Moto G8 Plus: Why is it no longer worth buying?

Moto G8 Plus: design and construction

Little has changed in terms of design between the launch of the Moto G8 Plus and the present day. The model was one of the brand’s first to change the traditional central circle on the back as a camera module for a vertical line in the upper left corner. Its successors feature a rectangular module instead of a single vertical row.

The fingerprint reader is on the back cover, which is finished in plastic, the same material on the side. The entire front is covered by the glass that protects the screen, which even occupies much of the front portion of the device, with a small drop-shaped central cutout at the top, to house the selfie camera. The chin on the bottom is of considerable size, as is normal on devices with an LCD screen, as the connectors cannot be “bent” under the visible part of the screen.

• Dimensions: 158.4 x 75.8 x 9.1 mm
• Weight: 188 grams

Because of that, the dimensions are quite reasonable considering the screen size, which is 6.3 inches. The cell phone also has a headphone jack and connector USB Type C for recharging and data transfer.

Moto G8 Plus: screen quality

The Moto G8 Plus cell phone was one of the last intermediaries launched for less than R$2,000 by Motorola with Full HD resolution. The device was succeeded by the G9 Plus, which also has good pixel density, but already jumps to a higher category due to the power of its processor.

The IPS LCD type display is 6.3 inches and has a good amount of pixels, which ensures excellent sharpness to the images. But, due to the more “entry” processor within the intermediate options, the fluidity ends up a little harmed, if you compare with more recent models like the Moto G30, which has similar power and HD resolution.

The only point where the screen really falls short is the maximum brightness, too low for outdoor use, especially on sunny days. Also, because it is an LCD panel, the black is a very dark shade of gray, and not deep like in OLED screens. But overall, you can consume content, including videos, at a very satisfactory level.

The Moto G8 Plus’s screen is 6.3 inches and occupies just under 83% of the front portion of the device, with an area of ​​approximately 99 cm². The 19:9 ratio is slightly wider than newer models, which already adopt 20:9 or even 20.5:9. With 1080 x 2280 pixels of resolution, the display brings approximately 400 dpi (dots per pixel) of density.

Moto G8 Plus: configuration and performance

As I already mentioned, the Moto G8 Plus has a processor similar to the Moto G30, in addition to repeating the amount of memory RAM, while bringing half the internal storage of the newer model. And then, due to the higher screen resolution, it may be that some processes get a little slower, as there are more pixels to load with each screen update.

But the Snapdragon 665 platform is slightly more powerful than the Snapdragon 662 used in models that succeeded the Moto G8 Plus. It’s a good enough processor to run apps and even some of the top games on the Play Store these days.

In other words, at least in terms of performance, the Moto G8 Plus is still a great phone to use in 2021 and 2022. And 64GB of RAM memory only started to be considered the minimum for a good smartphone recently, although many intermediaries that are now considered its successor or competitors of these already bring 128 GB.

The Snapdragon 665 has an eight-core processor that splits into four Kryo 260 Gold at 2 GHz and four Kryo 260 Silver at 1.8 GHz. The platform is built on 11 nanometer lithograph and has an Adreno 610 GPU. Same technical features as the Snapdragon 662, but there are differences in other aspects — remember that the SoC, which came to be known as the “processor” of the cell phone, is a platform with several components, including modems and graphics and neural processors, among others.

battery and system

In terms of battery, the Moto G8 Plus is behind the most recent models in the Moto G line. It has 4,000 mAh of charge capacity, while the devices launched later already bring 5,000 mAh, with a greater guarantee of lasting up to two days away from the socket. .

And, unlike its predecessor, the G8 Plus has a 15 W charger, a power considered fast today, but much smaller than the 27 W of the Moto G7 Plus, and a little less than the 20 W present in several newer models in the line, such as the Moto G30.

The operating system is the biggest weakness of the model. Motorola only promised an Android 9 update, and the device actually stopped at Android 10, with no forecast for receiving 11. It’s not a very big lag, but it does mean the device will likely stop running Android WhatsApp (among other apps) up to two years before a newer Moto G.

Moto G8 Plus: photographic set

When Motorola launched the Moto G8 Plus, high-resolution photo sensors were starting to become a trend. There are 48 MP in the main camera, 16 MP in the super wide angle — which, however, is only good for recording “action videos”, using the cell phone standing up to capture in landscape mode — and another 5 MP depth sensor . In front, 25 MP selfies.

Both the main and front cameras use a technology Motorola calls the Quad Pixel. It’s nothing more than a merging of four smaller pixels into a larger one, to increase light sensitivity and deliver clearer, less noisy photos. With that, the final result has a reduction in resolution, and instead of 48 MP or 25 MP, the photos are left with 12 MP and 6 MP, respectively.

On the cell phone screen, the sharpness is great, and you can notice the gain with light sensitivity in environments with slightly reduced light. The device also has the Night Vision feature, to improve night photos.

Video recording can be done with maximum 4K resolution, but only the main camera can reach this resolution. Front and ultra wide record in 1080p. There hasn’t been much change in this aspect in the last two years, at least in intermediate cell phones.

Moto G8 Plus: is it worth it?

In summary, the Moto G8 Plus is still a good phone even two years after its launch. So why isn’t it worth it anymore?

The question here is the current price. You can find this device at around R$ 1,500, a value for which it is already possible to find its successor, the Moto G9 Plus, which already has a much more powerful processor, more storage space and a better set of cameras, as well as more battery. Another option would be the Galaxy M21s, gives Samsung, or even the M31, which only has one more camera and more storage than the “brother”, and they are both in the same range.

Before investing in the Moto G8 Plus instead of thinking about a more up-to-date intermediate, it’s good to remember that there have been some advances since then that are important to ensure greater durability to the phone. Like battery capacity and internal storage. In addition, Motorola’s 2019 model is already outdated in the operating system version and will no longer be updated.

Thinking about models in the same category as the Moto G8 Plus when it is launched, you can consult the Moto G30 or the Galaxy M32, which on top of that has more RAM, too.

So, it’s more interesting to invest in a newer model, even if it doesn’t bring much more benefits than battery and Android version. Anyway, with the same amount you would pay on the Moto G8 Plus, you can buy a more powerful model.

It costs nothing to say that, in case you already have the Moto G8 Plus in your hands, there’s no reason to worry: it’s still an excellent device and there’s no reason to think about changing it, especially if it suits your needs. The idea of ​​this analysis is to think about whether it is worth purchasing the model now, zeroed, at the current price.

Check out the best price for a good alternative to the Moto G8 Plus:

–