Motorola Moto G Play - 2023

Overview

The Motorola Moto G Play is a decent phone for under $200, but there are better options if you're willing to spend just a bit more.

-- As reviewed by PCMag

TechSpot Metascore

Based on 6 expert reviews

Excellent:

0
Good:

0
Average:

1
Bad:

5

8.2

User Score

Based on 2,228 reviews
as rated by users

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Last revision on April 4, 2024

Reviewers Liked

Decent main camera
Very long battery life
Large 90Hz display
Clean version of Android 12
Includes headphone jack, fingerprint sensor, and microSD card slot
Comes with a charger

Reviewers Didn't Like

Comes with Android 12, upgrades only to Android 13
No 5G, NFC, or wireless charging
Low-resolution screen
32 GB of storage is limiting
Slow 10W charging speeds
Lackluster speaker
No "twist to open camera" gesture
No night mode

Competitors and Related Products

Our editors hand-pick related products using a variety of criteria: direct competitors targeting the same market segment, or devices that are similar in size, performance, or feature sets.

Expert reviews and ratings

Even when you're looking for the cheapest possible phone, your device still needs to run most apps without issue and take decent-looking photos. I wouldn't expect a phone that costs less than $200 to run Fortnite at the highest graphics settings, but I am expecting to use apps with minimal lag.

By cnet on April 01, 2023

If you can overlook this major setback with the new Moto G Play, then all the good it offers might still be of worth to you. Otherwise, you are probably better off shifting your attention to something else around the $200 mark.

By PhoneArena on February 25, 2023

Motorola’s latest budget phone is an exercise in frustration. The Moto G Play (2023) suffers from a multitude of problems, from performance to photo quality. At least it’s cheap.

By Tom's Guide on February 02, 2023

Motorola is known for its affordable smartphones more than its high-end ones, and it's no surprise. The company has saturated the market with value phones enough to propel it to the #3 spot in the United States. Its 2022 models weren't bad, which gave...

By Android Central on February 02, 2023

Motorola is only promising one OS update for this phone, and considering it launched with 2021's Android 12, that means it'll only be updated to Android 13. Bleh. The good news is this phone will get three years of bimonthly security updates, which is a step up from prior budget Motorola phones. At least your device will be kept up-to-date and secure for that time.

By Wired on January 20, 2023

The Motorola Moto G Play is a decent phone for under $200, but there are better options if you're willing to spend just a bit more.

By PCMag on January 12, 2023

The Moto G Play (2023) is a solid budget smartphone. It is nice to see a high refresh display at this price point that offers good colors. The cameras are also decent, and the battery life is fantastic. However, overall performance is sluggish, and apps will hang up from time to time.

By XDA Developers on January 18, 2023

Motorola Moto G Play - 2023

Overview

Pros & Cons

Reviews

Price: $98

TechSpot Metascore

User Score

Reviewers Liked

Reviewers Didn't Like

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Expert reviews and ratings