Motorola Moto E 2020 Review: Dual-camera for a cheap price

Motorola Moto E 2020 review of the latest budget phone with dual-camera and a big display. Find in-depth evaluations for each feature here.

Motorola Moto E (2020) smartphone was released in June 2020. Every year without fail, Motorola rolls out the new version of the Moto E model. This year is no exception, except there’s a slight change in naming.

The new phone is simply named Moto E 2020, instead of continuing from last year’s Moto E6. For this latest version, the budget device comes with new upgrades.

Buyers will get dual-camera on Moto E, following the trend on many phones nowadays. You’ll also notice the full-screen display with a notch. Apparently, Motorola is also following the current design trend.

One thing that hasn’t changed is the inexpensive price tag. It’s still an affordable phone. For more details on specs, here’s the complete Motorola Moto E 2020 review.

Motorola Moto E 2020 Key Specs

Motorola Moto E 2020 specifications:

• Weight: 185g
• Dimensions: 160 x 77 x 8.7mm
• OS: Android 10
• Screen size: 6.2-inch
• Resolution: 1520 x 720
• CPU: 1.8GHz Octa-core, Qualcomm Snapdragon 632
• RAM: 2GB
• Storage: 32GB
• Battery: 3,550mAh, Non-removable
• Rear camera: 13MP + 2MP
• Front camera: 5MP

Motorola Moto E 2020 Design

Motorola Moto E 2020 measures at 160 x 77 x 8.7mm in size. For a big phone, it is also relatively lightweight at 185g. The casing is only made from polycarbonate plastic material. Therefore the phone doesn’t feel heavy at all.

This phone’s back cover adopts a tightly enclosed unibody design. Equipped with a water-repellent coating, you can expect to use it in the rain, as long as it’s not too heavy. The coating also makes the phone resistant to everyday spills.

Moving to how the phone looks, we found it incredibly trendy. Owners can be confident they carry a beautiful-looking device. The almost bezel-less screen and the little notch disguise Moto E 2020’s cheap price tag. The glossy back further adds the conviction.

It’s not fingerprint and grease-proof, though, unlike a matte back. If a user is a bit reckless, he or she might need a case. The back cover can be slippery at times.

There’s only one available color, the midnight blue. On the back, the cameras and the fingerprint reader are sitting nicely. The reader also where the brand logo is printed, just in case you’re confused when finding this feature. This way Motorola manages to keep everything looking neat.

Motorola Moto E 2020 Display

At 6.2-inch, the size of the Motorola Moto E 2020 display is quite impressive. The 18:9 aspect ratio screen stretches until the edge of the phone, giving it an almost full-screen look.

The size is not the biggest but it will do the job. At this price, anything above 6-inch is a deal. A spacious screen means more room to play, watch, or simply browse. It’s wide and comfortable.

The notch could get in a way sometimes, especially when watching videos. It would take a while until you get used to it.

Now let’s talk about display quality. On a big display, the 1560 x 720 resolution doesn’t look any special. It leaves you with an average 271ppi pixel density, where better phones have more than 290ppi. It is only an HD+ screen.

Although you will hardly notice any harsh pixel, the issue with the screen comes in brightness. When used outdoors, the screen looks less sharp than we had hoped. Not to the point that everything becomes unreadable, but graphics will evidently look less sharp on-screen.

That’s the drawback of the display we found worth noting. Overall it’s a minimal inconvenience. As a budget phone, we believe Moto E 2020 has done its best in providing a good quality display.

Read also:

• Samsung Galaxy A21 (S215DL) Review: An affordable Quad-camera phone
• LG Journey vs Moto E6: Which should you buy?

Motorola Moto E 2020 Camera

Motorola Moto E 2020 has stepped up the game by offering a dual-camera setup. You got an assembly of 13MP and 2MP lenses on the rear camera. You will spot the usual LED flash alongside these cameras too.

The second lens acts as a depth lens. You can use it for portrait mode, where objects in the background appear blurred. Meanwhile, the main lens is capable of high-res zoom and capturing RAW photos.

We found the photo results to be average. We expect nothing more on a budget phone anyway. The camera produces decent photos, but sometimes it is still struggling under dark lighting. The best pictures come out when it’s bright and sunny outside.

When used for videos, the lens can record a Full HD video at up to 60fps. You can play around too with slow motion or time-lapse videos. Unfortunately, there’s no image stabilization feature present. Being extra careful will be necessary to avoid a shaky video output.

The front camera resolution is an average 5MP. We thought the phone could have done better by giving an at least 8MP front-facing camera. So far it takes good selfies, enough for social media and video chats. To make everything more fun, you can play around with features such as Live filter and smile capture.

Motorola Moto E 2020 Storage

This phone offers 32GB of storage plus a MicroSD slot for external storage. Having adequate space to store all your files are important, and Motorola Moto E 2020 knows this. The 32GB capacity is generous enough for a budget phone, although eventually, you will need to upgrade.

The external storage option allows you to install up to 512GB microSD card. Also a generous amount, it means storage is practically limitless. You can store image files here while saving the internal storage for app data. Although, an SD card means you have to prepare extra money. It is not included in the box when you buy the phone.

Read also: Motorola Moto E 2020 (XT2052DL) User Manual

Motorola Moto E 2020 Performance

Motorola Moto E 2020 runs on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 processor. To run everyday tasks, this processor is coupled with 2GB of RAM. The Octa-core processor has a 1.8GHz processing speed, an average number for a budget phone.

During our Moto E 2020 review, we noticed the phone worked well most of the time. Users can seamlessly use the phone for general use, like checking social media, using productivity apps, and a bit of gaming.

However, it’s worth noting that the 2GB of RAM is at a low side compared to many phones nowadays. Although the phone handles multitasking well, be careful when stretching it to maximum usage. This phone is not heavy-games friendly because of that. Multitasking is best kept for daily chores only.

On the other hand, we found the Android spec on this phone to be satisfactory. As expected, users will get the latest Android 10 here. Motorola Moto E 2020 also keeps the Android as is, like usual. You will find a little modification, whether it’s the user interface looks or the pre-installed apps.

You get all the google apps and the usual natives apps (phone, messaging, etc). For Motorola custom apps, there are Moto Experiences. It’s a feature that lets you access and manage some functions, like a flashlight, without much hassle. For a smarter screen, you got a Moto Display app. Then there are Moto quick gestures like Three-finger screenshot and Flip for DND.

Fingerprints registration is quick and hassle-free. The sensor is also responsive when used for unlocking the phone. This security feature is always welcomed on budget phones. Motorola has been including it on their phone for the past couple of years, so this doesn’t come as a surprise. However, we found no face unlock feature here.

For hands-free control, you will also find the Google Assistant on Moto E 2020. Although it’s not exclusively a Motorola feature, we consider it important to mention. Users who need more help inaccessibility can take advantage of this feature.

Aside from the fingerprint reader, this phone also packs many other sensors. You can find Proximity sensor, Ambient Light sensor, Accelerometer, Sar sensor, and e-Compass.

To summarize, the Moto E 2020 performance is not disappointing as a whole. It got solid processors, although RAM capacity fell short to our expectations.

Motorola Moto E 2020 Connectivity

Thanks to its 4G support, Motorola Moto E 2020 is compatible with the latest network technology. This phone only allows a single Nano-SIM, which slot you can find on the left side of its body. The sound quality on calls was clear, and to enhance that, there’s a double-speaker at the bottom.

Our test on Wi-Fi reveals a reliable internet experience with no particular problem. Things are fast most of the time. And there are also Wi-Fi features derivatives like VPN and Mobile Hotspot.

The Bluetooth in this device is not the latest version, however. The USB port uses the older Micro-USB. You also won’t find NFC here. Those are among the expected drawbacks a budget phone would have.

For internet, you might want to consider Tracfone new Unlimited Plans. Having a reliable plan is also important to get fast internet connection.

Motorola Moto E 2020 Battery

The fuel of this phone is a 3,550mAh Li-Ion, non-removable battery. Not the biggest battery even for a budget phone, where some manufacturers provide higher capacity.

On minimal use, you can expect the battery to last until the evening. Motorola’s claim is up to 2 days of standby times. But we bet it’s hard to attain for most users.

Especially for people who constantly check their phones. The big display requires a lot of power to run, so will need to charge more often. Speaking of the charger, it’s not a fast-charging type but still has quite a high wattage at 5W.

Is the Motorola Moto E 2020 a good phone? 

Motorola Moto E 2020 can be a solid choice for phones under $150. It has a big display, dual-camera, and fingerprint sensor. RAM size is small although the processor is decent. So this is the compromise a buyer has to make when it comes to performance.

Motorola Moto E 2020 review also shows it’s a simple phone to use. If you like a clean Android experience, this is the phone for you. It’s really an average phone that simply does its job. Nothing stands out in terms of features, but you get all the essentials.

If you want to go really cheap, you can use a feature phone instead. Read our list of 10 Best Tracfone Flip Phones for inspiration.