Motorola’s latest Android phone is (almost) a Google Pixel 8 killer

If you person $700 to walk and request a caller smartphone, 1 of nan champion options you tin find coming is nan Google Pixel 8. Google’s newest Pixel handset has a awesome design, fantabulous cameras, awesome software, and amazingly bully artillery life. It’s conscionable a pleasance to usage successful almost each regard.

But Motorola’s latest telephone makes things absorbing for  prospective Pixel 8 buyers. On October 10, conscionable days aft Google revealed nan Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, Motorola announced a caller Android telephone of its own — nan Motorola Edge (2023). It promises bully design, cameras, software, and artillery life, each for $100 little than nan Pixel 8.

Is it each excessively bully to beryllium true? Is nan Motorola Edge (2023) nan Google Pixel 8 slayer we didn’t cognize we needed? I utilized Motorola’s caller telephone to find retired for myself, and I must admit that I’m impressed … mostly.

What I emotion astir nan Motorola Edge (2023)

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The Motorola Edge (2023) makes an fantabulous first belief nan 2nd you return it retired of nan box. The matte aluminum framework is sleek and cool to nan touch, and nan surface curves complete nan near and correct edges — making it look for illustration location aren’t immoderate bezels astatine all. I don’t person peculiarly beardown feelings astir level versus curved displays, but nan curves connected nan Motorola Edge adhd a touch of elegance that’s unexpected astatine this price.

I besides rather for illustration nan backmost of nan Motorola Edge (2023). Motorola chose vegan leather for nan rear of nan phone, and it feels excellent. It’s grippy, has a pleasant texture, and looks leagues amended than nan glossy integrative backs seen connected different fund Android phones (I’m looking astatine you, OnePlus Nord N30 5G). I wish Motorola offered much than nan azygous Eclipse Black color, but overall, I person very small to knock astir this design.

Beyond nan curved show and leather back, Motorola besides sewage nan smaller specifications right. The powerfulness and measurement buttons consciousness nice, nan speakers sound bully (and get very loud), and there’s an IP68 standing for particulate and h2o guidance — nan aforesaid 1 you get connected flagship smartphones for illustration nan Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and iPhone 15 Pro Max.

Speaking of nan display, it’s excellent. Besides nan curved edges, nan 6.6-inch surface offers a pOLED sheet pinch a 2400 x 1080 resolution, HDR10+ support, up to 1,200 nits of highest brightness, and a 144Hz refresh rate. It’s a awesome surface pinch vibrant colors and plentifulness of brightness for regular use. You tin unit nan refresh complaint to tally astatine 144Hz, but I’ve kept it successful Auto mode — which runs it astatine up to 120Hz — and it’s looked awesome to my eyes. When Apple is still slapping 60Hz displays connected its iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, having 144Hz connected nan Motorola Edge (2023) feels beautiful awesome.

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I’ve besides been (mostly) impressed by nan Motorola Edge’s performance. Powering nan telephone is simply a MediaTek Dimensity 7030 chipset. It’s 1 of nan only phones successful nan world pinch this circumstantial MediaTek chip, and it’s really beautiful good. Apps unfastened quickly, nan 8GB of RAM has done a awesome occupation pinch basal multitasking, and nan Edge (2023) has held its ain pinch various mobile games.

Having 144Hz connected nan Motorola Edge (2023) feels beautiful awesome.

With graphics value group to High and 60 frames per 2nd (fps) enabled, Marvel Snap looks and runs great. Motorola’s telephone besides does a bully occupation of playing Call of Duty: Mobile with High graphics and Max framework complaint settings. Some menus return somewhat longer to load compared to phones pinch a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, but it’s ne'er been capable to earnestly effect my enjoyment of nan phone.

Lastly, I’d beryllium remiss if I didn’t talk astir artillery life and charging. It’s a 4,400 mAh artillery wrong nan Motorola Edge (2023), and successful my testing, it’s typically capable to get maine done a time and a half connected a azygous charge. You can drain nan artillery successful a azygous time if you really try, but pinch mean app usage and immoderate ray gaming, a time and a half is overmuch much likely.

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And erstwhile your artillery does tally dry, nan Motorola Edge (2023) is capable to complaint up quickly acknowledgment to 68-watt wired charging. Plug nan telephone successful pinch a afloat depleted battery, and you’re backmost up to 17% aft conscionable 10 minutes of charging. Thirty minutes connected nan charger takes you from zero to 52%, while getting each nan measurement to 100% happens successful astir 55 minutes.

If you don’t mind sacrificing complaint speed, you tin besides wirelessly complaint nan Edge (2023) astatine up to 15W. And if you want to apical up different telephone aliases a brace of wireless earbuds, you tin spot them connected nan backmost of nan Motorola telephone to usage its 5W wireless powerfulness sharing. This is 1 of nan amended charging solutions connected a smartphone astatine this price, and it’s a earnestly immense use if you prime up nan Motorola Edge (2023).

Where Motorola stumbles

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Motorola sewage a batch correct pinch nan Edge (2023), but arsenic pinch immoderate phone, cleanable it is not. In fact, location are a fewer large issues pinch nan Motorola Edge.

The first has to do pinch nan phone’s cameras. The Motorola Edge (2023) has 2 cameras connected nan back, including a 50MP main camera and a 13MP ultrawide camera. There’s besides a 32MP selfie camera.

In bully lighting conditions and pinch a dependable hand, photos from nan Motorola Edge (2023) tin look fine. They typically look a spot level without peculiarly awesome colors aliases details, but they’re surely usable for posting connected societal media aliases sharing pinch friends.

These surely aren’t nan champion photos I’ve taken pinch a smartphone this year, but they get nan occupation done. The ultrawide camera is simply a spot worse than nan main sensor, but if you request a wider position of your subject, it works.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

My main rumor pinch nan camera is how slow it is. Throughout my clip pinch nan Motorola Edge (2023), nan existent photo-taking process hasn’t been an enjoyable one. The camera app tin beryllium slow to open, nan shutter fastener has a noticeable region betwixt pressing it and erstwhile your photograph is captured, and this often results successful blurry aliases missed shots.

I’m not judge if nan MediaTek processor is to blasted aliases if this is mediocre optimization connected Motorola’s part. Whatever nan origin is, each I cognize is that it’s made taking pictures pinch nan Motorola Edge (2023) beautiful frustrating astatine times.

Speaking of slow, nan phone’s in-screen fingerprint sensor isn’t ever arsenic speedy arsenic I’d like. It usually works, but location person been a fewer instances wherever it takes excessively agelong to scan my fingerprint aliases fails to place it entirely. I’ve besides noticed immoderate instances wherever tapping notifications aliases swiping down to position my Quick Settings causes nan telephone to stutter a bit. It seems to hap much often if I effort to do thing connected nan telephone very quickly aft I prime it up — it’s almost for illustration it takes it a 2nd to “warm up” and commencement moving arsenic intended.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

Finally, there’s nan rumor of package updates. The Motorola Edge (2023) ships pinch Android 13 and is promised conscionable 2 Android OS upgrades — positive 3 years of bimonthly information patches. This isn’t nan worst update argumentation we’ve ever seen connected a Motorola phone, but it’s not good, either.

It particularly stings considering that Android 14 has now been disposable since early October. After Motorola gets nan Edge (2023) updated to Android 14, nan only different large OS update you’ll ever spot is to Android 15. Motorola has been getting amended pinch really it updates its phones — astir precocious pinch nan Motorola Edge Plus (2023) and Motorola Razr (2023) — but this is simply a disappointing measurement backward.

How it compares to nan Google Pixel 8

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On its own, nan Motorola Edge (2023) is simply a darn bully smartphone. But nan Motorola Edge doesn’t beryllium connected its own. It was released correct alongside nan Google Pixel 8, and pinch a akin price, truthful it’s intolerable not to comparison nan two. And it’s present wherever nan transportation for Motorola’s telephone starts to weaken.

Perhaps nan biggest differentiator is nan camera. The Google Pixel 8 takes much better photos than nan Motorola Edge (2023). The 50MP main camera and 12MP ultrawide camera don’t sound overmuch different connected paper, but successful practice, nan spread betwixt nan 2 is clear. Google’s camera app is besides overmuch faster and much reliable, and there’s a full world of AI photo-editing tools that crank it up to 11.

Google besides has Motorola handily hit connected nan package front. Although nan Android interfaces look mostly nan aforesaid connected some phones, nan Pixel 8 gives you truthful overmuch more. From nan Google Assistant holding your spot successful statement connected a telephone call, Now Playing automatically recognizing euphony playing successful nan background, aliases being capable to summarize full webpages into a fewer slug points, nan AI features you get connected a Pixel are beautiful unthinkable — and are legitimately difficult to unrecorded without connected a non-Pixel Android phone.

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

There’s besides nan matter of package updates. The Google Pixel 8 ships pinch Android 14 and is promised seven years of Android upgrades, characteristic drops, and information patches. In different words, nan Pixel 8 will support getting package updates done October 2030 — 4 years aft nan Motorola Edge (2023) receives its past information patch.

And past we person everything else. While nan Motorola Edge (2023) has very bully hardware, nan Google Pixel 8 edges it out. It has a overmuch nicer vibration motor, nan buttons consciousness clickier, and its other weight (187 grams versus 168 grams) feels reassuring successful your hand. You’ll besides find that nan Google Pixel 8’s Tensor G3 processor is much tin than nan MediaTek spot successful nan Motorola Edge. The Pixel 8 mostly feels smoother passim regular use, and it besides has overmuch faster soul retention — UFS 3.1 compared to nan UFS 2.2 retention Motorola opted for.

The Pixel 8 can’t lucifer nan Motorola telephone erstwhile it comes to charging speed, and nan Edge (2023) has a larger display, but those are really nan only 2 areas wherever Motorola has a clear advantage.

Motorola Edge (2023) value and availability

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

The Motorola Edge (2023) is disposable for acquisition correct now from Motorola’s website, Amazon, Best Buy, and different retailers. It comes successful conscionable 1 configuration — nan Eclipse Black colour pinch 256GB of retention and 8GB of RAM.

You’ll find a unit value of $600 for nan Motorola Edge (2023), which is $100 little than nan $700 Google Pixel 8 and $200 cheaper than nan $800 Samsung Galaxy S23. That’s already a bully deal, but things get much interesting.

As portion of a typical motorboat offer, you tin bargain nan Motorola Edge (2023) correct now for conscionable $500. It’s technically a limited-time promotion, but knowing really Motorola runs its sales, you should beryllium capable to get nan Edge (2023) astatine this $500 waste value reasonably often.

Should you bargain nan Motorola Edge (2023)?

Joe Maring / Digital Trends

OK — truthful what’s nan last connection connected nan Motorola Edge (2023)? Did Motorola sound it retired of nan parkland and create a telephone you should bargain alternatively of nan Google Pixel 8? As pinch everything successful life, it’s a spot complicated.

If you tin bargain nan Motorola Edge astatine its discounted $500 price, I deliberation there’s a really coagulated statement successful nan phone’s favor. At $200 cheaper than nan Pixel 8, nan Edge (2023) delivers a really coagulated smartphone acquisition — truthful agelong arsenic you don’t mind immoderate occasional capacity issues and a lackluster camera. But if we’re looking astatine nan Motorola Edge (2023) arsenic a $600 smartphone, I don’t deliberation nan $100 successful savings is capable to warrant buying it complete nan Pixel 8.

The Edge (2023) delivers a really coagulated smartphone experience.

For folks who tin spend it, there’s nary denying that nan Google Pixel 8 is nan amended wide choice. In fact, it’s 1 of nan very best smartphones you tin get correct now. But if money is an entity — and you tin snag nan Edge (2023) astatine its little value — it’s worthy considering. It whitethorn not beryllium nan undisputed Google Pixel 8 slayer that Motorola hoped it would be, but it is simply a worthy replacement — and a telephone that should beryllium connected your radar.

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