With the Moto G7 series Motorola addresses all those smartphone users who are less interested in status and high-end gimmicks than in the fact that the price fits in their budget. The cheapest model in the series costs just 150 euros, the most expensive 300 euros. For the price of a luxury-class smartphone you could take all four devices of the series: the Moto G7, G7 Play, G7 Plus and G7 Power.
They all have these features
The maximum 64 GB memory can be extended by up to 512 GB for all G7 models via memory card. Likewise, all are dual sim capable, so they can be operated simultaneously with two sim cards. An analog headphone socket can also be found on all fours. Because the cables are also suitable as antennas, you can also listen to the radio with the Moto G7. And they all have fingerprint sensors, simple face recognition and USB-C charging sockets.
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Motorola Moto G7 smartphones
The most important thing in common is that Motorola delivers its new mid-range smartphones with Android 9 Pie. Unlike many other manufacturers, Motorola leaves Google's operating system completely unchanged. For example, Google's regular security updates can be quickly passed on to customers. In addition, Motorola promises to keep the devices up-to-date for at least two years. One will be able to use therefore also the next Android versions, which is not usual with all manufacturers.
You have to do without it
None of the new Motorola smartphones has a triple camera, as is common in high-end models. Also you have to do without real waterproofness. After all, the Moto G7 and the G7 Plus are protected from splash water by a nano-coating, G7 Play and G7 Power do not even have that.
Motorola's new middle class
The four new Motorola models Moto G7 Plus, G7, G7 Power, G7 Play (from left to right and price decreasing). The G7 Play stands out as the only one by its smaller screen.
All G7 models, including the G7 Play, Motorola equipped with fingerprint sensors.
A USB-C port is also standard in the G7 series. The modern sockets enable, among other things, shorter battery charging times.
With the included power supplies, however, there are big differences. At the top of the picture is the weak 5-watt power supply of the G7 Play, including the 27 watt much more powerful G7 Plus power supply. Moto G7 and G7 Power are supplied with 18 watt power supplies.
Even analog headphone sockets have all Moto G7 smartphones. Two models are on top and the other two on the bottom.
Apart from the smaller screen, the Moto G7 Play sets itself apart from the other models with its matte back. It may not look so chic, but is less sensitive to dirt.
The stronger battery makes the G7 Power just a touch thicker than the G7, but provides enough energy for a whole weekend during normal use.
The camera in the Moto G7 Play has a resolution of 12 megapixels. Ordinary snapshots are possible, but not much more.
This example photo taken with the Moto G7 Play shows one of the weaknesses of the camera, which has clearly overdrawn bright areas in this shot.
The other G7 models are equipped with dual cameras in which the secondary camera acts as a depth sensor, for example, to be able to blur the background of portraits. The zoom function works purely digitally.
The highest-resolution camera with 16 megapixels in this series is in the Moto G7 Plus. It has 16 megapixels and a 5-megapixel depth sensor.
This test image was taken from a short distance in portrait mode of the Moto G7 Plus.
With the complete Moto G7 series Motorola covers a price range of 150 to 300 euros. So really expensive is none of the four devices.
For comparison: The cheapest current iPhone, the iPhone XR (bottom of the picture), costs at Apple 849 euros, all four Moto G7 together you get for 910 euros.
Also with the WLAN connection there are significant differences: Only the G7 Plus dominates the Gigabit WLAN standard 802.11ac, the G7 nevertheless still 802.11a. For G7 Play and G7 Power, however, you have to be content with the old 802.11b / g / n standards. In the test, this was noticeable because downloads, such as gaming apps, took much longer than the G7 Plus.
Moto G7 Play
With 5.7 inches, the G7 Play is the smallest and with a price of 150 euros and the cheapest of the new Motorola smartphones. It does not seem cheap, however, and because of its small size, it feels good in the hand. All day-to-day tasks such as e-mail, chat and a bit of surfing do it casually. With elaborate games, however, one has to compromise on the quality of the graphics.
The 13-megapixel camera takes sufficiently good snapshots, but tends in bright areas of the image to overshoots. Due to the lack of a second lens, portrait effects are calculated by software, which leads to rather mediocre results.
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moto g7 play Dual-SIM:
Motorola
32 GB; 149.99 euros
Order at Amazon.
Moto G7 Power
It is noteworthy that Motorola builds the much larger Moto G7 Power on the same basis as the G7 Play. The processor is the same and even the screen shows the same resolution of 1512 x 720 pixels, although much larger at 6.2 inches. However, the 4 GB of RAM and the 64 GB of mass storage are twice as large. Games still look pixelated on the large screen, and the quality of the camera is only slightly better.
However, a huge difference makes the huge battery. While the Moto G7 Play in the battery test of Geekbench switched off after six hours and 38 minutes with an empty battery, the G7 Power held out a whopping 13 hours and 11 minutes, which is a very good value. Both devices ran with half screen brightness and nearly 100 percent processor load. If you are looking for a long-lasting smartphone, with which you can also go without a power pack into the weekend, is right here and must not spend too much with 210 euros.
Moto G7
The Moto G7 comes in the Geekbench test on a significantly lower battery life of seven hours and 20 minutes. Enough for a day, but not much more. But it offers extra charge for only 40 euros compared to the G7 Power, so 250 euros, a few substantial upgrades. Especially the 6.2-inch screen is considerably finer with 2270 x 1080 pixels. This is especially noticeable in games and when watching movies and photos.
Significantly more offers here also the camera with depth sensor, the nicer portrait snapshots and videos in 4K resolution can record. Who exploits this, will want to expand the built-in 64 GB memory but memory card.
Moto G7 Plus
Even the top model of Motorola's middle class is still cheap with a price of 300 euros. Unlike the G7, it has an improved 16 megapixel camera and a 5 megapixel depth sensor. The picture quality is pretty good here.
As the only G7 model, it also has a faster processor, which is noticeable in multitasking and elaborate games. He is also a strong 27-watt power supply, which charges the battery very fast. 15 minutes at the power outlet will last for about twelve hours.
Conclusion
advantages and disadvantages
Cheap prices
Current Android system
Update promise for two years
Memory expandable
Very good battery life (G7 Power only)
Good camera (G7 Plus)
Moderate stamina (G7 Play)
Weak power adapter (G7 Play)
The Motorola Moto G7 series will find those who do not care about the latest features. High-end features and high-class status you do not get here, but a sleek Android system with the promise of years of updates.
The G7 Play is suitable for people who only want to make calls, send text messages or call up the bus timetable. The G7 Power is rather something for long-term callers and multi-chatters without much demand on the graphic capabilities of their mobile phones. With the Moto G7 you get a little more of all that, but basically this model is the most boring of the series. Who is looking for in this price range, should rather drauflegen 50 euros and choose for 300 euros the G7 Plus, which offers in almost every way more than the other three G7 smartphones.
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