Motorola Edge 40 Neo review: Solid contender in midrange smartphone segment

Chinese electronics maker Lenovo’s smartphone brand Motorola recently launched in India the Edge 40 Neo. An entry-level midrange smartphone by pricing, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo is brimming with premium features such as IP68 rating for water-and-dust resistance, two-side curved pOLED display of 144Hz refresh rate, 5,000 mAh battery with support for 68W fast wired charging, and more. From price-to-specifications optics, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo seems to be an all-round smartphone. Is it? Let us find out:

Design

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo brings freshness to the midrange segment with a thin-and-light body painted in colour themes curated from Pantone. The smartphone looks premium, especially in the Caneel Bay colour (review unit) that features vegan leather covering on the back. Besides being soft to touch, the vegan leather on the back cover provides good in-hand grip that instil confidence while operating the device. Together with a thin side frame and lightweight construction, the phone is a delight to use.

Complementing the rear design is the two-side curved display on the front, which makes the phone feel thinner in hands than it actually is. As for the buttons, the volume rockers and power key are on the right side of the frame. Though easily reachable from the thumb and index finger for comfortable one-hand use, these buttons are tight to press and lack tactile feedback.

Display and audio

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo sports a 6.55-inch 10-bit pOLED display of segment leading 144Hz refresh rate. The display is HDR10+ certified and covers 100 per cent DCI-P3 colour gamut. As for the brightness, Motorola said the display is capable of reaching up to 1300 nits of peak brightness.

Details aside, the display is bright, vivid, and responsive. Though a curved panel, it is not marred with accidental touch issues that many of its peers suffer from. The display is set to vivid by default for saturated colours with enhanced contrast, but you can set it to natural from display settings if that is what you prefer. Besides, you can tune the display for either warm or cool tones based on your preferences.

As for the smoothness, the display barely hits 144Hz refresh rate outside the interface in default mode – auto. However, it does push the refresh rate to 90Hz and 120Hz for a smooth user experience. That said, the 144Hz refresh rate is available but you barely get to use it since not many apps and games support it.

Accentuating the visual treat is the audio experience, which is delivered through the Dolby Atmos-powered stereo speakers. The speakers are loud and clear with a wide soundstage available for experience in tracks encoded in Dolby Atmos format. The wide soundstage is also available for experience over audio accessories such as headphones and earphones with support for Dolby Atmos. In addition, Motorola has spatial sound feature that creates a 3D virtualisation effect in tracks not natively encoded in Dolby Atmos. It works well, but Dolby Atmos tracks sound better. Important to note, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo lacks a 3.5mm audio jack. Though customary in most 2023 smartphones, its addition would have made the Motorola Edge 40 Neo a complete package.

Camera

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo sports a dual-camera system on the back, featuring a 50-megapixel main camera sensor with optical image stabilisation and a 13MP ultra-wide-angle camera sensor that doubles up as macro camera sensor and as a secondary sensor to assist primary sensor with depth information. On the front, the phone has a 32MP camera sensor.

Details aside, the rear camera system is good but not the best in its class. The primary sensor delivers consistent performance in all lighting conditions. It captures finer details in the frame and does well with regard to dynamic range and contrast. Colours in the captured frame look washed out, but that is something you can fix quickly using the built-in photo-editing tool. Speaking of editing, the photo editing tool is loaded with features from Google such as colour pop, portrait enhancements, blur, colour focus, etc. These, however, require subscription to Google One.

Coming to ultra-wide-angle camera, it is good and has better control over colours. Besides, the sensor has a wide field-of-view (FoV), which is good for both cityscape and landscape shots. Unlike the primary sensor, the ultra-wide-angle camera struggles in low light conditions. It, however, is a versatile sensor with capability to capture object detail even from close-up.

As for the front camera, it is good for casual everyday use. Like the rear cameras, the front camera supports auto night mode for clearer pictures in low-light conditions. It works well, but not as good as it works with the primary camera sensor.

Performance

Powered by MediaTek Dimensity 7030 system-on-chip, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo offers a balanced mix of performance and power efficiency. It is not a performance powerhouse, which is apparent especially in gaming sessions. However, it has decent performance to let you sail through with routine workloads and more without facing hiccups.

Lifting the experience is the close to stock user interface based on Android 13 operating system, which is loaded with Motorola essentials only and no bloatware outside its own and Google. The interface is optimised for smooth transitions and app management. However, it shows signs of slowdown after extended use and requires a weekly phone restart to run optimally.

Battery

Powered by 5,000 mAh battery, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo has a full-day on-battery time on regular usage. Graphic-and-power intensive workloads drain the battery quickly, yet the phone sails through a day if used in a controlled manner. Charging time is quick with the in-box 68W adaptor and charging cable. The phone takes a little over an hour to charge from 10 per cent.

Verdict

Priced at Rs 25,999 (12GB+256GB – review unit), the Motorola Edge 40 Neo is an all-round smartphone with something in store for everyone. It has a fresh design, smooth display, Dolby Atmos-powered stereo speakers, versatile camera system, swift performance, and a solid on-battery time. On top, the phone boasts thin-and-light construction with colour themes curated from Pantone and clutter free user interface. Overall, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo makes a solid contender in the midrange smartphone segment.