Moto G9 Plus review

Introduction

Unlike the Moto G8, which felt more like a refresh than a real generational upgrade, the G9 Plus improves upon the G7 and G8 in almost every aspect.

The G9 Plus comes with a considerably more recent, and more advanced Snapdragon 730G chipset. It has a larger battery, bumps up the storage to 128GB, and gains a faster 30W charging. And as obvious by the Plus moniker, it also has a bigger display, too.

While the Moto G-series announcements in the past have traditionally revealed the whole family, the members of the latest Moto G9 lineup have been trickling slowly one by one. And Motorola hasn't even released them on all markets. So you may or may not be seeing these devices on your shores.

Motorola Moto G9 Plus specs at a glance:

• Body: 170.0x78.1x9.7mm, 223g; Glass front, plastic unibody design.
• Display: 6.81" LTPS IPS, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 386ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SDM730 Snapdragon 730G (8 nm): Octa-core (2x2.2 GHz Kryo 470 Gold & 6x1.8 GHz Kryo 470 Silver); Adreno 618.
• Memory: 128GB 4GB RAM; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
• OS/Software: Android 10.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.73", 0.8µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 118˚ (ultrawide), 1/4.0", 1.12µm; Macro: 2 MP, f/2.2, (macro); Depth: 2 MP, f/2.2, (depth); LED flash, HDR, panorama.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.0, 29mm (standard); HDR.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 5000mAh; Fast charging 30W.
• Misc: Fingerprint (side-mounted), NFC.

But as always, Motorola faces quite a bit of competition in this price range, mostly from Realme and Xiaomi. There are also a few Samsung options, and to our surprise, some older Motorola-made devices for about the same price.

That's a re-occurring theme for the last couple of Moto G generations. Is it going to be like this with the G9 Plus, and are there any compelling advantages that need to be explored? We try to find out on the next pages.

Unboxing the Moto G9 Plus

Aside from the usual user manuals, the box also contains the 30W charger, the corresponding USB-A to USB-C cable, and a transparent silicone case.

The retail package contents are what we would expect to see. We'll check out the phone itself on the next page.