Motorola Edge 40 Review: Is it a flagship killer?

May 29, 2023, 09:30 AM
by Shahriar Rabab

UNB News
Publish- May 29, 2023, 09:30 AM
Shahriar Rabab
Update- May 29, 2023, 10:02 AM

Motorola Edge 40

There was a time when Motorola was considered the king of flip phones in the early days of mobile tech. Since then, the company has evolved with time and introduced traditional smartphones in the market. Particularly, the Edge series from Motorola has been a hit in the mid-range market. This year Motorola released the updated Edge 40 on 4th May 2023 globally. Here’s a detailed take on the device.

Key Specifications of Motorola Edge 40

Design and Build Quality

The Motorola Edge 40 can be considered an incremental update over the Edge 30. Other than some slight changes in the camera housing, not much has changed from the previous gen.

Users will be getting a front glass, metal frame, and plastic back with the Edge 40. The plastic back is matte frosted to give it a glass-like finish. The matte frost comes in two finishes distinguishing the camera housing from the rest of the back. Users will also get a faux leather option for a more textured and refined hand experience.

Weighing about 5.89 oz (167g- 171g), Motorola Edge 40’s dimensions are 158.4 by 72 by 7.6 mm. This device seems easy to manage with one hand. It comes withIP68 dust and water resistance that can protect up to 1.5m for about 30 min.

Motorola has marketed its Edge series as premium mid-range devices. Features like curved edges and near bezel-less display are seen on the Edge 40 which are otherwise reserved for premium flagships.

The choice of ports and buttons hasn’t altered from the last gen. Though the placement of the volume rocker and the power button on the same side and in close proximity will make way for misclicks here and there. This year, there have been changes with the sim placement as well. The Edge 40 will support a single physical sim with the secondary sim being an e-sim option.

Overall, the Edge 40 stays true to the Motorola basics. And the tried and tested formula will definitely appeal to long-term fans of the brand.

The Display

Being an upper midrange device, the choice of display plays a crucial role to stand out from a host of other options. Thankfully, the Edge 40 understood the drill. The device comes with a 6.55-inches P-OLED display with FHD+ (1080 by 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio and 402 ppi density) resolution.

The panel supports HDR10+ with a 144 Hz smooth refresh rate. Additionally, there is a 1200 nits HBM on the display for perfect outdoor legibility.

Motorola went all out on the display segment and it played out big time. Using the display is an absolute breeze with smooth touch response and a near-stock Android experience. The color renditions are accurate with slightly warm hues. It can be easily calibrated from the settings to a cooler tone depending on preference. The display is easily the best in its price segment. And if media consumption is the priority, the Edge 40 can be an easy choice.

The Camera

There is a dual camera setup on the Edge 40. It might be considered a step down from the Edge 30 as the previous model had a triple camera setup. However, there is more to it than just the megapixels and number of sensors.

Motorola used an updated 50 MP (f/1.4) main sensor with a larger aperture than the outgoing model. The 13 MP (f/2.2) ultrawide sensor has been upgraded to a 120-degree field of view for those fish eye effect shots.

Camera of Motorola Edge 40

In daylight, the large sensor picks up great detail from the subject and the background all the while preserving the dynamic range. Shots look crisp with accurate color reproduction. The performance is also more or less the same in low and artificial lights. However, portrait shots in artificial lights come out a bit soft compared to daylight.

The videography on the Edge 40 can be pushed up to 4K at 30 fps. There is also a 32 (f/2.4) MP front camera which is arguably the best resolution-wise in its price point.

Processor and Performance

The processor on the Motorola Edge 40 is Mediatek Dimensity 8020 based on the 6 Nm architecture. The processor has a chip design of 4 2.6 GHz Cortex-A78 and 4 2.0 GHz Cortex-A55 SoC which is one of the more balanced distributions. The 8020 is coupled with Mali-G77 MC9 GPU.

The Dimensity 8020 sits on par with the Snapdragon 888 and slightly below the 8 Gen 1 processor. So there is no question about the capability of the processor. That said, the Dimensity processors aren’t exactly known to be the best efficient processors out there.

But the test was pleasantly surprising. Even with prolonged gaming sessions, the Edge 40 didn’t experience any kind of rapid battery discharge. The device did heat up slightly after about 30 minutes but it was nothing unmanageable. Titles like PUBG, COD, and Asphalt 9 ran without any frame drops and in the highest settings. It feels like the line between high-end midrange and flagship smartphones is getting blurred each day, at least performance-wise.

The 144 Hz display also does wonders to aid the processors. The snappy animations and fast app loading make it a treat to interact with the Edge 40. It definitely feels like a proper flagship with its performance.

Battery and Charge Time

The battery on the Edge 40 is 4400 mAh. Now this might come as a shocker as it's almost a standard to see 5000 mAh on mid-range devices. But rest assured it doesn’t affect the overall usage much thanks to the efficient performance of the 8020. But yes, users will notice the shorter SoT at 5 to 6 hours on average.

Additionally, Motorola has introduced 68W wired fast charging on the Edge 40 which is the first time in the Edge series. So even if the device runs out of juice, it’ll be a matter of minutes to get it recharged.

Price of Motorola Edge 40

The official price of Motorola Edge 40 is Rs 29,999 in India. That roughly translated to about 38,952 BDT (1 INR = 1.30 BDT). However, the price will differ once the device becomes officially available in Bangladesh.

Pros and Cons of Motorola Edge 40

Pros:

- Great display

- Near-stock Android experience

- 68W fast charging support

- Sleek curvy design.

Cons:

- Average battery life

- The dual stereo speakers aren’t that loud

Motorola Edge 40

Verdict

The Motorola Edge 40 brings a lot at an affordable price. But the thing about cutthroat competition is that other companies will also bring their best at every price point. For the same price, there is the Poco F5 5G which packs almost everything the Edge 40 is offering plus a better battery life.

However, that doesn’t make the Motorola Edge 40 any less appealing. It has a better camera and a better overall premium feel to it compared to the F5. The rest is for the user to decide.