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Motorola Moto E (2nd Gen) Review

OS, Apps and UI

It runs Android 5.0.2 “Lollipop” out of the box in its purest form. The default launcher is Google Now with essential Google apps to get you started. It’s like owning a Nexus or Android One device but with Motorola’s useful apps.

MotoE_UI

Alert

Motorola Alert takes care of your safety and emergency essentials. It can notify selected contacts or emergency services whenever you are in need of help. You can manually send your location if you think you are lost and let them track you.

MotoE_Alert

Moto

Moto helps you get the most out of your Motorola device. From here, you can setup automatic adjustments based on your activity or your location, turn on quick capture, and activate the Moto Display feature similar to the Moto X.

MotoE_Moto1

MotoE_Moto2

Migrate

Motorola Migrate takes care of your data transfer from your old phone. It supports full data transfer from an Android smartphone, contacts and calendar transfer from an iPhone, and contacts transfer from most phone models with Bluetooth connectivity.

MotoE_Migrate

We hope that Motorola will also include their own file manager app soon. More apps made by Motorola are featured in the next section.

Camera and Multimedia

The device is equipped with a 5-megapixel rear shooter and a VGA front-facing camera.

They’re accessed by Motorola camera app. The camera UI is straightforward and simple to use. Upon opening, you can tap anywhere to take a photo. There’s a button for video recording and another to access the front camera. Sliding from the right edge will show you a semi-circle menu for more options. If enabled, you can also easily access the camera by double twisting.

MotoE_CameraUI

In broad daylight, the rear camera captures bright and sharp images with decent amount of detail. Though, exposure compensation struggles a little and even the HDR feature doesn’t help. Indoor and low-light shots are nothing stellar with no on-board flash to support. The front-facing camera is noticeably brighter than most low-resolution sensors and will suit for video calling.

Regarding video, the rear camera can only do 720p which is common with budget Motorola devices and the Moto E is no exception. Quality-wise, the output is average at best. There are less captured details compared to the photos and the exposure is still slow to adjust. It records audio in stereo with fair clarity.

Few more of Motorola apps are catered for multimedia use – Gallery and FM Radio. The Gallery has a modest UI that follows Android’s Material Design. Photos can be sorted by time or grouped according to which date it is captured. The FM Radio is also beautifully designed and can be used even without earphones plugged in but signal strength is weak.

MotoE_Multimedia

Next page: Performance and Benchmarks | Connectivity and Call Quality | Battery Life | Conclusion

Pages: 1 2 3

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Avatar for Daniel Morial

This article was contributed by Daniel Morial, a film school graduate and technology enthusiast. He's the geeky encyclopedia and salesman among his friends for anything tech.

4 Responses

  1. Avatar for mutt mutt says:

    Android 6.0 OTA upgrade is now available for 2nd gen LTE (XT1521)!

  2. Avatar for Julius the Virus Julius the Virus says:

    if you’re just after a smartphone that works efficiently for its price, go for this…kahit mababa specs nya, nkatulong nman yung clean OS nya,kya smooth overall…

  3. Avatar for jon jon says:

    ? price and the processor

    • Avatar for Daniel Morial Daniel Morial says:

      Hi JON,

      The Moto E (2nd Gen) is powered by a 1.2Ghz Quad-core Snapdragon 410 and it retails for Php 6,990.

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