Motorola Edge 30 review: he is the one I recommend (at the right price) | Video

Motorola flexes its muscles and manages to place on the market the capable of responding to the needs of most people and without demanding too much from our wallet. We can define the Edge 30 as a mid-range with many ambitions, well-matched in terms of hardware and software, so much so as to make the search for defects more difficult than usual.

After having tried it for just over a week, I will tell you about my experience, made up of pleasant surprises and few doubts. For the more in a hurry who will not have time to scroll through the various chapters, I offer a preview: it’s one of those smartphones to really keep an eye on.

• MATERIALS AND DISPLAY
• PERFORMANCE
• DATA SHEET
• AUTONOMY AND RECHARGE
• PHOTO AND VIDEO
• CONCLUSIONS

MATERIALS AND DISPLAY

Maybe now the standard has risen a lot but having a 155g smartphone in your hands makes the difference, it’s a pleasure that I had almost forgotten. There is a compromise and I’ll tell you right away: the battery is less capacious than average, but is it a real problem? No, I’ll explain later why.

Obviously, various factors contribute to the realization of this featherweight, including the materials; see the front glass (Gorilla Glass 3), the plastic frame and the back in PMMA (Polymethylmethacrylate). In short, elements that we certainly cannot define as “trendy” but which still give a pleasant appearance and finishes that recall more expensive models. In simple terms: without the cover some fingerprints remain on the backbut the feedback in hand is more than good, you don’t get the idea to contest something cheap.

The panel used is beautiful, a 6.5-inch 10bit Amoled in 20: 9 format (Max Vision) which boasts a maximum refresh rate of 144Hz which is certainly noticeable as soon as it is activated in place of the canonical 60Hz. Certainly some middle ground would be useful, whether they are 90 or 120Hz and Motorola knows this well, so much so that on launch day it spoke of a software update already in the works that will activate an additional option that is in the middle (likely 90Hz). Bright display even in sunlight, it gets a little dirty after a few hours of use but keeps reflections low.

PERFORMANCE

If there is one thing certain, it is that Motorola has been available for years now a light, functional and above all fluid customization, indeed, one of the most fluid ever. It’s really hard for anything to get stuck on mid-to-high-end models like this one, let alone on the upper class. To move everything is Snapdragon 778 Plus, one of the latest Qualcomm home solutions that raises the frequency by 100 MHz compared to the 2.4 GHz of SD778.

Adreno 642L GPU which allowed me to play any title I tried without placing limitations. On Cod: Mobile, for example, I was able to set the maximum graphic level and enjoy the battles with maximum fluidity. All seasoned with a complete audio sector that includes double stereo speakers and dolby atmos. The second speaker, the one at the top, is not particularly powerful but can be heard; overall I would say that the listening experience is good but not beyond that, the sounds are in fact not very clear.

DATA SHEET

• display: 6.5 “FHD + OLED, 144Hz refresh rate, HDR10 +, DCI-P3
• mobile platform: Qualcomm Snapdragon 778 Plus 5G
• memory:
  • 8GB of RAM
  • 128GB internal (UFS 3.0), 1595MB / s read and 900MB / s write
• Ready For function
• audio: 2x stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos, 2x microphones
• dual SIM: Yup
• connectivity: 5G, WiFi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, USB-C, GPS, Glonass, Galileo
• resistence: IP52
• cameras:
  • Front: 32MP, f / 2.4, 0.7um pixel, 1.4um Quad Pixel per pixel
  • rear:
    • Main 50MP, f / 1.8, 1um pixel, 2um Quad Pixel per pixel, OIS, Omni PDAF, 1 / 1.5 “
    • 50MP ultra wide angle, 114 ° FOV, f / 2.2, 0.64um pixel, PDAF, Macro Vision
    • 2MP depth, f / 2.4, 1.75um pixels
    • video up to UHD @ 30fps
• drums: 4.020mAh with 33W TurboPower charging
• OS: Android 12
• dimensions and weight: 159,38×74,236×6,79mm for 155g
• colors: Meteor Gray, Aurora Green

Excellent reception in all contexts in which I have tried it, it is of course a dual-SIM that supports fifth generation networks. And speaking of connectivity, there is also the presence of WiFi 6E, the latest standard that covers the classic frequencies 2.4-5GHz and also 6GHz. The vibration is also good.

AUTONOMY AND RECHARGE

Although the battery is not the most capacious, the everyday experience is positive. The right balance between System-on-Chip and resources allows you to easily manage a day without too much trouble, as Motorola has often accustomed us to thanks to generally low energy-consuming systems. In this way I am able to do everything and reload quickly, although this last word should be revised for a moment.

In the package it finds a place a 33W charger which certainly raises the bar compared to the past but pays a pledge against the fiercest competition in circulation which, even in this range, is now able to offer recharges at 65-66W. The difference lies in a few tens of minutes for a complete cycle, although it must also be recognized that the less capacious battery is also faster to bring back to the maximum.

PHOTO AND VIDEO

The shooting experience I found it mostly satisfactory. The main 50MP camera with f / 1.8 aperture is in fact precise and well balanced, capable of bringing out excellent shots during the day and good results even at nightfall. Fast in execution and optically stabilized, in the videos it finds some limitations compared to higher class smartphones; some frames “get lost” and in the moving scenes it seems to lack the necessary fluidity.

The differences with the wide-angle camera from 50MP (f / 2.2) are then quite evident, with a different temperature and hue than the main one. The latter, in fact, boasts warmer shades and a magenta tint, while its companion (the ultra-wide) moves to green tones, with a loss of general detail as often happens with these image sensors (physically smaller). At night Edge 30 does not look bad at all, it takes a few moments longer to shoot and thus acquires more light and builds more than good shots, with little background noise.

View in Full Screen

32MP front which performs very well even in difficult conditions, as these two backlit shots prove. Skin tone that is maintained more than good and a nice bokeh effect behind the subject.

Finally, I spend a few words on the software, with the native application that has now become more complete than ever and can also count on a great ease of use. On Edge 30, in my opinion, it lacks a bit of fluidity when we record videos at maximum resolution (4k at 30fps); I have the feeling that it should receive some software refinement that can make the most of the available computing capacity.

CONCLUSIONS

It is undoubtedly one of the best smartphones of the year, naturally if it is contextualized in the price range where it falls thanks to the aggressive promo that sees it on the threshold of 400 euros. I’m certainly not pennies, mind you, but the Edge 30 is one of those convincing models that leads you to the usual rhetorical question: “why should I spend more?”.

There are compromises but they can be counted on the fingers of one hand and none are really debilitating also because it is not reasonable if you expect top quality materials and other “refined” elements on a midrange. The photographic limits must be immediately taken into account, even if the main one manages to do its job very well, it remains the preferred solution to take home shots that are up to the task. It is certainly not a cameraphone and I do not blame it, no mid-range can be called such and right on this front you can see (rightly) the real differences with the top of the range that now cost 2 times as much.

The Motorola Edge 30 arrives in Italy with a high price list of 549 euros, immediately softened with one promo launch that brought him to the threshold of 400 euros (actually I have already seen it close to 380 euros at some point, be alert). I think this second positioning is the most appropriate, and at this price it could be tempting to many, being able to count on the platform, style and software. What is a best buy? Likely.

motorola moto edge 30 (Display 6.5 144Hz OLED FHD +, 5G, Triple camera 50MP, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G +, 4020 mAh, 8 / 128GB, Dual SIM, Android 12, Cover Included), Meteor Gray
Amazon
549 399€ GENERAL PERFORMANCE CONTENT WEIGHT AND THICKNESS MAIN CAMERA 144HZ DISPLAYSOBER BUT FRESH DESIGN

HIGH PRICE LIST (BUT AFFORDABLE PROMO)PLASTIC MATERIALSLITTLE FLUID 4K VIDEO

VOTE 8.5