of the better stereo loudspeaker implementations.
| Speakerphone test | Voice, dB | Ringing |
Overall score | |
| 62.6 | 68.0 | 71.0 | Average | |
| 66.1 | 70.0 | 76.2 | Good | |
| 67.5 | 71.3 | 79.7 | Good | |
| 69.2 | 70.6 | 81.6 | Very Good | |
| 67.1 | 72.9 | 81.6 | Very Good | |
| 67.8 | 70.0 | 84.2 | Very Good | |
| 70.5 | 73.6 | 78.4 | Very Good | |
| 69.1 | 74.8 | 81.4 | Very Good | |
| 70.8 | 72.4 | 84.9 | Excellent | |
| 69.8 | 71.5 | 90.5 | Excellent | |
| 72.8 | 74.7 | 86.6 | Excellent | |
| 76.5 | 76.7 | 86.4 | Excellent |
Audio quality
The Motorola Moto G7 Plus had impressively high volume with an active external amplifier and excellent scores across the board, making it a great driver for your home stereo or car audio.
Loudness remained very high even with headphones - a particularly impressive achievement given the relatively low standing of the smartphone. What’s more the clarity was barely affected either - a minor hike in stereo crosstalk is all there is to it. A really great showing by the Moto G7 Plus here!
| Test | Frequency response | Noise level | Dynamic range | THD | IMD + Noise | Stereo crosstalk |
| +0.04, -0.00 | -93.3 | 93.2 | 0.0029 | 0.0077 | -93.8 | |
| +0.07, -0.01 | -92.9 | 93.2 | 0.015 | 0.076 | -68.8 | |
| +0.04, -0.04 | -90.7 | 90.7 | 0.0015 | 0.014 | -94.5 | |
| +0.05, -0.29 | -92.5 | 92.5 | 0.024 | 0.296 | -55.0 | |
| +0.02, -0.02 | -93.1 | 93.0 | 0.0039 | 0.0088 | -81.9 | |
| +0.64, -0.38 | -88.6 | 91.9 | 0.0069 | 0.606 | -50.6 | |
| +0.04, -0.04 | -93.5 | 93.4 | 0.0011 | 0.0070 | -93.4 | |
| +0.45, -0.18 | -93.4 | 93.4 | 0.021 | 0.457 | -54.9 | |
| +0.01, -0.04 | -92.3 | 92.4 | 0.0041 | 0.0085 | -80.7 | |
| +0.45, -0.54 | -92.2 | 92.8 | 0.0084 | 0.492 | -51.5 | |
| +0.02, -0.02 | -93.1 | 92.9 | 0.0026 | 0.0089 | -92.5 | |
| +0.25, -0.17 | -91.4 | 91.6 | 0.115 | 0.306 | -55.4 | |
| +0.02, -0.06 | -91.0 | 88.6 | 0.0021 | 0.016 | -94.4 | |
| +0.05, -0.03 | -93.8 | 89.6 | 0.0019 | 0.034 | -54.9 |
Motorola Moto G7 Plus frequency response
You can learn more about the tested parameters and the whole testing process here.
Squeaky clean Android 9.0 Pie
Some may call it boring, some may say it's all you need. You are getting stock Android experience across the entire Moto G lineup for better or for worse. After all, that's the key selling point of these devices ever since the first Moto G came around. However, that doesn't mean Motorola didn't add some cool stuff of its own in there.
The home screen isn't anything new, especially for stock Android fans. The only thing out of the ordinary is Motorola's circular clock in the middle, which also happens to indicate the remaining charge of the battery and also tells you if the TurboPower charging is active.
Tapping on it will take you to the Clock. Swiping to the right opens up the Google Feed tab with the latest news and a quick search box. Swiping from the bottom brings out the app drawer and if you swipe down from the home screen, the notification shade will drop down. This is a particularly useful gesture in an era of 19:9 aspect ratio smartphones. It does help a lot with the one-handed use. Oh, and the volume menu has been re-designed as well, but it was to be expected from Android 9.0 Pie in general.
Home screen, notification shade and Google Feed
The settings menu is quite minimalist with most of the settings tucked away within the sub-menus. Let's start with the most interesting ones - the so-called Moto Actions. There's a dedicated sub-menu in the Settings that lets you turn on and off various gestures. There's lift-to-unlock, media controls via the volume keys when the screen is off, three finger screenshot and a flip for Do Not Disturb mode. You can also shake the phone in a karate chop motion to turn on the flash or twist your wrist a few times to open up the camera app. The gestures work both ways - with the screen turned on or off.
Settings menu
The gesture-based navigation option is in there as well. It's called One Button Nav and works like Google Pixel's pill, but Motorola has its own take on this one. It's a small and rather long button in the middle. Swiping it to the left takes you back, swiping it up brings out the recent apps menu, swiping to the right quickly switches back to the previous app and a single tap will take you home. Holding it launches the voice assistant.
Moto Actions and the One Button Nav
If you've used other gesture-based navigations, it will take some time adjusting especially since the swipe from the bottom usually works as home whereas in this case, it opens up the recent apps menu. On the other hand, if you are coming from the standard software buttons, this one should feel familiar. The only downside we see in this is that the button is pretty small and it takes some time getting used to. And despite it being small, it still takes more space on the screen than the most currently available gesture navigations.
In the same Moto Actions menu, you will see the Moto Display sub-menu as well presenting two more display-related options. One that allows the screen to light up to notify you about new messages and the other one called Attentive Display. The latter keeps the screen on as long as you look at the display - we've seen similar implementations on Samsung, LG and other phones. It's pretty useful if you've set the screen timeout at 30 seconds or a minute and you are reading a long article.
Moto Voice and Moto Display
Next down the list is the Battery section where all the battery stats are buried. You can see which apps and hardware have drained most of the battery since the last full charge. There's an additional battery saver that limits the performance of the phone to preserve power. The new Adaptive Battery feature introduced with Android Pie is also at hand.
Battery menus
The Display menu offers the usual settings along with three color presets, which we've examined in the previous page. What's missing here is the notch toggle. Unfortunately, none of the new Motos offers the option to mask the notch. Also, we've noticed that turning the device's theme to "Dark" only changes the drop-down menu whereas the Settings menu remains white. It's probably a bug that needs fixing in future updates.
Display settings and sound settings
New to the Motorola's software is the face unlock. Don't expect anything fancy, though, as the software uses only the front-facing camera, so no additional hardware is used to identify your face. This means that the regular fingerprint reader and PIN/pattern unlocks are more secure.
Nevertheless, face recognition and the additional features make the unlocking experience way smoother. You can enable the Lift to unlock gesture - it bypasses the lock screen once you lift the device and the camera recognizes your face.
Fingerprint and face unlock menu
The rest is pretty standard and what you'd usually expect from a barebone Android OS. As we said earlier, Motorola still goes with the no clutter mantra so no third-party apps or bloatware can be found on the handset.
And as for updates, Motorola promised that all four G7 models would get the upcoming Android Q. The developers team, however, will keep the security updates for the next two years coming on a monthly basis.
Performance
The performance is one of the downsides of the Moto G7 Plus and not because it throttles or we felt the menu lagging. It's because most of the competitors in this price range sport a more powerful SoC like the Kirin 710 or the Snapdragon 660. Sure, the Snapdragon 636 is a perfectly capable SoC that can handle day-to-day tasks with ease and it's actually one of the most balanced mid-range chips efficiency-wise.
It's built on the 14nm node and has an octa-core processor featuring 8x Kryo 260 cores clocked at 1.8GHz and an Adreno 509 GPU for the graphically-intensive tasks. The ISP is also perfectly capable of handing slow-motion videos in 1080p as well as 2160p videos at 30fps.
GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
9003 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
5908 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
5894 - Nokia 7 plus
5893 - Honor 8X
5651 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
5574 - Realme 2 Pro
5531 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
5411 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
4927 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
4418
GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
2438 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
1890 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
1650 - Nokia 7 plus
1634 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
1628 - Honor 8X
1618 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
1595 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
1532 - Realme 2 Pro
1462 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
1334
AnTuTu 7
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
265314 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
170218 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
143257 - Nokia 7 plus
140820 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
139075 - Honor 8X
137276 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
136583 - Realme 2 Pro
132958 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
117829
Basemark OS 2.0
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
3713 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
2658 - Nokia 7 plus
2376 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
2367 - Honor 8X
2341 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
2338 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
2260 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
2007 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
1999 - Realme 2 Pro
1911
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
82 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
33 - Nokia 7 plus
23 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
22 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
22 - Honor 8X
21 - Realme 2 Pro
21 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
20 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
16 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
16
GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
59 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
30 - Nokia 7 plus
21 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
20 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
19 - Honor 8X
19 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
19 - Realme 2 Pro
18 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
15 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
14
GFX 3.1 Car scene (1080p offscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
35 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
13 - Nokia 7 plus
9.1 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
9 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
9 - Honor 8X
7.6 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
7.6 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
6.3 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
6
GFX 3.1 Car scene (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
31 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
12 - Nokia 7 plus
8.6 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
8 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
7.7 - Realme 2 Pro
7.2 - Honor 8X
6.7 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
6.7 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
5.9 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
5.2
Basemark X
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Pocophone F1
43652 - Xiaomi Mi 8 SE
27560 - Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
21269 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 7
21201 - Nokia 7 plus
21063 - Huawei Mate 20 Lite
20444 - Honor 8X
20416 - Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
15299 - Motorola Moto G7 Plus
15004 - Realme 2 Pro
14576
16MP main camera with f/1.7 and OIS
We've seen high-resolution cameras on mid-range smartphones before, but this is one of the few handsets in this price category to have OIS. The main shooter is 16MP with f/1.7, 1.22µm pixels and a secondary 5MP unit for depth sensing. We expect the OIS to account for better low-light quality, less grainy photos and generally less shaky too.
And as for the selfie camera, this phone is kitted with a 12MP unit with 1.25µm pixels and it's capable of shooting 2160@30fps videos. Neat, right? But before we begin with the camera samples, here's how the default camera app looks inside.
Camera menu
The camera menu is different from what we are used to seeing on most phones. Motorola has taken a different approach with its own camera app and we can say it's pretty easy to use. There are three icons on the bottom - one is for the default photo mode, the other one opens up the video recording tab and the one on the left opens up the settings and different camera modes, including the portrait mode.
Camera menus and options
There are additional settings buried in the upper right corner sub-menu.
Image quality
Undoubtedly, the 16MP main camera aided by OIS is one of the centerpiece features of this phone, so we were eager to see it in action.
Right off the bat, we can see that there's plenty of detail when there is enough light. The exposure tends to make the scenes a bit darker, especially in the shadows, but colors appear punchy and the contrast is good. Of course, punchy colors also means less accurate color reproduction, but it will appeal to most for social media.
Daylight samples
There's a bit of artificial sharpening here and there, but it's really hard to notice if you aren't looking for it and in our opinion, it's just the right amount to make the photos more pleasant. We did notice, however, some magenta tint in some parts of the image and luckily, it didn't ruin the overall experience. Also, some noise in the sky and the dark parts of the scene can be noticed. The dynamic range needs a little fixing and that's where the HDR kicks in.
The HDR did a great job of restoring the shadows without ruining the highlights. Note that the HDR photos will be a bit softer as well - barely noticeable but still something worth mentioning. Perhaps letting the software decide when the HDR is needed is the best way to go, so leave it on auto.
HDR On
And more samples.
Moto G7 Plus camera samples
Moto G7 Plus camera samples
Moto G7 Plus camera samples
Low-light photos
The Moto G7 Plus night time image quality is pretty consistent. Colors stay punchy, images are sharp although, dynamic range is once again holding it back. While the photos come through nicely exposed, most light sources get clipped though the situation is much better than on the other phones in the Moto G7 family.
When the scene is really dark, the software is confident enough to lower the shutter speed to 1/10s with the help of the OIS.
Overall, the G7 Plus takes great low-light photos with good exposure, low noise, and preserved colors. It's definitely one of the best night shooters we've seen in the price range with the only real competition here being the Redmi Note 7 with its excellent night mode. Too bad the Moto G7 Plus didn't come with a dedicated night mode, which would allow it to restore the highlights as well.
Low-light photos
More low-light camera samples
Once you're done examining the real-life samples you can have a look at our Photo compare tool for some studio shots. We've pre-selected the Redmi Note 7 and the Realme 2 Pro but you can pick any other set of phones to compare once you're there.
Here's how it compares to the competition.
Moto G7 Plus against the Realme 2 Pro and Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 in our Photo compare tool
Portraits
Portrait shots return plenty of detail, nice and natural skin tone while the edge detection appears to be one of the best we've seen on a mid-range phone. Of course, there are a few spots that the software missed, but we can't be too picky. There's a slider in the camera app that lets you choose the strength of the blur effect. You can make it look subtle or over-the-top.
Selfies
The selfies are pretty nice as well. The dynamic range is lacking but the detail is good and the edge detection in the portrait mode was expected to be less precise than the back camera where the depth sensor does most of the heavy lifting.
Selfie: Normal • Portrait • Normal • Portrait
Video recording
The handset is capable of recording 2160p videos in 30fps or 1080p at 30 or 60fps - nothing out of the ordinary. Slow-motion capture supports 720p@240fps or 1080@120fps and interestingly enough, the front-facing camera can record 4K videos as well. It's limited to 30fps.
There's no visible noise but we can see some slight loss of detail in the highlights when recording 2160p videos. The same goes for the 1080p samples in addition to the worse dynamic range.
The 4K video recording doesn't support EIS but the Full HD one does come with EIS. Here's how the stabilization or the lack there of affects the video recording.
Here's how it compares to the competition in a more controlled environment.
2160p: Moto G7 Plus against the Xiaomi Mi 8 SE and Nokia 7 Plus in our Video compare tool
You can download short untouched samples as well - 2160p/30fps (10s, 64MB), 1080p/30fps (10s, 22MB).
The competition
The midrange competition is heated, that's clear. It's hard to go against the value-oriented smartphones from Honor, Realme and Xiaomi. Motorola is counting on brand recognition to help them in sales but this won't be the case in all markets.
The Moto G7 Plus is not going to impress you with raw power. Carrying a Snapdragon 636, the handset drags behind most of its rivals that are even priced way below the €300 mark. Take the legendary Pocophone F1 for example. For the same price, you get a flagship SoC and a huge battery. That's something you don't want to miss if you are looking for longevity and battery life. However, we weren't compelled by the camera performance, whereas the Moto G7 Plus takes the lead in this aspect.
Xiaomi Pocophone F1 • Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 • Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite
The next one that made it to our list is once again from Xiaomi's camp - the Redmi Note 7. It's almost twice as cheap as the Moto G7 Plus while being more powerful, has long battery life and will surprise you with great low-light and daylight camera performance. However, the Moto G7 Plus still has the subjectively better screen, measurably faster charging and stereo loudspeakers if you are into those.
The third option is the recently reviewed Xiaomi Mi 8 Lite which is once again better in terms of raw performance and it has better battery life but fails to impress with image quality (camera-wise) and overall set of features. Still a lot cheaper, though.
The Nokia 7 Plus is a nice stock Android alternative to the Moto G7 Plus but this is a tricky one. The Moto G7 Plus surely has more added value and offers arguably better camera experience and brighter screen. Yet, it fails to deliver the battery endurance scores.
Honor 8X • Nokia 7 plus
The last on the list is the recently launched Honor 8X. A great value smartphone for sub-€250 but a lot of corners have been cut here - no 4K video recording, no fast charging and there is the aging microUSB. Also, the camera experience is rather uninspiring.
Fortunately, the battery life and the relatively powerful SoC are here to save the day. You can even say that the Moto G7 Plus and the Honor 8X are the exact opposites. The Moto G7 Plus impresses with camera quality - the 8X doesn't. The latter has more powerful SoC and highly-customizable EMUI while the Moto G7 Plus takes a more conservative approach with clean Android and a more efficient Snapdragon 636 chipset.
Verdict
If you haven't picked it up by now, let's make it clear - if you are looking for raw performance and endurance, the Moto G7 Plus probably isn't the best choice, especially at this price. Those factors alone hold us from giving the handset a great score when weighing the feature set. The €300 price tag would have been otherwise justified if Motorola went for the Snapdragon 660.
However, the extra cash for the Moto G7 Plus can be somewhat made up for by a few rare features in this price range. We are talking OIS, stereo loudspeakers and the super fast TurboPower 27W charging. Mainly thanks to the OIS, the daylight and nighttime performance is one of the best in the class. The Redmi Note 7 is probably the only one that could argue with that for now.
Perhaps if Motorola didn't lean so much on brand recognition, it could have scored an awesome all-rounder at a decent price or at least with a more powerful Snapdragon 660 SoC. Remember the first Moto G? It didn't have all those fancy features like unique gestures, functions, OIS, etc., but it focused on what really matters - performance, longevity, battery life and screen quality on a budget. It seems that the company lost all this somewhere along the way to the 7th generation, but that's why you can opt for the less expensive vanilla Moto G7 or even the Power, for example.
Instead of cramming everything in a single package like the first Moto Gs, Motorola has now taken a more diversified approach by launching four models for the masses each offering something the others don't. It's up to you to pick the right one for you.
Pros
- Pretty clean design with nice color options.
- Super fast TurboPower 27W charging.
- Great image camera quality for the asking price.
- Front camera supports 4K@30fps video recording.
- Clear and loud stereo loudspeakers.
- Clutter-free Android experience with a few useful features on top.
- Audio output quality from the 3.5mm jack is stellar.
Cons
- The battery endurance rating it scored is appalling.
- A more powerful SoC was a better fit for the price range.
- The screen is not as good as last year's Moto G6 Plus.
0 Response to "Motorola Moto G7 Plus review"
Post a Comment