Moto G (2025) Hands-on Review: Low cost, but is that enough?
Moto G (2025) Intro
The new Motorola Moto G (2025) is a good-looking budget phone with a vegan leather finish and we like its long-lasting battery. However, it has barely changed from the previous generation, while competitors have advanced faster.
At $200, the Moto G (2025) remains dirt cheap, but unfortunately for Motorola, it is in the same price tier as the Samsung Galaxy A16 (5G), which offers a much more vibrant AMOLED screen and a similarly fast processor.
So, does this new Moto G have any other hidden cool features that might sway potential buyers? Let's find out.
In our rating, the Moto G (2025) scores a bit below the competition. The software update situation brings it down the most, but it also loses in display quality. The photo and video quality are two other areas that are not on par with rivals. On the other hand, its battery life outclasses the average score for this price tier and its design also beats the competition.
Table of Contents:
Moto G (2025) Specs
Let's kick this off with an overview of the Moto G (2025) specs:
| Moto G (2025) | Moto G 5G (2024) |
|---|---|
| Size and Weight 167 x 76.3 x 8.2 mm 193 g | Size and Weight 164.4 x 75 x 8.2 mm 194 g |
| Display 6.7-inch LCD 120Hz 720p | Display 6.6-inch LCD 120Hz 720 x 1612 px |
| Processor MediaTek Dimensity 6300 (6nm) | Processor Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 (6nm) |
| Cameras 50 MP, f/1.8 main 2 MP macro 16 MP front | Cameras 50 MP, f/1.8 main 2 MP macro 8 MP front |
| Battery Size 5,000 mAh | Battery Size 5,000 mAh |
| Charging Speeds 30W wired | Charging Speeds 18W wired |
| Prices 4/64GB 4/128GB | Prices 4/128GB for $200 |
Moto G (2025) Design and Display
Soft vegan leather and a bigger screen
One thing this new Moto G has going for itself is the look.
The vegan leather back is soft to the touch and pleasant, and the phone feels solidly constructed. It comes in just one color, but a rather universal one — forest gray.
Overall, it is on the larger side, with a bigger screen than before, growing to a 6.7-inch display, up from a 6.6-inch one on the outgoing model.
That has resulted in a slight increase of the physical size too — the phone is a bit taller and wider, but the thickness (8.2mm) and weight (193 g) remain unchanged.
You have your physical buttons on the right side. The power button doubles as a fingerprint reader, and above it you have two separate volume keys.
It's nice to see a 3.5mm headphone jack, that's one thing that rival Galaxy A16 5G lacks.
The unboxing experience, however, is barebones with just a cable, a SIM tool and some manuals included in the box.
Our big letdown is that Motorola sticks with an LCD screen for the new Moto G.
The older LCD technology does not give you the deep contrast or vibrant colors of AMOLED, and you get all of that on the Galaxy A16 5G.
Adding insult to injury, the screen resolution is only 720p, so the display is not as crisp as you might hope.
On the positive side, the new Moto G supports 120Hz refresh rate, so scrolling around feels smooth (when the processor doesn't lag that is).
Moto G (2025) Camera
A main camera coupled with a much less useful 2MP macro camera
The new Moto G has the same rear cameras as before: a 50MP, f/1.8 main snapper coupled with a barely useful 2MP macro camera. No ultra-wide camera or a telephoto one is present.
The only upgrade is a new 16MP front camera.
Moto G (2025) Camera Photo Samples
So how do photos look in real life?
Like most phones, the main camera captures pixel-binned photos in a 12.5-megapixel resolution by default.
You get a decent amount of detail and colors look quite natural and pleasing during the day. Nothing extraordinary here, but nothing too bad either. White balance is mostly good, but we did notice a couple of images turned out a bit underexposed.
You can also capture Portrait mode photos, but only at 1X, and we usually prefer having a 2X option for portraits as it looks more flattering.
We are not in love with the 2 MP macro camera, though. While we appreciate having the option to capture macro photos, the resolution is too low and we wish images were more detailed.
It's also disappointing not having an ultra-wide camera on board.
Video Quality
The new Moto G records 1080p video with good video stabilization (usually, a weak spot for cheaper phones).
The lack of 4K video is expected at this price, so we cannot be too disappointed.
You can zoom up 6X, but there is not much detail, so we would recommend not going beyond 3X zoom.
Moto G (2025) Performance & Benchmarks
Running in place
The Moto G (2025) runs on a MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset, which is supposed to be an upgrade from the Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 in the previous generation.
However, the change in speed is so tiny, you probably won't even notice it.
That's a problem for a $200 phone, where one of the main concerns is the slow, laggy interface. The new Moto G does not seem to improve on that in a meaningful way, so unfortunately you have to get used to its often sluggish performance.
The 4 GB of RAM are common in this price range, but it doesn't help the cause.
As you can see, the new Moto G (2025) has barely improved its CPU speeds compared to previous models, and we even see a drop in single-core speeds (but multi-core performance is a bit faster).
CPU Performance:
As you can see, the new Moto G (2025) has barely improved its CPU speeds compared to previous models, and we even see a drop in single-core speeds (but multi-core performance is a bit faster).
This is disappointing as the slow CPU is the biggest bottle-neck for cheap phones like this one.
GPU / Graphics Performance:
Gaming performance is also mostly the same, which is to say not great at all.
Basic games will play fine, but if you like to run Genshin Impact or similar titles that demand more performance, you are in for slow frame rates (if the games run at all).
You do get 128 GB of built-in storage, which seems sufficient for most people. Some users might miss not having a 256 GB storage version, but hey, at least you have a microSD card slot, so that's an option.
Moto G (2025) Software
The phone runs on Android 15, the latest version of Google's software, so that's good to see.
You have your usual Motorola tricks like the chop-chop gesture to start the camera, and those are nice little touches.
Otherwise, it's a lightweight interface with only a few Motorola widgets added on top, and we like it this way.
Don't hold your breath for many software updates here. Motorola only promises two years of OS updates and three years of security updates. This is much shorter than the four years of Android updates and five years of security updates that you get with the Samsung Galaxy A16 5G.
Moto G (2025) Battery
The Moto G features a 5,000 mAh battery, same as the previous model.
This ensures solid battery life and with the frugal chip, you can expect more than a day's worth of use.
PhoneArena Battery Test Results:
On our in-house battery tests, the Moto G (2025) gets a solid score lasting nearly 22 hours on our web browsing test and 10 hours on our YouTube video streaming test.
Overall, we estimate that you can get an average of 8 hours and 15 minutes of total screen time, quite a bit above the average phone.
Motorola has also bumped the charging speeds to 30 W, which is a nice upgrade. There is no wireless charging on board, but we don't really expect it from a $200 phone.
Moto G (2025) Audio Quality and Haptics
You get stereo speakers on this new Moto G and the quality is decent.
The phone gets quite loud and the sound is not too muddy.
The haptics (aka the vibration motor) are typical of these cheaper phones: they are a bit "buzzy" and not as tight as on flagship phones.
Should you buy it?
The Moto G (2025) is not exactly an inspiring phone and we are let down by Motorola's slow progress with the series.
At $200, it's a cheap phone, there is no denying that, but we feel that rivals like the Samsung Galaxy A16 5G give you more bang for the buck. The Galaxy has a more vibrant screen, longer software support, and a slightly better camera, all while having roughly the same performance.
Motorola is relying more on its brand name with the Moto G and its software tricks and solid battery life. The phone will get the job done for basic tasks, so we cannot recommend against it entirely. You should consider it if you find a great deal, knocking the price further down, but ultimately, the Galaxy A16 5G seems like the more sensible option.
- Read more: Galaxy A16 5G review
Popular stories
Latest News
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed: