After getting frustrated and irritated with Samsung Galaxy Grand (even after switching to custom ROM), I finally decided to buy a new phone, Moto G.
Since I was in no mood to shell out another 20-30k, less than one and a half years after buying Galaxy Grand, I decided to go with a budget (comparatively speaking) dual SIM phone.
Initially I was in no mood to buy another android device, and looked through various Windows phones from Nokia. The only one which had dual sim capability was Nokia Lumia 630 Dual SIM and it seemed like a wonderful phone for the price.
In fact I was just about to order it and thought long and hard, before eventually buying Moto G.
So what made me choose Moto G over Lumia 630?
For starters, Lumia 630 does not have a flash. The only time I am likely to depend on my camera’s phone is when I am at a party or wedding, where I wouldn’t carry my DSLRs. Since usually most of the parties and weddings have less than ideal lighting conditions, a flash comes in handy. It also comes in handy while shooting a quick photo or two inside home.
That along with the fact that I am heavily dependent upon Gmail and used to Android OS, finally made me pay Rs. 500 more for Moto G.
I ordered the 8GB variant (not really a heavy app or music user) from Flipkart on Thursday night and received it today morning.
Initial impressions are nice, though I hate the fact that they sent white ear phones and charger, with my black Moto G. Also due to the fact that Moto G uses micro SIM, I had to get a new SIM issued from Vodafone, which was activated by the time I reached home and started Moto G (less than half an hour, so kudos to Vodafone India).
Only complaint I have as of now is the fact that it seems to be a bit slippery, maybe it is due to the fact that I am used to holding much larger Galaxy Grand with its flip cover or maybe it is actually slippery. I will follow this up after a few days.
Performance of the phone seems rather nice (as you can see from Quadrant score) and also the screen seems quite nice and bright.
Sadly I haven’t been able to test dual SIM functionality, since I couldn’t get MTNL’s micro SIM today. Hopefully I will have that by Monday and will be able to post about it soon.
Also Moto G seems to heat up a little more than Galaxy Grand, but then again, Delhi is pretty hot at the moment and I do not have air conditioner.
Thanks to its size, it is also far easier to manage and use than other 5” screen phones, though typing on a smaller screen will require a bit of practice (if you are coming from a 5″ phone like I am).
It is also running latest firmware; 4.4.2 so I didn’t have to do any firmware updates. Hopefully Lenovo (who has recently bought Motorola from Google) will continue to provide latest firmware updates and keep the phone performing at its best.
Overall, Moto G seems like a great value for money and so far I am impressed by it.
12 Comments
What about the service backup? Thinking of buying moto email for wife,,
You can find a list of service centers here. There is only one service center in Himachal Pradesh and it is in Shimla.
Looks awesome but I still prefer Nokia.
I would have liked to go for Nokia, but sadly they are skimping on features these days.
Yogesh, first of all a hearty congrats to you, writing and letting people know your true views about anything is a great work in my opinion. Secondly Moto G is a good choice, I also recently bought it during my recent trip to US. You might want to try the flip cover provided by Motorola which is quite awesome. Again thanks and I hope someday I will also start my blog.
Thank you Ajay. I am sort of tired of flip covers. With Galaxy Grand I had to use it, since its hardware home button used to get pressed in pocket without the cover and phone used to get unlocked.
how’s the battery life, yogesh? any “Google play services” related drain?
since you are tech-savvy, I’ll also ask, have you rooted/installed custom ROMs? is it possible to go back to stock ROM and not worry about service?
Battery life is pretty good, easily lasts a day with moderate usage on 3G.
I haven’t rooted or used custom ROM on Moto G, since the stock ROM is a joy to use and extremely fluid. I had done the same on my Galaxy Grand and you can always unroot the device and reinstall stock ROM.
the second question was mainly because the original moto approach to bootloader locking: “we’ll lock it so tight you can’t unlock!”
I had faced this with the moto milestone which, unlike the moto droid, came with a permanent bootloader lock!
also, HTC used to prevent any re-locking of the bootloader. and, as we all know, unlocking voids warranty..
Here is a thread on how to root Moto G, http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2585755.
thanks!
thanks also for having started BCMT 🙂
🙂