Motorola Moto G31 (2021)

Good features but not so good specs – It Has great features like a oled screen, a 50 mp, quad pixel camera that takes very good photos even better that they are shown on the oled screen. Cool camera filters an features. Its software has a nice layout and looks good. The processing power is ok.

Great Value – I actually find this phone much better than my double the price 5G handset (which is too heavy to wear in shorts). I prefer this one, it is light and has an absolutely beautiful screen OLED (my other phone has IPS and its rather nice but boring), great customization options for gestures and themes in the Moto My UX. Contrary to reports by other reviewers, the Motorola roadmap states very clearly that the g31 is getting the Android 12 upgrade.

Moto G31 a basic smart phone and nothing more – The Motorola G31 is common in any of the Australian Mobile phone stores and features in Officeworks as a low entry level phone. The phone fails in the camera and lags on most android functionality. Looking at the photos, I would rather a second-hand iPhone 8 over anything this G31 produces even at its highest resolution settings with enhancement. The photos on telephoto look like you have smeared greasy fingers over the triple lens as they are cloudy and washed out. I took a few photos in a concert with good lighting and the outcomes were disappointing. With outdoor use, a photo of a car at close proximity was acceptable but not much more than that. Looking at video, the same lens limitations were present. The audio was weak and frustrating. Viewing the photos on the PC at HD, the same sort of poor outcome was noted.

The flash hence flashlight is weak.

Examining the functionality of the apps, they often lag. Google Pay takes a while to load on full bars with a 4G Telstra network.

The build is plastic. I would not want to drop it.

The battery life appears good so far. I easily get through the day when not asking too much of it.

I have used Spotify and the Voice call apps and the phone syncs nicely on a Jabra NC headset.

The screen is an Amoled and quite nice to use. This is its big plus with good brightness outside.

This is only an entry level phone for a year, I have confirmed that Android 12 update from stock 11 is not going to happen ever. Consider the mobile end of life and only worth buying as a bargain or clearance special.

In summary, this phone does the job but not much more. It has a good screen but don’t use it for photos or video. Don't expect it to be quick on apps. Mine is going back to the shop for an upgrade as its good but not good enough.