We have seen a number of smartphones launching in India in 2024, from entry-level handsets to flagship models and foldable phones. The budget segment sees a lot of competition from handset companies in the country, with each new model offering iterative upgrades over its predecessors. Motorola recently launched the Moto G35 5G as its most affordable 5G smartphone. This handset will compete with smartphones like Redmi A4 5G, Tecno Spark 30C 5G and Lava Blaze 2 5G.
You can buy Moto G35 5G for Rs. It is priced at Rs 9,999 in India and is sold in a single 4GB + 128GB RAM and storage configuration. Does it offer enough value for money like other smartphones priced below Rs. 10,000? Read my Moto G35 5G review to know more about this handset.
Moto G35 5G design: Looking familiar
- Dimensions – 166.29×75.98×7.79 mm
- Weight – 185 grams
- Colors – Guava Red, Leaf Green (in this review), Midnight Black
The new Moto G35 5G is available in matte and vegan leather finishes, and it looks similar to its more expensive brother in the G series – the Moto G45 5G (Review). In fact, if you placed these handsets next to each other with the back panels facing up, you wouldn’t be able to tell them apart. Subjectively speaking, this is one of the more polished looking smartphones in this price segment.
The Moto G35 5G looks very similar to the more expensive Moto G45 5G model.
The edges of the smartphone are made of plastic and give a smooth feel. The left edge houses the SIM tray, while the right side houses the volume rocker and power button – the latter also serves as a fingerprint scanner. There’s a USB Type-C port at the bottom, along with a 3.5mm headphone port and a speaker grille.
The company has sent us the Moto G35 5G in green color with a vegan leather finish which makes it easy to hold. It comes with a transparent TPU case in the box, as well as an 18W charger and a USB Type-A to USB Type-C cable.
Moto G35 5G Software: Comes with clean UI, bloatware
- Software – My UX
- Version – Android 14
- Latest security patch – December 5, 2024
Motorola’s latest G series smartphones run Android 14 with the company’s My UX running on top of it. This is the same interface that’s available on more expensive models like the Moto G45 5G, and it comes with software features that are specific to the company’s handsets, like Motorola Secure (secure folders, network protection) and Family Spaces (family controls). .
The Moto G35 5G comes with Android 14 with the company’s My UX skin (tap to enlarge)
After setting up the smartphone, I was asked to “try” (install) three third-party applications by the Moto App Manager app, which is also preinstalled on the company’s smartphones. The installer informs users that it will install three new apps monthly when system updates are installed. These apps can be uninstalled like any other app that the user wants to download on their smartphone.
The handset is expected to receive only one Android OS update, which means it should get Android 15 sometime next year. It would have been nice to see the company give at least two Android OS upgrades for this smartphone, considering the fact that it comes with Android 14, which was released a year ago. According to the company’s support website, the Moto G35 is scheduled to receive security updates by August 2027.
Moto G35 5G performance: Good for the price
- Processor – Unisoc T760
- Memory – 4GB LPDDR4X
- Storage – 128GB UFS 2.2
The Moto G35 5G is equipped with the 6nm Unisoc T760 chipset launched in July. It is an octa-core processor that includes six Arm Cortex-A76 cores (2.2GHz) and four Cortex A55 cores (2GHz) along with Mali G57 MC4 GPU. This puts it on par with the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 SoC, which has a slightly faster A76 core (2.4GHz) but a slightly older Mali G57 MC2 GPU.
As you can probably tell, this isn’t an exceptionally fast processor. Still, it’s great at handling everyday tasks like browsing the web, texting someone on WhatsApp, and using social media apps like Facebook or Instagram. I noticed a little lag in slightly more demanding apps like Snapchat and Google Maps.
Moto G35 5G benchmark results (tap to enlarge)
You can play casual games on this handset without any issues – I tested a few third-party games I downloaded after setting up the phone – and it’s a good option to play some games like Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) if you use it. Can also handle. Lowest graphics settings. I also played Asphalt Legends Unite on default settings without any issues.
I also ran several benchmark tests on the Moto G35 5G to get a better understanding of how it performs against smartphones equipped with processors that deliver comparable performance, such as the Redmi A4 5G, Samsung Galaxy A16 5G, and the Infinix Note 40X. The performance of the handset appears to be on par with some of these models that sell at higher prices.
You can check out the table below to see how the Moto G35 5G performed on benchmark tests compared to similar models from other smartphone manufacturers.
| benchmark | Moto G35 5G | Redmi A4 5G | Samsung Galaxy A16 5G | infinix note 40x |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| geekbench 6 single core | 741 | 839 | 736 | 768 |
| geekbench 6 multi core | 2290 | 1919 | 1938 | 2050 |
| AnTuTu v10 | 470,387 | 387,157 | 411,056 | 393,680 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | 11,755 | 8,782 | 9,382 | 9,151 |
| 3dmark wildlife | 1351 | 647 | 1351 | 1373 |
| 3dmark wildlife unlimited | 1335 | failed to run | 1335 | 1356 |
| 3dmark sling shot | 3603 | 2409 | 3603 | 3724 |
| 3dmark sling shot extreme | 2629 | 647 | 2629 | 2747 |
| gfxbench car chase | 16 | 15 | 56 | 13 |
| GFXBench Manhattan 3.1 | 29 | 28 | 24 | 22 |
| gfxbench t-rex | 55 | 55 | 14 | 52 |
Motorola has equipped this smartphone with a 6.72-inch full-HD+ (1,080×2,400 pixels) LCD screen with Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The display’s refresh rate can be set to 60Hz or 120Hz – while the latter offers a more smooth experience, you may want to leave it at the default mode for better battery life.
Visibility isn’t ideal when you’re out in bright sunlight, but it’s quite serviceable at other times of the day. After digging around in the settings, I found a toggle under Settings > Display > Extra Brightness that improved the brightness level of the display, but it resulted in the battery draining faster.
Moto G35 5G camera: the job is done
- Primary camera – 50-megapixel (f/1.8), PDAF, video up to 4K/30fps
- Ultrawide camera – 8-megapixel (f/2.2), 120-degree field-of-view
- Selfie camera- 16 megapixel
Moto G35 5G is a budget smartphone with a dual rear camera setup. It’s good to see that the company hasn’t bothered to add a low-resolution macro or depth sensor, which are usually disappointing when included in phones of this price segment.
Moto G35 5G camera samples. From top to bottom – Primary, Ultrawide, Portrait (tap images to enlarge)
Clicking photos with the primary 50-megapixel camera during the day, the phone delivers bright images with a good amount of details for a budget smartphone. It also accurately reproduces skin tones when capturing portrait images. Subjects that are closer to the camera will definitely have more detail, and the camera app is fast and quick when taking photos.
The 8-megapixel ultrawide camera produces images that aren’t as detailed as the primary camera, and you’ll notice a distinct lack of detail when you zoom in on these images. For example, I clicked an image of a sign across the road using the primary and ultrawide cameras, and only the image taken with the former camera contained legible text.
In low-light scenarios and at night, there is only one camera worth using on the Moto G35 5G, and the 50-megapixel sensor is best used in conjunction with the Night Vision feature available inside the Camera app. It takes a few seconds to capture an image, but the difference in detail is quite apparent in our camera samples.
Samsung Galaxy A16 5G camera samples. Top to bottom – day, night (tap images to enlarge)
Motorola has equipped the handset with a 16-megapixel selfie camera, which captures good photos during the day. In darker scenarios, it’s still able to deliver enough light for a recognizable image, but you also notice a lot of smoothing and noise.
There is no image stabilization on the Moto G35 5G, and the smartphone lets you record videos up to 4K/30fps using the primary camera and up to 1080p/30fps using the ultrawide camera. Once again, the former is used when recording with this handset.
Moto G35 5G battery: slow to charge, slow to discharge
- Battery Capacity – 5,000mAh
- Wired Charging – 18W (USB Type-C)
The Unisoc T760 chip on the Moto G35 5G appears to be quite efficient, as the handset is capable of delivering over a day and a half of battery life, before requiring another charge. The phone lasted about 18 hours and 50 minutes in our HD video battery loop test, but keep in mind these are synthetic tests.
Moto G35 5G delivers more than a day of usage on a single charge
In day-to-day use, the Moto G35 does not drain the battery, even with active use as well as in standby mode. I used the phone to make calls using WhatsApp, browse the web and check social media apps, and play some casual games – it gave about 5.5 hours of screen on time, with a standby life of about 21 hours.
Charging the Moto G35 5G from 0 to 100 percent may take a while, especially if your battery is low when you plug the handset in. When I tested the handset, it took about two hours to fully charge using the 18W adapter included in the box.
Moto G35 5G review: Verdict
The Moto G35 5G offers good performance for the price, outperforming more expensive smartphones like the Samsung Galaxy A16 5G (Review) and Infinix Note 40X on some benchmark tests. It also offers 5G connectivity for under Rs. 10,000, reliable battery life and good camera performance.
The Moto G35 offers good value for money at its current price of Rs. 9,999
It’s worth noting that the company has only offered one Android OS upgrade for the Moto G35, while the aforementioned Galaxy A16 5G is priced higher and is expected to get up to six upgrades.
Other similarly priced smartphones that you can consider instead of the Moto G35 5G include the Redmi A4 5G (first impressions), the Tecno Spark 30C 5G, and the slightly older Lava Blaze 2 5G.
