Tag Archives: Motorola

Motorola Just Built the Android Phone Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Almost Was

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Wireless charging on Android has been a bit of a mess. Most phones support it, but the speeds tend to lag behind proprietary fast-charging standards, and the Qi2 situation has been particularly awkward. Samsung’s Galaxy S26 series supports Qi2 speeds but skips the built-in magnets, meaning you still need a special case to get the alignment right. Other Android phones that did include magnets weren’t hitting the full 25W Qi2 ceiling. It was always one or the other.

The Motorola Edge 70 Max closes that gap. It’s the first mainstream Android phone outside of Google’s Pixel line to offer true Qi2 wireless charging with built-in magnets and the full 25W MPP25 speed, no magnetic case required, no extra ring to stick on the back. Drop it on a Qi2 pad, and it snaps into position and charges at the maximum rate the standard allows. That’s a more meaningful distinction than it might sound.

Designer: Motorola

For anyone who keeps a charging pad on a nightstand or desk, alignment has always been the friction point of wireless charging. Miss the coil slightly, and speeds drop, or charging stops entirely without any notification. Built-in magnets solve that by locking the phone into position automatically, the same way MagSafe works on an iPhone. Android users have had to use workarounds for years to get the same result, and most still don’t bother.

Beyond the charging story, the Edge 70 Max arrives with serious hardware throughout. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip delivers a 36% CPU improvement and 11% GPU improvement over its predecessor, and a vapor chamber cooling system with liquid metal and a 5,500 mm² chamber keeps temperatures in check during sustained loads. Up to 12 GB of LPDDR5X memory and up to 1 TB of storage round out the platform.

The 7100 mAh silicon-carbon battery earned a DXOMARK Gold Label with 160 points, and 90W TurboPower wired charging adds enough for a full day in just six minutes. The 50MP Sony LYTIA 710 main camera handles photography with AI-assisted processing, and the phone debuts Motorola Qira, a unified AI system shared across Lenovo PCs and tablets that carries context between devices.

The Quad HD+ (2K) display is rated as the brightest in its category, and the build is aircraft-grade aluminum framed with matte premium glass and MIL-STD-810H certification. Motorola has also made clear that the packaging is fully recyclable and printed with soy-based inks, a detail that reflects the broader Lenovo sustainability push rather than just a spec-sheet line.

The Android wireless charging ecosystem has needed a phone willing to commit fully to Qi2 rather than taking the halfway approach that most manufacturers have favored. The Edge 70 Max is the first non-Pixel Android flagship to do it without compromise, and with the rest of the hardware backing it up, the charging system stops being a headline curiosity and becomes a genuinely practical reason to pick one platform over another.

The post Motorola Just Built the Android Phone Samsung’s Galaxy S26 Almost Was first appeared on Yanko Design.

Get Ready for the $395 Tablet That Makes iPad Look Overpriced

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Large Android tablets have long occupied an awkward middle ground. They’re capable enough to replace a laptop for basic tasks, but the best ones tend to carry prices that push them out of reach for most people. Apple’s iPad Pro remains the benchmark, but it demands a premium few can justify. Smaller competitors have tried to close that gap, though few have done so convincingly at the high end.

The Moto Pad 70 Pro takes a different approach by packing a flagship-grade experience into a price most people can actually stomach. It’s a 13-inch tablet running on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8s Gen 4, and it comes with the Moto Pen Pro stylus already in the box. That last detail is worth pausing on, considering that rival devices often charge extra for that same privilege.

Designer: Motorola

The display is the first thing that wins you over, and rightly so. The 13-inch screen hits a 3.5K resolution, runs at 144Hz, and supports Dolby Vision with 12-bit color depth. At 800 nits in HBM mode, it handles most well-lit rooms with little trouble. For streaming, sketching, or just browsing through a long article, the panel holds up comfortably.

Performance is handled by the Snapdragon 8s Gen 4, which Motorola claims scores around 2.5 million on AnTuTu. In practical terms, that means the tablet can run games at 120FPS without breaking a sweat. It ships with Android 16 and is promised updates through Android 18, alongside security patches until 2030. Storage goes up to 256GB internally, with a microSD slot supporting cards up to 2TB.

The Moto Pen Pro is included in the box, which makes a bigger difference than it might seem. It connects to AI tools like Sketch to Image, which turns rough doodles into finished artwork, and AI Live Transcript, which converts spoken audio to text in real time. Smarter Reader, meanwhile, summarizes long documents on the fly. These features feel genuinely practical when the stylus is already in your hand.

Audio on a tablet this size can either be forgettable or genuinely useful, and the Moto Pad 70 Pro leans toward the latter. Four JBL speakers tuned with Dolby Atmos make the difference noticeable, especially during video calls, movie sessions, or when someone’s presenting a slide deck to a small group. It’s the kind of audio setup that makes you reach for external speakers far less often.

Battery life is anchored by a 10,200 mAh cell with 45W charging, though Motorola bundles a 68W adapter in the box. The tablet’s productivity credentials go further with a PC Mode that gives the interface a desktop feel, and Smart Connect for file sharing between devices. A snap-on keyboard is available separately, and a USB Type-C 3.2 port lets you hook it up to an external display.

The Moto Pad 70 Pro goes on sale July 4 in India, starting at ₹36,999, roughly $395, for the 8GB/128GB variant and ₹39,999, around $425, for the 8GB/256GB model. It has no LTE option, and the single Pantone Titan finish doesn’t leave much room for personalization. But at 6.2mm thin, weighing 589g, and with a bundled stylus already in the box, there’s a lot here for the price.

The post Get Ready for the $395 Tablet That Makes iPad Look Overpriced first appeared on Yanko Design.

Motorola Edge (2026) Review: Beautiful, Brilliant, and an Acquired Taste

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PROS:


  • Excellent compact form factor

  • Stylish and calm design

  • Sharp, vibrant 120Hz display

CONS:


  • 128Gb storage feels limiting

  • Software support is shorter than many rivals

RATINGS:

AESTHETICS
ERGONOMICS
PERFORMANCE
SUSTAINABILITY / REPAIRABILITY
VALUE FOR MONEY

EDITOR'S QUOTE:

The Motorola Edge 2026's compact size, clean software, and thoughtful design give it a charm that many rivals simply do not have, though it might not be the right fit for everyone.

Motorola’s comeback story is about more than nostalgia. The brand may still benefit from a familiar name and a long history in mobile, but its recent momentum has not come from recognition alone. Rather than simply trading on memory, Motorola has been building devices that feel stylish, approachable, and increasingly self-assured in a market that rarely makes room for second chances.

The Edge 2026 reflects that progress, even if it does not fully embody it. This is a phone with a clear sense of what it wants to prioritize, namely comfort, portability, and day-to-day ease, but it enters a crowded midrange field where those strengths have to work harder to justify the price. That makes the Edge 2026 easy to appreciate in some ways, but harder to justify in others. The real question is whether Motorola’s priorities here line up with what buyers at this price actually want.

Designer: Motorola

Aesthetics

There is something very Motorola about the way this device presents itself. The brand has become increasingly confident with phones that blend fashion-minded styling and mainstream usability, and the Edge 2026 continues that direction with ease. It looks premium without trying too hard, which is often one of the most difficult tricks to pull off in this category.

That confidence comes through clearly in the details. The back panel uses a twill-inspired finish in Pantone Martini Olive, and it gives the phone a softer, more composed visual character than the usual glossy midrange formula. Paired with the brushed gold camera bump, the centered Motorola logo, and the brushed finish frame, the whole design has a calm, almost zen-like quality. It feels restrained, but not plain, and that balance works in its favor.

It also looks strikingly close to Motorola’s flagship Signature, which is not currently available in the U.S. That resemblance gives the Edge 2026 a more elevated presence than its price might suggest, even if it also makes the phone feel a touch less distinctive on its own terms. Unlike the Signature, which comes in both Pantone Carbon and Pantone Martini Olive, the Edge 2026 is limited to just this one color option, though some buyers may wish Motorola had offered a bit more variety.

Ergonomics

This is one of the most defining parts of the Edge 2026 experience. Motorola shrank the Edge from 6.7 inches to 6.3 inches, and that change has a bigger impact than it might seem on paper. With its more compact body, the phone feels noticeably easier to manage than many of the larger devices around it in this price range. The difference may sound small in theory, but in daily use, it changes a lot.

The Edge 2026 is genuinely pleasant to hold. It is easier to grip, easier to reach across, and easier to use one-handed without constantly adjusting your hold. In fact, it is one of the most pleasant phones I have tested in a very long time. The finish also helps in everyday use, because it does a good job resisting fingerprint smudges and light scratches, which makes the phone easier to keep looking clean over time.

Personally, I do not mind a bulkier phone if that extra size delivers the best possible experience. I know not everyone feels the same way, though, and that is exactly why a phone like the Edge 2026 makes sense. What we want from smartphones is different, and for people who care more about getting the basics right in a device that feels super portable and genuinely comfortable in the hand, this one feels very well judged.

The one clear ergonomic drawback is the fingerprint scanner placement. It sits a little too close to the bottom edge, which can make it feel slightly awkward to reach at first. It is not a major flaw, and it becomes easier to adapt to over time, but it does stand out on a phone that otherwise feels so carefully shaped.

Performance

On paper, the Motorola Edge 2026 does not sound especially aggressive for the money. It runs on the MediaTek Dimensity 7450 chipset with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage in the U.S. model. While the chip is a modest upgrade over the previous generation, the drop from 256GB to 128GB feels less welcome.

In daily use, performance is solid without being especially impressive. Apps open quickly enough, scrolling feels smooth, and everyday tasks rarely cause much friction. For lighter users, 128GB should still be manageable, but anyone who takes lots of photos and videos, plays large games, or downloads media may run into storage limits sooner than expected.

Motorola’s software remains one of the phone’s more appealing strengths. The interface feels clean, light, and relatively uncluttered, and it was refreshing to use a phone that does not come buried under bloatware. I also liked Motorola’s added gestures and shortcuts, especially the double chop to turn the torch on and off, the double twist to quickly open the camera, and the option to flip the phone over to enable Do Not Disturb.

The company’s added features feel more useful than intrusive, which makes the software easy to settle into from the start. That said, I do wish Motorola included its own gallery app with built-in editing tools instead of relying entirely on Google Photos. Google Photos works well enough, but it does not feel as tailored or as seamless as a dedicated first-party gallery experience.

The 6.3-inch display is a big part of what makes the Edge 2026 feel great to use. With a resolution of 1216 x 2640 and a 120Hz refresh rate, the panel looks sharp, vibrant, and smooth, while the smaller size helps the phone feel more manageable without making the screen feel cramped. It also supports 1 billion colors and HDR10+, which gives content a richer and more lively look.

Colors have plenty of punch, and the display is enjoyable for everything from reading to streaming video. Audio is surprisingly rich and loud for such a compact phone, which adds to the overall media experience. Together, the screen and speakers make the Edge 2026 feel more immersive than its size might suggest.

Main Camera, 1x

The camera setup seems largely unchanged from its predecessor. The main camera uses a 50MP 1/1.56 inch Sony LYT 710 sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and OIS, while the 10MP telephoto camera offers 3x optical zoom with an f/2.0 aperture and OIS. The LYT 710 should bring modest improvements in light sensitivity and noise reduction over the sensor used in the previous model.

Main Camera, 1x

Main Camera, 2x

Main Camera, 3x

There is also a 50MP ultra-wide camera with a 122-degree field of view and an f/2.0 aperture, and it doubles as the macro camera. On the front, Motorola includes a 50MP selfie camera with an f/1.95 aperture. All cameras can record video at up to 4K at 30fps.

Ultra-wide

It is a well-rounded setup overall, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. It is not on the same level as a true flagship camera system, of course, but I found the color tuning more pleasing in some situations. The main camera handles dynamic range well enough to feel reliable for everyday use.

Main Camera, Portrait Mode (24mm)

Main Camera, Portrait Mode (35mm)

Telephoto Camera, Portrait Mode

The telephoto camera adds some welcome flexibility, even if its limitations become more obvious once you push beyond 3x. The phone automatically switches between the main and telephoto lenses depending on the scene, and while the telephoto camera is not especially detailed, it tends to get exposure right even in difficult lighting. Low light performance is solid too, though the shutter speed can be frustratingly slow even outside of Night mode, which makes it easier to end up with blur if your subject moves or your hand is not perfectly steady.

Telephoto Camera, 3x

Telephoto Camera, 3x

Main Camera, 6x

The battery has been reduced from 5200mAh on the previous model to 5000mAh, which is not especially exciting on paper. Even so, the phone remains efficient enough to last a full day comfortably, and light users may even be able to stretch it into a second day. That fits well with the Edge 2026’s broader focus on comfort and everyday ease.

Charging is solid, too. The 68W wired charging is quick enough to feel genuinely convenient, and 15W wireless charging adds a welcome bit of flexibility. Neither feature is especially headline-grabbing, but together they make the phone easy to live with.

Sustainability

The Motorola Edge 2026 makes a solid case for itself on durability. It is rated IP68 and IP69, uses Corning Gorilla Glass 7i, and also meets MIL-STD-810H standards. Motorola says it is designed to survive drops from up to 1.22 meters and handle extreme temperatures and high humidity.

That toughness helps its long-term appeal. The software support, however, is less impressive. Motorola promises two major OS upgrades and three years of security updates, which falls short of what many rivals now offer at this price.

Value

At $599.99, the Motorola Edge 2026 sits in a competitive part of the market, but its value becomes easier to understand once you look beyond the spec sheet. This feels like a phone aimed more at lighter users, especially with 128GB of storage, and its compact form factor is a big part of the appeal. The size, comfort, and ease of use give it an everyday charm that many rivals simply do not have.

That said, value is also shaped by how long a phone is likely to feel current. Motorola only promises two major OS upgrades and three years of security updates, which is not especially generous at this price. If you tend to keep your phone for many years, that shorter support window may matter more, even if the hardware itself feels pleasant and durable enough to last.

Verdict

The Motorola Edge 2026 knows exactly what it wants to be. It prioritizes comfort, portability, and everyday ease, and that gives it a clearer identity than many midrange phones. Its compact form factor is easily one of its best qualities, and for people who want a phone that simply feels great in the hand, it is a strong contender.

That said, it is not without compromise. The 128GB storage feels limiting, the software support is shorter than some rivals, and the performance is solid rather than standout. Still, for the right user, especially someone who values portability and comfort above all else, the Edge 2026 remains an appealing option.

The post Motorola Edge (2026) Review: Beautiful, Brilliant, and an Acquired Taste first appeared on Yanko Design.

Motorola Just Made the Baby Soother That’s Actually Worth Displaying

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Nursery products have generally been designed around the assumption that function is the only thing that matters. A baby monitor that broadcasts clearly, a sound machine that blocks noise, a nightlight that stays on through the small hours without overheating. These things work, and most of them look exactly like what they are: appliances with a secondary mission, built from a brief that never included the word “beautiful.” The emotional dimension of the room they live in is almost never part of the specification.

Industrial designer Tej Chauhan rethought that assumption through Motorola Nursery’s PIP collection, and the S1 Soother is the latest product from it. It begins with a sketch of a little seal, a soft, neotenic form drawing on the same mechanism that makes baby animals universally disarming. The rounded shape isn’t decorative padding over a functional core. It’s part of the reason the device works as well as it does.

Designer: Tej Chauhan for Motorola Nursery

The form achieves something most nursery devices don’t: it looks considered even when it’s not on. Switched off, the S1 reads as a small sculptural object that a parent with a carefully arranged room wouldn’t feel compelled to hide. Switched on, the round tip glows in one of seven colors: yellow, orange, red, pink, blue, cyan, and green, adjustable across five brightness levels. The light is calm and diffuse by design.

The sound side offers ten options: three lullabies, three nature sounds, white noise, brown noise, a fan loop, and a womb sound, covering the range that different babies respond to. Parents who’ve cycled through multiple sound machines will appreciate that breadth in a single device. Volume adjusts across five levels, and USB-C charging sustains up to 50 hours of use per charge, covering weeks of nap times before the next top-up.

Portability isn’t incidental. The S1 travels in a bag without cables, without a base that won’t fit a hotel nightstand, and without the visual clash of a device that clearly belongs somewhere it isn’t. Non-toxic materials and rounded edges address the physical dimension of baby safety that gets less marketing attention than certification ratings but matters considerably more at close quarters with a curious infant.

Chauhan has described the goal as inviting warmth into an everyday routine while making something beautiful enough to live anywhere in the home, goals that usually don’t apply to baby gear. The neotenic seal shape suggests calm before it does anything else, which is the point. A device that parents genuinely want in the room works harder than one they merely tolerate because it does the job.

The objects that occupy a nursery carry more emotional weight than the ones in any other room. Chauhan’s goal, inviting warmth into an everyday routine while making something beautiful enough to keep, sounds loftier than a $29.99 nightlight deserves. But the design argument is sincere, and so is the result. Parents who’ve spent months chasing the right combination of light and sound will recognize what they’re getting.

The post Motorola Just Made the Baby Soother That’s Actually Worth Displaying first appeared on Yanko Design.

moto g stylus 2026 Review: Accessible Pocket Productivity and Creativity

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PROS:


  • Stylus with pressure and tilt sensitivity

  • Beautiful, minimalist design

  • Bright and vibrant screen

  • Headphone jack and microSD card slot

CONS:


  • Short software support period

  • Relatively higher price compared to peers

  • Not much hardware upgrades from last-gen

RATINGS:

AESTHETICS
ERGONOMICS
PERFORMANCE
SUSTAINABILITY / REPAIRABILITY
VALUE FOR MONEY

EDITOR'S QUOTE:

The moto g stylus - 2026 analog handwriting and digital freedom in a striking minimalist design that you can finally afford.

Despite and in spite of the growing number of screens and disembodied artificial voices around us, there remains a strong culture and argument for handwritten words. But while there might be plenty of benefits to putting ink to paper, there’s no denying that paper doesn’t provide the benefits of digital artifacts such as files, photos, and videos. For years, the stylus has been trying to bridge the best of both worlds, but it has so far been only within the reach of those who can afford it.

Since 2020, Motorola has been working to provide that kind of experience to more people through its Moto G Stylus line, but there have always been compromises. Ironically, most of those revolved around the very feature that gave the product line its name. With the moto g stylus – 2026, however, the brand is making its most daring leap forward yet, aiming for a title held only by the most luxurious of Samsung’s (non-foldable) handsets. So does it fly or does it fall? Read on to find out.

Designer: Motorola

Aesthetics

The moment you pull the moto g stylus – 2026 out of the box, you are immediately struck by how different it is from most phones of this generation. It doesn’t scream for attention with a ridiculously large camera module, nor does it attempt to dazzle your eyes with tricks of color and light. It is, in a nutshell, a minimalist lover’s dream.

The back of the phone, which is always the most expressive side of the design, is covered with a vegan leather-inspired material that gives the phone both visual and tactile texture. Continuing its partnership with PANTONE, those covers are available in subtle Coal Smoke (our review unit) and Lavender Mist colors, with the flat edges matching the hue. Other than the iconic “Batwing” logo and minuscule markings around the LED flash, the design is bare and plain, a refreshing change from the active and noisy rears of most smartphones these days.

The camera bump follows that same pattern, rising from the back plate with a gentle slope. There’s no separate structure caging the lenses, creating a seamless and unbroken surface that almost has a calming effect, especially when your finger starts to glide over the textured surface. There’s almost a sense of Zen, so to speak, which is almost how many pen and paper lovers describe their favorite notebooks.

Of course, the front is the polar opposite, but only because of its bright and vibrant screen. The thin and almost symmetrical bezels and the flat glass, however, serve to provide balance that keeps that liveliness in check. All in all, the moto g stylus – 2026 is both simple and sublime. It doesn’t call attention to itself with some fancy visual or material gimmick, but you can’t help but pay close attention to its minimalism just the same.

The stylus is cut from the same cloth, with a design that might be familiar to those who have held a Samsung “Ultra” flagship. It’s basically a somewhat flat stick, with a spring-loaded rear that easily resembles the (addictive) clicky ends of retractable pens. But unlike the small but stubby nibs of its predecessors, there is now a proper tapered, conical tip. Of course, it’s not just an aesthetic change, as we’ll get to in a bit.

Ergonomics

Another thing you’ll notice the moment you lift the moto g stylus – 2026 out of the box is how light it is. At only 192.3g, even with the 4.7g stylus inside, it’s easily one of the lightest phones in the market today. Given that it has a 6.7-inch screen and a large 5,200mAh battery, that’s even more surprising.

That lightness, however, is a double-edged blade. On the one hand, it might make the phone feel a little flimsy, almost like it could easily fly out of your hand. It almost makes the vibration haptics feel hollow, as if there’s not enough substance in there.

On the other hand, it strains your hand less when holding it for a long time, especially as you might find yourself constantly scribbling or doodling on it. The phone’s textured back and flat edges also help deliver a more confident hold. It just won’t accidentally slip from your hand that easily. A protective case almost feels redundant if grip is your only reason for putting one on.

One thing to note about the camera module is that although it is thin and subtle, it still lifts a single corner of the phone when you put it on a flat surface. That means it will wobble, which can be pretty annoying when you’re writing with a stylus. Funnily enough, that might actually be a more pressing reason to put a case on, just to create a balance. Unfortunately, you do lose out on feeling the phone’s textured surface.

Performance

The Specs

The moto g stylus – 2026 makes no qualms about its specs, clearly marking it for the mid-range smartphone market. There’s only 8GB of RAM, which can be expanded up to 24GB with RAM Boost, which basically eats up some of the already modest 128GB or 256GB of storage. Thankfully, you can also expand that storage with a microSD card of up to 1TB capacity, definitely a rare sight these days, even among phones on the same tier.

The biggest disappointment is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor, which is a holdover from last year’s moto g stylus. In fact, if you look closer, you’ll see plenty of similarities between the 2025 and 2026 models, from processor to cameras. It’s not always a bad thing, but given the price hike, you’d be forgiven for expecting a bit more.

Make no mistake, though, the moto g stylus – 2026 is plenty capable. It won’t win trophies on benchmarks, but it does get the job done without breaking too much of a sweat. It’s even surprising how it can handle a game like Warframe on high settings. It doesn’t get too warm, either, and the vegan leather material probably helps make it feel a little less warm as well.

And that’s perfect because the moto g stylus – 2026 has such a gorgeous screen to play and watch on. The 6.7-inch 2712 x 1220 AMOLED display boasts a peak brightness of 5000 nits, definitely one of the brightest in the market, making it easily usable under sunlight. The rounded corners are also less curved, so UI elements are not obstructed, especially in games. Plus, the 3.5mm headphone jack, another rare sighting, can perfectly complement the visuals with hi-def wired audio.

The moto g stylus – 2026 runs the latest Android 16, and given Motorola’s history, the skin is pretty minimal and non-invasive. It’s probably the closest you can get to a Pixel experience outside of Google Pixel phones, which is light, fast, and probably barebones if you’re coming from other brands like Samsung and Xiaomi. There’s almost no bloatware, unless you count the dozen or so pre-installed Google apps, which would be the same situation on a Google Pixel phone anyway.

The Pen

There’s no beating around the bush: the only reason you’d even give the moto g stylus – 2026 is because of its stylus. For the first time, that stylus is no longer just a very thin stub standing in for your finger tip. For the first time, it is supporting pressure and tilt sensitivity, features that only Samsung offers at nearly three times the price.

The older stylus designs were practical and usable, but this new pen opens the door to even more possibilities, especially when it comes to creative activities like drawing, designing, and editing photos. It gives you much better control and precision, while also offering more styles in terms of pen width, brushes, and the like.

The stylus is also crucial in some productivity workflows, like when dragging images to a note in split-screen mode, highlighting and copying text to a note, or for sketching a crude representation of a cat and using AI to turn it into a photorealistic masterpiece. Part of this upgraded experience is made possible with the Moto Notes app, which supports drawing on an infinite canvas that can then be embedded into notes.

The new stylus also has a button that can be mapped to some actions depending on whether you press or long-press it, though the actions are not that varied. The pen now also has to be charged, which is how it’s able to pull off that pressure sensitivity stunt, and you can only charge it when it’s inside its silo.

The Cameras

The moto g stylus – 2026’s camera story is rather underwhelming. On the hardware side, it doesn’t exactly differ from last year’s cameras, which include a 50MP Sony LYTIA 700C sensor and a 13MP Ultra-wide shooter that doubles as the Macro camera. In a nutshell, these are serviceable and decent, but they wouldn’t be something you’d want to rely on if you were planning on being a professional shutter bug.

The main shooter does a pretty good job of capturing detail, but its dynamic range seems to be on the narrower side, making subjects look a little flat. The AI-enhanced Signature Style can try to compensate, but it also oversaturates the output.

Normal

Signature Style

Normal

Night Vision

Nighttime photography is what you’d expect, as there wouldn’t be enough light information to work with. Night Vision Mode definitely kicks things up a notch, brightening things up enough to make out the details. This is one of those moments where the difference is, pardon the pun, night and day.

Ultrawide (0.5x)

Wide (1x)

Zoom (2x)

Given the hardware, ultra-wide shots are naturally less impressive but still get the job done for a quick panoramic picture. There’s no dedicated telephoto lens, so it does double duty as the macro camera. Unfortunately, it doesn’t make much of a difference. Portrait shots are pleasant and accurate, though, and you can select from 24mm, 35mm, and 50mm focal lengths.

Macro

Macro

The Battery

One of the few upgrades this year is the moto g stylus – 2026’s larger 5200mAh battery. It still supports 68W wire Turbo Charging and 15W wireless charging, the latter with no magnetic tricks. With the right power brick, you’re promised a full charge in just 44 minutes, but even a 65W charger managed to top the phone off in just a little over an hour.

That charging won’t happen frequently though, as the phone can last more than a day with normal use, including browsing the web, social media, and even watching videos on that bright, large screen. With less frequent use, it can actually extend to two days, though you’ll want to be on Wi-Fi rather than cellular to pull that off. Needless to say, it’s a reliable daily partner that won’t have you scrambling for a charger before you head home.

Sustainability

Motorola has been pretty vocal about its sustainability efforts, but the moto g stylus – 2026 is a bit of a hit and a little miss. The compact, plastic-free packaging is superb in that regard, ditching the redundant charging brick as well. Motorola also boasts about longevity, given the IP68, IP69, and MIL-STD-810H certifications.

Where the story takes a sad turn, however, is in the software upgrades. Only two years of Android upgrades and three years of security updates, figures that would have sounded generous almost a decade ago. This lags way behind the likes of Xiaomi, notorious for its short software support cycles, and is quite disappointing for an Android user experience that is almost as pure and unencumbered as the Google Pixel.

Value

There’s no going around the fact that the moto g stylus – 2026 has a price tag that’s a little difficult to swallow. It’s more than a $100 jump from last year’s model, and at $500 or $600, for 128GB and 256GB storage, respectively, other brands might give you better specs for the same price. Granted, Motorola often throws in bundles and discounts to sweeten the deal, but the initial price shock is unavoidable.

That said, that price could be a bit justifiable, especially if you factor in how electronics prices are going up these days anyway. For that amount, you get a solid, reliable, and beautiful phone that is almost literally a digital Field Notes notebook in your pocket. Considering that the closest competition is actually a $1,300 Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, then there’s almost no contest. Sure, it doesn’t have the glamorous bells and whistles, but neither would a trusty notebook.

Verdict

More than any mainstream smartphone in the market today, the moto g stylus – 2026 is clearly aimed at a particular audience: people who don’t want their productivity and creativity to be hampered by not having their notebook or their computer around. They say the best tool is the one that you have with you, and almost everyone has their smartphone in their pocket. And what better way to capture fleeting inspiration or sketch inspiring vistas than by whipping out your phone and pulling out the stylus?

By no means is the moto g stylus – 2026 perfect. In fact, you might even call it dated if you judged it by its specs alone. But with a talented stylus, a gorgeous screen, a reliable battery, and a beautiful minimalist design, it is definitely worth every penny. There is no perfect productivity tool or notebook, but the moto g stylus – 2026 comes pretty darn close.

The post moto g stylus 2026 Review: Accessible Pocket Productivity and Creativity first appeared on Yanko Design.

moto pad – 2026: 5G Tablet With 2.5K Screen, Quad Dolby Atmos

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Motorola has introduced the moto pad – 2026, a new Android tablet that expands the company’s device lineup beyond smartphones and into a more connected cross-screen experience. Announced alongside the moto g stylus – 2026, the tablet is positioned as a larger-screen companion for productivity, entertainment, and everyday multitasking. Based on its specs and overall appearance, the device also appears to be a rebranded version of the Moto Pad 60 Neo, which launched in India last year.

That resemblance matters because the moto pad – 2026 does not arrive as a dramatic reinvention of the Android tablet formula. Instead, it looks like Motorola is leaning on a familiar hardware base and repositioning it for a wider audience under a simpler product name. In that sense, the story here is not just about a new tablet, but about how Motorola is continuing to build out a broader ecosystem around its existing devices.

Designer: Motorola

The moto pad – 2026 centers on an 11-inch display with 2.5K resolution and a 90Hz refresh rate, giving it a hardware foundation aimed at streaming, reading, and light productivity. Motorola says the screen reaches up to 500 nits in High Brightness Mode, which should make it usable in a wider range of lighting conditions. The tablet’s 6.99mm profile and roughly 480g weight also suggest a design meant to feel portable rather than bulky, whether it is being used on a desk, on a couch, or on the go.

The spec sheet also points to an anti-fingerprint finish and a PANTONE Bronze Green metal design. Those details give the device a cleaner and slightly more refined visual identity than many budget-focused tablets that tend to settle for plain plastic shells. Even if the overall hardware looks familiar, Motorola is clearly trying to make the tablet feel more polished and lifestyle-friendly in the way it is presented.

Performance is handled by the MediaTek D6300 5G processor, paired with 8GB of LPDDR4x memory and 128GB of built-in storage. The tablet also supports microSD expansion up to 2TB, adding flexibility for users who want to keep more video, downloads, apps, and documents locally. That combination should be enough for everyday streaming, browsing, reading, casual gaming, and light multitasking, even if it is not positioned as a high-end productivity machine.

One of the more practical additions is 5G connectivity, which gives the moto pad – 2026 an advantage over Wi-Fi-only tablets that lose some of their usefulness away from home or office networks. That makes the device easier to imagine as a portable screen for students, travelers, or anyone who wants a larger display without constantly relying on hotspot connections. It also helps reinforce the idea that this is meant to be a flexible everyday tablet rather than a stay-at-home media slab.

Audio appears to be one of the stronger parts of the package. The moto pad – 2026 includes quad speakers with Dolby Atmos, which should give it a better foundation for movies, streaming, and casual gaming than entry-level tablets with simpler speaker setups. A 3.5mm headphone jack is also included, which remains a practical feature for users who still prefer wired audio or want an easy connection for older accessories.

The software story here is less about reinvention and more about ecosystem fit. Motorola says the moto pad 2026 supports Smart Connect, allowing it to work more closely with phones and PCs for multitasking and content sharing across screens. It also includes Circle to Search, extending one of Android’s more useful recent features to a larger display and giving the tablet a more modern software feel.

Battery life is backed by a 7,040mAh cell, while charging tops out at 20W. The spec sheet also lists an IP52 rating, along with a 5-megapixel front camera and an 8-megapixel rear camera, reinforcing the sense that this is primarily a media and productivity tablet rather than a device built around photography or premium flagship ambitions. Taken as a whole, the moto pad 2026 looks like a practical addition to Motorola’s lineup, even if its strongest selling point may be how familiar it already seems.

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moto g stylus – 2026: Pressure-Sensitive Stylus, Military-Tough, $500

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Motorola has introduced the moto g stylus – 2026, refreshing one of its more popular smartphone lines with an upgraded built-in stylus, added durability, and a feature set aimed at users who want productivity tools without stepping into flagship pricing. The moto g stylus has become one of Motorola’s more popular models by offering a built-in stylus in a segment where that feature remains relatively rare. With the 2026 version, Motorola is clearly building on one of the line’s biggest points of differentiation.

The stylus is central to the phone’s updated experience. It now supports tilt and pressure sensitivity in supported apps, allowing for broader shading, finer lines, and a more natural pen-on-paper feel when sketching, jotting notes, or marking up ideas on the fly. That functionality extends to a refreshed Notes experience, where handwritten notes, doodles, and brainstorms live in one place.

Designer: Motorola

Beyond the pen features, the moto g stylus – 2026 brings together a hardware package aimed at broadening its appeal. The phone includes a 6.7-inch AMOLED display with 1.5K resolution and a 120Hz refresh rate. Peak brightness has been increased to 5,000 nits, up from 3,000 nits on the previous model.

The camera hardware, however, looks rather familiar. Motorola lists a 50-megapixel main camera with Sony’s LYTIA 700C sensor, along with a 13-megapixel ultrawide and macro camera and a 32-megapixel front-facing camera. That mirrors the setup used on the 2025 model on paper, suggesting the bigger story this year is the stylus and durability rather than a major imaging overhaul.

Motorola is also putting more emphasis on durability this year. The moto g stylus – 2026 adds IP69 protection and SGS-certified military-grade toughness, building on the IP68 resistance already offered by the previous model. That should help the phone better handle dust, water exposure, drops, and more demanding day-to-day conditions.

Battery life remains another key part of the package. The phone includes a 5,200mAh battery that Motorola says can deliver up to 44 hours of use, along with support for 68W wired charging and 15W wireless charging. On the software side, the device ships with Android 16 and includes Google Gemini, Motorola’s Hello UX customization layer, Smart Connect for multi-device experiences, and Moto Secure.

The new model continues Motorola’s design-forward approach, pairing its feature set with a leather-inspired finish and twill-like texture. It will be offered in Pantone-curated Coal Smoke and Lavender Mist color options. Motorola announced the phone alongside the Moto Pad 2026, a new tablet intended to complement the smartphone across productivity and entertainment use cases.

The Moto G Stylus 2026 will go on sale on April 16 as an unlocked device through Best Buy, Amazon, and Motorola.com, with a starting price of $499.99. We are expecting to receive a review unit, and we will have more to say once we have had the chance to test the stylus, camera system, battery life, and day-to-day performance. Stay tuned for our full review.

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Motorola’s AI Pendant Turns Conference Talks Into LinkedIn Posts

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There’s a particular kind of friction that comes with using AI during moments that actually matter. You’re in a meeting or a keynote, and consulting your phone means breaking focus, fumbling with a screen, and silently signaling to everyone around you that you’d rather be somewhere else. Motorola’s 312 Labs team identified this as a design problem worth solving, and Project Maxwell is what came out of it.

The device is a pendant, small enough to disappear against a shirt, worn on a metal chain with a rounded rectangular body that wouldn’t look out of place as functional jewelry. At one end sits a wide-angle camera lens in a dark housing, flanked by a slim LED indicator. It comes in a range of distinct finishes: a tortoiseshell amber with deep brown gradients, a matte navy with woven textile-like texture, a sculptural marbled white, and a deep chocolate brown.

Designer: Motorola

When prompted, Project Maxwell continuously captures what you see and hear, then processes that through what Motorola calls Multimodal Perception Fusion, combining input from its camera, microphones, and sensors to deliver real-time, contextual recommendations. The second technical layer, Natural Language Interaction and Intention Capture, is built on Large Action Models that don’t just respond to queries but execute tasks. The difference between describing an action and performing it is exactly the point.

Motorola illustrates the concept with a conference scenario: you prompt Maxwell before a keynote, let it absorb the room, and walk out with a ready-to-edit LinkedIn post, without opening a single app. The idea is that AI works best when it fits into what you’re already doing rather than demanding you stop to interact with it. That’s not a new pitch for wearable tech, but it’s rarely been this well-considered from a form standpoint.

Real questions remain, and Motorola is the first to say so. Project Maxwell is a proof of concept without pricing, a release date, or confirmed hardware specifications. The concerns around continuous environmental capture, consent, and data handling tend to get louder the closer a device like this gets to an actual shelf. How those boundaries get communicated in any future product will matter as much as the hardware.

What 312 Labs has made clear is that Maxwell’s learnings feed directly into Motorola’s Qira AI ecosystem. Even if this exact pendant never ships, the interaction model it’s testing, hands-free, context-aware, and action-capable, is the direction Motorola is heading. The more interesting question isn’t whether a wearable AI pendant is useful. It’s whether people will actually want to wear one.

The post Motorola’s AI Pendant Turns Conference Talks Into LinkedIn Posts first appeared on Yanko Design.

Motorola Just Put 24K Gold on Phones for the World Cup

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The FIFA World Cup, the world’s biggest sporting event, is just a few months away. While there are some issues cropping up in the host countries (specifically the US and Mexico; Canada seems to be doing just fine), brand tie-ups are in full swing with global partners such as Adidas, Coca-Cola, Visa, Qatar Airways, Hyundai-Kia, etc.

Motorola just announced two new additions to its FIFA World Cup 26™ Collection, and they are exactly the kind of phones that make you stop scrolling. The Razr Fold and Edge 70 Fusion now have limited edition versions draped in football-inspired design and 24K gold accents, and whether you follow the sport or not, the craftsmanship here is genuinely worth paying attention to.

Designer: Motorola

Let me start with the big one. The Razr Fold FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition is Motorola’s first book-style foldable, and giving it a limited-edition treatment this early is a bold move. Motorola could have slapped a logo on the back and called it a day, but instead they went further. The back cover features a textured raised-dot pattern pulled directly from the surface of a football, giving the device a tactile quality that you actually feel in your hand. Add the glossy “26” typography cutting through that texture, and the whole thing has a collectible quality that feels deliberate rather than decorative.

The 24K gold-plated FIFA and Motorola logos push it a step further into trophy territory. Under the hood, the Razr Fold runs on a Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip, carries a 6,000mAh battery, and sports an 8.1-inch internal display alongside a 6.6-inch cover screen, with three 50-megapixel cameras on the back. As a debut foldable from Motorola in the book-fold format, it’s already a statement device. The FIFA edition makes that statement louder.

The Edge 70 Fusion FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition takes a different approach, and it might actually be the more interesting design story of the two. Instead of the raised-dot texture, Motorola gave the Edge 70 Fusion a leather-inspired finish that replicates the iconic feel of a football’s surface. It’s a detail that sounds subtle but lands with real impact when you see it, because it turns an everyday mid-range phone into something that clearly belongs to a collection. The 24K gold accents extend around the camera island’s perimeter, which keeps the premium feel consistent without overwhelming the design. The phone runs on a Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chip with a 6.8-inch 144Hz AMOLED display protected by Gorilla Glass 7i, and a 5,200mAh battery. As a mid-range device, the Edge 70 Fusion positions this collection as accessible, not just aspirational, which I think is the right call.

Both phones join the previously released Motorola Razr FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition, forming what Motorola is calling the FIFA World Cup 26™ Collection under its Collections by Motorola series. Announced at MWC 2026, the collection reflects Motorola’s role as the Official Smartphone Partner of FIFA World Cup 2026™, which explains the depth of investment here. This isn’t a one-off co-branded phone. It’s a full lineup with real design thinking behind it.

Sport and technology collaborations can go either way. At their worst, they feel like a badge-slapping exercise where a logo gets placed on an otherwise unchanged product and the price goes up anyway. At their best, they create objects that hold cultural weight beyond their function. What Motorola has done here leans closer to the latter. The texture choices are thematic without being gimmicky. The gold accents are restrained enough to read as premium rather than flashy. And the fact that the design is carried across two very different form factors, a flagship foldable and a mid-range slab, shows that this is a cohesive collection, not just two isolated product moments.

Whether you’re a football fan who wants your phone to carry some of that match-day energy, or simply someone who appreciates when tech and design intersect in a meaningful way, the FIFA World Cup 26™ Collection makes a case for itself. The Razr Fold and Edge 70 Fusion FIFA editions are set to arrive in select markets next month. If these end up being the kind of phones that get displayed on a shelf rather than used as daily drivers, I genuinely wouldn’t blame anyone for that decision either.

The post Motorola Just Put 24K Gold on Phones for the World Cup first appeared on Yanko Design.

Motorola Edge 70 Fusion: 144Hz Screen, 7,000mAh Battery, IP69

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There’s a specific kind of buyer’s remorse that comes with midrange phones. You get them home, take your first few photos in decent light, and think you made the right call. Then comes the dinner, the concert, the sunset that lasted about 45 seconds, and suddenly you’re squinting at a muddy, blown-out mess, wondering where your hard-earned money went. The hardware looked fine on the spec sheet. It just didn’t survive contact with real life.

The motorola edge 70 fusion is Motorola’s attempt to close that gap without asking you to spend flagship money. It’s a midrange phone with a few genuinely noteworthy credentials, a handful of firsts, and, depending on which version you buy, a battery that could outlast your weekend. Whether the whole package adds up is worth thinking through carefully.

Designer: Motorola

The headline is the camera, specifically the 50 MP Sony LYTIA™ 710 sensor on the main shooter. This is the first time that particular sensor has appeared in any smartphone, and Sony’s LYTIA line is built around low-light clarity and accurate color reproduction. Optical image stabilization keeps things sharp when your hands aren’t, and moto ai’s Photo Enhancement Engine adds a Signature Style feature that applies consistent color grading across your shots. A 13 MP ultrawide covers the 122° wide-angle and macro territory, and the 32 MP front camera shoots 4K video, which still feels like a meaningful spec at this price tier.

The display is where the edge 70 fusion picks up another first. It’s touted to be the world’s first 144 Hz quad-curved screen with Pantone Validated™ color certification, spanning 6.78 inches of Extreme AMOLED at 1.5K Super HD resolution with a peak brightness of 5,200 nits. That brightness number is the practical one. It means the screen stays legible in direct sunlight, something that budget and midrange panels have never quite solved. The quad-curve design, where the glass flows continuously from front to back without hard edges, adds a physical refinement that usually costs considerably more.

Motorola went further than most midrange phones dare to go on the durability side. The edge 70 fusion carries both IP68 and IP69 ratings, meaning it handles submersion up to 1.5 meters and high-pressure water jets. MIL-STD-810H certification covers the drop and temperature extremes, and Corning Gorilla Glass 7i protects the front. A small but useful detail called Water Touch keeps the touchscreen responsive with wet fingers. The back uses textures inspired by nylon and linen, materials that feel warmer in hand than the cold-glass backs that have become the default on most phones.

There are two battery variants, and the difference between them is significant. The standard model has a 5,200 mAh cell rated for up to 39 hours of mixed use. The second variant ships with a 7,000 mAh silicon-carbon battery, a chemistry that fits more energy into less physical space, rated for up to 50 hours. Both versions charge at 68W via TurboPower, which Motorola says delivers enough power for a full day in just 10 minutes of charging. For anyone who has ever started a long travel day at 34%, that’s not a trivial promise.

The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 handles processing, paired with up to 8 GB of RAM and a RAM Boost feature for smoother multitasking, with up to 256 GB of internal storage. It’s a capable mid-tier chipset, honest about where it sits. Motorola is guaranteeing three Android OS upgrades, and moto ai brings in features like Next Move for contextual on-screen assistance and Playlist Studio for AI-generated playlists. Google Gemini integration rounds out the software story.

The edge 70 fusion comes in five Pantone-curated colorways, including Orient Blue, Silhouette, Sporting Green, and Country Air, each with matching colored accents around the camera lenses. It’s a detail that suggests the design team was thinking about the phone as something you carry, not just something you use. The real question the edge 70 fusion leaves open is a broader one: at what point does the gap between midrange and flagship stop being about capability and start being about perception?

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