Moto G4 and G4 Plus successors have now been officially unveiled by Lenovo, called the G5 and G5 Plus. Lenovo-owned Motorola makes some of the most popular midrange Android smartphones, keeping them decently spec'd and still on the cheap.
Moto G5 And G5 Plus
Of course, this isn't the first time whispers about the G5 and G5 Plus made the rounds: They've been leaked time and time again even before the Mobile World Congress, suffice to say that the leaks were dead-on accurate. So here's the G5 and the G5 Plus, announced during a special event on Sunday, with a bold, but familiar sales pitch: near-premium specs for a non-premium price.
When put side-by-side, the handsets don't look different at all. The G5 and G5 Plus bear exactly a similar size and weight, and the difference between their screen sizes is ultra subtle that one will find it hard to spot anything amiss. Anyhow, it's obvious that the G5 that's suffixed with "Plus" is the better one, with differences in RAM and storage depending on location — it seems the Moto G5 is being tipped for an international release, while the G5 Plus geared primarily stateside, as per a report by BGR.
Moto G5 And G5 Plus Differences
The G5 features a 5-inch Full HD display, while the G5 Plus rocks a little bigger screen at 5.2 inches with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. In terms of chips, the G5 uses Qualcomm Snapdragon's 430 processor, while the G5 Plus packs a beefier Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 chip.
For the G5, there's either 2 or 3 GB of RAM to choose from, but for the G5 Plus, that can go up to 4 GB. The G5 seems relegated to just 16 or 32 GB of internal storage, while the G5 Plus can go up to 64 GB. Both, however, will have expandable storage support.
On the back of the G5 is a 13-megapixel camera with phase detection autofocus and f/2.0 aperture. The G5 Plus, meanwhile, has a 12-megapixel shooter, but that's loaded with advanced features such as dual-autofocus pixels, f/1.7 aperture, and the ability to record 4K video. The G5's rear shooter is capped to 1080p, by contrast. Both handsets have 5-megapixel shooters on the front.
The G5 features a removable 2,800 mAh battery, while the G5 Plus features a beefier 3,000 mAh battery, although it won't be removable like the G5. Both support fast-charging technology, but it's only the G5 Plus that comes with a TurboPower charger.
In terms of pricing, since the G5 will primarily be sold outside the United States, costing €199, or about $210 for the model with 2 GB RAM/16 GB storage. The G5 Plus, on the other hand, will cost $229 for the model with 2 GB RAM/32 GB storage.
Thankfully, both handsets come with 3.5 mm headphone jacks, with micro USB ports, which means that it'll work with nearly any cable you already have lying around in your household.
Also, both handsets feature fingerprint sensors, which is surprising, being the midrange devices they are. On top of that, the G5 Plus will support mobile payments via NFC, but unfortunately not stateside. Pressed about that odd limitation, a Lenovo spokesperson told The Verge that the decision was made because mobile payments are more popular elsewhere in the world, with U.S. adoption lagging behind.
Both handsets will ship worldwide in March in fine gold and lunar gray color configurations. They will also ship with Nougat out of the box.
Thoughts about the G5 and the G5 Plus? Feel free to sound off in the comments section below!
