Verdict
It is slender pickings for small phone lovers in today ’s market . Though some more tiny options do survive , they are often vend towards the higher end , though not so with the Moto Edge 30 Neo . With an under - average sizing footprint and a snazzy design , it does a slew to endear itself , only help by a great screen and fast charging . With poor low - light camera performance and a general lack of power , it does come in with caveats , but as an overall software is light to recommend – especially to those with hobbit hand .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Few design concepts in the smartphone world are as long in the tooth , and arguably none are as tag in their refusal to pass . Since the mobile phone first became a fastness in mod life there have been designs characterised as ‘ too big ’ and others that emphasise pocketability – both being heavily contextual to the fourth dimension period in question .
In the present , the Motorola Edge 30 Neo is a ‘ lowly ’ phone , though with a covert of over 6 inches it is still gargantuan by the measure of a decade ago . It is position against its more insurance premium brethren , the Ultra and theFusion , as a more utilitarian , everyman option though it does fare with an interesting sheet of spec .
Though it may be smaller , and cheaper , than its kinsperson , it has a 1080p organic light-emitting diode display , a 50MP photographic camera , a powerful C.P.U. and an interesting design to boot – so it is hardly a poor cousin . This said , at the price of entry it observe itself up against a host of powerful players , each offer choice that blend a exchangeable band of specs , though all of them are larger .
The question then , as it has ever been , is : does a smaller form factor do enough to distinguish the Neo , both from more premium member of the same machine line and the competition ?
Design and screen
The Motorola Edge 30 Neo , over all of the competition , is one thing , and that issmall . A sound design first and first of all with one - handed custom in mind , it weighs almost nothing ( 155 g ) and is simple to use on the go . If you are someone who has small hands , or trouble with big earphone , the Neo should be on your list by default . There are few other options on the market offering a interchangeable conformation component , and almost none at the same price .
Beyond simple size of it , the Neo is a well - build phone . The want of weight unit can be initially jarring , a consequence of the tripping credit card used in its construction , but it is nicely balanced and feels as though it could survive an impromptu drop . This is with the important caution that said dip should not regard water or liquidness of any sort , there is no weewee resistance here , only squelch resistivity . Much of the competitor is in a similar situation , but the deficiency of proper resistance is still a drawback .
The phone is manufacture entirely of credit card , with a rough grippy grain on the rear . Beyond making it immune to the death drop that glass devices seem so prone to , it imply that this is a telephone that can be used naked ( i.e. without a eccentric ) . That is n’t to say that it will be capable to live on a big drop , that for certain is n’t the case , but that the rear can outlive an encounter with keys in a jacket pocket and emerge unscathed .
Happily , color choice are a substantial period . At some point in the past times , it was decided by a vague court that black , white and grey were the sole colour options for mobile phones that the public could have – and the Neo exists in rebellion of that decision . My inspection unit came in a fetching purple , and there are three other options uncommitted .
Overall the Neo is n’t necessarily the most interesting speech sound on the market , or at the terms point , from a design perspective , but it is robust and well-heeled to use , both of which are significant substantial points . That it has wireless charging too is a nice surprise , as it is something that much of the competition at the price point omit entirely .
On the front , the display impresses too , with enough in the way ofoomphto stand up to its match . At 1080p it has resolution enough to keep things incisive while sporting potent colour saturation and contrast as a termination of its OLED structure . With a screen that refreshes at up to 120Hz the sound feels firm and fluid in general use , and the lean view ratio keeps it prosperous to use with one hand .
Though it does n’t make many grand strides to prove its lineament over the competition , the exhibit on the Edge 30 Neo is pleasant in every metric that matters . Though it might not have the land area to be immersive in the style that some larger devices can , that it is usable one - handed signify that it has some authoritative advantages .
Cameras
There are caveat attached to smaller , thinner , phones that might not be expect . Of course , a small screen and general footprint will mean decreased shelling life and slimly worse consider experience with television , but there are consequences for the tv camera too .
Modern smartphone cameras , though lilliputian , profit heavily from extra blank to include niceties such as great sensors and optic image stabilisation among others . With an vehemence on being petite , the Edge 30 Neo then theoretically has a lot to establish over its bulkier comrade .
Starting with the app , it does n’t deviate from the norm ( i.e. the received iOS / Pixel layout ) but it manages two of import things . The first , it launches cursorily – too many apps , especially on budget phones , have a ponderous gap time which can think on a regular basis missing impromptu shot . As phone picture taking still lean heavily on spontaneity , this is therefore a major disadvantage . With the ‘ double - construction ’ motion , opening the app on the Moto Edge 30 Neo is a quick and painless suggestion .
second , it engage focus apace , which leans into the former head regarding spontaneity . Important background are also never difficult to reach , which is of course a minor victory too .
As for actual prototype quality , though it does n’t quite stand up up to the more premium competition , for the most part it prevail its own . On the whole , the 64MP sensing element recoil out look-alike that have enough detail ( binned to 16MP ) and strong color reproduction .
Dynamic range can be a piece hit or lack , with the Auto HDR mold to rejuvenate highlights but not in effect in some unmanageable situations – as with sunsets . Coupled with the relatively quick focussing time , this is a camera that will function well for most ‘ smartphone ’ photography , even if it does n’t obtain a candle to more capable devices .
Low - light carrying out , though it might be expect , was not a highlight . Though the included night mode works to convey out impregnation and item in images , still it does n’t do enough to keep them from appear muddy and washed out .
Selfies from the front - facing camera are a substantial peak , however , showcasing decent dynamic scope , sound skin tone reproduction and enough detail . The ultra - wide doubles as a macro River Cam and produces workmanlike images that have decent color but that are miss in detail , as is often the casing at the price compass point .
Though you would be sick to pick up the Neo for its camera carrying into action alone , on the whole , it performs capably and does n’t prove to be an overall setback , which is still something of a win given its budget circumstance .
Performance
If the Edge 30 Neo has seen investment in its screen and general intention , an area of clear ritual killing has been its performance .
With a Snapdragon 695 and 8 GB of RAM , our reassessment unit was able to plow most canonical tasks with ease , which is to say pinch through the interface and messaging plus societal medium . If you are a light exploiter , the Neo will fly .
move on to more demanding tasks such as gaming , and the situation intelligibly change somewhat . Titles such as PUBG campaign slow and will want to be execute at lower firmness , if therefore you are someone who places a lot of stress on mobile gaming you ’d be good to look elsewhere .
The Neo is n’t lacking in world-wide speed , but it does n’t have the necessary grunt to push gruelling games . This is borne out by the 655 single - core and 1862 multi - core scores in Geekbench 5 , which is sufficient but hardly tug the boundaries of performance in smartphones .
As is ever the example , given that it is a sound from Motorola , the Neo comes running the ‘ Moto Experience ’ . This is the maker ’s attempt to give the foot Android experience a slight party favor and improve its serviceableness in many site .
These are mostly in fairly minuscule ways , such as with the addition of gestures to launch the torch and camera , and an always - on display that is customisable and which provides useful information .
Perhaps the biggest and most significant inclusion is ‘ Ready For ’ , an app that promises extra functionality for the gimmick when link to a data processor , tablet or display . On the latter two , this means receiving texts on your pad and is mostly a case of redundance . When connected to a computing machine the characteristic becomes importantly more utilitarian however . With the right way active the Neo can be used as an impromptu webcam , or can even provide a background environment of its own .
While some software package skins grate even after only a few minutes of habit , the Moto skin is generally useful and never proves to get in the manner , only ever work to benefit the overall experience .
Battery life
It is inevitable – with a small body comes a diminished assault and battery , and of course a trade - off in battery life .
With a 4020mAh unit , the Neo lacks the magnanimous force packs of its peers and so is therefore at an constitutional disadvantage when it comes to battery spirit , or so the story is on paper .
Across several days of real - universe usage , a second depiction appears . This is a sound that wo n’t succeed any survival competitions , but one which proves to be entirely adequate for everyday needs . That is to say , it will last a full day in most use cases for many people , but it does n’t have the capability to make it through to a second day .
This is the same as much of the rivalry can action , and is a moment of a comparatively baron - efficient C.P.U. and a laidback software system skin .
Charging up proved to be something of a highlight , with the included fast battery charger it was potential to find 80 % from start in under 30 minute . This is n’t the fastest uncommitted on the grocery today , but is more than enough to be useful in a pinch .
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Should you buy it?
The Motorola Edge 30 Neo puts design first with a slimline , lightweight design and a collaboration with Pantone on usable finishes .
The mid - range focus of the Edge 30 Neo means it ’s not the most muscular smartphone around , especially when it do to gaming .
Final Thoughts
The low telephone is a noble ideal , one that is unlikely to die anytime soon and the Edge 30 Neo is a premier example of why . With a great screen and a pocket-sized form factor , it has an allure beyond the typical specs appeal that gives it an bound over the ( large ) competition . This is only compounded by its decent camera system , fast charging and broadly speaking acceptable public presentation and shelling spirit .
The picture , of course , is n’t wholly positive , with mediocre performance , lack of sealing and piteous low - light photographic camera performance . If you are in the market for a reasonably priced small-scale sound , it should be near the top of your list , but if you require more power or the good camera , you ’d be best to look elsewhere .
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How we test
We test every mobile phone we review soundly . We use industry - standard tests to compare feature properly and we use the phone as our main machine over the follow-up menses . We ’ll always distinguish you what we find and we never , ever , take money to review a product .
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FAQs
A courser is included with this phone .
It is grade for splash resistance .
It does n’t have a phone jack .
It does have wireless charging .
