Motorola Edge 40 review

Introduction

The Motorola Edge lineup has seen some restructuring this year, with the Pro punching slightly above last year's model and aspiring for some Ultra-ness. The vanilla Edge 40 joins it on this upward trend in some ways, possibly making it more difficult for a 30 Fusion successor to find a spot in the ranks in the Fall, though it's not all upgrades.

The chipset of choice is more of a sidestep, albeit with a twist. A Dimensity 8020 replaces the Snapdragon 778G+ - both powerful midrange options, but the new Mediatek chip may have the upper hand in the GPU department.

Unchanged is the primary camera - or, rather, that's the initial impression, because it's the same 50MP 1/1.55" sensor and it still has OIS. What's new on this one is the brighter lens, at f/1.4 vs. the f/1.8 aperture of the old model. In that sense this regular Edge 40 is pro-er than the Pro, which has the f/1.8 lens. So that can count as an upgrade.

Not quite so with the ultrawide camera, where the you get the 13MP unit we saw on the Edge 30 Fusion, as opposed to the 50MP ones on both the Edge 30 and the Edge 40 Pro. There still is autofocus on this one, which some makers don't include on high-end models, so while technically a year-on-year downgrade, the ultrawide isn't too bad.

An important generational improvement will be hard to see outside of the specsheet or... unforeseen circumstances, but the Edge 40 is IP68-rated for dust and water resistance - notable step up from the splash resistance of the predecessor. Some extra battery capacity and faster charging are also welcome developments, and that's while keeping the phone's dimensions and weight within the confines of what could pass as 'easily pocketable'.

Motorola Edge 40 specs at a glance:

• Body: 158.4x72.0x7.6mm, 167g; Glass front, aluminum frame, plastic back or eco leather back; IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min).
• Display: 6.55" P-OLED, 144Hz, HDR10+, 1200 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 402ppi.
• Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 8020 (6 nm): Octa-core (4x2.6 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55); Mali-G77 MC9.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• OS/Software: Android 13.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.4, 1/1.55", 1.0µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.2, 120˚, 1.12µm, AF.
• Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 0.7µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/120fps.
• Battery: 4400mAh; 68W wired, 15W wireless.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 6e; BT 5.2; NFC.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); stereo speakers.

Motorola Edge 40 unboxing

The Edge 40 ships in a sturdy two-piece recycled cardboard box - same as all recent Moto Edges, with the exception of the black-colored (but otherwise equally as recycled) 40 Pro package. There's no plastic used for packaging on this one either.

Inside, you get 68W adapter and a USB-C cable to go with it. Also included is a clear plastic snap-on back for protection, though is debatable whether you'll want to use it if you get one of the colorways with a faux leather back.