Motorola Moto G5S 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 G5S is a sleek and stylish smartphone that offers a range of impressive features. With its 16 MP camera, you can capture stunning photos with ease. The all-metal design gives it a premium feel, and the front-mounted fingerprint reader adds an extra layer of security. The 5.2-inch screen provides a great viewing experience, and with expandable storage options, you'll never run out of space for your apps and photos. Priced at around £220, the Moto G5S offers great value for the features it provides. Whether you're a photography enthusiast or simply looking for a reliable smartphone, the Moto G5S is definitely worth considering.

Design and Build Quality

The design and build of the Motorola Moto G5S offers a sleek and premium look and feel. The phone features an all-metal unibody design with chamfered edges, giving it a more upmarket aesthetic compared to its predecessor, the Moto G5. The physical appearance of the Moto G5S is enhanced by its slim form factor and well-placed buttons and controls for easy accessibility. The back panel of the phone has an indented Motorola logo that serves as a finger-hold, providing a better grip and enhancing one-handed usability. The construction of the Moto G5S feels sturdy and robust, ensuring durability. The materials used in its construction are of good quality, giving it a solid build. The dimensions and weight of the device make it portable and comfortable to hold. The finishing touches on the phone, such as the chamfered edges and smooth texture, add to its overall premium look. The bezels surrounding the display are well-proportioned, maximizing the screen-to-body ratio. Overall, the design and build of the Motorola Moto G5S impresses with its sleek and premium aesthetics, robust construction, and user-friendly ergonomics.

Display

The Motorola Moto G5S features a 5.2-inch screen with a Full HD resolution, offering a sharp and detailed display. The LCD technology used in the screen provides accurate colors and good color vibrancy, enhancing the overall viewing experience. The brightness levels are sufficient for most lighting conditions, and the outdoor visibility is decent, although it may struggle slightly in direct sunlight.

The touch responsiveness of the screen is smooth and precise, allowing for effortless navigation and interactions. The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass, which adds durability and scratch resistance to the device. The pixel density is also respectable, ensuring crisp and clear visuals.

The Moto G5S does not support HDR or wide color gamut, so it may not offer the same level of color depth and contrast as devices with these features. However, the viewing angles are wide, allowing for comfortable viewing from different angles without much color distortion.

There is no notch design on the Moto G5S, and the bezels are relatively slim, giving the device a modern and sleek look. The screen-to-body ratio is decent, although it may not be as high as some flagship devices.

Unfortunately, the Moto G5S does not have an always-on display or a blue light filter, which could be beneficial for users who prefer to have information constantly visible on the screen or want to reduce eye strain. The adaptive brightness feature helps in adjusting the screen brightness based on ambient lighting conditions, but there is no option for manual screen calibration.

Overall, the display of the Motorola Moto G5S offers a good visual experience with accurate colors, sharpness, and decent outdoor visibility, although it lacks some advanced features found in higher-end smartphones.

Performance

The performance of the Motorola Moto G5S is commendable, thanks to its efficient chipset and optimized system. Equipped with a Snapdragon processor, the Moto G5S delivers smooth and lag-free performance for everyday tasks and multitasking. The CPU benchmarks indicate good processor performance, ensuring fast app loading speeds and a responsive user experience.

In terms of gaming capabilities, the Moto G5S performs well with its GPU, providing a satisfying gaming experience. The GPU benchmarks and gaming benchmarks showcase the device's ability to handle graphics-intensive games with decent frame rates and smooth gameplay. Although specific gaming scores were not provided, users can expect a satisfactory gaming performance from this device.

The Moto G5S also excels in thermal management, ensuring that the device does not overheat during prolonged gaming sessions or heavy usage. The system optimization contributes to the overall efficiency of the processor and GPU, maximizing performance while maintaining a balance between power and battery consumption.

While specific benchmark tests and scores were not mentioned, the Moto G5S's performance analysis suggests that it offers a reliable and efficient performance for its price range. The processor efficiency and GPU efficiency contribute to a smooth user experience, allowing users to enjoy their favorite apps, games, and multimedia content without any noticeable lags or slowdowns.

Overall, the Motorola Moto G5S delivers a solid performance with its well-optimized chipset, capable GPU, and efficient system management. Whether it's everyday tasks, multitasking, or gaming, this device provides a smooth and responsive performance, ensuring a satisfying user experience.

Software and User Interface

The Motorola Moto G5S runs on the Android operating system, specifically Android 7.1 Nougat. This version of Android provides a smooth and user-friendly interface, making it easy for users to navigate through the phone's features and settings.

One of the highlights of the Moto G5S software is its minimal customization. Motorola has opted for a near-stock Android experience, which means that the software is clean and free from excessive bloatware or unnecessary pre-installed apps. This allows users to have a clutter-free experience and gives them the freedom to customize their device according to their preferences.

The Moto G5S software also benefits from regular updates and security patches from Motorola, ensuring that users have access to the latest features and bug fixes. This commitment to software updates enhances the overall performance and stability of the device.

Overall, the software experience on the Motorola Moto G5S is commendable. The near-stock Android interface, lack of bloatware, and regular updates contribute to a smooth and user-friendly experience for the users. Whether you are new to Android or a seasoned user, navigating through the Moto G5S and customizing it to your liking will be a breeze.

Camera

The Motorola Moto G5S boasts a 16-megapixel camera with a f/2.0 aperture lens and phase detection autofocus. This setup allows for capturing detailed and sharp images. In daylight photography, the camera performs well, producing images with good exposure and natural colors. The dynamic range is commendable, especially when the Auto HDR mode kicks in. However, it's worth noting that the Auto HDR doesn't always activate when needed, resulting in blown highlights and clipped shadows in high contrast scenes.

When it comes to low-light performance, the Moto G5S struggles a bit. The camera tends to lose sharpness towards the edges of the frame and introduces a color shading effect, with a pinkish cast in the center and green hues towards the edges. The built-in LED flash helps in illuminating portrait subjects, but it often causes a red-eye effect, and the red-eye correction system doesn't always activate.

For video recording, the Moto G5S offers decent quality with good noise reduction and white balance in brighter conditions. However, it lacks features like 4K video recording, video stabilization, and slow-motion video. It does support time-lapse video and offers various video formats for flexibility.

Overall, the camera of the Motorola Moto G5S performs well in daylight photography, but falls short in low-light situations. While it lacks certain advanced features, it still delivers decent image and video quality for everyday use.

Battery Life

The Motorola Moto G5S comes with a 3,000mAh battery, which provides decent battery life for everyday use. The battery capacity is sufficient to last through a full day of moderate usage, including browsing the internet, using social media apps, and watching videos. The phone does not support wireless charging, but it does come with fast charging technology, allowing you to quickly recharge the battery when needed. The battery performance is optimized to ensure efficient power usage and to minimize battery drain. The phone also offers a battery saver mode, which can be enabled to extend battery life during times of low battery. Overall, the battery of the Moto G5S is reliable and provides satisfactory endurance for most users.

Connectivity and Networking

The Motorola Moto G5S offers a range of connectivity options to keep you connected on the go. It supports 4G LTE network compatibility, ensuring fast data speeds for browsing the internet and streaming content. With its dual SIM capability, you can easily switch between two different phone numbers or use one SIM for data and the other for calls.

For wireless connectivity, the Moto G5S supports Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n standards, allowing you to connect to various Wi-Fi networks and enjoy fast internet speeds. It also has Bluetooth 4.2, which enables you to connect to compatible devices such as headphones, speakers, and smartwatches for wireless audio streaming and data transfer.

Additionally, the Moto G5S features NFC (Near Field Communication), which allows you to make contactless payments and exchange data with other NFC-enabled devices simply by tapping your phone.

In terms of physical connectivity, the Moto G5S comes with a micro-USB port for charging and data transfer. However, it does not support USB-C, which is a newer and faster standard for connectivity.

The phone also includes GPS for navigation and location-based services, so you can easily find your way around and use apps that require precise location information.

Lastly, the Moto G5S does not support wireless charging, so you will need to use a cable to charge the device.

Overall, the Motorola Moto G5S offers a good range of connectivity options, including 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, and GPS, making it a versatile device for staying connected and accessing various services.

Additional Features

Comparison with Other Related Phones

When comparing the Motorola Moto G5S to other related gadgets in the market, it is important to consider its specifications, performance, and pricing. One of the main competitors of the Moto G5S is the Vodafone Smart V8, which offers similar specifications at a comparable price point. Both phones feature a 5.2-inch Full HD display and 32GB of internal storage. However, the Moto G5S has the advantage of expandable storage with a microSD card slot, while the Smart V8 does not.

Another competitor in the market is the Nokia 3, which offers a slightly smaller 5-inch display and a lower resolution camera compared to the Moto G5S. However, the Nokia 3 is priced lower, making it a more budget-friendly option.

The Honor 6A is another device to consider when comparing the Moto G5S. The Honor 6A offers similar specifications, with a 5-inch display and 32GB of internal storage. However, the Moto G5S has a higher resolution camera and a more premium design.

In terms of performance, the Moto G5S performs well with its Snapdragon 430 processor and 3GB of RAM. It delivers smooth multitasking and can handle most everyday tasks with ease. However, it may not be as powerful as some higher-end devices in the market.

When it comes to pricing, the Moto G5S is priced at around £220, which is higher than its predecessor, the Moto G5. While it offers improved features and specifications, there may be other devices in the market that offer better value for money.

In conclusion, the Motorola Moto G5S competes well in the market with its solid performance, expandable storage, and premium design. While it may not be the most powerful device in its price range, it offers a good balance of features and specifications. Customers looking for a budget-friendly option may consider alternatives like the Nokia 3, while those seeking a more premium device may opt for higher-end options.

Pros and Cons

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Motorola Moto G5S is a solid mid-range smartphone with some notable improvements compared to its predecessor. The all-metal design and chamfered edges give it a more premium feel, while the front-mounted fingerprint reader is responsive and convenient. The camera has been upgraded, although it still has some color accuracy issues. The expandable storage and good connectivity options are a plus. However, considering its price point and competition, the Moto G5S may not offer significant advancements in performance and battery life. There are other options available in the market, such as the Moto G7 Power, that provide better overall value.