The Moto E (2015) Review
by Brandon Chester on April 21, 2015 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Smartphones
- Motorola
- Mobile
- Moto E (2015)
WiFi
When building devices to meet a low price, WiFi always seems to be one of the first things on the chopping block. The assumption is most likely that the people in the market for inexpensive smartphones don't require speeds beyond what is offered by 802.11n. What disappoints me is when 5GHz support is also omitted, which leaves the device operating on the increasing crowded 2.4GHz band.
The Moto E's results are in line with other 2.4GHz 802.11n devices. With an absolute max theoretical speed of 72Mbps, 58.1Mbps over UDP is actually a pretty good result. That being said, the improved speed and reduced interference of 5GHz networks would still be appreciated. At $149 cuts have to be made somewhere though, and I would prefer that they be made to WiFi rather than the display or build quality.
GNSS
Like most devices which use Qualcomm's Gobi modems, the Moto E uses Qualcomm's GNSS solution. In Airplane mode with no assistance information the Moto E was able to achieve a lock in 32 seconds, with it taking another few seconds to bring the accuracy to within 10 feet. Both these times will vary greatly depending on the surrounding environment and weather conditions. With assistance info locks take only a matter of seconds.
Facebook
Twitter
RSS
90 Comments
View All Comments
Brandon Chester - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
That's a really bad mistake I commonly make. Thank you for pointing it out. Also the Moto E should be on the basemark chart, it might have glitched out and not regenerated or something. Let me take a look at it.mayankleoboy1 - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
I have the MotoE 1st gen. I have only 2 complaints:1. The internal storage is too low at 4gb. I cant install many apps.
2. The gallery app takes a long time to sharpen zoomed images.
PsychoPif - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
I'm happy to see you got some Windows Phone in there. While there is newer alternatives at this price, it's nice to see the diversityPeichen - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
Overpriced when comparing with Chinese phones that have way better parts for the same price. The only reason Moto charge as much as it does with the the X, G, E and speciality phones is because it is the only American Android phone and if you want to buy American you have to pay the premium.Daniel Egger - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
> Overpriced when comparing with Chinese phones that have way better parts for the same price.And which phones would that be? At least there're no brand phones at that price tag with this (hardware) feature set and then we haven't even talked about software yet; it's close to impossible to find a phone which is available with (mostly unadultered) Lollipop and given that many or even most vendors in this price segment do not even care to offer *any* updates that's a major factor for any sane person. Also Motorola is one of the few companies which allow for easy rooting and even bootloader unlocking -- that's no small feat.
I totally agree with Brandon that the only reasonable price/performance competition can be found in the Windows Phone camp.
Peichen - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
Xiaomi Redmi 2 is $112 with Snapdragon 410, 1 or 2GB of RAM, 8 or 16GB of storage, 720p 4.7" screen, 8mp and 2mp camera and Android 5.0Daniel Egger - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
Aha, I can't find it for less than $132 (the 1GB/8GB version). Here in Europe the cheapest price is 40€ more expensive then the Moto E 2nd Gen LTE. Also MIUI v6 is based on KitKat and 32bit so not really interesting.Impulses - Tuesday, April 21, 2015 - link
Not sure why the slightly xenophobic tinge is necessary... It might be designed in the US but I'm pretty sure no Moto phone is made there anymore (they closed the Texas assembly plant no?) and Moto's parent company is Chinese anyway (unless Lenovo decided to move).Moto has better distribution than Xiaomi etc, particularly within regions that Anandtech's readership is at, get over it. That isn't even saying much considering how woeful Moto's distribution and site are, but it's still a fact. I'd actually love to see some Xiaomi reviews but if I can't easily buy one it's pointless.
Nothing against them, I've got a pair of Xiaomi Pistons that are some of the best IEM I've tried under $70, if not the best (and they were $25).
blzd - Thursday, April 23, 2015 - link
If you actually try and buy an imported Chinese phone you end up paying a lot more then their MSRP, often more then double.Also who wants to use an Android interface that was never designed to be used with the English language?
RealTheXev - Wednesday, April 29, 2015 - link
I just picked up the LTE version of this phone for my mother on Verizon Wireless (and yes, I am 100% sure it is the 2015 model). It comes setup for pre-pay plans and has a bargain basement price of $69 (at Walmart no less). I even read on XDA of a few people being able to add it to their post paid Verizon plans simply by calling Verizon.For THAT price, its a freakn' sweet phone and its a huge upgrade over my mom's something LG with Android 2.6 3G (it was soo old.. and it was only a year old.. not even worth looking up the model # lol).