Motorola announced three new smartphones under its Moto G lineup, the company's mid-range series. These include the standard Moto G4, the Moto G4 Plus and the Moto G4 Play. While the new-generation handsets remain to target the budget-conscious, all are surprisingly waterproof, running Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow under the hood.
Lenovo, which brought Motorola in 2014, aims to release the Moto G4 trio in this year. The Moto G4 and G4 Plus are immediately available in Brazil, while India gets the latter at once.
According to Mashable, the devices may cost about $245 and $288 respectively (converted UK prices of £169 and £199), while the G4 Play's price is yet to be confirmed. On the other hand, looking at the original selling point of the current Moto G, Engadget predicts a $179 entry, which could increase by $10 or $20.
The Moto G lineup has always been popular among emerging markets. Wired recalls that the Moto G, in particular, is Motorola's best-selling smartphone in history. The handset remained a top-seller for consecutive months since its release. The third-generation Moto G, in its 16GB version, was sold out just few days after sale.
So what do we have with the latest-gen smartphones? First, let's get into the standard Moto G4. The device sports a 1080p 5.5-inch display, a step-up from last year's 720p resolution. Under the hood, it packs an eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 chip, complemented by 2GB of RAM. It shoots photos through a 13MP main camera; selfies are captured in a 5MP front snapper. All these are powered by a 3,000mAh battery, which comes with a fast-charging tech called "TurboPower." Internal storage options come at 16 or 32GB, expandable via microSD up to 128GB.
The Moto G4 Plus shares many of the standard model's specs, but it differs in terms of camera, memory options and other features. Photo enthusiasts will love this step-up unit which houses a 16MP rear shooter, backed by laser autofocus and phase-detection autofocus. It also comes with a fingerprint reader located below the screen. It offers up to 64GB of internal storage, which can also be expanded via microSD up to 128GB.
Finally, the Moto G4 Play is bound to be the cheapest of them. It sports a 720p 5-inch display, a Snapdragon 410 processor, 2,800mAh battery, 8 and 5MP cameras (back and front) and an internal storage option of 16GB, though this can also be expanded via microSD.
What do you think about Motorola's latest mid-rangers?