Moto G73 5G review

Looking for a cheap, mid-range phone that can handle all your everyday tasks? You’ve come to the right place.

In this review, we’ll be analysing the strengths and weaknesses of Motorola’s Moto G73 5G, one of the most high-profile handsets in the Moto G line. There are 12 phones in total to choose from, ranging from the €149 Moto G22 to the €329 Moto G82.

But with so much competition at a similar price, can the G73 really stand out? Here’s our full review.

Design & Build

• Side-mounted fingerprint sensor
• 3.5mm audio jack
• Plastic exterior

The Moto G73 is a good-looking phone from every angle. It adopts a simple design, but still manages to look like a premium handset. Its attractive symmetrical rear camera module certainly helps.

At just 8.3mm and 181g, it’s a relatively thin and light phone. The plastic exterior covers both the back and curved frame – maintaining the same colour scheme throughout makes it look really impressive.

If you’re not a fan of the Midnight Blue you see in photos, the G73 is also available in Lucent White. On both models, the colour scheme extends to the volume and power buttons, which is a nice touch.

These buttons are all on the right side of the phone as you use it, leaving the left almost completely empty. At the bottom, you’ll find the USB-C charging port and even a 3.5mm audio jack, a rare feature on modern smartphones.

The SIM tray can support two nano cards and a microSD, with the latter allowing for expandable storage.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

That power button mentioned above is also where you’ll find the fingerprint sensor. It’s built in here, rather than under the display like on some other phones. But this doesn’t feel like a compromise: it’s fast and reliable, just what you’d want.

It’s also worth mentioning the G73’s waterproofing, although it’s not as good as you might be hoping for. There’s no official IP rating here, but the design means it should be able to handle a light rain shower without any issues. Just don’t drop it into a swimming pool.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

Motorola has included both the USB-C charging cable and a power adapter in the box, alongside a clear silicone case. It provides decent protection, and it’s what we’ve come to expect from many Android phone makers these days.

Screen & speakers

• 6.5in display with 120Hz refresh rate
• Full HD+ resolution
• Solid LCD panel, but lacks contrast

Display is something Motorola has given special attention to on the G73. It’s a 6.5in, 2400×1080 panel, with a 120Hz refresh rate ensuring excellent fluidity.

As this is an affordable phone, it’s not surprise to see an LCD screen rather than OLED. Even so, the display offers plenty of detail and vibrant colours which really pop. It can also reach 405 nits of brightness, making it clearly visible in most outdoor environments.

However, if you compare it side-by-side with an OLED phone, you’ll notice that blacks often appear grey and contrast is slightly lacking.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

While using the display, you’ll notice slower speeds than phones that are significantly more expensive. But this is primarily due to a faster process – not inadequacies with the display.

Screen responsiveness is generally good, and you’ll only notice a slowdown compared to flagships while gaming.

The display is interrupted by a punch-hole selfie camera, but bezels elsewhere are relatively slim. I just wish Motorola would stop persisting with such a large chin.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

In terms of audio, you’ll find stereo speakers and Dolby Atmos support on the G73. The phone is one of the best-sounding phones at this price point, despite some distortion at high volumes.

Specs & performance

• MediaTek Dimensity 930 and 8GB of RAM
• Impressive performance
• 256GB of expandable storage

Performance is one of the key selling points of the Moto G73. It’s equipped with MediaTek’s 6nm Dimensity 930 chip, alongside 8GB of RAM.

The Dimensity 930 is very much a mid-range chip, so performance is better than you might expect from a phone at this price. It handles all the basics with relative ease, and you’ll only really run into problems when running the most demanding apps and games.

Motorola has made a phone that competes well with some of the best mid-range phones you can buy, despite costing around £100/€100 less in most cases:

There’s more good news when it comes to internal storage. Not only is 256GB fairly generous by cheap phone standards, it’s also expandable via a microSD card.

Connectivity is solid, too. The Dimensity 930 has 5G support built in, while you also get Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3. There’s also NFC, meaning you can use the phone for Google Pay.

Camera & video

• Decent 50Mp main camera
• Underwhelming 8Mp ultrawide
• Good 16Mp selfie lens

Cameras can make or break a modern smartphone – even at this more affordable price point. The G73 can take some attractive photos, but it’s a long way from being best in class.

Its 50Mp, f/2.2 main lens is undoubtedly the highlight. In good lighting, you can get some really impressive photos from this phone.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

See also  Samsung The Freestyle review

The 50Mp sensor is the only one of the three here to support autofocus, and it makes a big difference to the point and shoot experience. Provided there’s enough natural light, you can expect good exposure and a decent amount of dynamic range. Shots are generally true to life, avoiding the common tendency to oversaturate.

However, there’s a big drop-off in image quality in low-light conditions. Focus takes a lot longer, while grainy areas and noise begin to appear. Shots are lacking in detail, even when there’s some artificial lighting.

A software-based night mode improves this somewhat, but you still lose a lot of definition and dynamic range.

That main lens is joined by just one other on the back of the phone: an 8Mp, f/2.2 ultrawide. It offers a 118º field of view that’s useful in many situations, but it’s not nearly as detailed as the 50Mp camera.

See some camera samples in the slideshow below:

The phone’s image processing is generally good, but only really for enhancing photos where the lighting is already good

Without a dedicated macro lens, close-up shots rely on software. It’s very hit-and-miss, with impressive results possible but dependent on a steady hand and getting exactly the right distance from the subject. It’s not worth spending much time with.

However, the 16Mp front-facing lens is much more impressive. It delivers better than expected edge detection for portrait mode, while regular selfies offer natural tones and a decent level of detail. It’s worth noting that colours on regular selfies (left) generally appear redder than portrait selfies (right).

The G73 can also record 60fps video using the main camera, and make use of digital zoom up to 6x. But dynamic range is lacking, and you can’t switch to the ultrawide without another drop-off in quality.

You’re limited to 30fps for video from the selfie camera, but with no image stabilisation of any description, it’s not a great option if you plan on moving around at all. It isn’t a great choice for creating TikTok or Instagram content.

Battery & charging

• 5000mAh battery
• Impressive battery life
• Decent 30W charging

Moto G phones have long been associated with great battery life, and that’s no different on the G73.

It’s equipped with a 5000mAh cell which can typically last a full day of usage – even with lots of intensive tasks on the go. Even if you plan to use lots of GPS and mobile data and keep brightness high, battery life holds up well.

Alfonso Casas / Foundry

The 120 nits of brightness for our battery test is lower than usual, but the G73 lasted 13 hours and 48 minutes before running out of charge. Efficient management of power consumption is one of the phone’s most impressive features.

When you do need to charge, there’s a 30W adapter included in the box. It took the phone from 0-51% in 15 minutes, but we’ve come to expect even faster speeds from modern smartphones.

Software & updates

• Runs Android 13
• Very close to ‘stock’ Android
• Only two years of OS updates

The software experience on Motorola phones is often one of the best things about it. That’s true for the G73, which runs a version of Android 13 that’s very close to the ‘stock’ experience on Google Pixel phones.

In fact, the only real addition are Moto Actions, a range of gestures which can be used as shortcuts for specific actions. It’s worth taking time to learn these, as they’re genuinely useful.

But the best thing about the Moto G73 software is the lack of bloatware – unnecessary software pre-installed onto the device. There’s basically none here, which is really refreshing. It’s a pleasure to use a phone with such a clean, slick software experience.

If you’ve never used a Motorola phone before, don’t worry. There isn’t much of a learning curve here, despite extensive customisation options being available. Detailed lock screen notifications also reduces the number of time you need to unlock the device, which benefits battery life.

Price & availability

There’s only one configuration of the Moto G73 available. It includes 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and will set you back £269.99/€299.

While the phone isn’t available on contract with any UK or European networks, it will work with any valid SIM card. But you can’t buy it in the US.

It’s just over the usual threshold for a budget phone, but cheaper than most mid-range handsets. It looks set to go head-to-head with Xiaomi’s £279/€299 Redmi Note 12 5G.

Verdict

The Moto G73 is an impressive phone which performs well in many areas. But Motorola’s own Edge 30 Neo only costs slightly more, yet represents a big performance upgrade.

Compared to the G73, the Neo has a more powerful processor, better OLED display, much faster 68W charging and improved cameras.

So, why should you buy the G73 instead? It has great battery life (despite relatively slow charging), a decent LCD screen and 256GB of storage, but there are no standout features here.

If you’re thinking of buying a phone around this price point, it’s definitely worth considering alternatives before choosing the Moto G73. You might find something you like better for a very similar amount of money.

Specs

• 6.5-inch Full HD+ screen with 2400×1080 resolution
• LCD display with 120 Hz refresh rate
• 20:9 aspect ratio with 405 nits max brightness
• MediaTek Dimensity 930 processor
• IMG BXM-8-256 graphics
• 8GB of RAM
• 256GB of storage
• Fingerprint reader on side button
• Cameras
  • 50 MP, f/1.8 main
  • 8 MP, f/2.2 ultrawide
  • 16 MP, f/2.4 selfie
• Supports dual SIM (nano SIM)
• 3.5mm audio jack
• Dolby Atmos stereo speakers
• Wi-Fi 6
• Bluetooth 5.3
• NFC
• 5000mAh battery
• 30W wired charging
• Android 13
• 161.4 x 73.8 x 8.3mm
• 181g