Motorola Edge 50 Neo smartphone review – Compact or a big display? This phone can do both.
The bezels are gone!
The Edge 50 Neo belongs to Motorola's high-end series and is a rather handy smartphone. However, its slim bezels allow it to still have a relatively large display. But, a previous trademark series feature is missing in this premium mid-range phone...Florian Schmitt, 👁 Florian Schmitt (translated by Andrew Dickson) Published 🇩🇪 🇫🇷 ...
Possible competitors compared
Bewertung | Datum | Modell | Gewicht | Laufwerk | Groesse | Aufloesung | Preis ab | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 77.3 % | v8 | 10 / 2024 | Motorola Edge 50 Neo Dimensity 7300, Mali-G615 MP2 | 171 g | 512 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.40" | 2670x1220 | |
| 81.9 % | v8 | 07 / 2024 | Google Pixel 8a Tensor G3, Mali-G715 MP7 | 188 g | 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.10" | 2400x1080 | |
| 80.9 % | v8 | 09 / 2024 | OnePlus Nord 4 SD 7+ Gen 3, Adreno 732 | 199.5 g | 512 GB UFS 4.0 Flash | 6.74" | 2772x1240 | |
| 89 % v7 (old) | v7 (old) | 09 / 2023 | Sony Xperia 5 V SD 8 Gen 2, Adreno 740 | 182 g | 128 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.10" | 2520x1080 | |
| 84.6 % v7 (old) | v7 (old) | 10 / 2023 | Motorola Edge 40 Neo Dimensity 7030, Mali-G610 MP3 | 170 g | 256 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | 6.55" | 2400x1080 |
Note: We have recently updated our rating system and the results of version 8 are not comparable with the results of version 7. More information is available here.
Case and features – A lot of plastic but solidly built
This Motorola has significantly expanded its Edge series: It now ranges from the top-end device with a periscope zoom camera, the Motorola Edge 50 Ultra, to the classy Edge 50 Pro and the cheaper Edge 50 Fusion.
With the Edge 50 Neo - which we would like to take a look at in this review - we now have another premium mid-range smartphone costing around $500 and, thanks to its slimmer bezels, it offers a big display in a compact form factor.
You won't have to do without the high-quality materials found in the other Edge series devices either: The rear is covered with great-feeling faux leather. In addition to gray and light brown, there are more vibrant colors, such as orange and blue. All four variants are official Pantone colors.
Thanks to IP68-certification, the phone can withstand dust and immersion in freshwater meaning you can also take it with you for a swim. The display is protected by Gorilla Glass 3, providing medium protection from scratches and shattering.
The Edge 50 Neo is barely larger and considerably lighter than a Sony Xperia 5 V but offers a significantly greater display surface area. However, compared to the Edge 40 Neo, the screen is a touch smaller. Talking of the predecessor: While the Edge 40 Neo possessed display glass that stretched over the edges - something of an Edge device trademark - the Edge 50 Neo now has flat display glass with very slim bezels. Up to now, we have only seen this in the Edge 30 Neo.
With 512 GB of mass storage, the Edge 50 is well-equipped for its price class. With the 8 GB of RAM in the smaller 256 GB variant, we see a backward step compared to the preceding Edge 40 Neo, but this is still sufficient to ensure a smooth operating experience for most apps as well as the system itself. You only get 12 GB of RAM if you purchase the Edge 50 Neo with 512 GB of flash memory. At the moment, there isn't a noticeable price difference on the internet, so you would be well-advised to go for the bigger storage variant.
Unfortunately, the USB-C port is only connected internally following the USB-2.0 standard and therefore makes wired image output impossible. Also, data transfer only takes place at standard speed. NFC is on board and can be used, for example, for wireless payments.
Storage expansion via a microSD card is not possible. A nano-SIM slot is available and an eSIM profile can also be created, meaning dual-SIM operation is possible.
Communication and software – Motorola finally promises longer updates
WiFi 6 is the fastest available Wi-Fi standard, but the smartphone cannot communicate with the less-used 6 GHz band. However, the Motorola phone performed very well in our test with the Asus reference router. At an average of 843 MBit/s when receiving data, it has much better average scores than the rest of the competition. This means you can take advantage of a Gigabit internet connection.
There are many available mobile frequencies for 4G and 5G networks, meaning the Motorola Edge 50 Neo works well when travelling, allowing you to access the local mobile internet.
We performed our real-life test on the Motorola phone to determine its location accuracy: A bike trip on which we also brought along a comparison device, the Garmin Venu 2 smartwatch. The Edge 50 Neo was often about half a meter off the actual route, but apart from that, it was very accurate and even managed to track our location in narrow old town streets. Anyone who doesn't require absolutely precise location accuracy will be able to perform good navigation with the smartphone.
For its operating system, Motorola uses a very pure version of Android without any major changes. Most of the manufacturer's functions can be found in separate apps, which means they are easier to update. Unfortunately, Motorola has also installed some games and third-party apps on the smartphone but these are easy to uninstall if they are unwanted.
At the time of testing, the security updates are up to September 2024, making them relatively up-to-date. The manufacturer promises that the Edge 50 Neo will get 5-year-long patches at least every two months. Likewise, Android 15 has also already been announced, and the phone is also planned to receive every Android version up to Android 19.
In terms of the update period, Motorola has also made improvements compared to previous phones. In the past, the reliability and, in particular, the speed of the patch delivery was often less than perfect, so hopefully, the manufacturer will also improve this area.
| Networking | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Google Pixel 8a | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
| OnePlus Nord 4 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Sony Xperia 5 V | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| Motorola Edge 40 Neo | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 6GHz | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 6GHz | |
Sustainability and operation – Packaging without plastic
The promise of long updates is pleasing, especially considering the price class. This allows the device to be used for a longer life cycle.
The packaging is plastic-free, the stickers are water-based, and the cardboard parts consist mostly of recycled material.
Unfortunately, there are no details regarding the smartphone's CO2 consumption for the course of its life cycle. There are also no repair guides or replacement parts for the Motorola Edge smartphone to support self-repair.
The Edge 50 Neo's touchscreen is checked for touch inputs 300 times per second. Thanks to its 120 Hz refresh rate, the display responds quickly to input prompts. Overall, this makes operating the device a fast experience, and the smartphone runs speedily in everyday situations.
There are no freely assignable buttons, only the hardware buttons on the right-hand side of the case for the volume control and standby mode.
A fingerprint sensor is hidden behind the display. After the print has been learned, the phone is unlocked reliably and with only slight lag. Face recognition unlocking is possible, but this method isn't quite as secure since this only happens via the front camera without 3D recognition.
Cameras – A mid-range smartphone with its own telephoto camera
The main camera in the Motorola Edge 50 Neo uses the Sony Lytia 700C, a 50-megapixel image sensor. Normally, only 1/4 of the resolution is used in favor of larger and, therefore, more light-sensitive pixels. The sensor possesses an optical image stabilizer, and AI also helps stabilize the photos.
The images produced by the main camera could be a little brighter, and the details could be sharper. But, overall, they deliver a good and fairly lifelike representation of the subject. The dramatic sky in the ambient image is reproduced quite well, and in low light, the sensor manages to strike a good balance between very bright and very dark areas, also displaying the subject relatively sharply.
Videos can be recorded at a resolution of 4K but at a maximum of 30fps. Before the recording, you have to choose a lens, and during recording, the zoom factor of the lens is limited to the capabilities of the lens. All in all, the image quality is good, the autofocus generally responds quickly, and the adaptive exposure also works reliably.
The ultra wide-angle camera captures 12-megapixel images and takes, at first glance, very sharp photos. However, on closer inspection, many details are blurred, and the illumination could be better.
One of the Edge 50 Neo's special features is a 10-megapixel telephoto camera, which enables a 3x hybrid zoom. This is higher quality than a purely digital zoom and means the image quality at 10x zoom is still acceptable. Additionally, the telephoto sensor is also used for portrait shots with a longer focal length.
Finally, there is a 32-megapixel selfie camera, which usually delivers 8-megapixel images. The photos appear detailed and possess decent dynamics but seem to be oversaturated in some areas and somewhat washed out in others. Overall, you can take decent selfies which are not really suitable for anything other than social media.
Image Comparison
Choose a scene and navigate within the first image. One click changes the position on touchscreens. One click on the zoomed-in image opens the original in a new window. The first image shows the scaled photograph of the test device.
Main camera plantMain camera environmentMain camera low lightUltra wide-angle camera
Display – A high-resolution Motorola phone
The 6.4-inch display has a resolution of 2,670 x 1,220 pixels. Its relatively high pixel density is due to the comparatively small display, and the result is sharp, crisp images. With a completely white screen, the brightness is also impressive, and at over 1,200 cd/m², it's also suitable for HDR content. According to our measurements, in smaller areas (APL18), figures of over 2,400 cd/m² are possible. The manufacturer even talks about 3,000 cd/m² in HDR mode, but that is only for very small areas.
At low brightness, we measured flickering, and this is presumably due to PWM, which has a frequency of 355.5 Hz. The frequency is relatively high and should mean that sensitive users shouldn't experience any issues, especially since DC dimming at over 1,600 Hz is also used to regulate the brightness. However, at 31 %, the amplitude of this fluctuation is also relatively high making the flickering more clearly visible.
Using our spectrophotometer and the CalMAN software, we measured a minimally perceptible green shimmer when lighter tones were displayed. This means lighter color tones are displayed the least accurately. But, overall, using the "Standard" mode, the color reproduction is trustworthy and can also be used to assess screen colors.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 98 %
Center on Battery: 1246 cd/m²
Contrast: ∞:1 (Black: 0 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 1.8 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.91
ΔE Greyscale 2.3 | 0.5-98 Ø5.2
107.9% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.191
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo P-OLED, 2670x1220, 6.4" | Google Pixel 8a AMOLED, 2400x1080, 6.1" | OnePlus Nord 4 AMOLED, 2772x1240, 6.7" | Sony Xperia 5 V OLED, 2520x1080, 6.1" | Motorola Edge 40 Neo pOLED, 2400x1080, 6.6" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Response Times | -72% | -308% | -67% | -42% | |
| Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 1.3 ? | 2.83 ? -118% | 10 ? -669% | 2.09 ? -61% | 1.6 ? -23% |
| Response Time Black / White * | 0.8 ? | 1.05 ? -31% | 2.3 ? -188% | 1.74 ? -118% | 1.1 ? -38% |
| PWM Frequency | 355.5 | 120 -66% | 119.2 -66% | 274 -23% | 120.4 -66% |
| Screen | 15% | -3% | 1% | -12% | |
| Brightness middle | 1246 | 1518 22% | 1102 -12% | 889 -29% | 966 -22% |
| Brightness | 1235 | 1466 19% | 1102 -11% | 898 -27% | 957 -23% |
| Brightness Distribution | 98 | 88 -10% | 94 -4% | 97 -1% | 97 -1% |
| Black Level * | |||||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 1.8 | 1.2 33% | 1.43 21% | 1.4 22% | 1.87 -4% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 3.81 | 3.3 13% | 4.04 -6% | 4.5 -18% | 4.34 -14% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 2.3 | 2 13% | 2.4 -4% | 1 57% | 2.5 -9% |
| Gamma | 2.191 100% | 2.2 100% | 2.213 99% | 2.23 99% | 2.272 97% |
| CCT | 6488 100% | 6786 96% | 6385 102% | 6456 101% | 6582 99% |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | -29% /
-14% | -156% /
-104% | -33% /
-22% | -27% /
-22% |
* ... smaller is better
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 0.8 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.3 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 0.5 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 1 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (20.9 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 1.3 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 0.6 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 0.7 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows very fast response rates in our tests and should be very well suited for fast-paced gaming. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 4 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (32.8 ms). | ||
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM detected | 355.5 Hz Amplitude: 31 % Secondary Frequency: 1626 Hz |  | |
The display backlight flickers at 355.5 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) . The frequency of 355.5 Hz is relatively high, so most users sensitive to PWM should not notice any flickering. However, there are reports that some users are still sensitive to PWM at 500 Hz and above, so be aware. In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 8705 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 343500) Hz was measured. | |||
A series of measurements using fixed zoom and various brightness settings.
Performance, emissions and battery life - The Edge 50 Neo could handle more power
With the Dimensity 7300, the Edge 50 Neo has a sufficiently fast SoC that provides a smooth user experience in everyday situations. However, compared to the predecessor, you wouldn't say there has been a considerable leap in performance, and, in this price class, there are significantly better-performing devices such as the Google Pixel 8a or the OnePlus Nord 4. Things get really noticeable when it comes to graphics calculations, and this is an area where the Edge 50 Neo shows clear deficits compared to other smartphones.
The UFS 3.1 flash storage is tangibly slower than the kind found in other phones, the OnePlus Nord 4, in particular, scores highly with its very fast UFS 4.0. This means the Edge 50 Neo's data transfer and loading times take a little longer.
Under load, the case can heat up significantly: a maximum of 48.1 °C is very noticeable but stops short of being critical. Having said that, at room temperature, we also observed that anyone who uses the Edge 50 Neo to play games in the blazing sun will generate significantly higher case temperatures. However, the SoC seemed to be unimpressed by the heat production and operated at undiminished speed even after numerous, demanding benchmark runs.
The Edge 50 Neo uses the earpiece as a second speaker to provide extra support to the speaker on the bottom edge. This means you can achieve slight stereo effects. The speakers can get relatively loud, with voices and music sounding quite clear and somewhat nuanced.
You can get sound through external speakers or headphones via the USB-C port or Bluetooth. For wireless audio transmission, all of the currently important audio codecs and even some less well-known ones are available: SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, aptX TWS+, LDAC, LC3, Opus and LHDC V2-V5.
At 4,310 mAh, the battery is significantly weaker than the predecessor or most other phones in this price category. Only the Google Pixel 8a delivers slightly shorter battery runtimes. Using Wi-Fi to surf the internet, our Edge 50 Neo managed just 824 minutes, or, in other words, 13 hours and 44 minutes. With normal use, you should be able to get through the day but you will have to charge the device more often than other phones.
When that happens, you'll have to reach for your own charger because Motorola doesn't include one. At up to 68 watts, the battery can be topped up and doesn't even need an hour for the charge indicator to display 100 % again. Wireless charging at up to 15 watts is possible and takes correspondingly longer: Around 2 hours and 30 minutes are necessary for a full charge.
| Geekbench AI | |
| Single Precision TensorFlow NNAPI 1.1 | |
| Average of class Smartphone (122 - 4619, n=40, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7300 (521 - 540, n=3) | |
| Half Precision TensorFlow NNAPI 1.1 | |
| Average of class Smartphone (122 - 32432, n=40, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7300 (1051 - 1322, n=3) | |
| Quantized TensorFlow NNAPI 1.1 | |
| Average of class Smartphone (118 - 44657, n=40, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7300 (2697 - 2721, n=3) | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | Google Pixel 8a | OnePlus Nord 4 | Sony Xperia 5 V | Motorola Edge 40 Neo | Average 512 GB UFS 3.1 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AndroBench 3-5 | -28% | 100% | 37% | -12% | 19% | 26% | |
| Sequential Read 256KB | 1023 | 1509.65 48% | 3592.8 251% | 1812.23 77% | 1004.4 -2% | 1846 ? 80% | 1887 ? 84% |
| Sequential Write 256KB | 964.6 | 255.31 -74% | 2898.2 200% | 1331.81 38% | 930.9 -3% | 1199 ? 24% | 1474 ? 53% |
| Random Read 4KB | 331 | 165.98 -50% | 250.4 -24% | 359.71 9% | 279.5 -16% | 282 ? -15% | 279 ? -16% |
| Random Write 4KB | 384.1 | 243.82 -37% | 276.2 -28% | 473.91 23% | 284.1 -26% | 338 ? -12% | 312 ? -19% |
Temperature
(-) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 48.1 °C / 119 F, compared to the average of 35.1 °C / 95 F, ranging from 21.9 to 63.7 °C for the class Smartphone.
(-) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 47.4 °C / 117 F, compared to the average of 33.9 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24.3 °C / 76 F, compared to the device average of 32.8 °C / 91 F.
3DMark stress test
Speakers
Motorola Edge 50 Neo audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (88 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 25.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (10.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 6% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (4.8% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 4.3% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (5.3% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (18.8% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 18% of all tested devices in this class were better, 10% similar, 72% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 37%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 40% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 52% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Google Pixel 8a audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (89.3 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 22.3% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (11.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 2.4% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (4.7% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 5% higher than median
(+) | highs are linear (6.2% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(+) | overall sound is linear (14.9% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 1% of all tested devices in this class were better, 2% similar, 97% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 37%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 17% of all tested devices were better, 4% similar, 79% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Battery life
| Battery Runtime - WiFi Websurfing | |
| OnePlus Nord 4 | |
| Average of class Smartphone (476 - 3244, n=207, last 2 years) | |
| Sony Xperia 5 V | |
| Motorola Edge 40 Neo | |
| Motorola Edge 50 Neo | |
| Google Pixel 8a | |
Pros
Cons
Verdict – A very flexible camera but short battery life
Anyone on the hunt for a compact phone will find a good mid-range alternative in the shape of the Motorola Edge 50 Neo, a device possessing roughly the same dimensions as the Sony Xperia 5 V.
Compared to the predecessor, there are improvements but also some backward steps: On the plus side, there is now wireless charging, the telephoto camera and the LTPO display, but, by contrast, you'll have to do without a display with a 144 Hz maximum refresh rate, a good chunk of battery capacity and also some display area. Additionally, the Edge 50 Neo is $100 more expensive than the predecessor and has to make do with less RAM in the smaller storage variant.
In return, the Motorola phone has gotten a touch more compact and now possesses a flat glass display - a beneficial feature to some users. In terms of the battery life, you will have to make sacrifices, but on the positive side, you now get a bright display, a flexible camera system and a waterproof, smart and light chassis.
The phone packs enough power for everyday use, and for around $500, you can get significantly more performant devices such as the Google Pixel 8a or the OnePlus Nord 4. The Edge 50 Neo's long update cycles promised by Motorola are a considerable advantage over the manufacturer's older devices.
The Motorola Edge 50 Neo will please fans of compact, affordable smartphones. It comes with an excellent camera system but could handle a bit more in the way of performance and battery life.
The benchmark for compact, mid-range smartphones is set by the Google Pixel 8a, although it does come with a much smaller display.
Price and availability
At the time of testing, the Motorola Edge 50 Neo is currently unavailable on Amazon and Best Buy.
Note: We have recently updated our rating system and the results of version 8 are not comparable with the results of version 7. More information is available here.
Motorola Edge 50 Neo
- 10/13/2024 v8
Florian Schmitt
Total Sustainability Score: 
Transparency
The selection of devices to be reviewed is made by our editorial team. The test sample was provided to the author as a loan by the manufacturer or retailer for the purpose of this review. The lender had no influence on this review, nor did the manufacturer receive a copy of this review before publication. There was no obligation to publish this review. We never accept compensation or payment in return for our reviews. As an independent media company, Notebookcheck is not subjected to the authority of manufacturers, retailers or publishers.
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