Motorola Motorola G 5G (2024) PB0L0000US Review

At $130, the Moto G 5G (2024) delivers 97th percentile battery life and 99th percentile connectivity. That means all-day power and full 5G support for peanuts. The catch? Performance sits at the 40th percentile, so keep your multitasking light.

At $130, the Motorola Moto G 5G (2024) is a budget phone that doesn't feel like a compromise. It lands in the 97th percentile for battery life and the 99th for connectivity, which means you're getting a device that lasts all day and connects to everything. That's the headline here: a massive 5000mAh battery and full 5G support for the price of a dinner for two.

But there's a trade-off, and it's in the performance column. The Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 processor and 4GB of RAM put it in the 40th percentile for speed. For basic tasks, it's fine. But if you're a heavy multitasker, you'll feel the limits. It's a phone built for longevity and connection, not for raw power.

Let's be clear about the performance. The Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 is a budget chip, and the 4GB of RAM is on the lean side. That 40th percentile ranking means it's slower than most phones in our database. You can browse, message, and stream without much fuss, but try running a navigation app, music, and a browser tab at the same time, and you might hit some stutters. It's not built for that.

The good news is everything else is punching way above its weight. That 120Hz display is in the 96th percentile for its class, making scrolling feel smooth. The 50MP camera sits in the 86th percentile, which is impressive for this price. So while the brain is a bit slow, the eyes and ears of this phone are excellent.

For $130, this is one of the best value propositions in phones right now. You're paying for the essentials done well: all-day battery, modern connectivity, and a decent screen. The price-to-performance ratio is skewed heavily towards 'features you'll use' over 'benchmarks you'll brag about'. When you compare it to phones that cost twice as much, it wins on battery and connectivity alone. Motorola cut costs in the right places for this budget.

Stack it up against the competition, and its value shines. The Samsung Galaxy S25 FE will smoke it in performance, but it'll cost over three times as much. The Google Pixel 10a will have a better camera and cleaner software, but again, for a much higher price. Against other budget phones like the older Moto G models, the 2024 version wins on that 120Hz display and modern 5G connectivity. If your budget is tight and you want the most modern features for your money, this Moto G is the play. If you need speed for gaming or heavy apps, you'll need to spend more.

Skip this phone if you're a power user or a mobile gamer. That 40th percentile performance score is a hard stop. If you regularly have maps, music, and a browser running simultaneously, you'll find this phone freezing up. Also, if you take a lot of group shots or landscape photos, the lack of an ultra-wide camera will be a limitation. Look at phones with 8GB of RAM and a higher-tier processor instead.

We recommend the Moto G 5G (2024) if you want a reliable, connected phone that won't die on you and costs almost nothing. The data is clear: it excels in battery life and connectivity, which are the two most important things for most people. Just go in knowing its limits. The 40th percentile performance score is real; this is a basic daily driver, not a powerhouse. For $130, that's a trade-off we can absolutely get behind.