Moto G Stylus 2025 assessment: A brand new normal for $400 telephones

Motorola’s Stylus lineup has represented the upper finish of the corporate’s midrange telephones for years. After LG’s departure, it was one of many solely different smartphones to hold a built-in stylus, except for Samsung’s premium S telephones just like the Galaxy S25 Ultra. So naturally, with the Moto G Stylus 2025, there is a little bit of stress to actually entice clients away from a flagship telephone that prices greater than thrice as a lot.

Fortunately, I believe Motorola has nailed it. The Stylus 2025 improves on final 12 months’s mannequin in methods I did not suppose the corporate was prepared for, with specs that simply rival a few of the greatest Android telephones. And whereas the $400 price ticket means you will not get all of the capabilities of a premium Android smartphone, the Moto G Stylus 2025 has nearly all the things you’d want with out all of the superfluous bells and whistles that find yourself costing you $1000 or extra.

Moto G Stylus 2025: Price, availability, and specs

The Moto G Stylus 2025 was introduced on April 8 and went on sale within the United States on April 17. The telephone retails for $399 when bought unlocked from Motorola and retailers like Amazon and Best Buy.

Color choices embrace Gibraltar Sea and Surf the Web, though availability might rely upon the service. Depending on the place you purchase it, you get 128GB or 256GB of storage, however it’ll include 8GB of RAM both approach.

Moto G Stylus 2025: What I like

I’ve beforehand famous how there are a whole lot of issues to love in regards to the Moto G Stylus 2025, and after spending extra time with the telephone, all of that also rings true. The telephone has a splendidly easy but efficient design that mirrors a few of final 12 months’s flagships just like the Edge 50 Ultra. The digicam housing has developed to a extra stove-like design, whereas the vegan leather-based encases all the again properly. It’s a smooth and really comfy telephone to carry.

It’s a fairly large telephone, with a show at 6.7 inches, however the bezels are smaller than you’d count on for a telephone at this worth level. The telephone can also be a hair thinner than the Moto G Stylus New Radio 2024, however the battery capability remains to be the identical, which is sweet.

Motorola did one thing I did not count on with the Stylus show, pushing it past what many midrange (and most flagships) provide by giving it a Super HD decision. It’s not a decision I’ve seen a lot on a smartphone, however it makes the OLED show seem extremely crisp.

It’s shocking, given how Motorola is pushing the next decision than the bottom Galaxy S25, whereas growing brightness to three,000 nits. The result’s a pointy, shiny show that is virtually pretty much as good as the brand new Razr Ultra 2025, and admittedly, I’d like to see extra flagship telephones with this decision.

The telephone is powered by a Snapdragon 6 Gen 3, coupled with 8GB of RAM. I’d’ve beloved to see a extra highly effective chip, perhaps one thing within the 7 sequence, however after utilizing the telephone over the previous few weeks, I can fortunately report that the telephone performs fairly nicely. The software program is snappy, apps open shortly, and video games play fairly nicely.

You might expertise some dropped frames if you happen to’re enjoying one thing graphically heavy like Honkai: Star Rail on the best settings, however the telephone is greater than able to easy gameplay on excessive settings.

The Moto G Stylus 2025 runs Android 15 out of the field. It’s not a lot completely different from Android 14, and Motorola’s Hello UX is a largely inoffensive tackle Android. There’s not a lot built-in customization, not less than on the degrees you may discover on OnePlus telephones, for instance, however I do not see this as a draw back, particularly if you wish to preserve issues easy. After all, it is a $400 telephone, so anybody shopping for this almost definitely is not an influence person.

I recognize the noticeable lack of bloatware. Aside from a random gaming folder which you can simply disable and the Glance display that is turned off by default, Motorola has executed an excellent job minimizing pointless software program on its midrange and finances telephones.

I additionally recognize that Motorola is bettering its software program replace promise, even by a little bit. The telephone is about to obtain two OS upgrades and three years of bi-weekly software program updates. Last 12 months’s Moto G Stylus New Radio 2024 has been receiving updates fairly persistently, and the Moto G Stylus 2023 acquired Android 14 earlier than the Razr Plus 2023 did, so I’m hoping Motorola can preserve this up.

There is a few AI right here, however do not count on a Pixel 9a right here. Motorola’s Moto AI options are largely reserved for higher-end telephones, however there are nonetheless some goodies right here price stating. Circle to Search is one in every of my favourite options, and it is nice to see it on this telephone.

In addition to the same old Google Photos AI modifying capabilities, Motorola additionally included a brand new Sketch to Image characteristic that generates pictures in several types based mostly on what you draw. It’s a neat characteristic and works pretty equally to Samsung’s characteristic of the identical title, though not as totally featured. Still, it is a enjoyable characteristic to point out off and probably an effective way to maintain a toddler occupied if mandatory.

Another approach Motorola applies AI is to the digicam expertise. The firm upgraded the Moto G Stylus 2025 to a 50MP Sony LYTIA 700C sensor, and whereas final 12 months’s telephone took fairly respectable pictures, I’ve not been upset with the photograph high quality from this digicam both. For probably the most half, pictures are crisp and vibrant, significantly in good lighting.

You can get some fairly good natural-looking bokeh from pictures, and the macro pictures from the ultrawide digicam are additionally surprisingly good for these of you who prefer to take close-up pictures of nature.

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Compared to final 12 months’s mannequin, the Stylus 2025 does not try to brighten shadows almost as a lot. On the opposite hand, pictures from the Stylus 2024 can typically seem a bit synthetic and have flatter colours.

Where the AI is available in is with Action Shot, which might seize very high-speed pictures of transferring topics to scale back blur and make sure the topic is in focus. You can see from the photographs beneath how the Stylus 2025 does a a lot better job of capturing operating water or a prepare in movement, though it could come on the expense of some dynamic vary.

Basically, it is a good characteristic to have if you happen to personal pets or have youngsters.

Battery life is fairly nice, which is par for the course for Motorola’s G sequence. I might simply get a day of use from the Stylus 2025, and you will possible get the identical or extra, relying in your use.

Motorola additionally managed to get 68W charging on a $400 telephone, which feels too good to be true for North America, however it actually is unimaginable. From 1%, the telephone will attain 50% in 20 minutes and 100% in 39 minutes. Someone inform Samsung.

Moto G Stylus 2025: What I do not like

Like final 12 months’s mannequin, the Moto G Stylus 2025 makes use of an in-display fingerprint sensor. Frankly, it is not dangerous, however it’s not my favourite both. It takes a second to register, and it is positioned uncomfortably low on the show. This is identical problem I had with the Stylus New Radio 2024, so it is annoying to see right here, too.

Furthermore, the sensor flashes a really shiny white while you use it, which is especially jarring, particularly when utilizing the telephone in darkish areas.

The digicam additionally has a number of quirks, which I hope Motorola can tweak or repair with future updates. The telephone does nicely in good lighting situations, and post-processing can typically properly improve pictures past what’s captured, however it does not appear to do too nicely in trickier lighting conditions. As a end result, some pictures can seem too darkish or heavy in distinction. Again, it is about desire, however I want to see not less than some enhancements with the way it handles darker scenes.

It appears humorous that that is even a problem, given Motorola’s curious and seemingly pointless inclusion of a 3-in-1 gentle sensor (that third “digicam” on the again).

Furthermore, whereas video will be fairly respectable and steady as much as 1080p at 60fps, issues will begin to crap out when you hit 4K30. The digicam would usually crap out and fully crash when making an attempt to document a 4K video, which is sort of a bummer.

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On the software program entrance, it will have been good to see Motorola give the telephone extra Moto AI options, even when they’re cloud-based, though at $400, this is not actually one thing we must always count on from a tool at this worth level.

Similarly, with Motorola’s software program promise, which admittedly may very well be higher. We’ve seen the corporate provide a mid-range G-series telephone 5 OS upgrades and 6 years of software program updates, and it will be good to see that stage of assist on what may very well be thought of the corporate’s “hero” Moto G telephone in North America.

Finally, whereas its good to nonetheless have a stylus telephone aside from Samsung’s premium Galaxy S25 Ultra, it feels a bit laggy, even after Motorola alleged to enhance responsiveness by 4X.

I do like that Motorola lastly gave it some function by including the Sketch to Image characteristic, however I can not assist however marvel if Motorola could be higher off together with an energetic stylus like an S Pen for probably higher usability or simply getting rid of it altogether and giving us an even bigger battery or one thing.

Moto G Stylus 2025: Competition

At this worth level, the closest competitor for the Moto G Stylus 2025 could be the Samsung Galaxy A36. Because it is Samsung, you are getting a a lot better software program promise and a few enjoyable built-in AI options like Object Eraser. However, charging pace remains to be slower, the display is not as sharp, there’s much less base RAM, and you do not get expandable storage.

You might additionally spring for the Pixel 9a if you happen to do not thoughts spending a little bit extra. This approach, you possibly can get a greater software program promise, extra colour choices, and tons of AI options. However, it prices $100 extra, and you will miss out on the quicker charging speeds.

You might additionally go for the Nothing Phone 3a or Phone 3a Pro, each of that are equally priced and have spectacular specs. However, they could even be exhausting to come up with as they’re solely accessible by way of Nothing’s beta program, and service assist is not as strong or dependable.

Moto G Stylus 2025: Should you purchase it?

You should purchase this if…

• You’re out there for a very good, reasonably priced telephone.
• You desire a telephone with a built-in stylus pen.
• You need good battery life and quick charging.

You should not purchase this if…

• You need all the most recent AI options from Google.
• You plan to maintain the telephone for greater than three years.

It’s robust to search out causes to not suggest the Moto G Stylus 2025. Despite a few of its drawbacks, this is likely one of the greatest Android telephones underneath $400, and one you undoubtedly should not sleep on, even with costlier telephones just like the Pixel 9a looming over it.

The specs and efficiency make this an excellent telephone for the worth, and the digicam is surprisingly good, even when it wants a little bit of tweaking. And whereas the telephone is not excellent, not one of the negatives really feel like dealbreakers to me, even after a number of weeks. Ultimately, the Moto G Stylus 2025 solidifies Motorola because the king of reasonably priced telephones in North America.