Less than a year apart, Motorola has launched two mid-range cell phone models in the same lineup: the Moto G30 and Moto G31. They have some similarities and, therefore, we prepared a comparison to show which of the two is the best.
As the successor, many may think the Moto G31 has a significant advantage, but the presence of a Qualcomm chip in the older model can bring some benefits. In addition, the Moto G30 also has a more robust camera set, which can please fans of the brand who want more versatility when shooting. On the other hand, the G31 innovates using an OLED screen, giving more image quality and more intense colors.
Design And Construction
Right off the bat, the two are pretty different—the look — which applies to both the front and the back — and size. For starters, the Moto G31 has 161.9 x 74.6 x 8.45 mm and weighs 180 g. Its predecessor is more extensive and heavier: it measures 165.3 x 75.8 x 9.2 mm, weighing 200 grams.
At the front, the Moto G31 is more up-to-date and has a hole-shaped notch on display at the show, which gives it an air of “new device,” while the Moto G30 still bets on the drop-shaped incision reduces the use of the screen.
Speaking of usability, both suffer from a common problem in Motorola’s intermediate cell phones: thick edges, especially the lower ones. On the Moto G30, this is even more noticeable, and its prominent “chin” makes it less attractive.
As for the camera module, the G31 has a rectangle with rounded edges — which gives it an almost oval appearance — to house the set of three lenses. The Moto G30, on the other hand, looks more sophisticated, with the frame a little flatter but still rectangular.
Screen
The screen is the component that generates the most competition between the two models. That’s because the Moto G31 takes advantage of offering an OLED display, which guarantees more vivid images and more intense colors than the IPS LCD of the Moto G30.
The screen resolution is also higher on the latest model: 1080 x 2400 pixels with a density of 411 PPI on the G31 and 720 x 1600 pixels with 269 PPI on the G30.
On the other hand, the G30 has a higher refresh rate of 90 Hz, while its successor is only 60 Hz. This higher refresh rate is more suitable for those who like to play a lot on their cell phones and improve the gaming experience. Browsing social media feeds.
In addition, both offer almost the same panel dimension: the Moto G31 is 6.4 inches, while the G30 is 6.5 inches—a barely noticeable difference for the less attentive.
Configuration And Performance
Here, the competition starts to get more serious. That’s because the Moto G30 is powered by the Snapdragon 662 mobile platform, while its successor comes with the MediaTek Helion G85. It is a somewhat strange decision to use such a similar chip in a cell phone that, in theory, is the successor of the other.
Both offer similar CPU performance in practice, and the Moto G31 with its Helion G85 has a slight advantage in graphics processing with the Mali-G52 GPU (the Moto G30’s is an Adreno 610). The Snapdragon 662, however, has better power management, which makes it save more battery than its rival.
The MediaTek component has two Cortex-A75 processor cores running at a maximum frequency of 2 GHz and six Cortex-A55 processors clocked at 1.8 GHz. The Qualcomm used in the Moto G30 has four 2 GHz 260 Gold processors, and the other set is four 1.8 GHz 260 Silver cores.
Usability
If the two are very similar in performance in usability, they are practically the same. That’s because both are running Android 11 out of the box and have the same interface, which is slightly modified and very similar to what Google officially offers on its operating system.
The only difference, though, is that being a newer model, the Moto G31 can stay up-to-date longer with Google’s security packages. And given the brand’s policy of updates, it’s hard for any of them to get a new software version beyond Android 12.
Camera
The set of cameras of the two cell phones shows that the newer is not always better. That’s because the Moto G30 has an extra lens compared to the Moto G31. It has a 64 MP primary sensor with f/1.7 aperture, an 8 MP f/2.2 ultrawide, a 2 MP f/2.4 macro, and a 2 MP f/2.4 depth sensor.
The Moto G31, on the other hand, loses the depth camera and has a 64 MP primary sensor with an f/1.8 aperture — which is already slightly smaller than its predecessor —, an 8 MP f/2.2 ultrawide sensor, and a 2 MP f/2.4 macro sensor. . For selfies, both have a 13 MP lens with an f/2.2 aperture.
Sound System
In the audio system, there is no surprise. Both the Moto G31 and the G30 have a mono audio system, which is nothing new, as even more advanced models — such as the Moto G100 — do not offer two sound outputs.
That way, expect the same sound quality on both, with not-so-loud volume and a little bit of distortion when at maximum level. An “advantage” is that both offer a P2 connector for headphones, so you can connect one to listen to music with better quality or even use a speaker with an auxiliary cable. The Bluetooth 5.0 connection also keeps everything stable if you prefer to use wireless devices.
Battery And Charging
Both phones have the same battery capacity, 5,000 MAH. In theory, this could indicate that they have the same autonomy. But this depends on several factors.
For starters, the Moto G30 has a more efficient processor in power management, while the OLED screen of the Moto G31 is better for saving more power if you use dark mode. How does this fight play out in practice, then?
In our standard test — which consists of playing 3 hours of content on Netflix with brightness set to medium — the Moto G30 consumed only 11% of the charge, with a total autonomy estimated at 27 hours.
The Moto G31, on the other hand, was a little behind, and consumption was 13%, which should give a total of 23 hours. However, in general scenarios, they can prove equally competent to spend a whole day away from the sockets and still have some battery left for the next day. But of course, this is about moderate usage, and if you like to play a lot, the charge duration may decrease a bit.
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