There are two predominant areas of enchancment. First, the Moto G Energy lastly has an IP score of IP68/69, that means it has been examined to outlive water jets and submersion. It’s going to survive heavy rain and an unintended drop within the pool. These scores are sometimes solely out there on pricier telephones, so it is good to have that peace of thoughts.
Second, Motorola guarantees two Android working system upgrades alongside three years of safety updates. That is an enormous change contemplating I complained in regards to the poor replace technique in Motorola telephones 4 years in the past. Thoughts you, it may stand to be longer, nevertheless it’s a begin. Which means for the primary time, a Moto G cellphone can get pleasure from two OS updates, which regularly embody new options. Fortunately, the Moto G Energy 2025 launched with the present Android 15 model, so this cellphone will get Android 16 and Android 17, although do not anticipate the updates to reach quick.
Talking of software program, the person interface is clear and comparatively pain-free. Nonetheless, like earlier Moto G telephones, there is a boatload of pre-installed bloatware. You may uninstall all of it—and you will need to take the time to do it as it could avoid wasting space for storing.
Battery life is nice—the 5,000-mAh cell roughly lasts two days with common use, although on days after I used the cellphone for navigation, music streaming, and plenty of Instagram Reels-ing, it dipped to roughly 30 p.c by bedtime. My favourite perk is that I can recharge it with a wi-fi charger, and this Moto G stays one of many few sub-$300 telephones with the potential.
{Photograph}: Julian Chokkattu
The remainder of the explanations it’s your decision this cellphone over different gadgets stay: It nonetheless has a headphone jack for all you twine lovers; it retains the microSD card slot—on prime of the built-in 128 GB of storage—in case you usually use plenty of storage; and the near-field communication sensor (NFC) permits you to make contactless funds so you’ll be able to depart the pockets at residence.
Good Seems
One factor Motorola did get proper once more is design. The vegan leather-based (aka plastic) texture on the again blended with the great inexperienced shade elevates this simple-looking cellphone into one thing extra. It has character and stands out from the ocean of boring black slabs, to not point out it feels a lot nicer to carry.
Over on the again is the place you will additionally discover three cameras, although one is simply an ambient gentle sensor. The primary digital camera is a 50-megapixel sensor and it is joined by an 8-MP ultrawide that additionally doubles as a macro digital camera. The first shooter is respectable. Allow Motorola’s Night time mode and it could take some strong low-light photos, although the outcomes could be blurry in case you do not stay nonetheless sufficient, and colours are muddy. Pores and skin tones and white steadiness are problematic too, however these are widespread points with cellphone cameras at this worth bracket.