ZDNET Highlights
- Motorola’s 2026 Moto G is available for $200.
- It has a better camera, and standout features like louder Dolby Atmos speakers and a longer-lasting battery.
- The hardware is also the same, so the phone is still struggling with heavy workloads.
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“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” – it seems this simple phrase is Motorola’s mantra. 2026 moto gA midrange smartphone that largely mirrors last year’s model. On one hand, this is a good thing. I really liked the 2025 Moto G – it’s a great device with a long-lasting battery and features that made it a “pocket-sized theater.”
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However, the downside of following the original formula so closely is that many of the issues remain the same. Let’s take a look at the 2026 refresh of this attractive $200 Android smartphone.
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sleek and bold
One of the most notable changes in the 2026 Moto G is its slightly larger form factor, measuring 167.15 x 76.40 x 8.44 mm (6.58 x 3 x 0.33 inches) and weighing 202 grams. This extra weight doesn’t make much of a difference, as it’s still sleek and light. It’s also comfortable to hold, thanks to its rounded corners and soft vegan leather backing, which gives it a distinctive look.
Motorola also made some bold design choices. The phone has an attractive Cattleya Orchid Pink finish, which is a much more attractive color scheme than the Forest Gray of the 2025 model. I also appreciate the inclusion of a headphone jack in an era dominated by Bluetooth earbuds.
Return of Pocket Theater
The Moto G has a 6.7-inch HD+ display with a resolution of 1,604 x 720 pixels. Although the screen isn’t 1080p, it still impresses with its bright and accurate colors, a strong peak brightness of 1,000 nits, and a smooth 120Hz refresh rate. It’s a solid combination of features, enabling vibrant video playback and fluid scrolling.
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Like the older model, the 2026 Moto G features a robust speaker system fine-tuned by Dolby Atmos. The audio output is rich, detailed and immersive. Testing the smartphone One of my favorite moments was when I looked back and watched Space Jam on YouTube for the first time in years. From the movie soundtrack to the characters’ voices, the speaker’s ability to churn out well-balanced audio was highlighted, with nothing feeling unclear or slow.
better camera
On the back of the phone you will find a dual-camera system consisting of a 50MP main and a 2MP ultrawide lens. One of the biggest problems I had with previous models was their tendency to over-saturate colors. That problem has been fixed to a great extent.
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Similar to the 2026 Moto G Play (the second 2026 model currently available), colors appear more balanced, resulting in better photos – for me, anyway. Some people like extra saturation. Additionally, unlike the Play model, the Moto G performs better in low light conditions. Below is an image I took with my smartphone, I believe it effectively captures its quality. You can see the squirrel quite clearly in the shadow. This is something the G Play may have struggled to capture.
I recommend uploading your photos to Google Drive or another cloud storage service and viewing them on a computer monitor. The Moto G’s HD display doesn’t do justice to the images taken by the camera. They may appear less detailed than they actually are.
light display
The reveal of Motorola’s 2026 Moto G is a familiar story. The smartphone is powered by the same MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset as last year’s model, which offers the same great experience. Jumping between multiple apps, streaming movies on Netflix, and browsing the internet all felt seamless, helped by the 120Hz refresh rate and RAM Boost feature.
For those who don’t know, RAM Boost turns unused storage into virtual memory. It’s more useful here than the Moto G Play because of the larger 128GB storage drive. I should also point out that you can expand the amount up to 1TB via a microSD card. However, many of the same limitations still remain. It still struggles under heavy workloads. Graphically demanding games like “Honkai: Star Rail” and “Genshin Impact” still stutter and lag for a while on the device.
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Battery life is another strong point. Motorola advertises up to two days of continuous use. To test this, I played a YouTube livestream at 720p nonstop at low screen brightness until the battery drained. And I managed to get a good 24 hours out of it. Not quite the claimed two days, but still pretty good.
ZDNET’s shopping advice
Motorola’s 2026 Moto G It’s currently available on the Motorola site for $200, making it an easy recommendation for buyers looking for a reliable low-to-midrange phone – especially if you like the bold pink finish. If the color is too garish, it’s also available in Slipstream blue.
Compared to the Moto G Play, this model offers more storage, a better camera system, and slightly stronger performance, making it the better buy between the two in my opinion. Choosing between it and the 2025 model is trickier, as they’re largely the same phone apart from a few updates. If a camera upgrade is important to you, choose a new phone or consider last year’s Moto G for $150 If you are on a budget.
