The Android smartphone market offers solutions suitable for
all budgets. Generally, those who do not have too many needs can therefore
focus on a device costing less than 200 euros , among other things also having
a good choice. In fact, the devices that fall into this range are aimed at
those who use the smartphone only for classic daily activities, for example
replying to some e-mail message or taking a look at what is happening on social
networks.
In this context, the Moto G20 arrives, a smartphone that
seeks to combine the classic solid software experience essentially stock
offered by Motorolaa 6.5-inch diagonal screen with increased refresh rate, as
well as a 5,000 mAh battery. This at a price of 169.99 euros on the official
portal . We've been testing the device over the past few weeks - here's how it
performed.
The rainbow in the camera
The Motorola Moto G20 design is certainly derivative of what
has already been seen on the market. On the other hand, it is particularly
difficult, especially in the low range, to be able to innovate the look of a
product of this type.
However, the manufacturer has not limited himself to doing
the homework : you can see it from the camera module, which includes four
sensors and the LED flash and protrudes a little (the smartphone dances when
placed on a flat surface, but nothing transcendental). In fact, the latter is
able to create plays of light that are particularly pleasing to the eye, thanks
to a sort of "rainbow" effect. Net of this, the rest is exactly as
you imagine it: screen with drop notch, plastic body and physical fingerprint
sensor on the back. There is also facial recognition, with an average release
speed.
The dimensions are equal to 165.22 x 75.73 x 9.14 mm, for a
weight of 200 grams. It is therefore not the most manageable smartphone on the
market, also considering the large display, but by now the trend is
consolidated and many users are already used to this type of solution. In any case,
there is no lack of IP52 certification , designed for splashing water. The only
color available is that Breeze Blue, which we are not sorry and all in all
manages to highlight the backcover.
As for the sides of the device, on the right we find the power
button, the volume rocker and the key to activate the Google Assistant voice
assistant. At the top there is the 3.5 mm audio jack for headphones , while on
the left there is the hybrid slot for the SIM (dual nanoSIM or nanoSIM +
microSD). At the bottom we find microphone, USB Type-C 2.0 port and
speaker.
The sales package is interesting, on which Motorola hardly
disappoints in terms of accessories. The equipment is in fact complete: we find
a comfortable transparent cover, a USB Type-C / USB Type-A cable, a 10W charger
, various manuals, the pin for extracting the SIM compartment and discrete
headphones with jack cable. In short, essentially nothing is missing. The only
element that makes you turn your nose up a bit is the charging speed, but given
the particularly low price of the device you can't complain much.
You are not aimings for the top, but for the average user: here is the
UNISOC processor
A feature of this smartphone that has attracted our
attention since the data sheet is the presence of an octa-core UNISOC T700
processor , flanked by 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal memory (expandable via
microSD up to 1TB).
Motorola has therefore decided to go beyond the classic
MediaTek and Qualcomm, focusing on a reality that is not often heard of in our
part. In fact, if you are a fan of the Android world, you will surely be aware
of the fact that in the past even brands such as Nokia, ZTE, TCL, Alcatel and
Motorola itself have already made use of processors from the Shanghai-based
company. Usually these solutions are adopted in the low end of the market
(precisely the one where Motorola Moto G20 is placed).
We hadn't tried a solution of this kind for some time and in
fact there was a bit of skepticism. However, during the test weeks we put aside
the data sheet: the UNISOC SoC represents a valid solution for a low cost
device, so much so that probably the users to whom the device is aimed will not
even realize that they do not have a classic Qualcomm Snapdragon 460 (mounted,
for example, by the previous Motorola Moto G10).
It is not just about "smartphone in hand"
sensations, since even the benchmark numbers confirm the situation. For
example, Motorola Moto G20 recorded 348 points in single-core and 1295 points
in multi-core on GeekBench . Sure, these are low-end performance, but they are
fine for carrying out common day-to-day operations.
In any cases, as you can well imagine, one of the aspects on
which the manufacturer wanted to focus more is autonomy. In fact, the
smartphone has a large 5,000 mAh battery. The latter allows you to arrive in
the evening without any kind of problem in any context. Furthermore, we are
sure that, with a less intensive use of ours, it is easily possible to reach
even two days. The only thing that makes the nose turn up a bit is the charging
speed at 10W, which is not exactly the fastest. However, contextualizing the
product in the range to which it is aimed, hardly many will complain.
Arriving at the display, a 6.5-inch TFT IPS LCD panel with
HD + resolution (1600 x 720 pixels), 90 Hz refresh rate, 87% screen-to-body
ratio and drop notch peeps out. The feature that immediatelys catches the eye
is the resolution: the market has made many steps forward over the last few
years, even under 200 euros.
An HD + display is not the best and goes a little to nullify
any multimedia use of the device. A real shame, also considering the fact that
the display is large and all in all of good quality. The colors are calibrated
in the standard and brightness is not bad.
To bury the display further unfortunately there is the fact
that the official Netflix application recognizes only the Widevine L3 DRMs ,
thus allowing playback only in SD. In reality, external apps detect Widevine L1
DRMs, but then for some reason the well-known service fails to exploit them.
The mono audio department is rather discreet, but you understand that it is in
general a limited device from a multimedia point of view. Not bad, however, the
presence of a feature that automatically changes the refresh rate of the
screen, in order to have a certain balance between fluidity and autonomy. Think
that there is even a sort of Always On, with a dedicated feature under the
heading " Always show time and information ".
Another aspect that might please someone is the presence of
an LED for notifications, placed frontally at the top right. Too bad, however,
for an automatic brightness that is not exactly the best .
As for the photographic department, Motorola Moto G20 has a
quad camera from 48MP (f / 1.7, main) + 8MP (f / 2.2, ultra-wide, 118 degrees)
+ 2MP (f / 2.4, for macros) on the back. ) + 2MP (f / 2.4, for depth of field).
On the other hand, a 13MP selfie sensor with f / 2.2 aperture peeps out. Videos
can be recorded in Full HD / 30fps and stabilization is decent.
Ultimately during the day the device is able to take enough
shots for the price range but several flaws emerge in the slightly more
difficult contexts. At night the digital noise is a lot, as well as wide-angle
lenses are far from perfect. The speech for macros is always the same: the
resolution is too low to actually be able to use them in a serious way. It is
also sufficient to mention the maximum zoom that can be reached digitally to
understand the real limitations of the department: it only reaches 4x and the
interface recommends using only the 1x or the wide angle.
The front cameras, on the other hand, is discreet. In some
contexts it is not easy to make good shots, but all in all the final result is
not so bad. In short, Motorola Moto G20 can satisfy those who take only a few
photos every now and then, but if you have some more needs you should look
elsewhere, since the market offers more valid solutions from this point of
view. If you want to get a better ideas of the quality of the shots, you can
find some uncompressed photos in our Drive folder dedicated to Motorola Moto
G20 .
A strong point of the model is instead the connectivity
department, which includes a bit of everything the average user needs: 4G, NFC,
Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac , Dual SIM with slot hybrid and Bluetooth 5.0
are in their place. The presence of the classic audio jack (complete with
headphones in the package) will certainly make the most traditionalists happy.
A little casual gaming doesn't hurt
The operating system is essentially stock Android 11 which,
at the time of writing, has the security patches of May 2021. In this cases
there is very little to say: zero blotware and good system fluidity . Excluding
the " Motorola Notifications " application, which allows the brand to
send push notifications on services and benefits if the user decides to
subscribe, there is nothing else to report. In fact, even the classic Moto
application is absent in this model , which generally showcases the features
added by the manufacturer. In short, the Motorola Moto G20 offers a purer
software experience than ever.
Coming to the videogame field, you understand that it is not
exactly a smartphone suitable for this type of use. However, a bit of casual
gaming can be done, since the performance allows you to enjoy some of the most
popular titles in any case. Don't get us wrong though: Fortnite, for example,
is indicated as unsupported and there is no real gaming functionality (which
has now been implemented by many manufacturers).
In any case, Call of Duty: Mobile lets itself be played
discreetly with details on Medium and FPS on High. Games less expensive in
terms of resources, for example Minecraft, do not give too many problems to the
hardware configuration but, to be clear, a title like ARK: Survival Evolved
cannot be played even at low details (it is in fact even difficult to start it,
given the crashes of the home screen). In short, the average user could in any
case be able to play some popular titles, albeit with the necessary
limitations, but forget to go further.
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