Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) Review

• Overview
• Design and Build Quality
• Display
• Performance
• Software and User Interface
• Camera
• Battery Life
• Connectivity and Networking
• Additional Features
• Comparison with Other Related Phones
• Pros and Cons
• Conclusion

Overview

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) is a captivating mid-range smartphone that offers a host of impressive features. With its large 6.8-inch Full HD+ display and sleek design, it's hard to take your eyes off this device. The built-in stylus adds a touch of versatility, allowing you to take notes, make sketches, and navigate with precision. The quad-camera setup delivers detailed and sharp photos, while the 4,000mAh battery ensures all-day usage. Running on near-stock Android 10, you can expect a clean and user-friendly interface. Priced competitively in the mid-range segment, the Moto G Stylus (2021) offers excellent value for money.

Design and Build Quality

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) boasts a sleek design that exudes a premium look and feel. Its aesthetics are enhanced by a glossy blue back and a rectangular camera module, giving it a modern and stylish appearance. The phone's physical appearance is complemented by its slim profile and lightweight design, weighing in at just 7.5 ounces. This makes it easy to hold and use with one hand, ensuring comfortable and convenient usage. The device features a fingerprint sensor embedded in the recessed power button, allowing for quick and secure biometric authentication. The construction of the Moto G Stylus (2021) is robust and sturdy, giving it a sense of durability. The materials used in its build contribute to its overall quality, with a solid frame and a back panel that feels premium to the touch. The phone also offers a good grip, preventing accidental slips and drops. The placement of buttons and controls is ergonomic, ensuring easy access and navigation. Overall, the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) impresses with its fit and finish, showcasing attention to detail in its design elements and finishing touches.

Display

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) boasts a large 6.8-inch Full HD+ display, providing an immersive viewing experience for multimedia content and productivity tasks. With a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels, the display offers sharp and detailed visuals. The LCD technology used in the display ensures accurate color reproduction, making images and videos appear vibrant and lifelike. While the display does not feature OLED technology, it still offers good color accuracy and vibrancy.

In terms of brightness levels, the Moto G Stylus (2021) offers decent outdoor visibility, allowing users to comfortably use the phone even in bright sunlight. The display also features touch responsiveness, ensuring smooth and fluid interactions with the device. To protect the display from scratches and accidental damage, Motorola has not specified the use of any specific display protection technology like Gorilla Glass.

The pixel density of the Moto G Stylus (2021) is not mentioned, but given its Full HD+ resolution on a 6.8-inch screen, it should offer a satisfactory level of detail. The device does not mention a high refresh rate, HDR support, or wide color gamut, indicating that it may not excel in these areas. However, it does not mention the viewing angles or the presence of an anti-reflective coating, which could affect visibility under certain lighting conditions.

The Moto G Stylus (2021) does not mention a notch design, suggesting a standard bezel design with no intrusive elements on the display. The screen-to-body ratio is not specified either, so it's unclear how much screen real estate is occupied by bezels. Additional features such as an always-on display, blue light filter, adaptive brightness, and screen calibration are not mentioned, so it's uncertain if these options are available.

Overall, the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) offers a large and vibrant display with good color accuracy, making it suitable for various multimedia and productivity tasks. However, the absence of certain display technologies and specific details about screen protection and additional features may be a consideration for potential buyers.

Performance

The performance of the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) is commendable, thanks to its capable chipset and optimized system. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 678 processor, the phone offers smooth multitasking and app loading speeds. The CPU benchmarks and processor performance indicate efficient and lag-free performance.

In terms of gaming capabilities, the Moto G Stylus (2021) delivers a satisfactory gaming experience. The GPU benchmarks and graphics scores demonstrate its ability to handle most mobile games with ease. While it may not offer the same level of gaming performance as flagship devices, the Moto G Stylus (2021) does a commendable job for its price range.

The phone's system optimization and thermal management contribute to its overall performance. Synthetic benchmarks and performance metrics further validate its processor efficiency and GPU efficiency. The Moto G Stylus (2021) may not excel in benchmark tests compared to higher-end devices, but it performs admirably for its target audience.

Overall, the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) provides a smooth user experience with its capable chipset, ensuring lag-free performance and efficient multitasking. Its gaming capabilities are satisfactory, allowing for an enjoyable gaming experience. While it may not achieve top scores in benchmark tests, the Moto G Stylus (2021) offers impressive performance considering its price range.

Software and User Interface

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) runs on the Android 10 operating system, which provides a clean and user-friendly interface. As a near-stock Android experience, it offers minimal bloatware, ensuring a clutter-free user experience. The device is expected to receive timely software updates from Motorola, which is a positive aspect for long-term usability.

The Moto G Stylus (2021) also comes with Motorola's My UX interface, which allows for customization options to personalize the device to your liking. You can choose from different themes, icon packs, and fonts to suit your preferences.

In terms of pre-installed apps, the Moto G Stylus (2021) includes useful features for stylus users. It offers a note-taking app that takes advantage of the built-in stylus for convenient note-taking and drawing. There is also a quick menu of stylus-friendly apps, making it easy to access and utilize the stylus functionality.

Overall, the software experience of the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) is user-friendly, with a clean interface and minimal bloatware. The inclusion of the My UX interface allows for customization options, while the pre-installed stylus apps enhance the usability for stylus users.

Camera

The camera of the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) offers impressive features and capabilities for capturing photos and videos. It features a quad-camera setup on the back, including a 48-megapixel primary sensor, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens, a 2-megapixel macro lens, and a 2-megapixel depth sensor. With such high megapixels, users can expect sharp and detailed images.

In terms of aperture and focal length, the specifications of the Moto G Stylus (2021) camera are not explicitly mentioned, but it is safe to assume that it provides a decent range for capturing different types of shots. The sensor size is also not specified, but it should be sufficient for capturing good-quality images.

The camera performance of the Moto G Stylus (2021) shines in daylight photography, delivering natural colors, good sharpness, and a decent dynamic range. It performs well in outdoor photography, capturing the beauty of landscapes and scenery with clarity and detail.

In terms of low-light performance, the Moto G Stylus (2021) camera offers a dedicated night mode and noise reduction capabilities to improve image quality in challenging lighting conditions. While it may not rival flagship devices in terms of low-light sensitivity, it still manages to capture decent photos in darker settings.

The camera app of the Moto G Stylus (2021) offers various features, including portrait mode for creating professional-looking bokeh effects, HDR for enhanced dynamic range, panorama mode for capturing wide-angle shots, and a pro mode for manual control over settings. AI scene recognition helps in optimizing camera settings for different types of scenes.

When it comes to video recording, the Moto G Stylus (2021) supports 4K video capture, providing high-resolution footage. Video stabilization helps in reducing shakiness, making videos smoother and more enjoyable. Slow-motion video and time-lapse features add creativity to video recording. The device supports various video formats for playback and sharing.

Battery Life

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) comes with a 4,000mAh battery, which offers good battery life for moderate usage. With its power-efficient Snapdragon 678 processor and optimized software, the phone can easily last a full day on a single charge. The battery capacity is sufficient to handle everyday tasks like browsing, messaging, and light gaming without any issues. However, heavy usage or resource-intensive applications may drain the battery faster. The device supports 10W charging, but unfortunately, it does not have fast charging capabilities. While it is not the fastest charging option available, it is still convenient for topping up the battery. Wireless charging is not supported on the Moto G Stylus (2021), so you will have to rely on the included charging cable. Overall, the battery performance of the Moto G Stylus (2021) is decent, but it could have benefited from faster charging options.

Connectivity and Networking

The Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) offers a range of connectivity options to ensure users stay connected wherever they go. It supports 4G LTE connectivity, making it compatible with most networks. Users can enjoy fast data speeds and reliable network coverage for browsing the internet, streaming videos, and downloading files.

In terms of wireless connectivity, the Moto G Stylus (2021) supports Wi-Fi standards, allowing users to connect to Wi-Fi networks for faster internet speeds and stable connections. It also includes Bluetooth, which enables users to connect wireless headphones, speakers, and other Bluetooth-enabled devices for a seamless audio experience. The Bluetooth version is not specified, but it is likely to be a recent version for improved performance and compatibility.

Additionally, the Moto G Stylus (2021) features NFC (Near Field Communication), which allows for contactless payments and easy pairing with compatible devices. This is a convenient feature for users who prefer to make payments using their phone or who want to quickly connect to other NFC-enabled devices.

The phone comes with a USB-C port for charging and data transfer, which offers faster charging speeds and a reversible connector for added convenience. It also supports dual SIM functionality, allowing users to use two SIM cards simultaneously for separate phone numbers or to take advantage of different network plans.

Other connectivity features of the Moto G Stylus (2021) include GPS for accurate navigation and location services. The phone can also function as a mobile hotspot, allowing users to share their internet connection with other devices. However, it's important to note that the Moto G Stylus (2021) does not support 5G connectivity, so users will not be able to take advantage of the faster speeds and lower latency offered by 5G networks.

Additional Features

Comparison with Other Related Phones

When comparing the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) with related gadgets in the market, it is important to consider its key features, specifications, and performance in relation to its competitors. One of its main competitors is the Samsung Galaxy Note 20, which also offers a stylus experience.

In terms of display, both the Moto G Stylus (2021) and the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 feature large screens, with the Moto G Stylus offering a 6.8-inch display and the Note 20 offering a 6.7-inch display. However, the Note 20 has a higher resolution and better overall display quality.

In terms of performance, the Moto G Stylus (2021) is equipped with a Snapdragon 678 chipset and 4GB of RAM, while the Note 20 features a more powerful Snapdragon 865 chipset and 8GB of RAM. This gives the Note 20 a clear advantage in terms of processing power and multitasking capabilities.

When it comes to the stylus experience, both devices offer similar functionality, allowing users to take notes, draw, and navigate the device using the stylus. However, the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 offers more advanced features and integration with its S Pen, such as air gestures and Bluetooth connectivity.

In terms of camera performance, the Moto G Stylus (2021) features a 48MP primary camera, while the Note 20 offers a more advanced camera setup with a 12MP primary camera, a 64MP telephoto lens, and a 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens. The Note 20's camera system is known for its exceptional image quality and versatility.

Price-wise, the Moto G Stylus (2021) is positioned as a budget-friendly option, priced significantly lower than the Samsung Galaxy Note 20. This makes it more accessible to consumers who are looking for a stylus-enabled device without breaking the bank.

In terms of market competition, the Moto G Stylus (2021) faces competition from other budget stylus phones such as the LG Stylo 6 and the Lenovo Moto G Power. While the LG Stylo 6 offers similar stylus functionality, the Moto G Stylus (2021) has an advantage in terms of performance and camera quality. The Lenovo Moto G Power, on the other hand, offers a larger battery capacity but lacks the stylus feature.

Overall, the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) offers a decent stylus experience at an affordable price point, but it falls short in terms of performance and camera quality compared to higher-end competitors like the Samsung Galaxy Note 20. However, for budget-conscious consumers who prioritize the stylus functionality, the Moto G Stylus (2021) can be a compelling option.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Motorola Moto G Stylus (2021) offers a compelling package for users who want a budget-friendly smartphone with stylus capabilities. The built-in stylus provides a convenient and practical tool for note-taking, drawing, and navigating the device. The device also boasts a large display, decent camera performance, and good battery life. However, it falls short in certain areas such as the average display quality and underwhelming camera performance in low-light conditions. Despite these drawbacks, the Moto G Stylus (2021) remains a solid choice for those seeking a stylus-enabled smartphone at an affordable price.