Moto G Power Gains 5G, Sharper Display, and Better Speakers for $299

The Moto G Power has a new name. Motorola announced the 2023 Moto G Power 5G today, adding 5G connectivity to its affordable battery-life star. The phone packs a lot more than a new 5G radio, including improvements to the display, speakers, and more. Here’s what’s on board.

To start, Motorola improved the display. The screen measures 6.5 inches across the diagonal and features a jump in resolution from HD+ on the 2022 model to Full HD+. The Moto G Power 5G also boosts the screen’s refresh rate from 90Hz to 120Hz. These changes will create more vibrant and sharper visuals for gaming and other apps, as well as give the phone a more competitive edge when compared with devices like the Samsung Galaxy A series.

The G Power 5G features a MediaTek Dimensity 930 processor, a 6nm process chip with clock speeds up to 2.2GHz, with either 4GB or 6GB of RAM, and either 128GB or 256GB of storage, depending on your chosen configuration. Motorola says the 4GB/128GB model will cost $299.99 but it didn’t say how much more the 6GB/256GB model will cost. Like many budget phones, microSD card support will give you up to 1TB of additional space.

The basic camera configuration appears to be unchanged. The Moto G Power 5G features a 50MP main camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a 2MP depth camera to assist with portraits. The selfie camera, however, has doubled in resolution from 8MP to 16MP. It can record video up to Full HD at 30fps.

Like the 2022 model, a large 5,000mAh battery is included in the phone. Motorola claims the phone will last up to three days. The previous model lasted 16 hours and 7 minutes in our battery-drain test, which is above average for an Android phone. We hope to see similar results from the new one. It supports 15W wired charging and ships with a 10W charging brick in the box.

Motorola also improved the audio situation. The phone has two Dolby Atmos speakers instead of the single speaker on the old phone. There’s a 3.5mm headphone jack for wired headphones, as well. In addition to 5G, the phone includes Wi-Fi 5, GPS, and Bluetooth 5.3, but there’s no NFC.

The phone ships with Android 13 and a host of Motorola security apps such as PIN Pad Scramble and Secure Folder. Motorola didn’t say how many system and security upgrades the phone will receive. This is often a weakness of Motorola phones.

Motorola made some smart upgrades to the Moto G Power 5G. While it’s $100 more than last year’s offering, the 5G connectivity, higher resolution display, faster refresh rate, and better selfie camera justify the increased price.

The phone is set to be sold unlocked starting April 13 at Amazon, Best Buy, and Motorola’s website for $299.99. It’ll launch later in the year via T-Mobile, Spectrum Mobile, and Xfinity Mobile.