Moto G54 (Power edition) review

Introduction

Motorola has always had a knack for making great budget devices. Nowadays, the company has a rather full and fleshed-out portfolio, including more premium models from the Edge series and even its foldable form factor offers in the Razr line. Still, there is something about the Moto G line that remains the bread and butter of the legendary company.

After looking at the Moto G84, which is technically the "top dog" in the current G-series lineup, we now have its "little brother" the G54 5G in for review. To squash any confusion, we are actually reviewing the Moto G54 Power edition. The Power edition basically adds an autofocusing ultrawide, swapping the 2MP macro cam of the regular G54 and a larger 6,000 mAh battery.

Motorola Moto G54 Power specs at a glance:

• Body: 161.6x73.8x8.9mm, 192g; Glass front, plastic back, plastic frame; Water-repellent design.
• Display: 6.50" IPS LCD, 120Hz, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 405ppi.
• Chipset: Mediatek Dimensity 7020 (6 nm): Octa-core (2x2.2 GHz & 6x2.0 GHz); IMG BXM-8-256.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
• OS/Software: Android 13.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.8, 0.61µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.2, 118-degree, 1.12µm, AF.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 1.0µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 1080p@30fps; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 6000mAh; 33W wired, PD3.0, QC3+, 50% in 33 min (advertised), Reverse wired.
• Connectivity: 5G; eSIM; Hybrid Dual SIM; Wi-Fi 5; BT 5.3; NFC; FM radio; 3.5mm jack.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); stereo speakers.

The European Moto G54 and Moto G54 Power were previously announced in China and India, respectively, where both were simply called Moto G54. Recently, the Moto G54 variants made a debut in Europe alongside the G84. This triggered the slight "rebranding" and the inception of the "Power edition". If you are shopping in Europe, the phone we are looking at today will be called the G54 Power.

With that cleared up, the G54 Power is a very classical and traditional handset in every sense of the word. As already mentioned, some of the major draws of the G54 Power include the large 6,000 mAh battery and that autofocusing ultrawide camera that can double as a macro shooter. Despite its budget nature, the G54 Power also has stereo speakers, a pretty quick 33W charger in the box and an FM radio and NFC in some markets.

The phone is mostly made of plastic and can be had in the rather uninspired Midnight Blue color of our review unit or the slightly more interesting Pearl Blue and Mint Green. Unlike some other Moto phones, these colors are not specifically advertised as being Pantone ones. Still, they are pretty interesting. In keeping with a long-standing Motorola tradition, the G54 Power also has a water-repellent build. There is no official ingress protection, but there is still some extra peace of mind through a water-repellant nano-coating on the internals and a pretty good rubber gasket around the SIM tray.

Without further ado, let's see what the Motorola G54 Power has to offer, starting with its retail package.

Unboxing Moto G54 Power edition

The Moto G54 Power ships in a simple two-piece cardboard package. There is very little in the way of color on said package, and all of the printing has been done with soy ink. The entire package is plastic-free. There is no internal cradle for the phone itself, but the packaging still feels solid enough to protect its contents well.

The G54 Power has a surprisingly rich retail package by today's standards. It ships with a 33W fast charger and a USB Type-A to Type-C cable. Motorola also provides a nice transparent TPU case in the box so you can safely and confidently start using the device right away.