Motorola Moto G51 5G smartphone review: Do the fast display and 5G make it worth buying?
Motorola's affordable mid-range is designed to give users a choice: do you prefer a smartphone with an OLED display in exchange for other features? If so, you can go for the Moto G31. Or would you prefer an IPS screen that can display more frames per second and have 5G as well? In that case, the Motorola Moto G51 5G might be an option, and we'll take a closer look at it in this review.
Compared with the predecessor, the Moto G50, some things have changed, such as the display resolution and the smartphone's size, for example. Therefore, we'll also analyze whether the Moto G51 is a decent improvement to last year's model.
Possible contenders in comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Drive | Size | Resolution | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80.2 % v7 (old) | 02 / 2022 | Motorola Moto G51 SD 480+, Adreno 619 | 208 g | 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.80" | 2400x1080 | |
| 78.9 % v7 (old) | 01 / 2022 | Motorola Moto G31 Helio G85, Mali-G52 MP2 | 181 g | 64 GB eMMC Flash | 6.40" | 2400x1080 | |
| 80.5 % v7 (old) | 01 / 2022 | Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G Dimensity 810, Mali-G57 MP2 | 195 g | 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.60" | 2400x1080 | |
| 79.2 % v7 (old) | 12 / 2021 | Samsung Galaxy M22 Helio G80, Mali-G52 MP2 | 186 g | 128 GB eMMC Flash | 6.40" | 1600x720 | |
| 80.4 % v7 (old) | 06 / 2021 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G Dimensity 700, Mali-G57 MP2 | 190 g | 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.50" | 2400x1080 | |
| 79.2 % v7 (old) | 07 / 2021 | Motorola Moto G50 SD 480, Adreno 619 | 192 g | 64 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.50" | 1600x720 |
Case – Plastic and Panda Glass
The Motorola Moto G51 5G is clearly the largest smartphone in our comparison field with a generous size of 6.8 inches. A quick glance at our database also reveals that there are only a few traditional smartphones that currently offer a larger screen. However, the Moto G51 is only slightly wider, but much longer than the comparison devices, and it also offers a decent amount of display surface thanks to its punch-hole camera and narrow bottom bezel.
The rounded corners make the phone fit well in the hand, but it's hardly suitable for small hands due to its size. The weight of 208 grams is still acceptable. An IP52 certification is present, meaning that the smartphone is quite well protected against dust, but otherwise only against splashing water.
The back is made of silky, glossy plastic and is available in dark blue or silver. Our blue review sample hides fingerprints on the back quite competently. We found the design of the camera module with its rounded corners to be a bit uninspiring, especially compared to earlier Motorola models, but that is surely a matter of taste.
The front is made of Panda Glass and isn't very sensitive to pressure. The back can be pressed in a bit at the center, which somewhat diminishes the perceived stability. Otherwise, the smartphone is very cleanly manufactured.
Connectivity – NFC and 3.5 mm audio jack
The Motorola Moto G51 5G comes with 4 GB of RAM, at least the European version. In other regions, there are probably also models with up to 8 GB of RAM. In addition, 64 GB or 128 GB of storage are available. Our review sample comes with the larger storage configuration, but it's currently almost unavailable in Central Europe. The 64 GB variant is usually available for around 200 - 220 Euros (~$227 - ~$249). All versions come with UFS 2.2 storage.
The USB-C port only supports USB 2.0 speeds internally, so transferring data can take a while. At least it offers Power Delivery. A dedicated 3.5 mm audio jack is available. There's also NFC for mobile payment services as well as modern Bluetooth 5.1.
microSD card reader
If you want to use a microSD card to expand storage, you'll have to give up one of the SIM slots. In return, though, you get a pretty fast reader compared to its class that cuts a good figure overall.
| SD Card Reader - average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Toshiba Exceria Pro M501) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Angelbird V60) | |
Cross Platform Disk Test (CPDT)
Software – Only two years of updates guaranteed
The smartphone comes with Android 11 preinstalled. Android 12 is also supposed to be rolled out soon and be available for the Moto G51 this year. The security patches are from December 2021 at the time of testing, so it would be advisable to get a new update soon for security reasons. Motorola has stated that new software versions are planned to be released over two years.
Users get a very clean operating system that is close to the original Android version. Motorola places most of the device-specific functions in the Moto app, and it doesn't install any third-party advertising apps.
A DRM-L1 certification is available so that HD content can be played in full quality in streaming services.
Communication and GNSS – 5G and fast Wi-Fi on board
We perform our Wi-Fi test with the Netgear Nighthawk AX12 reference router. The Motorola Moto G51 5G supports the Wi-Fi 5 standard at most, reaching transfer rates that are typical for the price range. The signal is very stable, so you don't need to worry about data rate drops, at least not as far as the integrated Wi-Fi module is concerned.
The Moto phone also covers a sufficiently large number of 4G and 5G frequencies. Although it's not a world phone that can be used confidently in every mobile network in the world, its frequency diversity is sufficient for many countries. However, only sub-6 is supported when it comes to 5G. The fast mmWave is not integrated yet, but it's not available everywhere in Europe, either.
The 4G network signal strength is a bit weaker in several locations in our sample test compared with other smartphones, but it's still adequate for good reception.
| Networking | |
| iperf3 transmit AX12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G | |
| iperf3 receive AX12 | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
Outdoors, it only takes a very short time for the smartphone to get good satellite reception for tracking. All the important global services are supported here to achieve better positioning, except for SBAS.
It would probably have been better if Motorola hadn't skimped on this. While the Moto G51 5G proves to be quite reliable in urban areas in our field test, a bike ride where we also take a comparison device, it becomes increasingly inaccurate in the narrow historic city streets: At times, it's clearly off the actual route. Although our comparison device is not perfect here either, it's much more accurate.
As a result, the Moto G51 5G can be used for navigation in everyday use, but users who depend on always having an exact location should look elsewhere.
Telephone and call quality – Moto G51 with moderate phone quality
The original Google phone app is used, and many users will be familiar with it from other Android phones. VoLTE and VoWiFi are supported.
Unfortunately, call quality is very high-pitched via the internal earpiece, which makes the person on the other end of the line sound very much like a telephone. With other smartphones, the other party's voice sounds fuller, and the Moto G51 also tends to produce background noise, such as contact noise, from time to time. The quality of our voice was described as clean in the test call. Even when we spoke more quietly, we could still be understood well.
The person on the other end of the line sounds much warmer via the built-in speaker, and the hands-free microphone also manages to pick up our voice and transmit it clearly regardless of how loud we speak. Overall, a solid performance, but the weak earpiece is irritating.
Cameras – Zoom available in all scenarios
A 50-megapixel camera is the centerpiece of the Motorola Moto G51 5G camera setup. A wide-angle and a macro lens are built in to complement it, but both have considerably fewer pixels, as is usual in this class. But the main camera doesn't take pictures in a full resolution most of the time either, but instead, it merges every four pixels into one big pixel so that more light can be captured.
This results in well-illuminated pictures, but a closer look reveals a lot of image noise in larger areas and in details. Decent images with visible details are still possible in low light and with high contrasts. The issue with the low-resolution wide-angle camera becomes apparent quickly: The picture looks decent at first glance, but a closer look reveals that details are barely present.
You can zoom between the wide-angle lens and the main camera in several steps, and the telephoto camera can be accessed quickly from the software without having to select a special mode in a submenu.
The smartphone records videos at a maximum of 1080p and 60 fps; 4K is still rather uncommon in this price range. Video quality is good, and you can even zoom between the main and wide-angle lenses in several steps while recording.
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 - SurroundingsMain camera - Low lightWide-angle camera
The smartphone exhibits the previously mentioned image noise in larger areas when tested in the lab under fixed lighting conditions. The contrast and brightness are okay, but a drop in sharpness can be observed towards the edges.
Only brighter areas in the test chart are still clearly visible at an illuminance of 1 lux.
Accessories and warranty – Case included
Motorola offers a 24-month warranty for its smartphones.
The box contains a comprehensive set of accessories, including a silicon case and a headset. However, as you can read on Motorola's website, the headset is apparently not included with all devices that are available in stores.
Input devices and handling – 120-Hz display for smooth scrolling
The 120 Hz display makes operating the smartphone much smoother because the touchscreen feels much more responsive than on smartphones with 60 Hz refresh rates. Moreover, the screen's surface is also smooth and has good gliding properties.
The physical buttons are found on the right side of the case, including a dedicated button for Google Assistant. The standby button is recessed so that it can be easily found. However, it doesn't fit perfectly into the frame, and you can feel its edges, which diminishes the perceived quality.
The fingerprint sensor is also integrated into this button. It recognizes fingerprints reliably and unlocks the device quickly.
Display – Bright, fast, and relatively accurate
The Moto G51 5G outdoes its predecessor with an expanded Full HD resolution, but this has also become the standard for the price range in the meantime. Another advantage over the Moto G50 is that the display can get much brighter: We measure an average of 541 cd/m²; other comparison devices are similarly bright.
The Moto G51 features a 120 Hz display. You can choose whether you want a constant 120 Hz, a constant 60 Hz for lower battery consumption, or an adaptive frame rate. In this case, the system decides: For example, if you're looking at a static page from an eBook or a photo, the refresh rate can be reduced smoothly. On the other hand, it's increased for fast scrolling.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 85 %
Center on Battery: 534 cd/m²
Contrast: 1841:1 (Black: 0.29 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 3.51 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.91
ΔE Greyscale 1.7 | 0.5-98 Ø5.2
99.1% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.268
| Motorola Moto G51 IPS, 2400x1080, 6.8" | Motorola Moto G31 OLED, 2400x1080, 6.4" | Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G TFT-LCD, 2400x1080, 6.6" | Samsung Galaxy M22 Super AMOLED, 1600x720, 6.4" | Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G IPS, 2400x1080, 6.5" | Motorola Moto G50 IPS, 1600x720, 6.5" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | -3% | -45% | 20% | 4% | -28% | |
| Brightness middle | 534 | 423 -21% | 504 -6% | 539 1% | 550 3% | 340 -36% |
| Brightness | 541 | 425 -21% | 499 -8% | 542 0% | 515 -5% | 325 -40% |
| Brightness Distribution | 85 | 94 11% | 91 7% | 95 12% | 86 1% | 92 8% |
| Black Level * | 0.29 | 0.72 -148% | 0.32 -10% | 0.18 38% | ||
| Contrast | 1841 | 700 -62% | 1719 -7% | 1889 3% | ||
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 3.51 | 1.58 55% | 3.3 6% | 1.21 66% | 1.8 49% | 4.75 -35% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 5.65 | 4.68 17% | 6 -6% | 4.17 26% | 3.1 45% | 7.53 -33% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 1.7 | 2.7 -59% | 4.1 -141% | 1.5 12% | 2.5 -47% | 3.9 -129% |
| Gamma | 2.268 97% | 2.219 99% | 2.28 96% | 2.179 101% | 2.28 96% | 2.224 99% |
| CCT | 6590 99% | 6674 97% | 7041 92% | 6653 98% | 6326 103% | 7384 88% |
* ... smaller is better
Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)
| Screen flickering / PWM not detected |  | ||
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. | |||
We didn't detect any PWM, but we did measure a somewhat uneven brightness distribution, so especially with darker backgrounds, you can see where the LEDs for the illumination are located.
The IPS display delivers decent color accuracy in the "Natural" color mode, even though it doesn't come close to the precision of an AMOLED panel overall. Nevertheless, accuracy is sufficient for everyday use, such as to determine the colors on vacation photos more or less accurately, for example.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 28 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 15 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 13 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows relatively slow response rates in our tests and may be too slow for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 68 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (20.9 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 39 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 20 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 19 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 55 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (32.8 ms). | ||
Slight brightness variations are visible when looking at the screen from the sides, but on the whole, the screen can be viewed from any angle. The high brightness helps outdoors, but on really sunny days, it's still only good enough to be able to use the device in the shade.
Performance – A minor update
The new Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus is the SoC used in the smartphone. The main differences compared with the Snapdragon 480 are an increased clock rate and a slightly higher upload speed for the 5G modem.
The Moto phone does indeed achieve good performance rates for its price range. However, the differences to the predecessor will hardly be noticeable in practice, as they are too minor for that. You can navigate smoothly through the system in everyday use, but it takes a bit longer for the device to respond during more complex tasks.
The Adreno 619 continues to be used as the graphics solution. Compared with the predecessor, the on-screen tests even result in lower rates due to the now higher resolution.
| AnTuTu v8 - Total Score (sort by value) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G () | |
| AImark - Score v2.x (sort by value) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G () | |
In terms of browser performance, the Moto G51 5G is quite impressive: Internet browsing is also enjoyable in practice, with most websites loading quickly and images loading almost immediately when scrolling.
| Jetstream 2 - Total Score | |
| Average of class Smartphone (13.8 - 387, n=164, last 2 years) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G (61.8 - 69.5, n=3) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chrome 98) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chrome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chrome 97) | |
| JetStream 1.1 - Total Score | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chrome 98) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G () | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chrome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chrome 97) | |
| Speedometer 2.0 - Result | |
| Average of class Smartphone (15.2 - 569, n=150, last 2 years) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G (42.3 - 47.8, n=3) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chome 98) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chome 97) | |
| WebXPRT 3 - Overall | |
| Average of class Smartphone (38 - 347, n=79, last 2 years) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G (84 - 87, n=2) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chrome 98) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chrome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chrome 96) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chrome 97) | |
| Octane V2 - Total Score | |
| Average of class Smartphone (2228 - 100368, n=205, last 2 years) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G (19795 - 20938, n=3) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chrome 98) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chrome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chrome 97) | |
| Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total | |
| Motorola Moto G31 (Chrome 97) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Chrome 90) | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G50 (Chrome 91) | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G (Chrome 96) | |
| Motorola Moto G51 (Chrome 98) | |
| Average Qualcomm Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G (1829 - 2280, n=3) | |
| Average of class Smartphone (277 - 28190, n=163, last 2 years) | |
* ... smaller is better
The Motorola Moto G51 uses UFS 2.2 for its mass storage. This is a pretty fast storage type for the price range, but the Moto G51 is not quite able to make use of this advantage, and it only ends up in the midfield among the comparison devices in terms of read and write speeds.
| Motorola Moto G51 | Motorola Moto G31 | Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G | Samsung Galaxy M22 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G | Motorola Moto G50 | Average 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AndroBench 3-5 | -44% | 20% | -51% | 14% | -37% | 20% | 155% | |
| Sequential Read 256KB | 512 | 309.8 -39% | 964 88% | 292 -43% | 939 83% | 392 -23% | 728 ? 42% | 1859 ? 263% |
| Sequential Write 256KB | 473.5 | 221.5 -53% | 471 -1% | 187.8 -60% | 398 -16% | 204.4 -57% | 527 ? 11% | 1445 ? 205% |
| Random Read 4KB | 178.7 | 84 -53% | 148.8 -17% | 99.7 -44% | 151.6 -15% | 89.2 -50% | 191.7 ? 7% | 278 ? 56% |
| Random Write 4KB | 157.4 | 109.8 -30% | 171.8 9% | 70.2 -55% | 162.8 3% | 131.7 -16% | 185.8 ? 18% | 310 ? 97% |
Games – The Moto G51 is a gaming disappointment
The display of the Moto G51 5G can run at 120 Hz, which means that 120 fps would theoretically be possible in games. However, mobile phone manufacturers and/or game publishers usually block very high frame rates, because they're afraid of how this would impact battery life.
We use GameBench's software to measure three popular mobile games more closely. The result: It's impossible to exceed 40 fps, which is not surprising given the Moto smartphone's SoC. Nonetheless, it would have been nice to see 60 fps at least in the less demanding Armajet. Most of the time, you even have to settle for 30 fps, which is relatively stable at least. Only PUBG manages around 40 fps at very low settings.
The touchscreen controls work very precisely.
Emissions – No throttling in the Moto phone
Temperature
The Moto G51 doesn't heat up critically even under prolonged load. We measure a maximum of 39.3 °C (~103 °F) at the back. Although this is noticeable, it should only become uncomfortable in very high ambient temperatures.
The smartphone doesn't need to throttle its performance under prolonged load to avoid overheating, either. As a result, we measured stable frame rates in the continuous load test.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 39.1 °C / 102 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 39.3 °C / 103 F, compared to the average of 33.9 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 25.9 °C / 79 F, compared to the device average of 32.8 °C / 91 F.
3DMark Wild Life Stress Test
| 3DMark | |
| Wild Life Stress Test Stability | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
| Wild Life Extreme Stress Test | |
| Motorola Moto G50 | |
| Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G31 | |
| Motorola Moto G51 | |
| Samsung Galaxy M22 | |
Speaker
All modern Bluetooth audio codecs are supported by the smartphone, so you can connect external audio devices without issues. Wired headphones or speakers can be connected via the 3.5 mm jack.
However, that isn't really necessary if you want a fairly decent sound: Although the Motorola Moto G51 5G only comes with a mono speaker that only gets averagely loud, it's actually entirely okay in terms of sound for its price range.
You can even hear a few low mids, and the highs aren't too prominent. So if you feel like listening to some music or streaming a show on your phone, you can also use the internal speaker for sound output and still get decent quality.