Motorola is one of the early pioneers of mobile communication. From wired telephones, cordless, and the legendary Razr flip phones to today’s smartphones, the brand has adapted well to the changing times and changing needs. Recently, the brand launched Moto G34 on 9th January in India and global markets. Here’s our take on Motorola’s latest offering.
Key Specs of Motorola Moto G34
Design and Build Quality: Frosted Design with Plastic Build
There isn’t much to rave about the design and build quality of budget-friendly smartphones. The G34 has a plastic build (3D PMMA) all around with a frosted finish on the back and the frame. The camera housing has a pillow-like shape with tapered rectangular sides. It might sound a little odd design-wise, but it seemingly blends with the overall minimalist approach.
The dimension of the device comes in at 162.7 mm by 74.6 mm by 8.0mm with a body weight of 180g.
The top frame has an etched Dolby Atmos logo referring to the collaboration. On the front, there’s a punch-hole display with a sizable bezel on the chin and the sides. But given the price, this is an acceptable design compromise.
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The volume rocker and the power button which doubles as the fingerprint scanner is situated on the right. The 3.5 headphone jack is positioned at the bottom alongside the Type-C port. There’s also a micro SDXC slot for additional storage.
The G34 comes in three different colorways, ice blue, charcoal black, and ocean green (vegan leather back).
The Display: A standard HD+ LCD Display with a 120 Hz refresh rate
The G34 features a 6.5-inch IPS LCD panel with a 120 Hz refresh rate. Being a budget-friendly smartphone, the screen-to-body ratio comes in at 85% and the active area-touch panel comes in at 89%.
The resolution of the panel is 720 by 1600 pixels with 269 ppi and a 20:9 aspect ratio. The display performance is satisfactory considering the price. It has good viewing angles and all the tests showed that it was able to maintain the 120 Hz fast refresh rate in different use cases.
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The panel also has 500 nits of HBM. The display is usable in bright light but you’d have to squint your eyes under direct sunlight.
The Camera: A 50 MP Main and 2 MP Macro
The Moto G34 features a dual camera setup with the main camera being a 50 MP f/1.8 wide-angle shooter. The included secondary camera is a 2 MP f/2.4 macro shooter. In effect, the G34 is a single-shooter device relying on its primary camera. The smartphone also features a 16 MP f/2.4 wide-angle selfie camera.
Speaking of performance, the G34 produces passable results. Pictures came out decently in bright daylight with a decent dynamic range. The portrait mode of the main shooter was surprisingly good with great edge detection. However, the background blurring may seem a bit too blurred for many.
Pictures taken indoors had some softness issues. The night mode made things a bit better with its exposure and details but the overall softness remained. The same problem plagues the front camera as well where pictures even in daylight lack sharpness.
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The videography on the G34 is rated at 1080p at 30fps. The lack of any OIS and EIS is felt in choppy video quality overall.
Processor and Performance: A Touch Above the Competition
One of the key highlights of the G34 is its processor. Motorola went with a Snapdragon 695 5G chip based on the 6 Nm architecture. By all means, the 695 5G can be considered as a proper mid-range processor. Using it on a budget-friendly smartphone like the G34 gives it the edge over its competitors.
The processor has a chip design of 2x2.2 GHz Kryo 660 Gold & 6x1.7 GHz Kryo 660 Silver with Adreno 619 GPU.
The Snapdragon 695 scored up to 439099 on Antutu 10 and 908 (single core) and 2134 (multi core) on Geekbench 6. The benchmark scores reflect the performance capability of the G34.
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On the test, the device was able to run all the leading titles like Genshin Impact, PUBG, and Asphalt 9 without any lag whatsoever. Sure enough, the processor didn’t maintain constant frame rates, but we didn’t see any noticeable frame drops. However, the device did get hot after 30-odd minutes of gaming but thankfully the processor didn’t throttle.
Needless to say, the device was an absolute breeze in day-to-day use. The high refresh rate display aided well in this regard.
Software: Android 14 with Useful Bloatware
The Moto G34 is running Motorola’s custom OS based on Android 14. Motorola guaranteed another OS update with up to 3 years of security patches. The OS itself isn’t too bloatware-heavy. The included ones are quite useful.
For example, the “Ready For” feature which is available with the highest variant (8/128 GB) seemingly preps the device for all sorts of connectivity from Bluetooth to even connecting with your PC.
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Battery and Charge Time
The battery on the Moto G34 is 5000 mAh. The phone comes with a 20W charger on the box but the actual charging capacity is capped at 18W.
Pros and Cons of Motorola Moto G34
Pros:
- Powerful processor considering price range
- 120Hz refresh rate
- 3.5 mm headphone jack
- Dolby Atmos calibrated sound
- Smooth performance
- Strong battery life
- Suitable for moderate-level gaming.
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Cons:
- Low-resolution display
- Slow charging
- Sub-par camera
- Lacks reverse and wireless charging support
- Outdated USB Type C 2.0 charging port
- Lacks 4K video recording capacity
- Lacks Gyro-EIS support
- Not suitable for high-end gaming
- Lacks custom UI support.
Price of Motorola Moto G34 5G
The official price of the Moto G34’s 4/128 GB and 8/128 GB variants in India are 10,999 INR and 11,999 INR respectively.
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However, the Motorola Moto G34 5G’s 8/128 variant is available in Bangladesh at BDT 17000. The price may vary depending on the sellers.
Verdict
The Moto G34 offers 5G capabilities. The provision of the Snapdragon 695 5G chipset in this price range is praiseworthy. This device is also suitable for moderate-level gaming without significant heating issues. The users will enjoy its 120Hz refresh rate, 5000 mAh battery, and 50MP prime sensor.
Moto G34’s design, display, video capacity, and charging support can be a point of contention. However, its smooth experience with 5G speed overshadows the shortcomings. It can be a perfect daily driver that can easily handle whatever that’s thrown at it.
On the whole, the Motorola Moto G34 would be a perfect fit for those looking for a 5G phone with a powerful processor at an affordable price.
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