With Motorola concreting its presence in the budget segment, the brand has been on a launch spree since the beginning of 2024, with the latest addition in the segment being the Moto G64 5G. The new handset has a few highlighting features such as a huge 6000mAh battery, stereo speakers and much more. After the device impressed us in its first impression, we put it to the test to find out whether its worth its price tag of Rs 14,999. Explore this comprehensive review of the Moto G64 5G to help you decide whether it’s the right purchase for you.
Design & Display
As we mentioned in the first impression of the Moto G64 5G, the handset is quite nicely built. The 3D PMMA material used to craft the rear panel doesn’t feel cheap at all and actually feels like glass. Because of the huge battery, the device is slightly on the heavier side, but that makes it feel dense, which is another plus point if we talk of the in-hand feel. It’s also compact to hold and despite getting a plastic frame, the overall feel of the handset is impressive.
The power and volume buttons reside on the right and have a tactile feel when clicked. The power button also doubles as a fingerprint sensor that works without issues. It recognises the finger 9/10 times. The only quarrel I have with the buttons is their positioning, as they are too high up than where they should be. While the power button seems fine, the volume buttons are slightly higher than the normal position.
The device has Dolby Atmos technology for the stereo speakers, which is excellent for the price point they are offering. They are loud and clear with vocals. The device also supports Moto Spatial Sound which creates a reverb effect when turned on even for sound from the speakers. As for the haptics, they are like any other budget smartphone in the segment and aren’t the most useful. This Motorola device is also IP52 rated meaning it can withstand a few splashes and some dirt as well.
The Moto G64 5G has a 6.5-inch FHD+ display with a punch-hole cutout, 240Hz touch sampling rate, and a 120Hz refresh rate. The panel produces decent colours and sharp content. The 120Hz Refresh Rate doesn’t, and even when set to ‘Auto’, it doesn’t drop often.
This isn’t the best LCD panel in terms of brightness, though. Even when indoors, the maximum brightness looks comfortable, while outdoors, it becomes pretty difficult to read the content. Not only that, but even the viewing angles are below average, as even the slightest tilt won’t allow you to see what is being displayed (as shown in the photo above).
Performance & Software
Moto G64 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7025 octa-core Chipset and is the first smartphone in the world to come with it. It’s further paired with up to 12GB RAM and 256GB storage that is further expandable up to 1TB. The phone runs on Android 14-based MyUX 5.0 custom skin out of the box.
With the top variant in our hands, we can say that the Moto G64 5G didn’t disappoint in terms of performance during the review period. It’s snappy and fluid for the most part, and casual gaming such as playing Bullet Echo, can also be handled with ease by the smartphone. RAM management is also managed well by the OS, with most of my apps staying in memory even after a while. However, we did notice some stutters in animations across the whole user interface but the device never became unresponsive.
Another issue I faced was even when I denied the system to install some of the apps it asked me to, such as Kotak 811, Solitaire, etc, it did that anyways and I had to uninstall them later on, considering it was part of bloatware. During the setup, it showed me apps from Motorola that would compulsorily be installed, which included the Shopping folder, entertainment folder, etc. Fortunately, all of them could be uninstalled. Finally, there was another major problem with the battery stats page where it just didn’t want to update. Due to that, it didn’t record at least 1.5 hours of screen-on time and I couldn’t find any fix for this bug either.
As for the customisation features, we don’t get to see the Hello UI, which debuted with the EDGE 50 Pro, but Motorola has confirmed to us that the Moto G64 5G will receive the Hello UI update sometime in the future. Even without Hello UI, there’s a good amount of customisation on offer, including features like Motorola’s signature twist and chop gestures for turning on the camera or the flashlight, respectively.
You can also customise the manner in which the notifications are shown on the lock screen, change the colours of the UI based on wallpaper or preset themes, access various fonts, set dynamic wallpapers, and do much more. It also supports split screen for multitasking, virtual RAM, smart sidebar, flip to DND, attentive screen, etc. Overall, the phone retains the near Stock Android look and feel but with essential customisation options that can elevate the experience.
The device comes with the February 2024 security patch pre-installed but Motorola tells us it will soon receive the April 2024 patch too. The security updates will be pushed out bi-monthly while the device is also guaranteed to receive the Android 15 OS update when it’s ready. Connectivity performance including Jio 5G, 5Ghz Wi-Fi, Bluetooth remained optimum.
Battery backup
The device packs a 6000mAh cell with 33W fast charging. Thanks to this huge cell, you can use the Moto G64 5G for almost 2 days without any anxiety of charging it, as noted during our review. With around 29 hours of use, which included casual gaming, social media scrolling, browsing chrome, watching videos, and more, I could get around 8.5 hours of screen-on time which is phenomenal.
With lighter use, the device can easily exceed the 29-hour mark. When charging with the included 33W charger, the device takes slightly more than 1.5 hours to charge which is decent considering its a huge battery.
Cameras
Moto G64 5G has a dual camera setup on the back, consisting of a 50MP f/1.8 main sensor with OIS, and an 8MP ultra-wide angle f/2.2 lens with LED Flash. There is a 16MP f/2.4 front camera for selfies and video chats.
In our review of the Moto G64 5G, it shot decent photos when given enough light, with plenty of details and average dynamic range as well. However, the overall tone is on the warmer side, which takes away the natural effect. The sharp, highly detailed photos are appealing, despite the somewhat average color tone.
The ultra-wide angle sensor shoots photos that look oversharpened but the detailing isn’t compromised. The colour tone deviates heavily from what is seen on the main sensor and now switches to the cooler side that has the blue-ish tint. Edge distortion could have been better but once again, there wasn’t a lot to complain about considering the price of the smartphone. This sensor also doubles as a macro sensor and these types of shots are there for the sake of it. They do lack proper detailing and have some amount of noise.
Portrait photos have a decent bokeh effect with edge detection that’s above average. The exposure levels can be inconsistent, but the photos often turn out detailed, sharp, vivid, and generally satisfactory.
Selfies are good with colours and skin tones but these photos lack detail. Also, the exposure can mess up and blow the background in case it’s too bright. Coming to shots clicked under artificial lighting, the main sensor doesn’t disappoint. The colours and the detailing of the shot are well contained by the camera.
For low-light photos, the detailing drops drastically. The colours go for a toss, and the device begins to struggle even when trying to focus. Most of the time, it would give me a blurry and unusable shot. Turning on Night mode does help brighten some parts of the image and also helps the device pick up accurate colours, but again, you’ll have to be really patient when clicking photos under poor lighting conditions.
