Lenovo, the company that now owns Motorola, just announced two new entries in their wildly successful midrange Moto G series. The Moto G5, and its bigger brother, the Moto G5 Plus, were both shown off in detail at Mobile World Congress 2017 in Barcelona, Spain.
Highlights for the new phones include metal bodies, front-facing fingerprint sensors, 1080p full HD screens, and a water-repellant coating that should help when you’re out in the rain. Overall, it’s mostly an iterative release, but we’ll get into all of the details and specs below.
Moto G5 Plus – Key Specs & Info
Let’s start with the Moto G5 Plus, as it’s the only model Lenovo will be making available in the United States. Key specs here include a 5.2-inch 1080p display, an upgraded Snapdragon 625 processor (when compared to the regular G5), and a rear camera with a larger pixel size that captures 25% more light.
- display: 5.2-inch 1080p
- dimensions: 5.91 x 2.91 x 0.31 inches
- weight: 5.47 ounces
- storage: 32 or 64 GB (expandable via microSD)
- RAM: 2 GB
- processor: 2.0 GHz Snapdragon 625
- rear camera: 12 MP “Dual Autofocus Pixels”
- front camera: 5 MP wide-angle lens
- battery: 3,000 mAh
- charging: TurboPower
- water resistance: water-repellant coating (splash-proof)
- fingerprint sensor: yes
- other sensors: gyroscope, accelerometer, ambient light, proximity
- operating system: Android 7.0 Nougat
- colors: grey or gold
Motorola doesn’t list an IP rating for either of their phones, so I wouldn’t get too excited about the water-resistant coating, as the phone should still not be fully submersed in water. However, a “TurboPower” charging feature will get you up to 6 hours of battery in 15 minutes of charging. On a final note, while the G5 Plus will come with NFC connectivity in some markets, the US version will not have this feature.
Moto G5 – Key Specs & Info
Next, let’s check out the more affordable model, the Moto G5. This one packs a 5-inch 1080p display, a Snapdragon 430 processor, and most certainly will come with a removable battery. Unfortunately, though, the regular Moto G5 won’t be available in the United States, so the only option for American readers is the G5 Plus.
- display: 5-inch 1080p
- dimensions: 5.68 x 2.87 x 0.37 inches
- weight: 5.11 ounces
- storage: 32 GB (expandable via microSD)
- RAM: 2 GB
- processor: 1.4 GHz Snapdragon 430
- rear camera: 13 MP
- front camera: 5 MP wide-angle lens
- battery: 2,800 mAh
- charging: rapid charging
- water resistance: water-repellant coating (splash-proof)
- fingerprint sensor: yes
- other sensors: gyroscope, accelerometer, ambient light, proximity
- operating system: Android 7.0 Nougat
- colors: grey or gold
Just to reiterate, neither of these devices are IP certified, so the water repellent coating is more of a novelty than anything (though it should at least help in the rain). The regular Moto G5 has a few minor downsides when compared to the G5 Plus—for instance, it uses standard rapid charging instead of Lenovo’s proprietary TurboPower—but the phone’s lower price should help make up for that.
Pricing & Release Date
Pricing for the Moto G5 Plus will start at $229 for the 32 GB model and go up to $299 if you want the higher storage 64 GB variant—either way, it’s an absolute steal. The regular Moto G5 won’t be available in the United States, but European readers can snag one for €199 once it goes on sale.
When it comes to a release date, both of these phones will start hitting shelves in “Spring 2017.” If you’d like to get ahead of the curve, you can pre-register to buy a Moto G5 or Moto G5 Plus on the official sites.
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