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MagyarMotorola Moto G9 Play
Specifications
Secondary Camera: 8 MPix f/2.2, Videos @1080p/30fps
Pricecompare
Average of 12 scores (from 16 reviews)
Reviews for the Motorola Moto G9 Play
With the Moto G9 Play, Motorola brings a new edition of its affordable mid-range cell phone and returns to the traditional naming schma A large battery and a triple camera are supposed to set the Moto G9 Play apart from the competition. Let's see if that works.
Source: Techradar
The Moto G9 Play is an affordable and long-lasting Android phone with no major issues, other than being outclassed on display sharpness by the Xiaomi and Realme alternatives.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 01/16/2021
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: Tech Advisor
Archive.org versionThe Moto G9 Play offers excellent value for money. It packs reliable performance that's comparable to more expensive budget phones but outdoes them too with incredible battery life – all at a humble price.
Single Review, online available, Long, Date: 11/16/2020
Rating: Total score: 80%
Source: Ausdroid
Archive.org versionIf you’re after a budget device, there’s plenty of options out there. The G9 Play comes in at $299 with good value, but the competition includes the OPPO A52, which has a significantly better display for the same price, and adding an extra $50 to your budget puts you in range of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 9, which offers a properly impressive camera for its price, a better screen resolution and twice as much storage.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 10/05/2020
Rating: Total score: 60%
Source: GSM Arena
Archive.org versionThe Motorola G9 (Play) is a low-end phone, and it's unrealistic to expect game-changing performance from it. Still, the handset is equipped well enough to stand its ground against most of its competitors mainly because of its price advantage. We think it would fare much better in the US where competition is even more limited.
Single Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 09/25/2020
Rating: Total score: 66%
Source: Phone Arena
Archive.org versionMotorola has a prominent presence in the entry-level and mid-range markets, where the variety of One and G-series devices can suit every taste and satisfy almost any need. True to this mantra, Motorola once again nailed it with the Moto G9 Play. The new entry-level champ in Moto's roster is excellent value for money and has all the essential elements of a noteworthy affordable phone: it has excellent battery life, big display, good camera, and most importantly, killer price.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 09/24/2020
Rating: Total score: 70%
Foreign Reviews
Source: Area DVD
DE→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 10/11/2020
Source: Tech Stage
DE→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 09/14/2020
Source: Computerhoy
ES→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 10/03/2020
Rating: Total score: 79% features: 70% display: 70% mobility: 90% workmanship: 70%
Source: Canaltech
PT→ENPositive: High performance; long battery life. Negative: Poor display.
Single Review, online available, Medium, Date: 07/16/2021
Source: Computer Totaal
NL→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Medium, Date: 11/13/2020
Rating: Total score: 70%
Source: Le monde numerique
FR→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 11/14/2020
Rating: Total score: 80% price: 70% performance: 60% workmanship: 80%
Source: CNet France
FR→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 11/14/2020
Rating: Total score: 60%
Source: Product Test
RU→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 10/14/2020
Rating: Total score: 80% performance: 80% display: 72% mobility: 90%
Source: Hitech Vesti
RU→EN Archive.org versionPositive: Powerful processor; nice cameras; large battery capacity; quick charging; NFC module. Negative: Poor display; plastic case; combined slot.
Single Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 10/16/2020
Source: Mega Obzor
RU→EN Archive.org versionPositive: Low price; powerful hardware; NFC module; quick charging; long battery life; nice display. Negative: Easy getting dirts; relatively thick.
Single Review, online available, Very Long, Date: 10/14/2020
Source: Puhelinvertailu
→EN Archive.org versionSingle Review, online available, Long, Date: 11/07/2020
Rating: Total score: 70%
Comment
Model:
The Motorola Moto G9 Play has entered the market merely six months after the release of the Moto G8, but it has already started creating name for its own. In terms of its design, Motorola has mixed up the formula again, most notably when it comes to the rear camera placement. The rear cameras are now situated in a neat square in the top-centre portion of the phone, the three cameras and LED flash module are spaced evenly apart in a 2x2 grid, with a sensibly-placed circular fingerprint reader sitting just underneath and the Motorola “M” logo etched onto it. The placement certainly looks tidy compared to the Moto G8’s somewhat clumsy camera placement. On the front, the Moto G9 Play has a simple teardrop notch nibbling its way into the top-centre portion of the screen and housing the 8MP front-facing camera. Apart from that, it should be noted that the phone comes in two colour variations, namely Sapphire Blue and Forest Green.
The 6.5-inch screen display of the Moto G9 Play is mostly bezel-free, with slim black bars across the top and side edges, although there is a comparatively chunky chin bezel at the bottom. The build quality is somewhat impressive, and its hardy construction is reminiscent of much pricier handsets with minimal flex or bending when placed under pressure. However, the Moto G9 Play does not have a protective layer of Gorilla Glass on either the front or back, nor does it have any official IP-rated dust or water ingress protection.
The Moto G9 Play is a bit out-dated in the display department, as the likes of Xiaomi, Realme and Samsung offer Full-HD handsets in this price bracket, whereas the Moto G9 Play simply makes do with a 720 x 1,600 (HD+) IPS panel stretched across a large 6.5in screen. This is definitely a drawback for a phone at this price range. Apart from that, the Moto G9 Play uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 chipset, which, from a technical standpoint, is pretty much identical to the Snapdragon 665 that powered the Moto G8. They are both octa-core processors clocked at 2 GHz and built on an 11nm fabrication process. The comparisons between the two phones do not stop there either, as the Moto G9 Play also has 4 GB of RAM, alongside 64 GB of expandable storage.
As for the cameras, the Moto G9 Play uses a triple-camera array on the rear. The primary snapper has 48 MP, followed by a 2MP macro and a 2MP depth-sensing unit. In terms of its battery, this phone has been equipped with a massive 5,000mAh battery for user convenience. While the phone does carry some notable improvements over the Moto G8, the choice of owning one is subjective.
Hands-on article by Jagadisa Rajarathnam
Qualcomm Adreno 610: Integrated (in the Snapdragon 665) graphics card based on the Adreno 600 architecture. The performance of the GPU is between the Adreno 510 and 512/612 and therefore in the lower mid range. Supports DirectX11_1, Vulkan 1.0, OpenCL 2.0, OpenGL ES 3.2.
Only some 3D games with very low demands are playable with these cards.
» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Graphics Cards and the corresponding Benchmark List.
SD 662: Fast mid-range ARM SoC with 8 CPU Kryo 260 cores (four fast 2 GHz Cortex-A73 cores in a cluster and two power saving 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 cores) and a rather slow Adreno 610 GPU. Manufactured in a 11 nm LPP process.» Further information can be found in our Comparison of Mobile Processsors.
6.50":
It is a small display format for smartphones. You shouldn't be severely defective in vision, and you won't see much detail on the screen and only have a small resolution available. For that, the device should be small and handy, easy to transport.
» To find out how fine a display is, see our DPI List.Motorola: Founded in 1928, the US-based company mainly focuses on communication technology such as smartphones. The original company Motorola Inc was split up in 2011. Motorola Mobility got the smartphone division and was taken over by Google in 2012 and Lenovo in 2014.
The company is known for its cell phones and other electronic devices such as smartwatches, tablets and accessories. Motorola was one of the first companies to produce cell phones, and in recent years has also innovated in the areas of 5G technology and modular smartphones (Moto Mods). Motorola is also active in public safety and professional communications, providing solutions for government agencies, businesses and other organizations. The company has operations in North America, Europe, Asia and Latin America and employs more than 10,000 people worldwide.
72.74%: This rating is poor. More than three quarters of the models are rated better. That is rather not a purchase recommendation. Even if verbal ratings in this area do not sound that bad ("sufficient" or "satisfactory"), they are usually euphemisms that disguise a classification as a below-average laptop.
» Further information can be found in our Notebook Purchase Guide.