Motorola Moto G75 5G rugged phone review

Motorola Moto G75 5G: 30-second review

Motorola has gone for consistency with their Moto range, with everything from the entry-level Moto G04 through to the flagship Moto Edge 50 Ultra featuring much the same design and basic layout. However, real change comes with the quality of the building and construction as you step up, especially with the G75 5G.

What's surprising for a phone at this price range is just how tough it is, and this is definatly the headline feature of this handset. The fact that it has MIL-STD-810H durability, as certified by the US military, and IP68 waterproofing is quite unusual for a phone at this price point.

Likewise, inside, it's relatively well-equipped, if mid range. While the processor, GPU, RAM, and storage aren't cutting edge, the inclusion of the latest Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 CPU enables decent performance. Through my tests, I was generally impressed with how it handled both documents and image editing, although some high demand graphic processing did push the system.

What really gives this the edge compared to many of the best rugged phones I've tested is how highly specialised it is for the price point. Motorola has clearly made a few cutbacks on features, such as the LED screen instead of OLED. However, you need to compare the screen side-by-side with an OLED display to notice much difference. There might be a slight difference in brightness, but in day-to-day use, the fact that it's LED rather than OLED doesn't really have any impact. Additionally, there's no fingerprint recognition built into the screen; instead, it's integrated into the power button. These limitations in the specifications don't affect the overall functionality or usability of the handset

As with many Android phones, there's the ability to upgrade storage, so if you plan to capture high-resolution images and videos, you can pop in a microSD or TTF card up to 1TB.

When it comes to the camera there's a Sony sensor that offers a well balanced solution and does an excellent job at image and video capture with results that should please both enthusiasts and professionals.

While the Android operating system allows apps like the full Google Docs suite to run smoothly, the phone comes pre-installed with a number of additional games and apps which does initially make the UX feel a little cluttered.

Overall, considering the price and positioning at the sub $300 / £300 end of the market, this is an exceptional phone. If you need a tough smartphone with decent performance and an impressive camera, the Moto G75 5G is an excellent choice.

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Price & availability

• How much does it cost? Starting from $229?
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? Direct from Motorola

As Motorola is one of the leading smartphone brands, the G75 5G, along with the rest of the Moto range, is readily available from most online retailers as well as on the High Street. The price of the handset is relatively fixed at around US$229 or £229 and is available either as a standalone handset or within a contract. It's also available in a variety of colours, including acro blue charcoal, grey, and such, as well as green.

• Value: 5 / 5

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Specifications

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Design

In today's crowded smartphone market, it takes something impressive to stand out, and with the Moto G75 5G, Motorola has certainly achieved this. The design of the phone closely mirrors the rest of the Moto line and is one of the most ergonomic and well-sized phones available. It features a large 6.78-inch screen, which, while LED rather than OLED, still provides a bright and clear display.

The standout feature of this phone, without doubt is its durability. With military-grade MIL-STD-810H certification and an IP68 rating, the phone is designed to survive more than most, especially as this doesn't fall into the usual tough smartphone category of design. The internal structure offers the main robustness to the construction of the phone with Corning Gorilla Glass 5, ensuring the phone can survive being tossed in a bag with keys or dropped on the pavement. 

The phone is available in a variety of finishes with a sleek matt finish or a soft vegan leather option. The vegan leather finish provides a tactile, easy-to-grip surface. Both finishes feel slim and comfortable in the hand, with slightly rounded but not overly curved edges, making them easy to hold.

When it comes to size and weight the phone measures in at 166.09 x 77.24 x 8.34 mm for the matt version and 166.09 x 77.24 x 8.44 mm for the vegan leather version. The matt finish weighs 205 g, while the vegan leather finish weighs slightly more at 208 g.

Checking out around the rest of the body of the phone and there's the camera array on the back, a volume rocker and power/fingerprint button on the side, and a SIM slot that supports up to a 1TB microSD.

The Moto G75 5G offers a minimalist, slimline design with robust build quality, making it a great choice for anyone looking for a standard style of smartphone with some tough credentials.

• Design: 4.5 / 5

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Features

• 5000mAh battery
• IP68 and MIL-STD-810H certification

Taking into consideration that this is a mid-range mobile phone priced under $300/£300, its features are extremely impressive. The standout is undoubtedly its toughness, with IP68 waterproof protection, MIL-STD-810H military certification, and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 should all help to keep the phone well-protected. One particularly interesting feature that sets this phone apart from standard consumer smartphones and even rugged smartphones is its wet touchscreen functionality. This allows the screen to remain usable even when wet, making it ideal for regular outdoor use, although not underwater.

The phone is dominated by its large 6.78-inch display. While it features an LCD 8-bit screen rather than the more common OLEDs, this is not an issue at this price range. The screen supports 83% NTSC colour profile and a refresh rate of 120 Hz which enables smooth video and game playback. When it comes to brightness the LCD reaches a maximum of 1000 nits, which enables easy viewing in all but the brightest of conditions. Resolution wise it's Full HD+ (2388 x 1080), with a 387 PPI.

As with all smartphones, the cameras are a key feature with the front-facing camera supporting 4K UHD at 30 fps or Full HD at 30 fps, making it perfect for selfies and video calls. On the back, the main rear camera is powered by a 50 MP Sony LYTIA™ 600 sensor with an f/1.79 aperture. There's also an 8 MP ultra-wide-angle camera with a 118.6° field of view and macro vision, supported by an f/2.2 aperture. In the array is also a flicker sensor that helps to eliminate light bars caused by artificial lighting in photos which is a nice addition.

While the camera specifications are by no means groundbreaking, they are well-balanced for this price point, and should ensure good-quality images perfect for general use as well as documenting site or work visits. The main Sony sensor has been design to work well in low-light condition and also offers built-in image stabilisation to reduce blur caused by camera shake at longer exposures. The ultra-wide-angle lens, while lower in resolution, offers plenty of additional composition options.

The phone also incorporates AI features to enhance your images with options like auto-enhance, face retouching, portrait mode, and auto-smile capture are available while shooting or during editing.

The Moto G75 5G's Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor, hits the mobile processor midrange and handles most applications smoothly, as shown in the test results. It also supports 5G connectivity, ensuring fast internet access wherever a 5G signal is available.

The processor is complemented by 8 GB of RAM which features an automatic RAM Boost feature that temporaily uses ROM Storage a virtyual RAM. As standard the phone has 256GB of internal storage which can be boosted to 1TB as mentioned.

When it comes to the power supply inside is a 5000 mAh battery, providing up to 36 hours of use on a single charge. For quick top-ups, it supports 30W TurboPower charging, enabling a 50% charge in under 25 minutes, and it also supports up to 15W wireless charging.

One of the features that stood out to me was that Motorola is promisesing five OS upgrades and six years of security updates for this phone, guaranteeing relevance and usability through 2029—a level of support few manufacturers currently offer.

• Features: 4 / 5

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Performance

• Decent 50MP camera
• Robust and waterproof

Getting started with the Moto G75 5G is straightforward with the android setup process involving the usual steps: logging into Google, setting up a keypad password, fingerprint recognition, and face access. These steps take between five and ten minutes.

The Motorola My UX OS, based on Android 14, is familiar and works exceptionally well for the most part. However, the interface is a little bloated with additional games, functions, and features that most users aren't likely to revisit after the initial exploration. While these extras don't impact performance, they do slightly detract from the polished experience Motorola seems to be aiming at with My UX OS.

Basic usage of the phone, including calls over 5G and 4G, was excellent. Connection quality was consistently strong, keeping up with similar-specification phones and matching the iPhone 15 Pro for download speeds in both 5G and 4G areas on the Vodafone network. Voice calls were clear and crisp, with a decent volume.

Data connections also performed well, with email, internet browsing, Google Docs, and media streaming all working as I would hope. Network performance was essentially on par with expectations for a modern smartphone. In terms of app usage, overall performance was solid. The phone's internal storage enabled quick access to documents, images, and videos and with the addition of a MicroSD card there was instantly additional space for images and video, although through the test this wasn't required. 

Most apps opened quickly, and the hardware was capable of handling tasks like editing documents in Google Docs and Sheets. The large 6.78-inch screen made the virtual keyboard easy to use for typing and editing.

When using apps like CapCut or GoPro Quik, the processor and hardware proved sufficient for editing HD video footage. However, export times for the final video cuts could be a little slow. Benchmark tests revealed the phone's strengths and weaknesses: while read speeds were high at 1334 MB/s, write speeds were slower at 407 MB/s. This means HD video footage is handled well, but there is some lag when working with 4K footage.

The Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 CPU performed exceptionally for general tasks as long as it wasn't pushed too hard. Graphics processing with the chip on board the CPU was a noticeable weakness, and this was highlighted by low benchmark scores, such as 254 in Nomad Light and 3042 in Wildlife Extreme. While preloaded games that came with the phone ran smoothly, the phone struggled with high-end, graphically intensive games, making it unsuitable for more intensive gaming.

Durability and waterproofing have to be the standout features of the Moto G75 5G. Unlike many phones at this price point, it is exceptionally rugged. Through the tests I dropped it onto concrete, submersion in a stream, and even when thrown in a bag with keys for a full day the phone emerged relatively unscathed, thanks in part to the protective rubber case provided.

In the most rigorous test, the phone was submerged in a river at a depth of 10–15 cm for 15 minutes. Not only did it survive, but the touchscreen remained fully operational before being wiped down. Further tests showed the touchscreen was responsive and usable immediately after being pulled from the water. However, like other touchscreens, it was unresponsive while submerged. If you need a phone that works underwater, this may not be the ideal choice.

The Moto G75 5G is a surprise for it robustness, reliable performance, and excellent waterproofing, making it a great option for outdoor use as everyday durability. If you work in a profession that requires a smart everyday phone with the durability of a tough phone then this is a great option.

• Performance: 4 / 5

Motorola Moto G75 5G: Final verdict

At the end of the test, I have to say I'm really impressed with the Motorola Moto G75 5G. It seems like an ideal phone for anyone who works outdoors. The styling of the phone is minimalistic, and it looks like any other smartphone—but with the tough credentials behind it that enable it to survive more than most.

What I also really like about the phone is that, while it sits at the relatively entry-level price point for this type of smartphone, it's incredibly well-balanced. Motorola has made some cuts to keep costs down, such as using an LED screen instead of OLED and not including a market-leading camera. However, what this means is you get a really solid smartphone that works well, keeps up with all the latest apps, and has a decent camera and feature set. Plus, Motorola has committed to supporting it with updates through to 2029, which is a fantastic benefit.

If you work outdoors or enjoy adventures and need a phone that can withstand more than most without opting for a fully rugged smartphone—which can often be big and bulky—then the Motorola Moto G75 5G is a perfect choice. At this price, there's very little here not to like.

Should you buy a Motorola Moto G75 5G?

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