Motorola Moto G54 review - One of the best smartphones for less than 200 Euros
With the Moto G54, Motorola targets price conscious buyers. Although the 6.5-inch Android smartphone costs barely 200 Euros (~$211), it still brings very solid midrange equipment.
In addition to the MediaTek Dimensity 7020 octa-core SoC that is able to run games such as PUBG Mobile smoothly, there is 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage space. This is accompanied by a 50-MP main camera, Android 13 with 3 years of updates, dual-SIM including eSIM, a large 5000-mAh battery, and an IPS display with a 1080p resolution and 120 Hz refresh rate.
With this, the Moto G54 offers a lot more on paper than its Moto G53 predecessor, which uses the slower Snapdragon 480+ and only reaches a display resolution of 1600 x 720 pixels. We evaluate in our test, whether the successor is able to stand up against the powerful competitors.
Possible Competitors in Comparison
Rating | Date | Model | Weight | Drive | Size | Resolution | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80.7 % v7 (old) | 10 / 2023 | Motorola Moto G54 Dimensity 7020, IMG BXM-8-256 | 177 g | 256 GB UFS 3.0 Flash | 6.50" | 2400x1080 | |
| 79.1 % v7 (old) | 03 / 2023 | Motorola Moto G53 SD 480+, Adreno 619 | 183 g | 128 GB UFS 2.1 Flash | 6.50" | 1600x720 | |
| 78.7 % v7 (old) | 05 / 2023 | Nokia G22 T7200, Mali-G57 MP1 | 195 g | 64 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.52" | 1600x720 | |
| 75.9 % v7 (old) | 07 / 2023 | Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE Helio G80, Mali-G52 MP2 | 201 g | 64 GB eMMC Flash | 6.60" | 2408x1080 | |
| 79 % v7 (old) | 08 / 2023 | Xiaomi Redmi 12 Helio G88, Mali-G52 MP2 | 198.5 g | 128 GB eMMC Flash | 6.79" | 2460x1080 | |
| 81.7 % v7 (old) | 06 / 2023 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G SD 4 Gen 1, Adreno 619 | 189 g | 128 GB UFS 2.2 Flash | 6.67" | 2400x1080 |
Case - Also available in vegan leather
The light, 177-gram (~6.24 oz) plastic case of the Moto G54 offers a good workmanship and is comfortable to hold in the hand with its rounded corners and edges. With the exception of the bottom, the bezels around the IPS panel are fairly slim, resulting in a solid display-to-surface ratio of 86%.
The power key also includes a built-in fingerprint sensor. There is a dual-lens camera system in the back, which consists of a 50-MP main camera and a 2-MP resolution macro sensor.
If you decide for one of the two Glacier Blue or Midnight Blue color versions, the smartphone comes with a smooth plastic back. With the Indigo Blue or the Mint Green of our test unit, the back cover of the smartphone is made of vegan leather, which feels great in the hand and provides it with a better grip and higher-quality haptics.
The smartphone doesn't offer an IP certification, but Motorola only speaks about a water-repellent design that is supposed to provide the Moto G54 with some protection from splash water and raindrops.
Equipment - 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage for the Motorola smartphone
The EU version of the Moto G54 offers the same storage equipment for all the color versions with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage space. This can be expanded via the microSD slot that is able to accept a card with up to 1 TB of storage.
The equipment of Motorola's midrange smartphone also includes a dual-SIM function including eSIM, NFC, and wireless mirroring of the display contents via Miracast. The USB-C port runs at USB-2.0 speed and supports USB-OTG, allowing you to connect USB peripheral devices. A 3.5-mm audio port and Dolby Atmos compatible stereo speakers are also included. With the support of DRM Widevine L1, streams can also be displayed in HD quality on the Moto G54.
microSD Card Reader
The microSD card slot of the Moto G54 reaches a good copy speed of 36.2 MB/s using our Angelbird AV Pro V60 reference card. In the Cross Platform Disk Test, it is also fairly fast with a top value of 78.1 MB/s.
| SD Card Reader - average JPG Copy Test (av. of 3 runs) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Angelbird AV Pro V60) | |
| Nokia G22 (Angelbird V60) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Angelbird V60) | |
Cross Platform Disk Test (CPDT)
Software - Android 13 and 3 years of security updates
Motorola has equipped its midrange smartphone with Android 13, adding its inhouse MyUX user interface on top. There is only a handful of additional software apps such as the inhouse apps Moto, Moto Secure, and Family Space. Although a few third-party apps such as TikTok or Marketguru are also included, they can all be deinstalled. After the initial setup, 237 GB of the nominal 256 GB of storage are still available.
The Moto Secure app allows you to adjust your privacy settings, hide some apps and files in a secure file folder, and recognize Phishing attempts, among other things. With Family Space, users can setup a separate secure Start screen for their children, where only some selected apps are available.
The Moto app allows you to configure the Motorola-typical UI gestures that facilitate operation. For example, you get the following presets: If you make a hacking gesture with the smartphone twice, the flashlight is activated. A quick turning the phone twice will activate the camera.
According to the manufacturer, the Moto G54 is supposed to receive Android security patches until September 2026, which is three years after its market introduction in September of 2023. New security patches are supposed to be available every two months. However, at the time of our test, the manufacturer is slightly behind schedule, since the security patches are still at the level of August 1 at the end of October, so they aren't quite current, compared to Motorola's own specifications.
Motorola is a little more hesitant with the Android OS upgrades than with the Android security updates. Although the smartphone is supposed to receive Android 14, the manufacturer's website doesn't provide any information whether there will be any additional OS upgrades in the future such as to Android 15. But usually, you can expect two OS updates with Motorola smartphones.
Communication and GNSS - 5G and stable WiFi 5
The Moto G54 can connect to the mobile Internet via 13 5G bands and 14 4G bands. So while the frequency support isn't too generous, you still shouldn't run into any problems at least within EU countries. In addition, all the 5G bands that are important in German speaking countries (n1/n3/n28 /n78) are supported. The Motorola also supports Bluetooth 5.3 and NFC.
On the other hand, the Moto G54 doesn't offer WiFi 6 but like most other devices in this price class is limited to WiFi 5. When connected with our Asus ROG Rapture AXE 11000 reference router, the smartphone does a good job, though.
In the WLAN, not only is the Moto G54 one of the fastest devices in our test, but at up to 365 Mbit/s, it almost reaches the maximum possible transfer rates you can get with WiFi 5 in practice. In addition, the transfer rates remain fairly stable in both the receiving and sending directions.
| Networking | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
| Average of class Smartphone | |
| iperf3 receive AXE11000 | |
| iperf3 transmit AXE11000 | |
The Motorola smartphone determines its current location using the GPS (L1), Glonass (L1), Galileo (E1), Beidou (B1), and QZSS satellite navigation services. Both outdoors and indoors, it succeeds very quickly in locating its position with an accuracy of 1 meter (3 ft).
However, the GPS precision of the Moto G54 isn't quite as accurate when moving, although it is still overall sufficient for navigation tasks. In a short bike tour, the smartphone at times locates us as accurately as the Garmin Venu 2 fitness smartwatch, but at other times the recorded location can also be quite far away from the actual route. Such inaccuracies can occur both in more as well as less densely occupied areas.
Telephone Functions and Voice Quality
With its voice quality, the Moto G54 delivers a good performance. The conversation partners are able to understand each other easily even in noisier surroundings. Only when using speaker mode do the voices sound a bit dull and distanced at times.
The Moto G54 supports dual-SIM operation that works using a combination of Nano-SIM and eSIM. You can also setup a preferred SIM card for data. The smartphone supports VoLTE and WLAN calls.
Cameras - Very good for this price class
The back of the Moto G54 houses a dual-camera system, although only half of it is really useful. Behind the lower lens is a 2-MP resolution macro camera that works optimally with objects at a distance of 4 cm (~1.6 in), but its image quality is rather mediocre. With its digital zoom, the main camera usually delivers much better results.
The main camera of the Motorola offers a 50-MP resolution (f/1.8) with optical stabilization. Four neighboring pixels are combined into a single pixel, resulting in 12 MP images. Under good light conditions, the sensor captures the objects with a fairly good sharpness and contrast, even if the colors can look a bit pale at times. Surprisingly, the camera is also able to take convincing pictures in bad light conditions, with many details remaining visible even with only a little amount of light. Overall, the Moto G54 achieves a really good image quality for its price class.
The good overall impression is also supported by the selfie camera. It has a 16-MP resolution, produces a solid Bokeh effect in Portrait mode, and is able to create sharp pictures even in difficult light conditions. Videos can be recorded at a maximum of 720p and 30 frames per second. The main camera allows recording videos at a maximum of 1080p and 60 fps.
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.
Tageslicht-Aufnahme 1Tageslicht-Aufnahme 2Lowlight-Aufnahme
We also take a detailed look at the main camera under controlled light conditions. In optimal light conditions, it is able to reproduce the colors fairly accurately, particularly succeeding with a good white balance. The test chart remains completely visible even with 1 Lux of remaining light, although it is then only reproduced blurry.
Accessories and Warranty - With 20-Watt charger and optional Moto Care
Motorola includes a 20-Watt charger, a USB cable (Type A to C), a SIM tool, a quick start manual, and an additional booklet with some security information in the box of the Moto G54. Buyers can also purchase accessories such as headsets and Bluetooth speakers in the Motorola shop.
There is a 24-month warranty on the Motorola Moto G54. In addition, you also have the option to extend the warranty to three years and also add some accident protection with the Moto Care insurance. Depending on the chosen package, this costs between 32 and 70 Euros (~$34-74) at the time of this test.
Input Devices and Operation - A 120-Hz panel and fingerprint sensor
The 120-Hz display provides the Moto G54 with a comfortably smooth operation. In the standard setting, the smartphone automatically switches between 60 and 120 Hz depending on the display contents. Alternatively, you can also fix the display to use 120 Hz or 60 Hz, choosing the latter for example to save some battery life.
The MediaTek Dimensity 7020 and 8 GB of RAM also contribute to the mostly smooth running of the system. However at times, it also becomes noticeable that the smartphone doesn't use the fastest hardware, although stutters and really noticeable delays remain the rare exception in our test.
You can biometrically unlock the Motorola via face recognition or the fingerprint sensor that is built into the power key. While 2D face unlock isn't quite as secure as logging in via fingerprint, it still works fairly well with only a little surrounding light left, as long as the display is bright enough.
Display - IPS panel with 1080p resolution
The IPS panel of the Moto G54 has a 2400 x 1080 pixel resolution, resulting in a pixel density of 405 PPI. Compared to the Moto G53 with its meager 1600 x 720 pixels, this is a significant improvement. HDR10 and HDR HLG are supported.
With an average brightness of 470 cd/m² with a pure white screen content, the IPS display of the Motorola smartphone reaches a brightness that is typical for this price class and also offered by other competitors such as the Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE or the Xiaomi Redmi 12. In the APL18 measurement, which is more representative for everyday usage and concentrates on a smaller display area, the brightness increases up to 582 cd/m². At the lowest brightness level, we measure 2.8 cd/m².
Motorola doesn't use pulse width modulation to adjust the display brighness, which makes it well-suited for users who are sensitive to PWM flickering.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 90 %
Center on Battery: 492 cd/m²
Contrast: 1640:1 (Black: 0.3 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 3.9 | 0.5-29.43 Ø4.91
ΔE Greyscale 4.3 | 0.5-98 Ø5.2
99.8% sRGB (Calman 2D)
Gamma: 2.275
| Motorola Moto G54 IPS, 2400x1080, 6.5" | Motorola Moto G53 IPS, 1600x720, 6.5" | Nokia G22 IPS, 1600x720, 6.5" | Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE PLS, 2408x1080, 6.6" | Xiaomi Redmi 12 IPS, 2460x1080, 6.8" | Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G AMOLED, 2400x1080, 6.7" | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | 8% | -3% | -69% | -5% | 44% | |
| Brightness middle | 492 | 587 19% | 674 37% | 465 -5% | 449 -9% | 658 34% |
| Brightness | 470 | 559 19% | 641 36% | 439 -7% | 437 -7% | 663 41% |
| Brightness Distribution | 90 | 91 1% | 90 0% | 89 -1% | 95 6% | 98 9% |
| Black Level * | 0.3 | 0.4 -33% | 0.43 -43% | 0.47 -57% | 0.5 -67% | |
| Contrast | 1640 | 1468 -10% | 1567 -4% | 989 -40% | 898 -45% | |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 3.9 | 2.6 33% | 4.45 -14% | 8.5 -118% | 2.29 41% | 1.4 64% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 6.26 | 5.62 10% | 7.41 -18% | 15.8 -152% | 4.49 28% | 2.7 57% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 4.3 | 3.3 23% | 5.1 -19% | 11.8 -174% | 3.7 14% | 1.7 60% |
| Gamma | 2.275 97% | 2.463 89% | 2.072 106% | 2.2 100% | 2.254 98% | 2.23 99% |
| CCT | 7656 85% | 6288 103% | 7799 83% | 10757 60% | 6198 105% | 6504 100% |
* ... 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. | |||
Measurement series at fixed zoom level and with various brightness settings
The display colors of the Moto G54 can be adjusted using two color profiles. The default is Saturated, which provides the smartphone with a vivid but not very accurate color reproduction. If you use the Natural color profile, the contrast ratio remains high (1640:1), but the color and grayscale reproduction won't improve much with a maximum Delta-E color deviation of 4.3.
Overall, the color display is slightly too cool or shifted towards a blue tint at 7656 K. For a more balanced color reproduction, we therefore recommend moving the color temperature slide in the Android Settings by one or two steps towards the Warm setting.
Display Response Times
| ↔ Response Time Black to White | ||
|---|---|---|
| 20.4 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 10.6 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 9.8 ms fall | ||
| The screen shows good response rates in our tests, but may be too slow for competitive gamers. In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 42 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is similar to the average of all tested devices (20.9 ms). | ||
| ↔ Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey | ||
| 27.5 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined | ↗ 14.6 ms rise |  |
| ↘ 12.9 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 0.165 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 33 % of all devices are better. This means that the measured response time is better than the average of all tested devices (32.8 ms). | ||
The Moto G54 does well using it outdoors, since the contents still remain readable even in direct sunlight. But overall, the brightness of the panel isn't particularly high enough to always be able to compensate sufficiently for bright light conditions. The viewing angles of the IPS panel are stable.
Performance - Moto G54 with MediaTek Dimensity 7020
Motorola uses the MediaTek Dimensity 7020 as SoC in the Moto G54. The octa-core processor sounds new but is only a new iteration of the known old Dimensity 930 midrange processor. The SoC integrates two ARM Cortex A78 cores with up to 2.2 GHz for demanding tasks and six energy efficient ARM Cortex-A55 cores with clock speeds of up to 2 GHz. The graphics unit in the Dimensity 7020 is the IMG BXM-8-256.
In the synthetic benchmarks, the Moto G54 is one of the fastest smartphones in our comparison and is able to clearly surpass its Moto G53 predecessor. Our test unit is also slightly faster overall than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G that uses the Qualcomm Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 as its processor.
| Antutu v9 - Total Score | |
| Average of class Smartphone (99654 - 2056989, n=105, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| UL Procyon AI Inference for Android - Overall Score NNAPI | |
| Average of class Smartphone (1267 - 75143, n=147, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
In the GPU-heavy benchmarks, the Moto G54 also places far ahead in its price class, even though it is at times surpassed by its predecessor. With its Adreno 619 GPU, the Moto G53 is quite a bit faster at times, particularly in GFXBench. The Moto G54 is not compatible with the Wild Life tests from 3DMark.
GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7: T-Rex Onscreen | 1920x1080 T-Rex Offscreen
GFXBench 3.0: on screen Manhattan Onscreen OGL | 1920x1080 1080p Manhattan Offscreen
GFXBench 3.1: on screen Manhattan ES 3.1 Onscreen | 1920x1080 Manhattan ES 3.1 Offscreen
GFXBench: on screen Car Chase Onscreen | 1920x1080 Car Chase Offscreen | on screen Aztec Ruins High Tier Onscreen | 2560x1440 Aztec Ruins High Tier Offscreen | on screen Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Onscreen | 1920x1080 Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Offscreen | 3840x2160 4K Aztec Ruins High Tier Offscreen
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (Vulkan) Unlimited Physics | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (Vulkan) Unlimited Graphics | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (Vulkan) Unlimited | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (ES 3.1) Unlimited Physics | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (ES 3.1) Unlimited Graphics | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| 3DMark / Sling Shot Extreme (ES 3.1) Unlimited | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7 / T-Rex Onscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench (DX / GLBenchmark) 2.7 / T-Rex Offscreen | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench 3.0 / Manhattan Onscreen OGL | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| GFXBench 3.0 / 1080p Manhattan Offscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench 3.1 / Manhattan ES 3.1 Onscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| GFXBench 3.1 / Manhattan ES 3.1 Offscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench / Car Chase Onscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| GFXBench / Car Chase Offscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench / Aztec Ruins High Tier Onscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| GFXBench / Aztec Ruins High Tier Offscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench / Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Onscreen | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| GFXBench / Aztec Ruins Normal Tier Offscreen | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
| GFXBench / 4K Aztec Ruins High Tier Offscreen | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | |
| Motorola Moto G54 | |
| Motorola Moto G53 | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | |
| Nokia G22 | |
The Motorola smartphone is the fastest of the comparison devices running the browser benchmarks, placing on top in each of the individual tests. In everyday operation, web pages load quickly and can be scrolled smoothly.
| Jetstream 2 - Total Score | |
| Average of class Smartphone (13.8 - 387, n=166, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Chrome 111) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| Speedometer 2.0 - Result | |
| Average of class Smartphone (15.2 - 569, n=151, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Chrome 111) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| WebXPRT 4 - Overall | |
| Average of class Smartphone (22 - 271, n=156, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Chrome 111) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| WebXPRT 3 - Overall | |
| Average of class Smartphone (38 - 347, n=79, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| Octane V2 - Total Score | |
| Average of class Smartphone (2228 - 100368, n=206, last 2 years) | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Chrome 111) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Nokia G22 (Chrome 112) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| Mozilla Kraken 1.1 - Total | |
| Xiaomi Redmi 12 (Chrome 115) | |
| Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE (Chrome 114) | |
| Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G (Chrome 113.0.5672.76) | |
| Motorola Moto G53 (Chrome 111) | |
| Average of class Smartphone (277 - 28190, n=164, last 2 years) | |
| Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 () | |
| Motorola Moto G54 (Chrome 118.0.5993.80) | |
* ... smaller is better
Motorola doesn't offer any concrete specification on the storage type, but considering the performance data, we assume that our European test unit uses UFS 3.0 storage. This might be different for other international versions, since Motorola offers the Moto G54 in other markets at times also as a model with UFS 2.2 storage.
The UFS 3.0 storage seems to be a good thing for the Moto G54, since it allows the smartphone to move far ahead of the competitors in the 4 KB reads and writes as well as the other reading and writing processes.
| Motorola Moto G54 | Motorola Moto G53 | Nokia G22 | Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE | Xiaomi Redmi 12 | Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G | Average 256 GB UFS 3.0 Flash | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AndroBench 3-5 | -47% | -33% | -74% | -62% | -35% | 0% | 56% | |
| Sequential Read 256KB | 983.01 | 474.6 -52% | 881 -10% | 298.69 -70% | 300 -69% | 520.09 -47% | 1547 ? 57% | 1859 ? 89% |
| Sequential Write 256KB | 817.55 | 243.87 -70% | 367 -55% | 200.17 -76% | 272.5 -67% | 505.55 -38% | 575 ? -30% | 1445 ? 77% |
| Random Read 4KB | 232.74 | 166.24 -29% | 131 -44% | 55.9 -76% | 84.8 -64% | 170.61 -27% | 210 ? -10% | 278 ? 19% |
| Random Write 4KB | 224.58 | 139.83 -38% | 172 -23% | 55.86 -75% | 115 -49% | 161.26 -28% | 188.5 ? -16% | 310 ? 38% |
Games - PUBG Mobile runs at 30 frames per second
The Motorola Moto G54 shows that even a smartphone that costs less than 200 Euros (~$211) can be well-suited for gaming. In our Gamebench test tool, the 6.5-inch smartphone is able to run PUBG Mobile in the HD/High setting at a constant 30 frames per second. The same goes for Asphalt 9, which is also displayed at a constant 30 fps in the Standard graphics settings.
The Moto G54 is only able to make full use of its 120-Hz screen with simple games. This is for example the case in Subway Surfers, where it reaches 119 fps on average. However, there are also the occasional drops in the frame rates that show that the smartphone already reaches its limits here at times.
Emissions - Stereo sound with Dolby Atmos
Temperatures
During regular operation, the smartphone hardly heats up, only rarely becoming more than hand warm. But this changes under load. If you put some heavy demands on the Moto G54, the surface temperatures increase up to 45.4 °C (114 °F) in our test. Even though this temperature value gives no reason for concern, on some hot summer days, it could easily reach a few degrees higher, which wouldn't make holding the smartphone in the hand feel very comfortable anymore.
The internals of the Moto G54 stay cool enough, since the smartphone is always able to maintain its full SoC performance even under longer load in the test. It is incompatible with the 3DMark Wild Life, so alternatively we used the GFXBench battery test for our stress test.
(-) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 45.4 °C / 114 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 44.3 °C / 112 F, compared to the average of 33.9 °C / 93 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 23.7 °C / 75 F, compared to the device average of 32.8 °C / 91 F.
Speakers
The Dolby Atmos compatible stereo speakers of the Moto G54 produce a fairly thin sound image due to their lack of bass. But the sound is still relatively balanced for a smartphone and doesn't distort even at maximum volume - although at 79.7 dB(A) that isn't very high anyways.
You can connect external audio devices with the smartphone using the 3.5-mm audio port or Bluetooth 5.3. In addition to the AAC, SBC, LC3, and LDAC Bluetooth audio codecs, the Moto G54 also supports all the current aptX codecs as well as LDHC v1 to v4.
Motorola Moto G54 audio analysis
(±) | speaker loudness is average but good (79.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 28.1% lower than median
(±) | linearity of bass is average (9.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(+) | balanced mids - only 4.1% away from median
(+) | mids are linear (6.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(+) | balanced highs - only 1.4% away from median
(+) | highs are linear (3.6% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (20% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 28% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 64% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 37%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 48% of all tested devices were better, 8% similar, 44% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE audio analysis
(+) | speakers can play relatively loud (90.7 dB)
Bass 100 - 315 Hz
(-) | nearly no bass - on average 27.8% lower than median
(+) | bass is linear (4.9% delta to prev. frequency)
Mids 400 - 2000 Hz
(±) | reduced mids - on average 7.3% lower than median
(+) | mids are linear (6.4% delta to prev. frequency)
Highs 2 - 16 kHz
(±) | higher highs - on average 9.6% higher than median
(+) | highs are linear (2.5% delta to prev. frequency)
Overall 100 - 16.000 Hz
(±) | linearity of overall sound is average (23.5% difference to median)
Compared to same class
» 49% of all tested devices in this class were better, 8% similar, 43% worse
» The best had a delta of 12%, average was 37%, worst was 134%
Compared to all devices tested
» 67% of all tested devices were better, 7% similar, 26% worse
» The best had a delta of 4%, average was 25%, worst was 134%
Battery Life - Moto G54 with a 5000-mAh battery
Power Consumption
The Motorola Moto G54 is charged using the included charger that offers up to 20 watts of power. However, the smartphone is only able to draw a maximum of 15 watts, making the charging process take a little longer. In our test, it takes 2:53 hours to completely recharge the empty 5000-mAh battery to 100%.
In terms of its power consumption, the Moto G54 is fairly efficient. Under load, it only consumes 3.3 watts on average, while the consumption levels out at 1.2 watts during idle operation. The competitors are unable to improve on either of this.
| Off / Standby |   0.1 / 0.2 Watt |
| Idle |  0.9 / 1.2 / 1.5 Watt |
| Load |
3.3 / 5.6 Watt |
    
| |
Key:
min: ,
med: ,
max: Metrahit Energy | |
| Motorola Moto G54 5000 mAh | Motorola Moto G53 5000 mAh | Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE 5000 mAh | Xiaomi Redmi 12 5000 mAh | Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G 5000 mAh | Average MediaTek Dimensity 7020 | Average of class Smartphone | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | -20% | -38% | -19% | -19% | 0% | -40% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 0.9 | 0.8 11% | 0.89 1% | 1 -11% | 0.99 -10% | 0.9 ? -0% | 0.885 ? 2% |
| Idle Average * | 1.2 | 1.5 -25% | 2.31 -93% | 1.2 -0% | 1.98 -65% | 1.2 ? -0% | 1.451 ? -21% |
| Idle Maximum * | 1.5 | 2 -33% | 2.34 -56% | 1.5 -0% | 2.02 -35% | 1.5 ? -0% | 1.608 ? -7% |
| Load Average * | 3.3 | 4.6 -39% | 4.11 -25% | 4.2 -27% | 3.35 -2% | 3.3 ? -0% | 6.55 ? -98% |
| Load Maximum * | 5.6 | 6.3 -13% | 6.46 -15% | 8.9 -59% | 4.72 16% | 5.6 ? -0% | 9.92 ? -77% |
* ... smaller is better
Power Consumption: Geekbench (150 cd/m²)
Power Consumption: GFXBench (150 cd/m²)
Battery Life
The Motorola Moto G54 achieves a solid battery life in our test. Around 14.5 hours with simulated web surfing and almost 17.5 hours when playing a video in a constant loop are acceptable runtimes, even though they are still slightly less overall than what the competitors are able to manage.
Since we ran our battery tests with an activated 120-Hz display, you might still get slightly longer runtimes if you switch to 60 Hz. But in any case, the Moto G54 should bring a sufficient amount of power to last through a whole day of intensive use. And if you use the smartphone only sporadically, two days or more should also be possible.
| Motorola Moto G54 5000 mAh | Motorola Moto G53 5000 mAh | Nokia G22 5050 mAh | Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE 5000 mAh | Xiaomi Redmi 12 5000 mAh | Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G 5000 mAh | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Battery Runtime | -1% | 20% | -12% | -9% | -12% | |
| Reader / Idle | 3481 | 2301 -34% | 1170 -66% | 1425 -59% | 1668 -52% | |
| H.264 | 1041 | 1165 12% | 1044 0% | 1086 4% | 1065 2% | |
| WiFi v1.3 | 875 | 1035 18% | 1052 20% | 896 2% | 803 -8% | 645 -26% |
| Load | 301 | 297 -1% | 348 16% | 382 27% | 388 29% |
Pros
Cons
Verdict on the Motorola Moto G54
The Motorola Moto G54 offers a lot of value for its moderate sales price of 200 Euros (~$211). The entry-level smartphone scores with a solid IPS display with 120 Hz, combining this with a good system performance resulting from 8 GB of RAM and the MediaTek Dimensity 7020 octa-core SoC. In addition, you get 5G with eSIM support, a good camera, and a solid battery life.
The Motorola Moto G54 is a well-equipped entry-level smartphone at a fair price.
The Moto G54 also deserves some praise for its case versions that use vegan leather and the slim Android 13 that was enriched by some practical gesture control features and a child safe mode. Three years of Android security updates are very good for this price class. In addition, you can also expect two Android OS updates.
But of course, you also have to accept some compromises due to the low purchase price, although we didn't really see any significant faults. In terms of WLAN speed, you only get WiFi 5, you won't get an OLED, and the display brightness is sometimes not strong enough for outdoor use. The charging speed is also not particularly fast at a maximum of 15 watts.
Alternatives to the Motorola Moto G54 are for example the Samsung Galaxy A14 LTE and the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 5G. Both of those also include a 120-Hz display, but the Samsung also offers a significantly longer update period and the Xiaomi, a brighter AMOLED panel.
Price and Availability
The international version of the Motorola Moto G54 is currently listed on Amazon with a UK vendor offering it for $385. While Motorola doesn't offer a Moto smartphone with the G54 label in the US directly, a very similar phone is listed for $199 under the "Moto G 5G" label (but with a Snapdragon 480+ processor and 4GB of RAM).
Motorola Moto G54
- 10/27/2023 v7 (old)
Manuel Masiero
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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Every year, Notebookcheck independently reviews hundreds of laptops and smartphones using standardized procedures to ensure that all results are comparable. We have continuously developed our test methods for around 20 years and set industry standards in the process. In our test labs, high-quality measuring equipment is utilized by experienced technicians and editors. These tests involve a multi-stage validation process. Our complex rating system is based on hundreds of well-founded measurements and benchmarks, which maintains objectivity. Further information on our test methods can be found here.
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