Motorola Moto G72 review – Attractive equipment at a good price

After testing the Moto G32, which offers very decent equipment in the given price class and an Android operating system without heavy superstructures, I was looking forward to what the next manufacturer would come up with. At the same time, the tested Motorola Moto G72 with a price of 6,000 crowns is profiled as another cheap but interestingly equipped smartphone, which does not lack a modern 120Hz OLED display or a 108MP camera. How did the news prove itself in the editorial test?

Package contents: without charger or case

The packaging of the Moto G72 is more or less standard for Motorola phones, so in addition to the USB-A/USB-C cable, we also find an adapter (with a power of 33 W) as well as a practical silicone (transparent) case.

Construction: blue is good

The Motorola Moto G72, although not particularly compact with its dimensions of 160.5 x 74.4 x 7.9 mm, surprised me with its light weight of 166 grams, which greatly contributes to how comfortable the phone is to use. The phone fits comfortably in the palm of the hand, has easy-to-touch buttons on the right side (power off and volume control) and even basic resistance according to IP52 is not missing. I also like the blue design of the (plastic) back, which is matte and resists all fingerprints very well. In addition to the manufacturer’s logo, you can’t help but notice the photo module in the left corner, which protrudes slightly, so on a completely flat surface the phone tends to wobble slightly, but I didn’t have a problem with this, because I carried it in the included case anyway.

It is also worth mentioning the haptic response, which does not surprise in any way, both in a negative and a positive sense of the word. I would rather lean towards a positive assessment, because unfortunately the same basic response is often found in significantly more expensive smartphones. Last but not least, it is good to mention that the slot on the left side can accommodate a maximum of two nanoSIMs, or a combination of one nanoSIM and one memory card. eSIM is not supported.

Display: top choice

The discipline in which the Moto G72 clearly stands out above the competition is the display. It has pretty thin (symmetrical) frames, a large 6.6″ diagonal, but above all it is a POLED panel with the ability to display more than a billion colors and also a 120Hz refresh rate, which is definitely not standard for a device for 6 thousand crowns. In addition, the manufacturer did not limit in any way in the area of ​​resolution, which is quite sufficient 2,400 × 1,080 pixels (i.e. Full HD+) with a resulting fineness of 402 PPI, which is not offered even by the Galaxy S23+.Given the tempting specifications, the question arises whether it has not been saved in the area of ​​maximum brightness , but I can reassure you that there is nothing to worry about in this regard, because the maximum brightness is high enough even for use outdoors in bright light, and it can also be regulated independently.

The second element, which is not quite common for phones of this class, is the integration of an optical fingerprint reader, which I would appreciate if it was higher, but in terms of functionality, nothing can be faulted. It works as an example at the touch of a finger and unlocking is a matter of a moment.

Sound: also suitable for occasional listening

The Motorola Moto G72 is equipped with a pair of loud (stereo) speakers that can conjure up solid quality and a decent surround effect (partially thanks to Dolby Atmos). In addition to the high volume, the sound does not lack a passable bass component, and a big advantage is that even the high notes do not pull on the ears, if you keep the volume level up to 90%. The manufacturer did not forget the 3.5 mm jack for fans of wired headphones.

Hardware performance: is MediaTek happy?

Instead of Motorola’s popular Snapdragon, the manufacturer decided to use the 6nm MediaTek Dimensity Helio G99 chipset, which should roughly match the performance of the Snapdragon 695. The same feature for both processors is ISP without 4K video support. Considering the price, the device is powerful enough, which is also helped by 8 GB of RAM. You may occasionally encounter slower animation, but these are rather exceptions and the Moto G72 is comfortable to use. The integrated storage of 128 GB can then be supplemented with a microSD memory card of an unspecified maximum size.

Battery life: fast charging, long life

Despite its relatively low weight, the Motorola Moto G72 has a large 5,000mAh battery that can conjure up a really solid endurance. In normal operation, you can manage even two days of use on a full charge (partly thanks to the economical chipset), which is also improved by the support for fast (of course only wired) charging. It can be charged from 0 to 70% in about 40 minutes, from 0 to 100% in less than 70 minutes.

Connectivity: watch out for 5G

Due to the processor used, the novelty does not support 5G, but it will offer NFC, Bluetooth 5.1, Wi-Fi 5 and GPS, GLONASS, BDS or Galileo navigation systems. If 5G plays an important role for you, the Moto G72 will not be a suitable candidate for purchase, on the other hand, I believe that most people interested in this smartphone (who move around the Czech Republic and the surrounding area) need not be bothered by the absence of 5G.

Camera: 108 Mpx sensor plays prim

One of the more prominent attractions of the Moto G72 is undoubtedly the 108Mpx main sensor, which is a 1/1.67″ Samsung HM6 with the ability to stack up to 9 pixels into 1, creating a 12Mpx photo with a resulting pixel size of 1.92 µm. Despite the high number megapixels and a solid f/1.7 aperture, you can’t expect any miracles, but the Moto G72 won’t disappoint the average user.The images have slightly more expressive (saturated) colors compared to the 8MP ultra-wide lens, which I think is a good thing, since Motorola smartphones tend not to embellish the images in any way, Paradoxically, it does a bit of harm to itself. While the same scene captured by, for example, the Galaxy A33 will be nicely colorful and look more pleasing at first glance, the image from the Motorola is often quite neutral (the white balance also plays a part in this), and in bad weather the photos can look quite dull .

With an ultra-wide-angle lens, the aforementioned applies even more, and noise is often visible in the photos. 2Mpx macro is a classic “bonus”, but you probably won’t use it. As for night shots, it’s probably worth limiting yourself to only those taken by the main sensor (the ultra-wide-angle lens is more for emergency situations, as the photos lack sharpness and therefore details, and it doesn’t even support night mode), when you can take relatively nice pictures thanks to night mode bright shots with enough detail to look passable for social media purposes. Finally, I will mention the 16 Mpx front camera, which is enough for taking quick selfies, as well as the already mentioned ability to shoot a maximum of Full HD video.

Software: Android 12 on board

The Motorola Moto G72 traditionally has a more or less pure Android operating system with minimal extras from the manufacturer in the form of practical Moto gestures. At the time of testing, the phone had the January security patches, which is commendable, as well as Android 12. The Ready For feature is missing in this case, but the absence of bloatware is pleasing.

Evaluation

Motorola Moto G72 is another great smartphone for customers who want to buy an affordable smartphone with a very decent range of features. In my opinion, the two main advantages of the new product are the display and long battery life, but fast charging and a more or less clean operating system will also please you. Although the main 108Mpx sensor is not to be thrown away, the photo equipment can be seen as something “extra” compared to the already mentioned battery and display, and I would recommend not to have too high expectations. The absence of the latest Android 13 can also cause a slight freeze, although this is somehow expected for such cheap smartphones.

Competition

The Galaxy A33, which is two thousand crowns more expensive, boasts increased resistance according to IP67, 5G support and long (guaranteed) software support, but it lacks the same fast charging, 120Hz display with an integrated reader, and is about 20 grams heavier.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 is equipped with the same chipset, it appeals primarily to a 90Hz AMOLED panel with a diagonal of 6.43″ or an IP53 resistance certification. The disadvantage is (at least in my opinion) the presence of the MIUI superstructure and a smaller basic RAM size.

Photo: Ioannis Papadopoulos, mobilenet.cz