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Introduction
Bridging the gap between the affordable G-series and the more upmarket Edge models, the Moto G100 is Motorola's take on a high-powered midranger. Indeed, with a mighty Snapdragon chip at the helm, a few interesting camera choices, and potential for PC replacement use, the Moto G100 is indeed a promising package.
We brought up the Moto Edges for a reason - the Moto Edge S has been available in China for a couple of months, and the G100 is essentially that. Minor differences can be found in a head-to-head spec comparison but we'd say that a few extra degrees of coverage on the ultrawide cameras are hardly consequential.
The important stuff is certainly the same, and that starts with the Snapdragon 870 chip - an even higher-clocked, ++ version of the top-tier SD865 from last year. That enables one of the G100 headlining features - the (oddly named) 'Ready For' functionality for using the phone as the heart of a desktop computer, Samsung Dex style.
There are other unusual bits on the Moto G100 too. Its 16MP ultrawide camera on the back has autofocus and a ring flash, offering some serious potential for close-up photography. At least of equal importance is the secondary camera on the front - you'd be getting ultrawide selfies on top of the regular ones.
In this context, the display looks almost too mainstream. It's a 6.7-inch LCD that maxes out at 90Hz - it's not an OLED, and it's not a 120Hz panel either. It is particularly tall, however, at 21:9, so there's that.
Motorola Moto G100 specs at a glance:
- Body: 168.4x74.0x9.7mm, 207g; plastic frame; water repellent design.
- Display: 6.70" IPS LCD, 90Hz, HDR10, 560 nits, 1080x2520px resolution, 21:9 aspect ratio, 409ppi.
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM8250-AC Snapdragon 870 5G (7 nm): Octa-core (1x3.2 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 585); Adreno 650.
- Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM; UFS 3.1; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
- OS/Software: Android 11.
- Rear camera: Wide (main): 64 MP, f/1.7, 1/2.0", 0.7µm, PDAF, Laser AF; Ultra wide angle: 16 MP, f/2.2, 117˚, 1.0µm, PDAF; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4; Depth: TOF 3D.
- Front camera: Wide (main): 16 MP, f/2.2, 1.0µm; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.4, 118˚, 1.12µm.
- Video capture: Rear camera: 6K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
- Battery: 5000mAh; Fast charging 20W.
- Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); NFC; 3.5mm jack; 'Ready For' support.
With the LCD on the front not allowing for an under-display fingerprint reader, you get a capacitive one embedded in the power button on the side. There's also a dedicated Google Assistant key, as on all of the latest Moto Gs. The insides have a water-repellant treatment, and a reasonably standard 5,000mAh battery is meant to keep the lights on.
Motorola Moto G100 unboxing
The box of the Moto G100 is no different than the ones we got with the G10 and G30 - so nothing remotely fancy. The one slightly amusing bit is the 'ready for compatible' badge in the top right corner. We were briefed about what 'ready for' stands for (more on that in the 'Software' section on page 4), and the prominently advertised compatibility with the system makes sense. However, to someone unfamiliar with the concept, it may read like broken English.
Anyway, inside our review unit's box, there was the phone, already in a soft silicone protective case. Underneath it, we found the 20W charger and a USB-A-to-C cable to go with it. Some markets also get a headset, but our unit didn't have one.
Mind you, while the phone is 'ready for compatible', you'd need a USB-C-to-C cable to connect it to a compatible monitor or one of the optional accessories Motorola has for the task. The 'ready for' dock has a cradle where you place your phone, and the dock connects to a monitor. There are pre-order bundles right now that include the dock. There's also a 'ready for' cable that does the same thing, only minus the actual dock.
Again, we'll go into more detail on the 'ready for' platform on the review's software page. But before that - hardware.
Design
This being the fanciest Moto G to date, the G100 is not without standout design touches. Perhaps the most tangible of all is the gentle curvature of the front glass towards the edges. It's not quite like the Motorola Edges, but it does feel nicer as you swipe in from the sides than what the Moto G30 and G10 do.
It's also not quite as bezel-ly as the lesser Moto Gs, particularly when it comes to the chin. We're not saying the black border around the display is thin; no, it's just thinner than what you'd see on the immediate family members, particularly the chin.
Then there's the matter of the oversized aspect ratio - at 21:9 the Moto G100's display is taller than the other Moto Gs and most other phones. If you're one to obsess over these things, you might find it top-heavy, but it's hardly a deal-breaking offence, and it's certainly something you won't be noticing a few days in.
What you won't be able to escape is that the top half of the display is simply out of reach, that extra bit more than on the rest of the current phones. Some operations are just two-hand operations, and that's that.
Another unusual bit for a Moto G, though not exclusive to the G100, is the punch-hole - most others have some sort of a notch instead. The Moto G100 has not one, but two punch-holes, in fact - each of the two selfie cameras gets its own cutout.
Since we're in these quarters, let's mention in passing that the earpiece is just that - Motorola missed the opportunity to give it double duty as a second speaker for a stereo setup.
Flipping the Moto G100 to reveal its back, there's a fair number of things to talk about. For starters, the explosion of color. Our review unit is in the Iridescent Ocean colorway, and its hues vary from cyan through magenta to purple.
Two alternative paint jobs exist. One is called Iridescent Sky, and it uses more of an overcast cloudy white-ish sky as the base for its iridescence, at least in the pictures we have. The other is called Slate Gray and is the most understated of the three. Not all colorways will be available across all markets, or at least not at launch - Europe is seemingly not getting the Slate Gray on day one.
Alternative colorways
Iridescent or slate, the Moto G100's back panel has a frosted matte finish that's probably the most middle-ground we've seen, and in a good way. It's not as slippery as other frosted panels we've encountered, but it picks up fingerprints a bit more. Then again, your attention is unlikely to be drawn by the smudges with all the color blending action. Plus, it's miles better in this respect than a glossy panel, by definition.
One thing we can't confirm is what material the back is made of. Motorola doesn't specify it, and even though it feels like glass to us, we're not ruling out the possibility that it's a really nice plastic.
Moving on to the camera cluster, which isn't entirely ordinary itself - it looks like a quad-camera configuration, but it's not really that. The Moto G100 has two real cameras (one regular, one ultrawide), and then an extra module for depth detection, plus a ToF module.
Three of these have shiny accent rings to match the color scheme of the phone, so they are... cyan?... in our case. The fourth ring is, in fact, a ring flash, or more like four LEDs behind a diffuser. This one is only available when shooting in close-up mode (perhaps this reviewer will eventually concede and adopt 'macro', even though it isn't). This is the ultrawide camera inside the ring flash, and that's the one used for close-ups. For non-close-up ultrawide use, the ring flash is deactivated, and the regular (and brighter) dual LED unit takes over.
We don't care much for the 64MP | Audio Zoom inscription, but we do admit it's one of the subtler camera brandings there are. An 'M' bat logo is underneath the frosted surface providing brand recognition with a dash of design highlight.
As you noticed, the bat logo isn't a fingerprint reader, and since we know already that the G100 has an LCD on the front, an under-display solution is out of the question too. So a capacitive sensor embedded in the power button on the side is the logical solution. It's recessed into the frame, so it can feel a little bit as if you're pushing into the bezel, but it does click positively.
The fingerprint recognition itself works reliably, both for right thumb and left index finger action. Smartphone-lefties can be at a disadvantage with these right-mounted readers, and we've seen phones that do indeed favor right-hand unlocks, but the Moto G100 is ambidextrous.
Due to the sensor's relatively high placement, accidental caresses with other parts of the palm aren't as common, and the possibility of slipping the phone into your pocket while accidentally unlocking it in the process is also slim. Even so, there's an option in settings for the unlock procedure to require a press, as opposed to just a tap, thus making unwanted FPR actuations improbable.
On the opposite side of the handset, you get a small Google Assistant key. It's so tiny and placed so far out of reach that it's almost as if Motorola doesn't want you to use it. Right next to it is the card slot with a dual-card tray inside - you can put two nano SIMs or a nano-SIM and microSD inside, but not all three at the same time.
There's also a rubber seal lining the tray to help keep dust and moisture out. The phone is specified as having a water-repellant design, so it carries no formal IP rating, but it should be good against some light rain.
Tiny Assistant key • Dual card tray with gasket
Continuing the tour of the frame (which is plastic, this much we can tell), we can see the usual bits on the bottom. There's the USB-C port, the headphone jack, loudspeaker and primary mic. A solitary secondary mic is on the top plate.
Bottom • Top
The Motorola Moto G100 measures 168.4x74x9.7mm, making it both taller than most in its class, as well as slightly thicker. It's heavier than average, too, weighing in at 207g, though its Chinese Edge S counterpart is, oddly, even heavier at 215g.
90Hz FullHD LCD on the Moto G100
Motorola went with an LCD for Moto G100 instead of an OLED, which kind of makes sense for a G-series device. It's a well-specced LCD, offering a 90Hz refresh rate and a 1080x2520px resolution in a taller-than-most 21:9 aspect ratio.
In our brightness testing, the Moto G100 posted okay numbers. Under direct light and with adaptive brightness enabled, the phone was capable of 613nits, while operating the slider manually got us just shy of 500nits. We got average readings for the black level, so ultimately contrast is merely good at around 1400:1. We say 'merely good' because Motorola's own cheaper Moto G30 can do nearly 2000:1 for contrast, though, admittedly, it's not as bright as the G100.
| Display test | 100% brightness | ||
| Black, |
White, |
||
| 0.349 | 498 | 1427:1 | |
| 0.434 | 613 | 1412:1 | |
| 0.204 | 403 | 1975:1 | |
| 0.241 | 468 | 1942:1 | |
| 0 | 416 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 595 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 511 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 716 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 516 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 854 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 323 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 756 | ∞ | |
| 0.348 | 476 | 1368:1 | |
| 0.455 | 596 | 1310:1 | |
| 0.327 | 458 | 1401:1 | |
| 0.4 | 534 | 1335:1 | |
| 0 | 386 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 794 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 475 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 682 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 496 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 803 | ∞ | |
The Moto G100 adopts the AOSP way of handling color reproduction and offers Natural, Boosted and Saturated modes. The default one is Saturated, and it offers a wide color gamut and vivid colors, though the white point is shifted way towards blues, and it's not particularly accurate when it comes to reproducing our DCI-P3 swatches. The Natural mode is for sRGB content, and it's a lot closer to target, though the white point is again off the mark and has a blue-green tinge in this mode.
The Moto G100's display is HDR capable, and we were able to play YouTube videos in HDR on it. We also got HDR streams on Amazon Prime Video.
However, at the time of writing, Netflix wouldn't play in HDR on the G100. The phone does support the required Widevine L1 level, so it's a matter of Netflix whitelisting the model, though there isn't a single Motorola device in the streaming platform's HDR compatibility list, so fingers crossed. For what it's worth, both major platforms offer 1080p resolution on the Moto G100.
The Moto G100 handles its refresh rate in an identical manner to the Moto G30, which we reviewed recently. It has three modes in the refresh rate menu - 60Hz, 90Hz and Auto. The first one will have you locked in 60Hz for all tasks, and that's what we'd expect of it. In 90Hz mode, you'd be getting 90Hz for pretty much every task, including video playback - not optimal behavior in terms of battery life, but one that's at least honest.
If you do want to optimize battery usage, the Auto mode will try and help with that by adjusting the refresh rate down to 60Hz as soon as you stop interacting with the phone - so you'd be getting 90Hz when you touch the screen and scroll around, but it will drop to 60Hz once you stop touching the screen. On this phone (unlike on the G30), you actually stand to gain some minor battery life improvements in 60Hz, so opting for the Auto mode may yield improved longevity.
Motorola Moto G100 battery life
The Moto G100 is equipped with a 5000mAh battery, about as standard capacity as power packs go these days. This particular phone does have a more powerful and thus a more power-hungry chipset inside, so we weren't expecting exactly the Moto G30's results (another 5,000mAh battery, similarly sized but lower-res 90Hz display, and an inferior chipset). Even so, the Moto G100 did quite well.
We clocked 12 hours of Wi-Fi web browsing at a constant 90Hz refresh rate and nearly 15 hours of looping videos offline, again at 90Hz, because it can. With 38 hours of potential voice calls on a single charge and reasonable standby performance (for a top-tier Snapdragon), the Moto G100 posted an Endurance rating of 100 hours.
As we mentioned, you stand to gain a bit of extra battery life if you keep the refresh rate down at 60Hz. That will get you another hour of web browsing or about an hour and a half of video playback for an adjusted Endurance rating of 105 hours.
In our book, the Auto mode does make sense on the Moto G100 even if it's not quite as adaptive as recent efforts by Samsung, Oppo and OnePlus.
Our battery tests were automated thanks to SmartViser, using its viSerDevice app. The endurance rating above denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Motorola Moto G100 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.
Charging speed
The Moto G100 ships with the same 20W charger we got with the Moto G30. Here, however, we got quicker charging times, though the numbers are hardly impressive for a €500 phone. A full charge from flat with the included adapter took a little under 2 hours, while a 30-minute session will get you from 0 to 37%.
30min charging test (from 0%)
- OnePlus 8
69% - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G
68% - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
61% - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
60% - OnePlus Nord
60% - Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
50% - Poco X3 Pro
50% - Motorola Moto G100
37% - Motorola Edge
37% - Oppo Reno4 Z 5G
36% - Samsung Galaxy A52
34% - Motorola Moto G30
32%
Time to full charge (from 0%)
- OnePlus 8
0:53h - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
0:58h - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G
0:58h - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
1:05h - OnePlus Nord
1:05h - Poco X3 Pro
1:08h - Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
1:21h - Motorola Moto G100
1:54h - Oppo Reno4 Z 5G
1:55h - Samsung Galaxy A52
2:03h - Motorola Moto G30
2:28h - Motorola Edge
2:32h
Speaker test
The Moto G100 has a single speaker firing out the bottom of the device, and that came as a bit of a disappointment. We were almost expecting a stereo setup from a semi-premium Moto, given that the modest Moto G8 Plus and Power had them, and so did both the Edge and Edge+ (and, again, the G100 is sort of an Edge itself).
As for loudness, the Moto G100 placed in the 'Average' category in our test. It's about there with the Moto G30, though it does have better-defined vocals and more sparkly treble. Still, the cheaper Redmi Note 10 Pro has stereo speakers, which are also louder than the Moto's. For G100 money, you can also (still) get a OnePlus 8 with a much louder stereo setup.
Use the Playback controls to listen to the phone sample recordings (best use headphones). We measure the average loudness of the speakers in LUFS. A lower absolute value means a louder sound. A look at the frequency response chart will tell you how far off the ideal "0db" flat line is the reproduction of the bass, treble, and mid frequencies. You can add more phones to compare how they differ. The scores and ratings are not comparable with our older loudspeaker test. Learn more about how we test here.
Looks like AOSP Android 11, has a bunch of Moto mods
The Moto G100 follows Motorola's principle for offering a stock Android look, but with a fair share of in-house features on top. The latest addition is the 'Ready For' functionality which deserves its own section further below.
The majority of the proprietary features are arranged in the Moto app. The first category is personalization allowing you to choose the icon shapes, the quick toggles appearance, the accent colors and the font. There is also a wide selection of wallpapers, the same ones you'd find in the Google Wallpapers app, plus some Moto-specific interactive ones.
Moto App • Personalization
Then come the gestures. The karate chop motion that turns on and off the flashlight is here, along with the twisting motion that launches the camera app. Both work even when the device is locked. The lift-to-unlock gesture works well with the face unlock as it unlocks the device as soon as you pick it up and look at the screen. A new addition is the swipe-to-split function that triggers the split-screen functionality.
A new one we don't remember seeing before is the Power touch. When you double-tap the power button, a shortcut menu appears where you can arrange apps, tools and even contacts for quick access.
Gestures
The display-related features are Peek Display and Attentive Display. The former works as a second-best alternative to the Always-on display but with some added functionality. The screen lights up when it detects motion that's close to the phone or when you pick it up. Once you've received some kind of notification, you can tap on it and see the message itself and even interact with it from the lock screen. As for the Attentive Display, it's pretty self-explanatory - it disables the screen timeout as long as there's a face looking at the screen. Pretty useful when reading long articles, though you do probably scroll often enough for the screen not to lock anyway.
Display
Since Android 11 brings some new features of its own, Motorola has added a 'What's new' section to get you acquainted with those. The one-time permissions allow you to grant access to certain apps to your storage, location, contacts, etc., only temporarily. You will be asked again when the app needs the respective permission once more when you use it.
Notification grouping is an effort to keep your notification shade tidy and focus on your conversations. Notification cards from ongoing conversations from your messaging apps will appear on top as high-priority compared to other app notifications.
Bubbles is one of the long-awaited features for messaging apps that Facebook's Messenger has had for years now. The apps that support the feature will prompt you with a notification in the form of a floating, interactive bubble. Tapping on it will open up the chart for a quick reply, just like Messenger.
Get to know Android 11
Nearby Share with other devices running a recent Android version is also possible, making file transfers easier than ever.
And lastly, we have the updated power menu that now displays shortcuts to connected devices such as home automation or Chromecast through the Google Home app.
Lockscreen • Homescreen • Folder view • App drawer • Notifications • Quick toggles
Ready For platform
With the Moto G100, Motorola introduces the Ready For platform that enables you to use the phone as the heart of a big-screen setup for several use cases. By connecting a TV or monitor, you can get a Windows-desktop-like experience, play a game on your phone, display it on the external screen, or even have a big-screen video chat experience.
Official use case photos from Motorola
Motorola sells just the right accessory to facilitate the connection. It's called the Ready For dock and features a cradle where the phone plugs in and which can be rotated 90 degrees depending on your needs. The dock connects to a TV or monitor via the Ready For cable that's USB-C on the dock end and HDMI on the display end.
Technically, a mere cable connection will work just as well as the dock for connection purposes, but you won't be getting the benefits of the stand. The fatter HDMI end has an additional USB-C port for providing power to the phone, but that's optional - it'll work on battery power as well.
There's also the one-cable option - if you have a monitor with a USB-C port, you can connect the phone using a USB-C-to-C cable, and that will get you the display output while keeping the phone powered. In this scenario, you can plug in peripherals like a keyboard and mouse to the monitor. Otherwise, they need to be connected via Bluetooth to the phone.
If you don't have a mouse handy and your connected monitor isn't touch-enabled, the phone's screen can be used as a trackpad. In our test setup with a touch monitor, text input worked with an onscreen keyboard on the monitor. We're not entirely certain if there's onscreen keyboard functionality on the phone for configurations where you don't have a touchscreen or a physical keyboard - we couldn't find it.
Desktop view
Another use case is for video calls, where you can use the phone's camera to capture yourself and an external display to see the other participants. We couldn't get the phone to use the rear camera for an actual call, though it does work for recording a video message within Duo. In any case, having the two selfie cameras does allow for extra versatility.
Video call
The third major Ready For use case is for gaming on a bigger screen. You connect an external controller and run the game on the phone, with the obvious benefit being the larger display for gameplay.
Synthetic benchmarks
The Moto G100 is packing some serious processing power in the form of a Snapdragon 870 chipset. A second rehash of the SD865 (there was also the SD865+), the SD870 comes with even higher CPU clocks and its prime core goes all the way up to 3.2GHz. It's the next best thing after a Snapdragon 888, and those are (normally) hard to come by for Moto G100 money.
In the single-core CPU test in GeekBench, the Moto G100 posts excellent numbers, a notch below the 865+-equipped Galaxy Note20 Ultra and Zenfone 7 Pro. The Moto is ahead of the bulk of SD865 and SD865+ devices we've tested, and even beats the SD888 Oppo Find X3 Pro, though that's more the Find's fault since the OnePlus 9 with an SD888 is notably ahead of the Moto G100.
GeekBench 5 (single-core)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
1129 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
1091 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
996 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
988 - Motorola Moto G100
950 - vivo X50 Pro+
930 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
926 - OnePlus 8
919 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
916 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
906 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
901 - OnePlus 8T
893 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
886 - Huawei P40 Pro
780 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
615 - OnePlus Nord
610 - Motorola Edge
586 - LG Velvet 5G
586
Under multi-core loads, the Moto G100 isn't quite as competitive, but let's not forget it's the absolute top-end chipsets above it in the chart. SD765 handsets stand no chance, not in single-core and not in multi-core.
GeekBench 5 (multi-core)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
3629 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
3476 - vivo X50 Pro+
3411 - OnePlus 8
3399 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
3332 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
3316 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
3311 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
3302 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
3296 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
3294 - Huawei P40 Pro
3197 - OnePlus 8T
3126 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
3091 - Realme X7 Pro
2997 - Motorola Moto G100
2860 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
2703 - OnePlus Nord
1953 - LG Velvet 5G
1905 - Motorola Edge
1862 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
1805
In Antutu, the Moto G100 places around the middle of the pack, beating the Exynos Galaxy S20+ and the SD865 Galaxy S20FE, but losing to the OnePlus 8T (SD865) and the Zenfone 7 Pro (SD865+).
AnTuTu 8
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
715196 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
656467 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
622276 - vivo X50 Pro+
621433 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
602934 - OnePlus 8T
576625 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
571312 - OnePlus 8
564708 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
563961 - Motorola Moto G100
556137 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
543986 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
538221 - Realme X7 Pro
510317 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
500114 - Huawei P40 Pro
496356 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
435166 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
317139 - OnePlus Nord
312794 - Motorola Edge
305989 - LG Velvet 5G
297372
With the above numbers in mind, it's worth pointing out that the Moto G100 is hitting above its weight in the GPU benchmarks. Sure, the early-2021 crop of handset outperforms it, and the SD865+ Galaxy Note20 Ultra manages to snatch a narrow win, but that's pretty much it.
GFX Manhattan ES 3.1 (offscreen 1080p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
119 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
113 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
111 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
94 - Motorola Moto G100
91 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
90 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
89 - OnePlus 8T
88 - OnePlus 8
88 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
87 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
87 - vivo X50 Pro+
85 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
85 - Realme X7 Pro
80 - Huawei P40 Pro
75 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
74 - OnePlus Nord
38 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
37 - Motorola Edge
34 - LG Velvet 5G
33
GFX Manhattan ES 3.1 (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
100 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
86 - Motorola Moto G100
79 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
78 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
77 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
77 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
75 - vivo X50 Pro+
74 - OnePlus 8T
60 - OnePlus 9
60 - Realme X7 Pro
60 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
59 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
57 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
55 - Huawei P40 Pro
52 - OnePlus Nord
34 - Motorola Edge
32 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
31 - LG Velvet 5G
29
GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (offscreen 1080p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
70 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
70 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
66 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
57 - Motorola Moto G100
56 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
54 - OnePlus 8T
53 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
52 - OnePlus 8
52 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
51 - vivo X50 Pro+
51 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
51 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
50 - Realme X7 Pro
46 - Huawei P40 Pro
44 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
43 - OnePlus Nord
21 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
21 - Motorola Edge
19 - LG Velvet 5G
19
GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (onscreen)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
58 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
54 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
51 - Motorola Moto G100
47 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
46 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
46 - OnePlus 8T
46 - OnePlus 8
46 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
45 - vivo X50 Pro+
43 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
42 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
40 - Realme X7 Pro
40 - Oppo Reno5 Pro 5G
36 - Oppo Find X3 Pro
33 - Huawei P40 Pro
31 - OnePlus Nord
19 - Motorola Edge
18 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
18 - LG Velvet 5G
16
GFX Aztek Vulkan High (onscreen)
Higher is better
- OnePlus 9
43 - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
37 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
34 - Motorola Moto G100
33 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
31 - OnePlus 8T
31 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
30 - OnePlus 8
30 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
29 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
28 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
26 - OnePlus Nord
13 - Motorola Edge
12 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
12 - LG Velvet 5G
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GFX Aztek ES 3.1 High (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
43 - OnePlus 9
40 - Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon)
34 - Galaxy S20+ (120Hz, 1080p)
32 - Motorola Moto G100
31 - Asus Zenfone 7 Pro
31 - OnePlus 8
31 - Samsung Galaxy S20 FE
30 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro
30 - OnePlus 8T
29 - Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro
28 - OnePlus Nord
13 - Motorola Edge
12 - Oppo Reno4 Pro 5G
12 - LG Velvet 5G
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Overall, we're really satisfied with the Moto G100's performance. The Snapdragon chip inside is easily powerful enough to meet whatever you throw at it, with some comfortable futureproofing. It's also good enough to power an external screen with multiple apps running side by side. Intensive benchmarking sessions did result in some heat build-up and minor throttling, but neither is severe enough to be an issue.
64MP primary cam and 16MP ultrawide, somewhat odd app
The Moto G30's reign as the best camera system on a Moto G phone was shortlived - the G100's one-ups it. The 64MP main camera is joined by a 16MP autofocusing ultrawide, the two aided in their AF efforts by a ToF laser. A 2MP 'depth' camera is also present.
The main camera uses a 64MP OmniVision sensor with a 4-cell color filter array, OV's name for what Sony calls Quad Bayer and Samsung - Tetrapixel. It's a 1/2" imager with 0.7µm pixels. In front of it is an f/1.7 aperture lens of unspecified equivalent focal length that we're estimating at 25mm.
The ultrawide camera is based on another OV sensor, this one 16MP in resolution. It's 1/3.06" in overall size, with 1.0µm pixels. The lens has an f/2.2 aperture and covers a field of view of 117 degrees as per Motorola's specifications, though our experience strongly suggests that it's not as wide.
Perhaps what's most important about the ultrawide camera, however, is that is has autofocus and can shoot close-ups. For that particular task it has a ring flash around the lens so that you can light up those nearby subjects.
Details on the ToF laser and the 2MP depth camera are scant, however.
The front facing camera setup is better than usual as you're getting two separate modules. The 'primary' one has a 16MP 4-cell sensor and a 28mm equivalent focal length lens (f/2.2 aperture), and then there's the secondary, ultrawide-ish camera with a 20mm equivalent focal length lens (f/2.4 aperture) and an 8MP sensor.
The Motorola camera has its fair share of idiosyncrasies. One of those is the resolution handling though the G100 is somewhat okay in this respect because both its main camera and its ultrawide shot in 16MP by default, so the 16MP (Recommended) setting works for both. Still, there's an 11MP setting which seems arbitrary. Meanwhile, the actual 64MP full-res mode is in the extra modes pane.
There's more. This may sound as nit picking, but the camera modes have been moved below the shutter key so your thumb naturally falls on the camera modes instead of the shutter. Almost all, if not all, camera apps from other brands have the shutter key below the camera mode carousel. It's not too helpful that you cannot add modes to the carousel either and if you happen to use one of the extra modes often, you need to access it from the pane.
One of the helpful unusual bits about the Moto camera app is that additional camera settings can be adjusted by pulling upwards from the shutter key, opening up a menu that lets you tinker with some of the options. The general settings menu is in its usual place - the gear icon in the upper-right corner of the viewfinder.
There's a Pro mode, and we have some praise here, too - it gives you access to both the main and ultra camera, which is not all that common. In here, you can adjust ISO, shutter speed, exposure compensation, and white balance, as well as focus manually. The live histogram is appreciated too, tiny as it may be.
Camera UI
Daylight image quality
The images from the Moto G100's main camera are very sharp and detailed, and with a relatively natural rendition of random textures. There's a certain level of grain in areas of solid color but it's fine and unobtrusive. White balance is consistently accurate and colors are just the right bit livelier than in real life. Perhaps the one area we'd like to see improvement is dynamic range as the extremes can be rendered a bit harsh - we saw more clopped highlights and deeper shadows than we'd like.
Daylight samples, main cam, 16MP
The 64MP Ultra-res mode offers an improvement in resolved detail that ranges between minor and insignificant. Oddly enough, these have slightly wider dynamic range.
Daylight samples, main cam, 64MP
It gets even stranger, in a good way, when we look at 2x zoom samples. These are very sharp, sharper than simple crops from 64MP shots. We're not as excited about their relatively dulled down colors and slight underexposure, but not so much as to consider them dealbreakers. Overall, it's a really nice replacement for a dedicated short tele, to the point where we won't be mentioning it in the cons list at the end.
Daylight samples, main cam (2x zoom)
The ultrawide camera's images are good when shooting distant subjects - they're okay in terms of sharpness as ultrawide cameras go and there's the same fine grain that doesn't get in the way. Colors are closely matched to the main cam's reproduction, perhaps ever so slightly lower in saturation. Dynamic range, on the other hand, is notably narrower, though that's again a common theme with ultrawides across the entire spectrum from cheap to expensive.
Distortion is very well corrected, likely a lot of it in software, but there's no way to disable the correction. It's the correction that's likely related to the somewhat narrower coverage than we expected from a camera advertised as having a 117-degree FoV - it's ultrawide alright, it's just the ultrawidest.
Daylight samples, ultrawide cam
Close-ups
Among that module's greatest virtues is its ability to autofocus thus doubling as a close-up camera. It's a separate mode in the viewfinder which introduces a crop - to the same level of coverage of the main cam. Resulting images are still 16MP in resolution, so there's some upscaling action as well, meaning ultimate pixel-level detail isn't the greatest. But there's still heaps of it.
Close-up samples
The ring light really helps in darker environments providing much needed illumination and helping improve detail and clarity. The light can still be a little harsh, though, perhaps some tweaking of the intensity could help. Sadly, no such option is at your disposal, not even in Pro mode (where close-up mode is also available).
Close-up samples
Here are a few more samples with the ring light on.
Close-up samples
Low-light image quality
In low light, the Moto G100's main cam photos are okay but not great. Dynamic range is relatively narrow so you're guaranteed to have light sources blown out while shadows remain too dark and with indistinguishable detail.
Low-light samples, main cam
Night mode improves things quite a bit. It keeps the highlights in check making a dramatic difference in areas lit by floodlights. There isn't as pronounced an effect on the deep shadows and those remain too dark for our liking. There's a moderate boost in brightness in the midtones in some scenes, bringing out more detail there, but that wasn't consistent in all the scenes we shot.
Low-light samples, main cam, Night mode
Somewhat predictably, the ultrawide camera handled darkness poorly, putting out soft images with limited detail and dynamic range. There's no Night mode here to help out either.
Low-light samples, ultrawide cam
Once you're done with the real world samples, head over to our Photo compare tool to see how the Motorola Moto G100 stacks up against the competition.
Motorola Moto G100 against the Galaxy S20 FE and the OnePlus 8 in our Photo compare tool
Portrait mode
Portrait mode on the Moto G100 comes with competent subject detection - as long as you don't have messy hair against a wood panelling background. The default blur level is a bit conservative, we bumped it up a little for these samples. It's nothing new, but as light levels drops, even by a little, image quality drops significantly.
Portrait mode samples
Selfies
The 16MP main selfie camera of the Moto G100 shoots in 4MP by default - it's a 4-cell (Quad Bayer) sensor behind it. 4MP is unusually low by today's standards, though some could say it's perfectly enough for your mug. Selfies have average dynamic range but are exposed well for your face and have pleasing skin tones and colors in general.
Selfie samples, main camera, 4MP
In full-res 16MP mode the image have this upscaled and heavily sharpened but ultimately not very detailed look we all know and love. Well, not really. Perhaps a seemingly illogical (given the hardware) mid-way approach around the 8MP resultant resolution would have, in fact, been most sensible.
Selfie samples, main camera, 16MP
Selfie portraits will get you a blurry background, with a notably more liberal amount of blur applied by default than on the rear camera. The border regions aren't super well defined and it's more of a halo there, than a roll-off from subject to background.
Selfie portraits, main camera, 4MP
The Moto G100 also lets you take 16MP selfie portraits. It's basically a simple sum of the results above.
Selfie portraits, main camera, 16MP
The photos from the ultrawide slefie camera are notably softer if you stare from up close and there's a red tint added to skin tones. This one is more about coverage and adding context to your selfies, however, so we wouldn't be too harsh on it.
Selfie samples, ultrawide camera
It's just slightly counterintuitive then that the Moto G100 lets you blur that context by offering portrait mode for the ultrawide camera. Having the option is appreciated, of course, and it works reasonably well. There's the one caveat that there's no HDR so backlit scenes will end up with blown highlights as the phone rightfully prioritizes for your face.
Selfie portraits, ultrawide camera
Video recording
The Moto G100 can record video up to 6K at 30fps with its main camera (with a significant crop), and also 4K30 and 4K60. The ultrawide is somewhat artificially capped at 1080p/30fps for ultrawide purposes, but can record at 4K30 when you go into the macro mode, only in that mode it's got the coverage of the main cam.
You get to choose between h.265 and h.264 codecs, with the more efficient h.265 selected by default. Stabilization is available on the main camera in 4K, both at 30fps and 60fps, but not in 6K, as well as on the ultra wide.
6K footage (55Mbps bit rate in h.265) is nicely detailed, but has this very distracting mesh effect the cause of which we can only speculate on. We reckon that makes it unusable, detailed as it may be.
4K footage (42Mbps bit rate in h.265) doesn't suffer from that, thankfully. There's a lot of detail and next to no noise, while sharpening is reasonable, though not strictly conservative. Dynamic range is rather narrow however, that bit we don't like.
The ultrawide's 1080p 30fps capture (13Mbps, h.264 only) comes with even narrower dynamic range and strong warm color cast. It is sharp, detailed, and noise free, so it has its merits.
Stabilization is excellent in 4K30 on the main camera. Walking-induced shake is competently removed, though if you stomp the ground particularly hard it will make it to the video. Pans have no abrupt transitions at the beginning or at the end, while pointing the phone in one direction results in very steady footage.
The above mostly holds true for the ultrawide's stabilization, only that one is more prone to wobble coming from the focus mechanism as it tries to adjust to the changing scene while walking. Not bad, but not perfect either.
Here's a glimpse of how the Motorola Moto G100 compares to rivals in our Video compare tool. Head over there for the complete picture.
Motorola Moto G100 against the Galaxy S20 FE and the OnePlus 8 in our Video compare tool
Competition
It's got a very particular skillset, the Moto G100, and if you're looking for that specific combination of features and performance at that price (€500), there's hardly an alternative. Alternatives aplenty, however, if you give up on this or that.
First on our list is the Galaxy S20 FE, in 4G trim to match the G100's price point. So you'd be missing out on next-gen connectivity, but the Galaxy is ready for DeX, so you won't be compromising on big-screen experiences potential. It's a tough call on the cameras, since the Galaxy is better at most things, but it only has a single selfie cam, and it's one AF ultrawide with a ring light short of the Moto's. We'd take the Galaxy's 120Hz AMOLED over the Moto's 90Hz LCD in a heartbeat, the FE lasts longer and charges faster, it has stereo speakers and a proper IP68 rating.
The OnePlus 8 is on its way out the door - OnePlus won't sell you one, but Amazon is still happy to, as are a whole bunch of European retailers. And at €450, it's well worth considering. The OP8, too, has an AMOLED display, its battery lasts longer and charges faster than the Moto's, and it has stereo speakers as well. The G100 takes a couple of small victories thanks to its headphone jack and microSD slot (both missing on the OP). Oh, and when the 8 is gone, the brand new and nearly identical 9R remains an option and roughly the same price.
Just announced, but really promising on paper (and, wink, in for review), the Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G packs a Snapdragon 780 chip that won't be too far off the 870 one in the Moto. The AMOLED display, stereo speakers, and even the IR blaster in the Mi's favor, though it is missing a headphone jack, and there's nothing remotely unique about this Xiaomi's camera system. It is spectacularly thin at just 6.8mm and very light at 159g, so perhaps that could tip the scales in its favor? If not that alone, maybe with the help of the price - the Mi 11 Lite 5G starts at some 25% cheaper than the Moto G100.
If you're dead set on the dual front cameras, perhaps a Realme X3 SuperZoom could be your thing. And not only does it match the G100's selfie versatility, but it also comes with a 5x periscope tele on the back - arguably more useful than a ring-flash macro? The Realme has an older chipset, but its SD855+ is hardly a slouch, and the SuperZoom does offer slightly better endurance, faster charging too, plus 30Hz more on its LCD. The Realme normally retails for precisely G100 money, but we have seen it at €350, and it's a number that's hard to argue with.
Samsung Galaxy S20 FE • OnePlus 8 • Xiaomi Mi 11 Lite 5G • Realme X3 SuperZoom
Verdict
There are phones with more mainstream appeal that can outclass the Moto G100, if you're not hung up on the things that make it unique. You can get OLED displays, faster charging, more capable cameras, stereo speakers - often at a lower price than the Moto G100.
However, the Moto G100 does not disappoint when it comes to the fundamentals - it offers a solid battery life, a top-tier performance, and display and camera image quality that are very much okay. But the G100's real strength lies in the combination of features that you can't find together in a single phone. Ring lights for close-ups (and actually good close-ups) are only slightly more common than unicorns, dual selfie cameras are nowhere as popular as we'd prefer, and it's not easy to get the equivalent of the Ready For functionality on all Androids. If these sound like they're up your alley, do give the Moto G100 a try.
Pros
- Appealing design, interesting colors, pleasant to touch.
- Very good battery life.
- The Ready For platform has valid use cases (that name though).
- Really powerful chipset.
- Versatile rear camera - the main unit is dependable across most circumstances, the AF ultrawide with a ring light can be very useful for the right person.
- Two selfie cameras are always a good thing.
Cons
- The display is LCD and 'only' 90Hz - there are better ones for the money.
- Charging is relatively slow.
- Ready For peripherals sold separately (bundle deals at launch though).
- Poor low-light image quality from the ultrawide camera, no Night mode for it either, and no 4K recording.
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