Moto G35 5G review: Offers more for less

We have seen fairly just a few smartphones launch in India in 2024, from entry-level handsets to flagships and flip telephones. The funds section sees quite a lot of competitors from handset firms within the nation, with every new mannequin providing repeated enhancements over their predecessors. Motorola just lately launched the Moto G35 5G as its most reasonably priced 5G smartphone. This handset will compete with smartphones like Redmi A4 5G, Tecno Spark 30C 5G and Lava Blaze 2 5G.

You may get the Moto G35 5G for Rs. 9,999 in India, and is offered in a single 4GB + 128GB RAM and storage configuration. Does it supply sufficient worth for cash like different smartphones priced beneath Rs. 10,000? Learn on to know extra about this handset in my Moto G35 5G assessment.

Moto G35 5G design: Attending to know one another

• Dimensions – 166.29×75.98×7.79mm
• Weight – 185 g
• Colours – Guava Crimson, Leaf Inexperienced (on this assessment), Midnight Black

The brand new Moto G35 5G is offered in matte and vegan leather-based finishes, and appears similar to its costlier sibling within the G sequence – the Moto G45 5G (Evaluation). In truth, for those who put these gadgets subsequent to one another with the again panel going through up, you won’t have the ability to inform them aside. Subjectively talking, it is without doubt one of the sleekest wanting smartphones on this worth section.

The Moto G35 5G seems to be similar to the costlier Moto G45 5G mannequin

The edges of the smartphone are product of plastic and have a clean really feel. The left edge homes the SIM tray, whereas the best facet has the quantity rocker and energy button – the latter additionally doubles as a fingerprint scanner. There is a USB Sort-C port on the backside, together with a 3.5mm headphone port and a speaker grill.

The corporate despatched us the Moto G35 5G in a inexperienced colour with a vegan leather-based coating that makes it straightforward to grip. It additionally comes with a clear TPU case within the field, in addition to an 18W charger and a USB Sort-A to USB Sort-C cable.

Moto G35 5G Software program: Clear UI, ships with Bloatware

• Software program – My UX
• Model – Android 14
• Newest Safety System – December 5, 2024

Motorola’s newest G-series smartphone runs on Android 14, with the corporate’s My UX working on prime. This is similar interface that’s accessible on costlier fashions just like the Moto G45 5G, and it comes with software program options which are unique to the corporate’s gadgets, equivalent to Motorola Safe (safe folder, community safety) and Household Area ( household controls).

The Moto G35 5G ships with Android 14, together with the corporate’s My UX pores and skin (faucet to broaden)

After establishing the smartphone, it prompted me to “strive” (set up) three third-party apps from the Moto App Supervisor app that can also be pre-installed on the corporate’s smartphones. The installer informs customers that it’s going to set up three new functions every month when a system replace is put in. These apps will be uninstalled like every other app {that a} person chooses to obtain on their smartphone.

This handset is scheduled to obtain just one Android OS replace, which suggests it ought to obtain Android 15 someday subsequent 12 months. It could be good to see the corporate give at the least two Android OS upgrades to this smartphone, contemplating the truth that it ships with Android 14, which was launched a 12 months in the past. The Moto G35 is scheduled to obtain safety updates till August 2027, in line with the corporate’s assist web site.

Moto G35 5G Efficiency: Good for the worth

• Processor – Unisoc T760
• Reminiscence – 4 GB LPDDR4X
• Storage – 128 GB UFS 2.2

The Moto G35 5G is provided with a 6nm Unisoc T760 chip launched in July. It is an octa-core processor that features six Arm Cortex-A76 cores (2.2 GHz) and 4 Cortex A55 cores (2 GHz), together with a Mali G57 MC4 GPU. This places it on par with the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC, which has barely quicker A76 cores (2.4GHz) however a barely older Mali G57 MC2 GPU.

As you possibly can in all probability inform, this isn’t an especially quick processor. Nevertheless, it is fairly good at dealing with on a regular basis duties like shopping the net, messaging somebody on WhatsApp, and utilizing social media apps like Fb or Instagram. I did discover some lag in barely extra demanding apps like Snapchat and Google Maps.

Moto G35 5G benchmark outcomes (faucet to broaden)

You’ll be able to play informal video games on this handset with none issues – I examined some third-party video games that had been downloaded after establishing the cellphone – and it will possibly additionally deal with some titles like Battlegrounds Cellular India (BGMI) for those who use the bottom settings of graphics. I additionally ran Asphalt Legends Unite on the default setting with none points.

I additionally ran a number of benchmark exams on the Moto G35 5G to raised perceive the way it performs in opposition to smartphones geared up with processors that provide comparable efficiency, such because the Redmi A4 5G, Samsung Galaxy A16 5G and the Infinix Observe 40X. The handset’s efficiency gave the impression to be on par with a few of these higher-priced fashions.

You’ll be able to take a look at the desk beneath to see how the Moto G35 5G fared in benchmark exams, in comparison with related fashions from different smartphone producers.

Motorola has geared up this smartphone with a 6.72-inch Full-HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) LCD show together with Gorilla Glass 3 safety. The display refresh price will be set to 60 Hz or 120 Hz – whereas this latter offers a a lot smoother expertise, you could need to go away it in default mode for higher battery life.

Visibility is not ultimate if you’re out in brilliant daylight, but it surely’s fairly serviceable throughout different instances of the day. After digging round within the settings, I discovered a toggle beneath Settings > Show > Further Brightness that improved the display brightness stage, but additionally resulted in quicker battery drain.

Moto G35 5G Cameras: Will get the job executed

• Principal digicam – 50 megapixel (f/1.8), PDAF, video as much as 4K/ 30 fps
• Extremely-wide digicam – 8 megapixels (f/2.2), 120-degree subject of view
• Selfie digicam – 16 megapixels

The Moto G35 5G is a funds smartphone with a twin rear digicam setup. It is good to see that the corporate hasn’t bothered so as to add a low-resolution macro or depth sensor, that are normally disappointing when included in telephones on this worth section.

Moto G35 5G digicam samples. High to Backside – Prime, Extremely Large, Portrait (Faucet photographs to enlarge)

When clicking pictures with the 50-megapixel major digicam throughout the day, the cellphone delivers brilliant photographs with a great quantity of element, for a funds smartphone. It additionally precisely reproduces pores and skin tones when capturing portrait photographs. Topics which are nearer to the digicam will certainly have extra element, and the digicam app is quick and nimble when taking photos.

The 8-megapixel ultra-wide digicam produces photographs that are not as detailed as the primary digicam, and you may discover a noticeable lack of element when zooming in on these photographs. For instance, I clicked a picture of a roadside signal utilizing each the first and ultra-wide cameras, and solely the picture captured with the previous included readable textual content.

In low-light and night-time situations, there’s just one digicam price utilizing on the Moto G35 5G, and the 50-megapixel sensor is greatest utilized in mixture with the Night time Imaginative and prescient function accessible inside the digicam app. It takes just a few seconds to seize a picture, however the distinction intimately is kind of noticeable in our digicam samples.

Samsung Galaxy A16 5G digicam samples. High to Backside — Day, Night time (Faucet photographs to enlarge)

Motorola has geared up the handset with a 16-megapixel selfie digicam, which captures good photographs throughout the day. In darker situations, it nonetheless manages to emit sufficient gentle for a definite picture, however you additionally see quite a lot of attenuation and noise.

There is no such thing as a picture stabilization on the Moto G35 5G and the smartphone means that you can file movies as much as 4K/30fps utilizing the primary digicam and as much as 1080p/30fps utilizing the ultra-wide digicam. As soon as once more, the previous is the one to make use of when registering with this handset.

Moto G35 5G battery: Gradual to cost, slower to discharge

• Battery capability – 5000 mAh
• Wired charging – 18 W (USB Sort-C)

The Unisoc T760 chip within the Moto G35 5G appears to be fairly environment friendly, because the handset is able to delivering greater than a day and a half of battery life earlier than needing one other cost. In our battery cycle check with HD video, the cellphone lasted roughly 18 hours and 50 minutes, however remember that these are artificial exams.

The Moto G35 5G provides over a day of use on a single cost

In every day use, the battery drain on the Moto G35 just isn’t excessive throughout lively use, in addition to in standby mode. I used the cellphone to make calls utilizing WhatsApp, browse the net and examine social media apps, and play some informal video games – it delivered about 5.5 hours of display time, together with about 21 hours of standby life .

Charging the Moto G35 5G from 0 to 100% could take a while, particularly in case your battery is low if you plug within the handset. Through the time I examined the handset, it took about two hours for a full cost, utilizing the 18W adapter included within the field.

Moto G35 5G assessment: The decision

The Moto G35 5G provides good efficiency for the worth, outperforming costlier smartphones just like the Samsung Galaxy A16 5G (Evaluation) and the Infinix Observe 40X in a number of benchmark exams. It additionally provides 5G connectivity beneath Rs. 10,000, dependable battery life and good digicam efficiency.

The Moto G35 provides good worth for cash on the present worth of Rs. 9999

It is price noting that the corporate has solely supplied one Android OS improve for the Moto G35, whereas the aforementioned Galaxy A16 5G prices extra and is slated to obtain as much as six upgrades.

Different equally priced smartphones to contemplate as a substitute of the Moto G35 5G embrace the Redmi A4 5G (First Impressions), the Tecno Spark 30C 5G and the marginally older Lava Blaze 2 5G.