Ever since Motorola has introduced Moto G smartphone, they have taken good amount of market share of mid-segment. Of late, their dominance has been challenged by many smartphones especially originating from China with higher specifications and competitive prices. These so called high-speced and low-cost devices may have attracted the audience, but if you are looking for smooth expeience and lag free performance then your best option is still Moto G 3rd Gen smartphone.
It is one aspect to stuff your device with good hardware but different ballgame to customise with the latest Android OS and ensure that it gives the best possible results. To achieve this perfection, the expertise of hardware and software professionals require and Motorola has lot of them. Had it been the case of putting just the best components in a nicely crafted box then I am afraid many reputed companies would have closed their shuttters now. But fortunately that is not the case. The magic starts when you are able to get optimum utilisation of not very high-speced hardware for budgetary constraints.
The Moto G 3rd Gen comes with various features which were not available on Moto G 2nd Gen such as better camera features, upgraded storage, enhanced battery, water resistance capability, 4G LTE connectivity etc. These enhanced features make it more impresssive.
Design
Moto G 3rd Gen has basic design of Moto G 2nd Gen but with little improvements which make its look more appealing. The new Moto G has a textured back, which not only gives it different look but also provides a good grip. On the frame of the smartphone, metal strip has been added which make it look attractive. The keys provided on the right side of the phone are also of metal. Also a metallic strip has been given on the back of the phone which begins with the camera lens and ends with dimpled logo of Motorola.
The new Moto G is customisable with its optional different colored ( about 10) plastic back panels, to fit your mood and personality. If you remove the back cover, you can find two micro-sim slots, a microSD card slot and a sealed battery.
Moto G 3rd Gen is the first smartphone in affordable category to incorporate water-resistant feature. It is IPX7 rated and can remain in water of upto three feet for 30 minutes without getting damaged. However, Motorola advises that it should not be used while swimming or taking shower. Basically, your Moto G will be protected from rain showers and occasioanl splashes.
Display
It comes with 5 inch HD display and is comfortable to hold and can be used with a single hand. It has same screen resolution of 720x1080p as of 2nd Gen Moto G, but Motorola has added Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection to make it safe from scratches. The display is quite decent and reproduces good colors and also has good viewing angles, which are expected from a moderate phone. Moreover, the display works fine in sunlight also and you can see easily see who is calling and read without much difficulty.
Software
Moto G 3rd Gen runs on stock Android Lollipop 5.1.1 OS with minor tweaks of useful Motorola features such as Moto Display, which enable you to see notifications on the lock screen without turning on the display and help you saving the battery life. This feature has been derived from higher-end Moto X. The other useful feature available on this phone is Motorola Migrate, which makes it easy for the users to transfer content and settings from your old Android device or iPhone. The other very useful gesture features added in the new version of Moto G are Quick Capture for instantly launching the camera by twisting your wrist twice and with Chop twice, you can flick your wrist twice quickly to launch the flashlight and repeat to turn it off.
The other advantage provided by Motorola is that you will get updates quickly from Google directly and probably Moto G will be one among many devices to get updated to Android M, whenever the same is released by Google.
Performance
Despite the fact that Moto G 3rd Gen is not fitted with high-end processor but has a 64-bit 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 quad-core processor, and 1GB or 2GB RAM with 8GB/16GB internal storage variants, yet this phone works very smoothly courtesy the exceptional expertise of Motorola engineers to sync it perfectly with Android OS. This phone comes with a microSD card slot for expanding its storage to 32GB. We were given 2GB variant, which performed all the functions without any hiccups such as launching of apps, switching between the apps, playing games, running videos. The same performance cannot be provided by many of low cost but high speced phones which has their own UI skins on top for strange reasons, which not only make their phones slow but also result in lot of lags.
The call quality and signal reception on this phone are excellent and when you use this phone on 4G network of Airtel available in Delhi, you will get good signal and on this aspect also, Moto G 3rd Gen comes out with flying colors. This phone also has FM radio, and for listening it, you are required to plug in the headphones to use it as an antenna.
Camera
The new Moto G is equipped with a new 13-megapixel rear camera that uses the same sensor as Google’s Nexus 6 flagship. The images clicked by us with this camera with default setting in daylight are detailed and sharp, which you expet from a high-end phone. Since Motorola has taken lot of pains to upgrade the camera, the end result is great for photographic enthusiasts as it reproduces far better images even in low-light compared to the 2nd Gen variant. The camera starts with auto-focus mode by default and for clicking, you are just rquired to tap the display anywhere on the screen. When you have opened the camera and want to see more options then you are required to swipe on the display from left to right.
When we talk of camera, we can’t forget front camera or to be precise selfie camera in today’s craze for selfies. Taking this into consideration, Motorola has upgraded camera from 2MP available in old variant to 5MP in new Moto G and the selfie lovers will love this enhancement. The front camera bring out best possible good selfies even in low-light and quite good enought to be posted on your social networks for getting good number of likes and comments.
Battery
What is a smartphone if it does not last long and do not bother you to charge it again and again. Yes, this problem of repeated charging has been addressed by Motorola by packing this new Moto G with 2470 mAh battery compared to 2070 mAh of Moto G 2nd Gen. This battery is good enough to keep it alive for approxiamtely 12 to 16 hours with moderate usuage. This performance is very good for affordable segment.
Verdict
If you want clutter free pure Android device, which runs like breeze and do not care much about high-specifications on the paper, then Moto G 3rd Gen should definitely be on your shopping list if your budget is below Rs. 15,000. You get well-built, sturdy designed smartphone with 4G connectivity, water resistant feature, good cameras, long lasting battery and of course, very pleasant experience without any problem whatsoever.
Do not go by lofty claims and trust a company which understands Android smrtphones very well and is far ahead of the crowd. Plus, you will have the advantage to get the updates quickly.
Motorola Moto G 3rd Gen with 2GB RAM, 16GB storage for Rs. 12,999 is a steal. We do not recommend 1GB, 8GB internal storage variant, which is 1000 Rs. cheaper.
