Motorola Edge 40 Review: Cult Mid-Range Phone!
The Motorola Edge 40 is a device that builds upon the strengths of its predecessor and introduces several noteworthy enhancements.
With notable improvements in key areas such as dust and water resistance, battery capacity, charging speed, and design, it stands out as an attractive option in its price range. Whether you’re an avid photographer, a frequent traveler, or someone who values a reliable and durable smartphone, the Edge 40 delivers a satisfying experience. Motorola continues to impress with its commitment to innovation and user-centric features, making the Edge 40 a device worth considering for anyone in search of a well-rounded and reliable smartphone.
Motorola Edge 40: Video Review
| Specs | Motorola Edge 40 |
| Display | 6.55 inches, 1080 x 2400 pixels, P-OLED, 144Hz, HDR10+, 1200 nits (peak) |
| CPU | Mediatek Dimensity 8020 (6 nm) |
| GPU | Mali-G77 MC9 |
| RAM | 8GB |
| ROM | 128GB, 256GB |
| Card slot | No |
| OS | Android 13 |
| Main Camera | 50 MP, f/1.4, (wide), 13 MP, f/2.2, 120˚ (ultrawide) |
| Selfie Camera | 32 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 0.7µm |
| NFC | Yes |
| 3.5mm jack | No |
| Battery | Li-Po 4400 mAh |
| Charging | 68W wired, 15W wireless |
| Dimensions | 158.4 x 72 x 7.6 mm (6.24 x 2.83 x 0.30 in) |
| Weight | 167 g or 171 g (5.89 oz) |
| Colors | Nebula Green, Lunar Blue, Eclipse Black, Viva Magenta |
Unboxing
Motorola’s commitment to environmental sustainability is evident in the packaging of the Motorola Edge 40. By utilizing plastic-free materials, recyclable box covers, soy ink, and bundling essential accessories, the company demonstrates its dedication to reducing environmental impact. This move supports the concept of circular economy by encouraging users to recycle materials rather than adding them to landfills.
Alongside the phone, the retail box includes essential accessories such as a charger and a USB Type-C cable.
Also Motorola bundling a transparent hard case with the Edge 40.
Lastly, the inclusion of documents and the SIM eject tool in the box ensures that users have all the necessary resources and tools readily available.
Design
The Motorola Edge 40 is available in two stunning finishes, each offering a unique aesthetic appeal. One option is the Nebula Green variant, which features a vegan leather back panel. This choice not only adds a touch of sophistication but also aligns with eco-friendly practices by using a synthetic material instead of animal products. The Eclipse Black variant also sports a vegan leather back, offering a sleek and elegant look. For those who prefer a different texture, the Lunar Blue color option presents a PMMA acrylic finish. While it is technically plastic, it has a frosted, glass-like appearance that adds a touch of class.
In terms of design, the Motorola is impressively slim, measuring just 7.58mm in thickness. This slim profile contributes to the phone’s overall sleek and modern appearance. Additionally, it weighs a mere 171g, ensuring a lightweight and comfortable feel in the hand. It’s worth noting that the blue variant with the plastic back is slightly slimmer and lighter, adding to its appeal for those who prioritize slimness and portability.
The curved display design, combined with the faux leather or acrylic back, enhances the phone’s elegance while also providing a secure grip. The circular cutouts for the primary and secondary cameras add a distinctive visual element to the rear panel, making it easy to identify the camera setup at a glance. On the right side of the device, you’ll find the power button and volume rockers, while the left side remains blank for a clean and minimalistic look. At the bottom, you’ll find the SIM tray, USB Type-C port for charging and data transfer, and a speaker outlet.
Moving to the front of the device, you’ll notice a punch-hole cutout at the top of the display, housing the front-facing camera. The fingerprint sensor is incorporated into the screen, providing a quick and convenient way to unlock the phone and ensure security. While the Motorola Edge 40 offers a modern array of ports and placements, it is worth mentioning that the absence of a 3.5mm headphone jack may be a drawback for some users who prefer wired audio connections. However, with the increasing popularity of wireless audio solutions, this omission may not be a significant issue for everyone.
Display
The Motorola Edge 40 showcases an impressive display, featuring a 6.55-inch OLED panel that is sure to captivate users.
With a resolution of 1080×2400 and an aspect ratio of 20:9, the display of the Edge 40 offers crisp visuals and an immersive viewing experience. The high resolution ensures that images and text appear sharp and detailed, allowing users to enjoy multimedia content to its fullest.
To fully experience the benefits of the 144Hz refresh rate, users have the option to manually set it in the settings menu. By doing so, the screen delivers unparalleled smoothness during interactions, making every swipe and scroll a joy to perform. However, it’s worth noting that when left on the Auto mode, the refresh rate will automatically switch between 60Hz and 120Hz depending on the content being displayed. While this conserves battery life, it means that the full effect of the 144Hz refresh rate can only be experienced through manual configuration.
The Motorola Edge 40 also supports HDR10+, which enhances compatible videos by providing rich contrast, deep shadows, and vibrant highlights. The colors on the display are vibrant without being overly saturated, striking a balance between realism and visual appeal.
While the screen doesn’t reach blinding levels of brightness, it remains easily visible when used outdoors, even with the Auto brightness setting enabled. This ensures that users can comfortably view the screen in various lighting conditions without any major visibility issues.
Performance
The Motorola Edge 40 is equipped with the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 chipset, offering robust performance within its range. The octa-core CPU configurations, coupled with the Mali-G77 MC9 GPU, ensure high-end capabilities that elevate the phone’s performance. This combination enables the device to handle various tasks and applications with ease, providing a seamless user experience.
Motorola offers the Edge 40 in two memory configurations: 128GB and 256GB, both paired with 8GB of RAM. This ample storage capacity allows users to store a significant amount of data, including apps, photos, videos, and more. The 256GB variant provides even more space for those who require additional storage for their multimedia files, documents, and applications.
In our review, we found that the Edge 40, despite being a mid-range phone, delivers the necessary power to handle tasks smoothly. We did not encounter any instances of lag or slowdown during our usage. The phone’s performance remained consistently reliable, ensuring a seamless user experience across different applications and usage scenarios.
The gaming experience on the Motorola Edge 40 is particularly noteworthy, thanks to its capable GPU. The device allows games to run smoothly at their peak settings, providing an immersive and enjoyable gaming experience.
Operating on Android 13, the Motorola Edge 40 benefits from Motorola’s software approach, which closely resembles a nearly stock Android experience. This means that users can expect a clean and user-friendly interface with minimal bloatware and a focus on essential features.
Motorola Edge 40: Camera
The Motorola Edge 40 features a dual-camera system on the back. The primary camera boasts a 50MP wide lens, accompanied by a 13MP ultrawide lens. This simplified camera setup focuses on delivering high-quality images without the need for additional sensors. On the front, the device sports a 32MP selfie camera, completing the comprehensive camera package.
The primary camera utilizes the OmniVision OV50A sensor, which features a large optical format and a 4-cell design. This sensor produces 12.5MP images with 2.0µm pixels, ensuring excellent image quality. The standout feature of the primary camera is its bright f/1.4 aperture, which allows for better low-light performance and subject separation. This aperture setting enables the camera to capture more light, resulting in sharper and more detailed images even in challenging lighting conditions.
The ultrawide camera, sourced from the Edge 30 Fusion, incorporates a 13MP sensor with autofocus capabilities. This lens allows users to capture expansive landscapes, group photos, or creative wide-angle shots with ease. The autofocus feature ensures that subjects in the frame remain sharp and well-focused.
For selfie enthusiasts, the Motorola Edge 40 includes a 32MP front-facing camera. The selfie camera uses the OmniVision OV32B sensor, which is slightly smaller in size but still employs a 4-cell design. While lacking autofocus functionality, the selfie camera produces excellent results with its high resolution. By default, selfies are captured at 8MP resolution, but users have the option to switch to the full 32MP resolution. This option allows for higher detail and more accurate representation of the subject, while still maintaining natural skin tones and a wide dynamic range.
In daylight conditions, the primary camera of the Motorola Edge 40 excels at capturing photos with minimal noise and good detail. The lens reproduces colors naturally and accurately, while also offering impressive dynamic range even in overcast conditions. Close-up shots are particularly noteworthy, showcasing subject isolation and pleasant background blurring for a professional-looking result. In low-light situations, the phone performs admirably, especially when utilizing the Night Mode. The images captured at night are sharp and retain the darkness and shadow details without overexposing the scene with excessive light.
When it comes to selfies, the Motorola Edge 40 offers high-quality results. The default 8MP resolution delivers fine detail, natural skin tones, and a wide dynamic range. Users also have the option to switch to the full 32MP resolution, further enhancing the level of detail and image clarity.
Motorola Edge 40: Battery
The Motorola Edge 40 is equipped with a 4,400mAh battery, providing ample power to keep the device running throughout the day. With average usage, the phone easily lasts a full day on a single charge. However, for heavy usage, such as extensive multimedia consumption or gaming, it may be necessary to recharge the device before the end of the day.
To facilitate quick charging, the Motorola Edge 40 comes bundled with a USB Power Delivery (PD) adapter rated at 68W. This aligns with Motorola’s promise of a 0-100% charge time of 39 minutes. In our testing, we found that it took approximately 40-45 minutes to fully charge the battery, which is quite impressive. The advertised claim holds true, and users can enjoy the convenience of rapid charging to quickly replenish their device’s battery.
A notable feature found in recent Motorola phones, including the Edge 40, is the Overcharge protection toggle in the Battery menu. This feature safeguards the battery by preventing overcharging. If the phone remains plugged in for three consecutive days, the overcharge protection automatically cuts off charging, ensuring the battery’s longevity and health.
Motorola Edge 40: Conclusion
The Motorola Edge 40 offers a compelling package that combines various notable features to enhance the overall smartphone experience. With its sleek and slim design, the device is both visually appealing and comfortable to hold.
The 144Hz OLED display is a standout feature of the Edge 40, providing a smooth and immersive visual experience. Whether scrolling through content or playing games, the higher refresh rate ensures fluidity and responsiveness. The HDR10+ support further enhances the display’s capabilities, delivering vibrant colors and excellent contrast.
Powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8020 chipset and 8GB of RAM, the Edge 40 delivers impressive performance in its price range. Whether multitasking, running demanding applications, or playing games, the device handles tasks seamlessly, without any noticeable lag or slowdown. The generous storage options of 128GB and 256GB provide ample space for storing files, apps, and multimedia content.
The camera system of the Motorola Edge 40 captures excellent photos in various lighting conditions.
The battery life of the Edge 40 is satisfactory, lasting a full day with average usage. The inclusion of a USB Power Delivery adapter rated at 68W enables fast charging, allowing users to quickly recharge their device.
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