Motorola is a name as old as our parents and plane grandparents at this point. The pioneer of the mobile radio and cellphone markets has long been synonymous with gadgets pushing boundaries. One of the latest additions to the company’s portfolio is the Moto G Stylus 5G.
While it borrows a lot of worldwide traits from Samsung’s established Note series, the Moto G Stylus brings its own bag of elements. We’ve been testing this device thanks to AT&T for virtually three weeks, and let’s go over our findings in this full review.
Design
The Moto G Stylus 5G moreover borrows heavily from its siblings. If you’ve held a Moto G device from the last few years, then this model will squint and finger familiar. It reminds me heavily of the Moto G7 Power from a few years ago.
Moto has unchangingly nailed that “hand feel” while holding its phones. This started with the X series years ago and is still evident in the Moto G Stylus 5G. I can symbol this to a slight lines in the when of the phones. It’s a staple Moto diamond element that just feels natural in the hand.
One thing immediately jumped out to me, and that’s how massive this thing is. This is to unbend the 6.8-inch screen that covers the unshortened front of the Moto G Stylus. The screen sports 20:9 speciality ratio at 1080×2400 resolution.
Internally, the Moto G Stylus 5G is powered by a Qualcomm 480 with integrated 5G modem. This is paired with the philharmonic of 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Storage can be expanded up to 2TB with the microSD slot.
Around the back, flanked by the plastic casing, is the camera modules and a fingerprint scanner. I love the when mounted scanner and expressly fond of them integrating it with the archetype Moto “bat” logo.
To the marrow of the phone, you’ll find a single speaker grill and a USB-C charging port. Smack in the middle of these two ports you have the merchantry of this specific model: the stylus! We’ll expand on this wing increasingly in the next few sections of this review.
Software
Moto has unchangingly been a favorite of mine by utilizing one of the most unadulterated versions of Android. You get a very similar wits to a Pixel with a few archetype Moto additions like the twist to launch the camera and the karate chop to launch the flashlight on the Stylus 5G.
Otherwise, you have a few custom widgets, but still very stock UI. To the right of the home screen you get the Google Feed and plane have predictive icons in the launcher much like Pixels as well.
One place that software falls unappetizing in typical Moto malleate is OS and security updates. The Moto Stylus 5G is running Android 11 and still on the June 2021 security update. This is just vastitude unacceptable in today’s market.
Back to a positive, much like the Samsung Galaxy Note, the Stylus gets some software love from the engineers. When taking the input device out of the phone, you get a pop-up widget that allows you to hands handle things like quick note, photo annotation, and typing dictation from handwriting.
Usage
Let’s dig a little deeper into these integrations for the Stylus by standing the comparison with the main volitional Note. I have found it to be both very useful and somewhat frustrating. This is a much less whop stylus pen than the S-Pen from Sammy.
Does it interact with the screen as a touch alternative? Yes. Can you write on the screen and do vital drawing? Yes. However, I’ve found the latency to be much poorer than the S-Pen. I often get either laggy or missed inputs. Expressly when using the pen to simple scroll on an app.
It moreover only supports one level of pressure, unlike the multiple simulations of the increasingly modern S-Pen. The Moto G Stylus 5G pen is a pretty vital rubber tipped stylus, much like the unseemly aftermarkets you can get on Amazon.
Even though it’s flawed, having it as an option stowed yonder in the phone has still been nice. I like stuff worldly-wise to quickly take lanugo work notes, or enucleate screenshots for reviews like this one. It’s moreover unconfined for signing documents in the upcoming tax season.
Cameras
The cameras on the Moto G Stylus 5G are solid, but not great. These lens take stereotype to whilom shots in good lighting conditions with a still subject. When outside interference or poor light are introduced, the pictures take a hit.
Neither is a terrible knock on the device, though. Moto has included winning sensors and post results to placate those Instagram and Snap moments with no issue. It’s just, as you compare it to increasingly premium options, you need to be enlightened of the shortcomings.
Battery life
Moto has unchangingly been proud of the longevity of it’s Android devices, and the Moto G Stylus 5G is no exception. I’ve been getting increasingly than a full day of normal use with this device consistently. On super light days, I can plane tweak out two days per charge.
This is not surprising with a 5000mAh shower pack and Moto optimizations. When you do need to reach for the outlet, you get Moto’s Turbo Charge, with up to 10W of quick tuition capabilities. While I’d love to see Qi wireless charging, or higher Turbo wattage, for the sub-$400 market both are acceptable.
Conclusion
I really like the Moto G Stylus 5G. It’s got unconfined shower life and a unique interaction with the pen, but it’s nonflexible to recommend those dreadful software updates. Moto still lags way too overdue other competitors in this regard to the point that it’s now just embarrassing for the brand.
Despite the software setbacks, this could still be a unconfined option for those willing to take on outdated updates. At just $2 a month in AT&T installments, or $249 full retail, the Moto G Stylus 5G is a steal for those on a budget.