Moto Watch (2026)

My favourite 'smart' watch of the moment, and for many months now, is the Moto Watch Fit. I love how slim and sleek it is on my wrist, and the oblong shape maximises the amount of information and the easy-view aspects of it for me. I do understand why some will prefer the more traditional 'round' watch, though, even if it loses, by definition, some of the above. So when MotoPR sent over the 2026 Moto Watch, I wasn't convinced that I'd be looking to switch. But we'll see!

First things first: here is a link to my review of the Moto Watch Fit so you can click through and grab the context. Neither of these are WearOS watches, but, as I say over there, this certainly has some advantages. It's nicely boxed in Moto's now-usual white eco-friendly cardboard, and inside this £130 edition you get a Matte Silver watch, a charging pad for the back of the watch which has a USB-C plug on the end of a short cable, a silver stainless steel bracelet and a second, silicone strap in Pantone's Herbal Garden colour - which is a kind of lime green. There's also a vice/clamp thingie which enables the user to remove links from the steel bracelet if it's too long. No additional links are supplied, but it's quite long; most people won't need more, I guess. I didn't need to take any out, but I have huge wrists! The good thing about the strap/band system here is that it uses standard 22mm pins, so for those of us who don't fancy either of the supplied options, we can use our own preferred strap. Which I have done!

You can buy the black version of the watch - Pantone's Volcanic Ash - with just a matching colour strap and no steel bracelet, reducing the package to £89. I have to be honest and say that if I were buying one, I'd have gone the cheaper, black way - but my Phones Show Chat co-host Joe Hickey loves the silver one and the all-macho steel-linked bracelet! Each to their own, I guess, and it's great to have the choice. The round face and steel bracelet certainly make the watch feel much more like a 'traditional' one over the Watch Fit style. I'm trying hard to like it rather than my favourite Watch Fit - not helped by the arrival of the Pebble Time 2! So many options! I have reviewed the Pebble Time 2 here on my blog, incidentally, but that's a very different beast.

So yes, the Moto Watch is traditional, chunky and circular. It features a large 47mm sandblasted aluminium case with a rotating crown and a physical button on the right side. It is basically a classic chronograph-style watch. Whereas, the Moto Watch Fit is sleek and rectangular, using a smaller 44.5mm x 38mm aluminium alloy case with just a single physical button. It is built for a more understated, sporty look. The circular Moto Watch is heavier at around 40g (though closer to 35g without that steel strap), while the Watch Fit is incredibly light at just 25g - you don't know it's there! The Moto Watch has a 1.43" circular OLED display covered in Corning Gorilla Glass 3 with a stylised, non-rotating (and certainly not functional in any way) fairly wide 'bezel' around the circumference. You don't get that with the Watch Fit, so consequently, you are able to see more screen in terms of overall area. Both watches have an Always-on Display with lots of colours and great brightness (over 1,000 nits), but the Watch Fit's larger 1.9" rectangular OLED screen (also Gorilla Glass 3) with its 348 x 442 resolution seems clearer to me - probably because of the shape - and the AoD options just seem to fill more of the panel.

Both the Moto watches operate under their lightweight RTOS software rather than having a shot at Google's WearOS, but they're keeping things relatively simple - and making battery life so much better. These are for a different kind of user who doesn't need to be deep-diving into the complexities of WearOS. As I said in my Watch Fit review, it's neat, refreshing and, I contend, for most people, is all they need. Gym-going, workout-centric exercise folk will likely be best served elsewhere, though to be fair, Moto has stuffed in meaningful data syncing and lots of workout/exercise options here too, with this new watch, in partnership with Polar's health suite.

Polar's health suite includes advanced insights like Nightly Recharge Status and Autonomic Nervous System (ANS) tracking. For runners, it features upgraded dual-frequency (L1/L5) GPS for much tighter accuracy around buildings or heavy tree cover. Whereas, the Moto Watch Fit uses a standard, proprietary optical sensor stack for heart rate and stress data. While it still tracks over 100 sports modes and includes automatic walking/running detection, it relies on standard single-band GPS. It lacks the deep, algorithmic data recovery and sleep coaching metrics provided by the Polar engine on this new watch.

Neither of these watches will replace a full Wear OS device, meaning no Google Wallet/NFC payments and no app store; however, their hardware differs considerably. The new one has 512MB RAM and 4GB of eMMC storage, which allows you to sideload up to 150 songs for local, phone-free playback via Bluetooth headphones. It features a built-in microphone and speaker, enabling Bluetooth calling directly from the wrist. It also has a barometer and an altimeter. If paired with a recent Moto phone supporting MotoAI, both watches get 'catch-me-up' type summaries and services. The Moto Watch Fit has unspecified storage, so no local music saving. It doesn't have a loudspeaker or microphone either, meaning it cannot handle phone calls. It's more of a notification pass-through device that controls your phone's media playback, sets timers and pushes phone alerts. It's worth mentioning that both watches can be happily paired up with any Android or iOS phone via Moto's app and everything works perfectly well - except for that one exclusive MotoAI feature that requires an Android Moto phone with MotoAI onboard.

Battery life on both watches is excellent, not being bogged down by WearOS or the like. The new watch is supposed to run for 13 days with basic use. In real-world testing with the Always-On Display enabled, I'm getting 5–7 days. On the Watch Fit, yes, more than that, but not much more. As always, it depends on how you use them - playing music on the new version is certainly a battery-draining activity! The new one features fast charging that supposedly gives a "day's worth" of power in about 5 minutes (perfect for forgetful people rushing out the door), with a full 0–100% charge taking about an hour and a half. The Moto Watch Fit has a more impressive baseline of 16 days of battery, but, as I imply above, it's more like 7–10 for me.

The Moto Watch (2026) is built for the user who wants a traditional, premium-looking timepiece. The addition of local music storage, wrist calling, dual-frequency GPS and Polar's recovery algorithms make it a vastly superior hardware package, despite the bulkier 47mm size. The Moto Watch Fit is a pure, lightweight fitness band masquerading as a smartwatch. It wins on screen brightness (1,000 nits is excellent for outdoor use), waterproofing (5 ATM vs 1 ATM), and wrist comfort, but it lacks the audio, calling and advanced tracking depth of its round sibling. That 1 ATM rating is a point to note for fitness users, as it effectively means "rain and splashes only". So while the new watch has better tracking (Polar), it is actually less suited for swimmers or people jumping into showers than the Watch Fit!

The app on the phone is fairly simple and straightforward. If you make a Moto account you can back up your data to their cloud and then restore it to another watch if switching to a new phone. One thing I found, though, is that you can't switch the data between different watches. So, a backup of the Watch Fit will not be available on the next phone if trying to pair up with the new Moto Watch, and vice-versa. The data is all locked into one watch model. But beyond that, the back up/restore works perfectly well and is quick to execute, unlike WearOS sometimes! The graphs and charts on the app are simple and easy to read, but many of them can also be seen on the watches too. They aren't as clear, obviously, as they are much smaller - but data can be viewed if needed.

As I said at the outset, my heart still belongs to the Moto Watch Fit. For my 63-year-old eyes, that larger, rectangular screen is just so much easier to see at a glance. Plus, at a featherweight 25g, I completely forget I'm wearing it, and the superior 5 ATM waterproofing means it survives the daily routine without a second thought. But I cannot deny the sheer hardware value Motorola has stuffed into this new 2026 Moto Watch either. For £130 (or an absolute steal at £89 for the black version), you're getting dual-band GPS, local music storage, wrist calling and those genuinely excellent Polar health algorithms. If you're a casual runner, or simply someone who prefers their tech to look and feel like a proper, traditional chronograph, this is a big step up from the Watch Fit.

Just remember the trade-offs - you are sacrificing decent water resistance, losing a bit of screen space to the circular form factor, and gaining a noticeably chunkier device. However, by swerving the battery-draining bloat of WearOS, both of these watches offer a wonderfully refreshing, multi-day alternative to the mainstream smartwatch market.

Ultimately, it comes down to what you want strapped to your arm. A sporty, invisible notification screen? Stick with the Watch Fit. A handsome, feature-rich timepiece that won't die before bedtime? The 2026 Moto Watch is a superb option. As Joe would undoubtedly agree, each to their own!

Motorola Edge 70 Fusion - Battery Beauty!

The first, and possibly most important aspect of this device to point out at the top of the shop is that Moto are providing this phone in two battery-size editions. A 5,200mAh and 7,000mAh. They are both Silicon-Carbon batteries but one makes the phone fatter and heavier than the other. The smaller one is 7.21mm thick and it would seem was originally the one destined for the UK/EU (no doubt because of EU regulations). The bigger one is 7.99mm thick and it looks like originally destined to be the 'global' model, particularly for India and South America. But now, the Motorola UK's website is offering both units, with the exact same name, for purchase.

The 7,000mAh unit is also 193g over the 5,200mAh's 177g. Apart from that, it looks like both are the same except for one further aspect, the 7,000mAh unit getting the SnapDragon 7s Gen 3 for UK/EU and the global one, 7s Gen 4. And the 5,200mAh version, 7s Gen 3 across the board. All very confusing, especially as the thickness of the unit makes it physically different. I wonder why they didn't just call the bigger one 'Power' or something to differentiate. I suppose that would make for a long and unwieldy Motorola Edge 70 Fusion Power or the like!

Just to confuse everyone even more, there's also a Motorola Edge 70 Fusion Plus! This shares a very similar design footprint but there are a few changes internally. The Plus acts less like a simple size bump and more like a targeted upgrade for performance and photography. Processing power (though some regions get the SD 7s Gen 4 in the Fusion anyway, as per the above), camera capabilities and battery configurations. The Plus does get 12GB RAM across all models, rather than the 8GB on some Fusion variants, the Fusion has a dual-lens setup in the cameras (which we'll come to later), while the Plus gets triple. It gets the same 50MP main sensor but steps up to a 50MP ultrawide lens and adds a dedicated 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom. The Selfie also gets bumped to a 50MP sensor capable of 4K video capture. The Edge 70 Fusion Plus doesn't get the 7,000mAh battery though, rather that 5,200mAh one keeping it slim and light (like the Edge 70 and 5,200mAh Fusion). Confused? You're not alone. The Plus model only seems to be available in select markets anyway, but for me - I'd rather forget the Plus and get the big battery!

Anyway, yes, the Fusion that MotoUK PR have sent over for review is the 7,000mAh version, thankfully, as this is clearly the USP and what makes it stand out from the mid-tier range of devices - from Moto and many others. We are, more so than ever before, getting more and more features in the mid-range as OEMs squeeze in as much as they can to compete. None of the others are quite like a Moto though - you might have noticed what a MOTOvator and fan I am!

I do have other Moto phones here, so it will be interesting to see how it stacks up with my Signature and super-slim Edge 70 (links to my reviews). Maybe a tad unfair to put it up against the flagship former, but I reckon that the latter is fair game - and even shares the series' number. I know for a fact that my usual gripe will rear its head here - no Always on Display - but maybe the huge battery can make up for that, or even happily support a third party add-on app running in the background. I chose to use one of my favourites, Always on Display XPath by aodlink and after extended testing with it turned on, I can report that with the app set to 50% brightness, the basic clock, day, date, weather and battery on display, a SIM Card in the phone, connected to WiFi but basically sat doing nothing, the battery was depleted in 2 days. Now, your mileage may certainly vary with that as different AoD apps will be coded differently and if using another you might get more. Or less!

So, that out of the way, the AoD app uninstalled, otherwise exactly the same experiment, setup and criteria - and yes, what a difference! It sat there just the same and the 100% charged battery slowly, very slowly, went down as follows. Each data point is exactly 24 hours after the previous. Day 0 (100%), Day 1 (95%) Day 2 (88%), Day 3 (80%), Day 4 (72%), Day 5 (65%), Day 6 (57%), Day 7 (52%), Day 8 (42%), Day 9 (30%), Day 10 (22%), Day 11 (15%) and finally Day 12 (4%). So on that test, a staggering 12 days of power. However, sitting on a desk not being used, is hardly a real-world experience, so next up is just that, putting it to use with the screen on in the usual kind of pattern, as people would be using it. It was useful, however, to establish a kind of standby time and a line in the sand.

Under normal, moderate daily usage for me (web browsing, streaming, handling notifications, and communication without heavy 3D gaming), three full days is doable. If you use Moto's built-in auto battery management, you can stretch that to four. Even if you hammer it, it's pretty hard to not get through even the longest of a single day. Remember that there's a pretty efficient chipset in the phone and Moto have clearly made sure that this battery is going to be a peach. As above, introduce a 3rd party AoD and it clearly canes it by more than half. Which then begs the question of Moto, given that this phone has an LTPO OLED panel, why on earth they have chosen to exclude a built-in, OEM-optimised and efficient (as we know they are, generally, over 3rd party apps) Always on Display?! It defies logic and I can only conclude that it's a marketing decision in order to make more expensive phones have more features. It's perfectly capable of having this - and, though not a software engineer, I'd be willing to bet that it could even now be added in, if they wanted, in an update. Even the marketing and pricing argument doesn't add up when the Edge 60 Neo, cheaper and with a smaller battery, has an AoD which works perfectly. Even if they think most won't use it, why not just have it as an option, I wonder. Very disappointing.

The same is true of the lack of wireless charging really, though to be fair, this addition, for (no doubt) the price of a dollar or two in parts, is a hardware one. Again, I quote the Edge 60 Neo example of all this having been done right. Still, what do I know?! Fortunately, there's an awful lot more here with the Fusion that, for most folk, will more than make up for these shortcomings. Particularly that fabulous battery! And I do get the argument that with a battery that big, who needs Qi Charging anyway as it won't need charging that often! We all have our foibles! Through all this, if you read my stuff, you'll know that I love Motorola stuff. I'm a huge fan. And these things will be trivial to many! It should be noted that, again, like the Edge 60 Neo, the phone supports 68W wired charging, so armed with an appropriate brick you can get up and running swiftly enough.

So, away from my petty gripes - here's what's in the box. It looks like a UK retail version that has been sent, so this should be the experience buyers will get. The same style hard plastic case (though without the Qi2 magnet ring on the back) that was supplied with the Signature and Edge 70 is here, which is nicely-shaped for good access to everything with proper cut-outs rather than soft plastic covering buttons. I approve. Of course, because of that, it can't be a soft TPU, which has other benefits - the primary one being grippiness. The hard plastic here, like for the other two phones I mentioned, is really slippery. Pros and cons I guess. There's a USB-C to USB-C cable, SIM pokey-tool and papers. That's it - no charger. But we're getting used to that now. At least in Europe.

The box is the becoming-usual simple white one with a Pantone fragrance/perfume that hits the senses as soon as opened up! We're getting used to that too! It doesn't last forever - but maybe a few weeks on the device (and longer in the closed-up box). Nice touch. The phone reminds me of my Motorola Edge 40 in the hand - not for size as this is bigger - but for heft, weight and clutchability! It's a nicely chunky feel which gives a confidence in build and quality. The phone measures 162.8 x 75.6 x 8mm (in this variant), weighs 193g and has a plastic frame. It's IP68/69 rated for ingress of dust and water, and even MIL-STD-810H compliant. This unit has a single nanoSIM slot and eSIM functionality, but regions may vary, so check yours.

As usual with Moto, the 6.78", 1272 x 2772, 19.5:9 OLED panel with 450ppi on the front, which is Gorilla Glass 7i certified, is lovely. Bright (5,200 nits peak), colourful and vibrant. And I love this subtle quad-curve thing that the Edge phones generally get. No ludicrous waterfall edges - just classy-looking 'last minute' turns in the glass to assist hugely with on-screen swipes. I have not had any accidental touches in my review period, but I guess that there is a risk of damage on the edges more so than a flat screen and TPU lifting up and over the edges. But then you lose the premium look/feel of the quad-curve. I'll take the risk, every time as it's gorgeous! The refresh rate of the screen goes up to 144Hz in auto, with some applications designed for it. The 'routine' max is 120. There's an auto option and forced 60Hz for those who want it and (for some reason) feel the need to save battery!

I used my all signed-up, signed-in Motorola Razr 60 Ultra and Google's toolset to do the initial 'copy' wirelessly and for my 150GB or so of data it took about a half-hour or so. All done beautifully well, homescreen layouts, almost all settings, apps, some signed in and ready to use, a few not - and certainly not any financials. So they'd need setting up of course, which is good, right and proper for security. Then, on startup we get that page of "Discover New Apps" full of crappy Games and junk. Fortunately, they can all be unticked, or allow you to 'skip' the page. Is this a phone aimed at 8-year olds?! 

The level of bloatware on setup is not too bad and seems to follow the now-usual pattern with Moto phones. All uninstallable but some hook into MotoAI or baked-in services these days so it might be best to leave Perplexity, Microsoft Copilot and Amazon Music (if you're going to make use of them inside Moto's system) but Adobe Scan AI PDF Scanner OCR, Opera Browser with VPN, Booking and LinkedIn are just add-ons which you're not allowed to set up the phone without installing. Hoops to jump through so that, presumably, the server sees it being installed and they get their claw-back of cash from whatever firm it is. Welcome to the modern world, I guess. Still - I've seen an awful lot worse from other OEMs, plenty not uninstallable (so disable and force-stop instead, forever in ROM).

However, they do, again, especially after system updates, drop a ton of nags for childish games for downloading and installing. Very annoying, but for those of us who know, you need to disable background bloatware and promotional app managers by force-stopping the Moto App Manager responsible for pushing all that sponsored software and promotional games, then delete any unwanted games that have made it through. And after updates, again, they're smartly re-enabling all this so you have to do it again. Very annoying Moto. Stop it and make your phone £50 more! Having said that, maybe some people like it and want it. Each to their own.

The stereo speakers are surprisingly good. They're not that far away from the powerhouse Signature's with nicely balanced tone, a little bass in the mix and more than decent volume. No need for the Wavelet app here - in fact, barely any need to set the Dolby Atmos to anything but 'flat' in terms of EQ either. There's no top-edge 'left' firing speaker, rather the earpiece doubling up, but even so, it does a good job with the stereo and provides a decent enough soundstage up to 18" from the face in landscape while enjoying media. There's Bluetooth audio of course, but no 3.5mm audio jack. The Bluetooth is v6.0 and sounds great. You can also plug ear/headphones into the USB-C port of course and that, too, in my tests sounds great too. Enough to burst the eardrums!

Much like the Edge 60 Neo and Edge 70, there's no physical MotoAI button on the left side of the phone, presumably to save some pennies. This doesn't mean that it's not packed with all the MotoAI tools, as it is! It just means that you have to get to them via the menus/app (or assign the power button or double-tap-the-back [Quick Launch] to invoke them). I don't really think this is much of a miss and, at this stage anyway, I think Moto's AI stuff is still in early days and most users will still be using Google's options. I certainly can't remember the last time I used them for anything beyond testing/reviews. But MotoAI has made a decent enough start and they're clearly trying hard, baking in tools from, as I said above, Perplexity, Microsoft, Amazon Music and more. So we'll certainly keep any eye on progress. For a full rundown of what MotoAI brings, do head for my full overview.

The phone arrived in March 2026 with Android 16 baked in and a promise that it will get Android 19 eventually. There's 5 years of Google Patching Security Updates, so to March 2031 as defined by the United Kingdom’s Product Security and  Telecommunications Infrastructure Act 2022 - so your region may vary on that if not the EU (or under its influence). The phone as I type in June 2026 has the May 2026 Security Patches, so not far behind.

If you get a unit sourced in India you'll get the SnapDragon 7s Gen 4 (4nm) but the international variant drops to Gen 3. I guess that on a testbench there might be differences but in day-to-day here I really don't see any. Probably only picked up by hardcore gamers and, frankly, I'm not sure why they'd be buying this kind of phone if that's them! Everything runs just fine and yes, it's not as fast as higher-spec'd flagships when doing heavy lifting, but for 99% of users, 99% of the time, it'll be just fine.

This unit has 256GB of storage and 8GB RAM but in some regions you can source a 128GB version and also a 256GB one with 12GB RAM, so check your specs locally. For my use these days, I find that 256GB is enough but, as always, it depends on how much data you want to carry with you, how much gaming you're getting stuck into and quantity of high resolution you're shooting and expecting to store. But choose well (if you can) as there's no microSD Card slot here. The 8GB RAM I don't see as a problem and it works just fine, wirelessly, with Moto's Smart Connect on my PC and other equipment for extension. Smart Connect really is impressive and, in my view, leads the 'desktop mode' field still. Yes, even over DeX as, apart from anything else, it has Windows PC software, unlike Samsung who stripped it out. Here's a link to my Summary of Smart Connect.

In terms of connectivity and security, the phone comes with an under display, optical fingerprint scanner which works just fine, supported by Moto's excellent face unlock engine. By the time you lift the phone (in good-enough light), the fingerprint scanner is rarely needed. WiFi is v6e, GPS efficient, NFC does the job and Bluetooth seems to keep up too. Decent connectivity all-round with good range, good lock and all very efficient.

The camera system is heavily geared toward lifestyle photography and social sharing. Featuring a 50MP f1.8 sensor with OIS. It lacks a dedicated telephoto lens and struggles with low-light focus tracking at times. The wide-angle/macro shooter has a 13MP f2.2 sensor and the Selfie is 32MP f2.2. The main sensor does well in good lighting, capturing high-enough detail for the class, accurate white balance and wide-enough dynamic range. The wide-angle produces surprisingly good, consistent detail, making switching between lenses feel natural without sudden colour shifts. The main lens produces good portraits, offering attractive background blur and solid edge detection and for night/low-light, the main camera brightens scenes well and keeps noise under control. However, complex textures (like leaves) can turn into soft, muddy blobs in very low light and autofocus can occasionally hunt. Beyond 2x, detail and dynamic range fall off rapidly.

All cameras are capped at 4K video shooting at 30fps. Daytime footage is sharp-enough and well-stabilised. Low-light video can suffer from wobbling and noise, however. There are extra creative modes like Horizon Lock and Dual Capture, though you can experience autofocus hunting in video mode sometimes. The Pantone thing does help to ensure colours appear balanced and true to real life, particularly on the phone’s display. The shutter generally performs well, but there is sometimes a slight post-processing lag after taking a shot, which can be annoying if you're in a hurry!

The phone is available, as I say, in the UK, for a very good price of £329 as I write, reduced from launch price of £379. It's available in Orient Blue, Sporting Green, Blue Surf, Country Air and Silhouette - depending on market and battery/thickness variant ordered. The Motorola Edge 70 Fusion (7,000mAh version) is a veritable compromise - in the best way possible. By prioritising a huge battery, Moto has carved out a unique space in the crowded mid-range market. While I am still baffled by the lack of an Always-on Display and the inexplicable omission of wireless charging, the sheer longevity of this device is a game-changer for anyone tired of daily top-ups. Yes, the naming strategy and regional hardware variations are confusing, and the 'bloatware' nag-fest remains a frustration, but these are small prices to pay for a phone that can genuinely last three to four days on a single charge with moderate use. If you value endurance above all else and don't mind a slightly chunkier profile, the Edge 70 Fusion is a standout, reliable workhorse that, frankly, makes other mid-rangers feel incomplete. Recommended.

Moto Buds Loop

I approve of this whole 'loops' thing for ear 'buds' over shoving silicone or foam down one's ear canal, often associated with ear infection and wax build-up! There, I said it! So when these 'loop' style units started to get popular I was very interested. I rushed out and bought Anker's SoundCore C30i 'clip-ons' and at first, thought they were great but when I got the Moto's version, I realised that maybe, with the SoundCore for 25% of the cost (RRP), one gets what one pays for!

Earphones that 'hang' on the bottom of the ear are OK, but very few of them are totally devoid of the risk of falling out, especially when provoked by firm body movements - think gym workouts. So these, as I found with the SoundCores, clip on and don't shift. They're great!

One of the reasons that I find the Moto Buds Loop to be better than the SoundCore C30i is very much a physical one. When putting the SoundCore buds on the edge of the ear, the Helix, apparently, they are stiff, tight and need two hands for me, always, to get into place. Once they are on, they don't shift, but over time they do let you know that they are there by the firm grip, however I try to adjust them. The Moto Buds Loop, conversely, have a 'bouncy' and more flexible 'arm' joining the speaker facing your ear with the battery housing round the back. Consequently they are very easy to put on, even one-handed, and presumably because of the material used, stay in place in just the same way, but differently, you don't know they are there. Hours and hours on end and one forgets they are on.

Now, all of the above might be dependent on one's ear cartilage and size, I do accept, and it maybe for someone who has smaller ears than me the SoundCore units don't grip and pinch over time like they do for me. My ears are big, for sure. But nobody could deny the firm 'grip' of the opening/closing mechanism and pretty-much always needing two hands to get them into place. The Moto Buds Loop absolutely win here with whatever that pliable material used is. The exact same thing happens with my Sony LinksBuds Clip 'loops'. All the above. Too tight, two hands to put on and I know they are there all the time when placed. I can't image how small your ears need to be in order to have to use Sony's supplied 'fitting cushions' by the way!

The Moto Buds Loop are easy to pair-up with any phone, yes, iOS too, using Bluetooth (as are they all) for simple functions or with the Moto Buds App for more granular control, assignable taps for functions - the usual thing. Dual connection for connecting to a second device - essentially swapping over if, for example, one is listening to music via one's PC and a phone call comes in. It will stop the music from one source when you 'answer' and go to the other device's function, then back again to the music when you hang up. Crystal Talk uses "AI-Powered" noise cancellation for clearer phone calls. I'm not sure, honestly, if I can tell the difference, but some report being able to do so.

There's a nifty feature that allows the user to, with the case open and the buds inside, use the case to record audio, say at a meeting, which hooks into the phone's "Take Notes" AI app and gets saved into the Moto Notes app with a transcription and summary. So all that does rely on having a Moto phone - and one which has MotoAI on it (which to be fair is most now, going forward).

As for sound quality, you should be aware that I'm no audiophile and that my ears are now well over 60 years old! But they sound great to me with their 12mm drivers and sound tweaked by Bose. But to be fair, so do the other two units mentioned above - I think they all sound pretty similar. All of them do a grand job of proving a high enough volume in my test areas, in amongst traffic too. I do wind up the 'bass' in settings on all of them so that some of it gets across the 'gap' between the speaker and start of the ear canal, resulting in, yes, some. Users shouldn't expect the bass response that they'd get with over-ear headphones or in-canal buds. That's not what these are for. They are for enjoying audio, but still being aware of one's surroundings.

All of them do a great job in this respect - you can hear whatever is going on, but still have a great audio-listening experience. Inevitably it's going to be a compromise when there's a gap between the speaker and the ear, but it's a good one. And the payoff is all-day comfort (with the Motos, I really forget they are there) with 37 hours of juice with the case and 8 hours continuous listening between returning them for a boost. You can also grab 3 hours listening back with a 10-minute spell in the case. The case takes about an hour to charge from flat. Moto say that they are 'water repellent' - so sweat, splashes, light rain.

If you're into bling, you can also buy (for more cash) the French Oak coloured Swarovski version of the loops! They hike the price for the standard Trekking Green ones of £130 RRP (though as I type, £99 at AmazonUK) to £250! Not sure the extra will be worth it for most people, but for the fashion-conscious amongst us, maybe! Anyway, whichever colour you fancy and however deep is your purse (or fat your wallet) I can recommend these very much. For me, they fit the best out of the three options noted above, but YMMV on that so perhaps see if you can try before you buy.

Motorola Edge 70

It often makes sense to compare a new phone down the line with the one it replaces or supersedes in Moto's sequence, but in this case, the Edge 70 looks and feels very different indeed to the Edge 60 which I reviewed here on my blog just short of a year ago now. Released as the X70 Air over in China, this is Moto's shot at the thin-is-in theme, here 5.9mm thin, which a number of OEMs are having a go at. So not so much of an annual evolution of the line as something very different and interesting.

It was released in October 2025 with an RRP in the UK of £699 (though at time of writing, that does come bundled with the fabulous Moto Watch Fit, Moto Buds Loop, a 68W Moto TurboCharger and even a Moto Tag - or £499 without the bundle). When you first take it out of the box it's strikingly thin! Which is the main USP here of course - beautifully sleek. Or as Moto say, "impossibly thin" - and strong too, made with "aircraft-grade aluminium" - light too at 159g, it's remarkably featherlight to hold and carry. Doesn't sound like it's going to break anytime soon and with IP68/IP69 alongside MIL-STD-810H certification, the Gorilla Glass 7i on the front makes for a reassuring package over the previous generation. Even if it is wafer thin!

Being wafer thin is maybe one reason why Moto has switched back to the no-edge Edge! Yes, it's a flat screen. And yes, maybe technically that was unavoidable but I really do think that the (slightly) 'edged' screen of my Signature (and other models, even down to the G86 which I reviewed here too) is classy and the quad-curve makes for lovely swipes from the edges, especially the bottom. Of course, you need a properly cut-out case to be able to make the most of that. But back to flat here, like the dinky Edge 60 Neo and Edge 50 Neo which I also reviewed here - so yes, maybe a size constraint with more room to move on bigger/thicker phones.

The thinnest other phone I have here in stock, I think, is the opened-up Motorola Razr 60 Ultra, though it's still 7.2mm 'fat' compared to the 5.9mm here on the Edge 70. But it's probably the closest I have for a comparison (now that the Motorola Z from 2016 with 5.2mm is long gone)! Anyway, before we get stuck in, let's do the obligatory unboxing! A slim white box with a SIM Tray Tool, USB-C to USB-C cable, papers and the same style hard plastic case with a Qi2 ring-magnet on the back as the Signature had for anyone who has any of those accessories to make use of it. It's a really nice case with cutouts all round rather than horrible button-covering soft plastic, but, like with the Signature's, it's very slippery. Also akin to the Signature's - once you get it on, you need a blowtorch to get it off again! Very firmly in place.

I'm not the first reviewer to have been loaned this Moto, so I'm not sure how many hands it's been through - but I can just about still detect the perfume smell in the box and on the device! This one is the Gadget Grey version and the back of the phone is kind of nylon-ish silicone. It's not 'cloth/fabric' like the Signature. I think I drew the short straw here with what seems to be the most boring, conservative colour as opposed to the other options, Lily Pad (light green), Bronze Green and Cloud Dancer, which sound much more Bohemian! Cloud Dancer seems to be the Special Edition one which has a creamy, textured cushion-like back with 14 inlaid Swarovski crystals and a silver logo! Fashion, eh!

So that's it for the unboxing and now to the device itself. I realise that it is technically 1mm thinner than my Signature, but it somehow doesn't really seem so in the hand (when both cased). I guess that if I didn't have a Signature here but rather another ordinary-sized 6.7" phone, it certainly would feel slim. It's certainly light at 159g and 159.9mm tall, 74mm wide and that 5.99mm thin. On the back, at the point of the camera island, it certainly isn't 5.9mm, so that figure relates to the rest of the device, obviously. The camera island carries the usual Moto design language these days with 4 circles looking symmetrical within that raised platform off to the top-left (in portrait) with shimmering blue classy-looking accents. There's a Moto 'M' logo in the middle of the back as branding and a Pantone badge bottom-centre depicting their colour, thus continuing the partnership.

The back of the phone slopes slightly into the chamfered (on both sides) aluminium frame around the phone, which has antenna cutouts and microphones around it and a kind of 'brushed' look (though not feel) to it. On the left we have the MotoAI button (which I'll come to), quite high up on the side and it matches the lenses on the back with that shimmering blue accent, which is very attractive (to offset this boring grey)! Up the top we have the Dolby Atmos branding, on the right a volume rocker and power button (but not accented in blue) and at the bottom, a SIM Card Tray with pokey-hole, centralised USB-C port and the 'right' speaker of the stereo pair, thus bottom-firing. The front is flat with a centralised Selfie camera up-top, just below the other speaker, the 'left', which is clearly front-firing and shared with the phone earpiece. In terms of ingress and robustness, like the Signature, the phone is rated IP68, IP69 and has the MIL-STD-810H certification. The front glass is also more robust than previous models, now Gorilla Glass 7i.

I think that I'm coming to like the wireless restore rather than cable these days. Good example here, using my Signature for the switch, the battery had been left all-but dead by the last reviewer (thank you team MOTOvator!) - whilst the wireless restore is going on I can be charging the battery as well. Yes, I know, it could be done with a cable and Qi Charging on a pad, but this seems better - and certainly faster - but we'll come to the battery stuff later. Talking of the Signature again, my primary phone and serious Moto flagship, it's going to be impossible not to compare this with that as, unlike the logical Edge 60 'upgrade' route, these two are wielding the same software throughput, coming in the same 'generation' - the Signature being, in all-but name, the Edge 70 Ultra - so big brother of this Edge 70.

The usual plethora of bloatware is present, sadly, on boot-up afresh, but thankfully all of these 'additions' can be uninstalled by those who don't want to use them or use other apps to do those jobs. Adobe Scan AI PDF Scanner - OCR, Opera Browser with VPN, TikTok, Booking dot com, Perplexity (though to be fair this is a part of the Moto suite these days with MotoAI so probably best not to uninstall it), Microsoft Copilot (ditto), Amazon Music (ditto), LinkedIn, Fitbit, Facebook, Instagram and a folder full of Games (which can be disabled so you don't have to see/use them if you don't want to). I guess that some will be interested in having these onboard, especially if they have accounts for them anyway, but I still think users should have the choice - and for a £699 phone, I don't think that the financial bung Moto get for this is justified. A £250 phone, yes, OK, but not in this bracket.

Android 16 is present out of the box and Motorola are promising 4 OS updates (so to Android 20) and Security Updates to October 2031 (so 5 years from release). This unit has 512GB storage and 12GB RAM (with the silly extender on top), which is just great, with UFS 3.1. The baseline model in some markets can be snagged with 256GB storage and 8 or 12GB RAM but I don't see that as an option here in the UK. There's no microSD Card support of course, but with these amounts of storage, I'd argue that 99% of users really won't need it. The international model here has a single nanoSIM slot on the tray and there is support for eSIM.

The 6.7" P-OLED flat screen is as lovely to look at, like most Moto phones these days. This one is 1220 x 2712, 20:9 aspect ratio and returns a ppi of 446, so good and sharp for those counting pixels (at least with human eyes)! It's bright, peaking out at 4,500 nits in auto mode and the right conditions and refreshes at 120Hz, so nice and smooth. We'll come to software later but while we're talking about the screen I must add my disappointment that there's no Always on Display here. Moto can do it - the ones on my Signature, Edge Neo phones, Razr phones are just perfect. (And it's possible to include it, as we know, even with LCD panels.) But they seem to shy away beyond these models. The LTPO is absent as a tick-box for the screen specs, so I can only guess that they are frightened of users complaining about battery drain. Maybe, in this case, with some justification, as it's not a huge one to fit into the slim chassis. But we'll come to battery later.

Not having an Always on Display drives me nuts, personally, and rules a phone out for me - but maybe you're a more balanced human being! For those like me out there, I do usually recommend some AoD Apps in the Play Store that I have tried with varying levels of features and success. AOA by newGen Mobile, AOD Flow by Androxus, XPath by aodlink.com and Peek AOD by Dubiaz are some usually on my shortlist, so check them out. Most have an acceptable hit on battery life and a good-enough feature set for free (or a time-trial) before deciding whether to risk the cost of a supportive coffee for the developers pluggin' away! Go on - support them!

Moto have moved away from MediaTek this year and used a SnapDragon 7 Gen 4 (4nm) over the Edge 60's Dimensity 7300/400 (4 nm) depending on market. Neither reach the heights of the Signature's SnapDragon 8 Gen 5 but this is understandable I guess, given the price difference. The SnapDragon 7 Gen 4 is no slouch and is used in plenty of phones, especially from the likes of Xiaomi and the BBK Group - and even the just-announced Honor 600 range. It feels perfectly fine in terms of horsepower to me but yes, when directly comparing it on a test bench, against the Signature (and higher) one can see the slight difference in speed if you pick the right activities.

Further, I've tested the phone using my favourite Car Racing game (I'm no gamer but other reviewers tend to use Asphalt 9, so I follow suit) and I can see no juddering, buffering or anything of the like during gameplay. Seems perfectly smooth to me in fact. And updating a bunch of apps from the Play Store, copying loads of files with a cable into the USB-C port from my PC - it all works perfectly well, but, as usual, I'm probably not the most demanding of users and those pushing boundaries and limits might find some holes, as they might in pretty much any phone when driving to extremes, I'd guess!

My main concern was probably the battery at 4,800mAh, as I say, slimmed down for this body. Unlike last year's Edge 60 (5,200/5,500) it is a Silicon-Carbon battery, so I was interested to see how it competes, especially against the Signature's 5,200mAh Si-C as well. What it does do, much like last year's model, is charge at 68W with a Moto TurboPower charger and cable. Even with my generic UGreen 100W GaN charger and cable it doesn't do badly. But technically it should charge from flat to full in about 45 minutes (with the right gear). I find that even with a half-hour charge it's almost there, even without - so yes, very good and reliable. There's Qi Charging at 15W which is great for overnight trickling. Slow as it might be, so much better to have than to not! And then, for those who want to dabble with magnets and have some supporting gear, there's that case included with a 'ring' built into it. Unlike big brother Signature there's no reverse charging at all (but to be fair I'm not sure that I've ever used that outside of testing - I probably have the wrong lifestyle)! By the way, the Signature can charge at 90W so does leapfrog the Edge 70.

So now it's down to performance of said battery. It's clear that the standby time, screen-off, SIM Card in, connected to WiFi, is very good - as I reluctantly perhaps accept that the AoD might have taken a hit (though it certainly doesn't with, for example, the Edge 60 Neo)! Stretching the phone to its limits of all-day, average use (for me), I can get to a day and a half. All subjective of course, depending what you're using it for and how much you use it. Which is why I try to report on my 'average daily use'. But against other phones (with AoD on) it does do pretty well in fact, perhaps surprising given the slightly smaller battery, no doubt helped by the Si-C. Turning to my 10% Reading Test, screen-on, reading news, feeds, social media, but no video or music rolling, nor camera-use, it's good for over 2 hours, which is good-enough. Again, against other devices over the years I can form my own yardstick here. I test this between 100% and 90% and 50% and 40%. It's not up there with the 3-hour+ Moto 'Power' dubbed devices, but still much better than many I've tested. So yes, overall, I'm surprised and impressed at how well the battery performs, given the thin size. All of these figures are spookily similar to the Signature's, by the way - with its bigger screen, more power, leveling things out.

In terms of security and connectivity, there is an optical under-screen fingerprint scanner. This works well-enough in testing here and setup is fast and painless. It's not an UltraSonic like the Signature's (and there is a slight difference) but, yes, good-enough. Face Unlock is quick to set up and works flawlessly in my tests here. Coupled-up with lift-to-wake, a fingerprint is barely needed anyway. I've not been able to test 5G here (for various reasons about my situation) but I can report that it works well on 4G, fast and good connections for voice and data over cellular and VoIP also works, remember, over 4G as well! We have WiFi 6e which I have tested with 3 networks and can't fault it for connection, pick-up, hanging on and decent speeds. GPS seems to do the job nicely with various apps which rely on it. Locks on fast enough and holds on well. I've not been able to test NFC for Google Wallet payments but can report that it works fine and well connecting to other pieces of gear similarly capable and the range, connection and consistency seems to work very nicely with Bluetooth v5.4 here, tested with various headphones, earphones and other equipment.

I have written about Smart Connect before (and Ready For before it) and working with a PC this is where Moto leapfrogged Samsung's DeX by continuing to support Windows software. Install Smart Connect on Windows and you have a full Desktop computing environment driven by your phone. Now, one could argue that if you've got Windows in front of you and universal tools like Motorola's Phone Link, Google's Messages for Web and Quick Share, why do you need the Windows software (in terms of productivity and functionality). And this may have been the point that Samsung got to as they claimed few people were using their Windows software. But I like Smart Connect! Long may it live, I say! Inside this, we have a Messages portal, a Screen Share (whether Mirror or separate instance), using the phone as a webcam for webinars or whatever instead of the likely rubbish one in a laptop, creating a complete Mobile Desktop able to hijack the mouse and keyboard, using the phone as a Hotspot for getting connected, file management on the phone with hot-drag-drop, Cross Control to use other devices around the periphery of the PC with free-flowing mouse and keyboard hot-swapping between devices (like Second Screen for Windows), an echo of the photos on the phone, notifications, even app streaming - so run an app on the phone but control it on the PC - and loads more! It's a veritable playground of opportunity and I love it!

The stereo speakers. As I said earlier, the 'right' speaker is bottom-firing and 'left' uses the earpiece, so is front-firing. The software does a smart-enough job working that out and adjusting the output and soundstage to compensate but when comparing with the Signature's truly top-and-bottom-firing setup, there is a difference. The Signature just seems to be able to throw the sound out physically as well, making for a more immersive stereo experience. But I'm nit-picking now as this Edge 70 also sounds great in many ways.

The speakers are certainly loud-enough for most uses, though in terms of quality, bass, richness, they sit happier at about 80% volume. For those who want to push the limits however, there is the built-in Dolby Atmos to tinker with. As usual, when you do so, the payoff is usually a bit of volume loss - so the trick is to use that extra 20% volume at the top-end of the range to make things sound a little better, less trebly and thereby at 100% getting a better quality sound than it was at 80% volume, if you follow! The Signature's speakers' output is better in all these ways, but for most people, for most uses, the Edge 70 will be fine. And let's face it, none of these phones are going to please a real audiophile - and get nowhere near even the cheapest of stand-alone Bluetooth speakers. It's physics! So always a compromise.

As we have come to expect these days, the Bluetooth option with speakers or ear/headphones is the way to go, beyond casual listening - and we're rewarded! The technology seems to go forward in leaps and bounds and works beautifully with most capable equipment. I've tested it, as I say above, for range and quality and, of course, depending on the quality of connected gear, it sounds phenomenal. Far too loud for my ears, so I always have to turn volume down these days! I'm favouring Moto's own Buds Loop these days which I find work brilliantly well for me and my lifestyle, but also various ANC-capable headphones from various manufacturers and I find Bluetooth very hard to fault. Oh, there's no 3.5mm audio-out port here. I'm sure I should stop reporting that now and very few, certainly mid-range and above, now have this as Bluetooth storms on and batteries get better. Kudos to Sony, eh!

Just like the Signature (and now other Motos), the MotoAI button is on the left side, the correct side, not confusing the right side near to the power button. The button can be assigned actions for press-hold and double-press. Press and hold for MotoAI (or nothing), double-press for Update me, Take notes (or nothing). You can assign the power button on the other side for MotoAI if you like, or the usual power menu or (other) digital assistant (whatever your default is). On all of these there's now a slider for press-and-hold duration preference. You can also assign Android's own Quick Launch (so double-tap the back of the phone) to anything, pretty much, including (yet) another way into MotoAI - they want us to use it! I've written about MotoAI before and I think most of it is pretty much the same since I did, so do follow this link for a rundown of the features and how it all works.

In terms of Software, HelloUI, we continue to get all those good gesture functions with Moto of course, face unlock, lift to wake, 3-finger screenshot, chop-chop for torch, twist-twist for camera, sidebar with pop-outs, split-screen, pick up to silence, Attentive Display, fairly deep personalisation of fonts, icons, themes, colours, lock screen clocks, fingerprint animation, wallpaper and more. Long-press the home screen and enter a world of tweaks, personalisation, widgets and choices. It's just great to see someone continuing with the way things were, with only small adjustments for the better, not following the herd.

There is one enhancement over previous with the lock screen clocks, also present on the Signature, which used to give 3 options, but now there's 13 and each can be adjusted for font and colour as well. Moto continue their focus on privacy and security with a plethora of options, scans and adjustments. Secure folder, App lock, SIM lock, PIN pad scramble, scammer stuff, emergency alerts, eye protection stuff, Digital Wellbeing, various modes and so on. Some of this is Android's own with Android 16 but it's also clear that Moto have added their own suite as well and on top of that.

What I particularly like about the UI though, even with Android 16 onboard, is that Moto are not following the pack, like other sheep after Apple-like features. An annoying number of (particularly) Far-Eastern OEMs are including little features like Control Centres and dual drop-panels for Notifications, illegible battery percentage stuck inside a stupid little battery icon and a load more. Moto resist this and keep to their own design language which deserves huge kudos. Well done Moto. I do like some of what Google has done with Material 3 Expressive, particularly on Pixels, but it's clear from Moto's implementation of (especially) Android 16 that OEMs can go/keep going their own way if they want to. Hurrah!

The camera setup goes with 3 x 50MP shooters, the main one (f1.8 with OIS), the wide-angle (f2 with AF) and the Selfie (f2 with AF). The main camera can shoot 4K video at 60fps and the Selfie, at 30. There's no optical telephoto here but Moto do say that the main camera can offer "2 x lossless" zoom. The UI of the Camera app is much like other Moto units, looking suspiciously like an iPhone, with big, round, white shutter button at the foot and a side-scrolling Modes selector. For anyone having used a Moto in recent years, you'll be instantly at home as you jump between various features such as Night Vision (which, as usual seems to do a great job of pulling an image from situations that the human eye sees as pretty-much black!), Panorama, Ultra-Res (to use the full 50MP), Pro Mode for control of pretty much anything manually (except aperture of course), Portrait (which does have an "f" button, but control of aperture in this sense is all done in software of course), slow-mo - and via the main interface we have the 'Macro' button which uses the wide-angle's AF to get some close-ups. I've seen better, but it's good. Then there's a bunch of stuff in Settings for Watermarking, AI audio in video shooting, Palm Capture, Auto-Smile, assistive grid and 'spirit level' visuals, as I say, all good stuff - very Moto.

I've got some very nice shots from the camera in testing, as will, I think, all-but the most demanding of photographers using this phone. Digital photography, however, is not really my thing as you will know by now (give me film again)! So I'll do my usual trick of handing over to our friends at GSMArena for a breakdown, extensive testing and samples. Compromises need to be made to get this phone so thin of course, but given that limitation, they are pretty impressed in both good light and bad. I'll also jump back here in due course to add Joe Hickey's YouTube Video when he's done it, my Phones Show Chat colleague, on his channel. Not only for the camera stuff, but an overall review of the phone too. We'll also be offering more coverage and discussion on this, and other phones, Moto and beyond, in our PSC weekly podcast. Don't miss it!

I'm pleasantly surprised by this phone - and honestly, I didn't expect to be! The cameras are clearly very good, the battery certainly did a better job than I expected, as did the sound output given the amount of space inside to get it out, and decent. As always with Moto, the P-OLED screen is great, sitting on the front of a very-well protected shell in terms of IP-rating and beyond. As usual with Moto, the layer of HelloUI on top of Android is much better than most, conservative where it needs to be but with genuinely useful additions. I'm still not totally convinced by MotoAI, but it's nice to see them trying and moving things forward. These thin phones are always going to present a compromise, because they are thin, but for the right user, it feels like a class act and slips into the pocket very nicely. Oh, did I mention there's no Always on Display?! Come on Moto - if this was present, I could very well have bought one of these for myself!

For those who do want to buy, it's available in those four Pantone colours, Gadget Grey, Lily Pad, Bronze Green and Cloud Dancer with, as I say an RRP of £699. But as I finish this review, I still see it significantly cheaper (even, as above, £499 at MotoUK just now) which, to be totally honest, actually 'feels' like the 'right' price. The reason, clearly, that it's £699, is for Moto's hard work of cramming all this good stuff into a thin body. So if you're into the thin-is-in/Air thing, you'll no doubt be OK with the RRP. If not, I honestly think that you'd do better with a Signature for not too much more. And that's pretty thin too, you know! Whichever way you might jump, all these phones carry Moto's pedigree and style. If you like that, you'll love them!

Motorola Edge 60 Neo - the arrival of Android 16

I recently reviewed the Edge 60 Neo here on my blog with all the drill-down, nitty-gritty, but it was still on Android 15. I think it's worth revisiting a few weeks later now, as Android 16 just arrived for it. I had already seen Android 16 running on a Moto as depicted in my other, recent Motorola Signature review. As I said at the time, the Signature is indeed a bit of a step-up from the Edge 60 Neo, but it's dinky little brother does have some benefits of its own, despite the price being significantly less.

The Android 16 OTA download today was 2.14GB and seems to have installed nicely with February Google Security Patches hiking it from January's. Thankfully nothing has changed with the excellent Always on Display after Android 16 - the first thing I look for! It's truly 'always on' (unlike some far-east OEM's definition of the term)! It remains the best AoD you can get on a phone at the moment. It’s nice and big and bright (and doesn’t even kick-down a notch like the Razr phones, making them just in second place for me) when it thinks it’s not needed. And the cherry on the cake is that Peek Display remains, in tandem, also with an Icon Tap for a pop-up window as Notifications come in. So yes - the big clock, hollow when ‘at rest’ and solid when new stuff is waiting - remains. Date, day, month. Weather icon with a splash of colour for a brief look, nice big battery % in figures (and an icon) underneath. The aforementioned Notifications icons - it’s simply the best (as Tina Turner might have said)!

One of the benefits of the Neo over the Signature is a longer-lasting battery. Not that the Signature's 5,200mAh battery performs badly - it's just that it has more to do. More screen to drive, faster chipset to serve, more RAM and so on - so it's bound to have more impact on everyday use. Furthermore, the Signature's battery is a Si-C one, whereas the Edge 60 Neo's is not, thereby demonstrating very clearly to me that, even with the same mAh capacity of 5,200, the little phone is likely to do better. Si-C or not. And it does.

The battery performance under Android 16 has been tested now and I think it can retain its 'champ' status. There's no significant difference that I can see in performance, either with my screen-on 10% Reading Test nor average daily use. Figures remain staggeringly good, dropping only to 99% (and 49% from 50% start) after about 52 minutes. My previous record was the Pixel 9 with 44 minutes. I keep retesting that and it doesn’t shift - almost exactly the same 52 minutes each time I do it, even now with Android 16. I can get well into Day 2 before charging again - but no, certainly not Day 3 like some of those Moto 'Power' models - and now, no doubt the giant Si-C units being put into phones from the far-east.

I am aware of some reviewers suggesting that TurboPower with the 68W brick takes significantly longer to work with the phone since Android 16, but I really haven't detected that here - so your mileage may vary on that one. I don't actually have a 68W Moto charger but I do have a 125W one and a UGreen 100W GaN brick and they seem to work for me just as they did before. If there's something that needs fixing there I'm sure that Moto will be onto it with upcoming updates in due course!

It's quite hard to detect incremental adjustments and improvements often, particularly when one had no complaints before, but maybe across the UI things feel a bit more snappy - animations more fluid, but maybe I'm looking for it too! The optical fingerprint scanner seems to work as it did before - so no, not as well as the Signature's ultrasonic one, but, as I said in my Edge 60 Neo review, a little better than the 50 Neo's.

There are some 'core' changes which come with Android 16, baked into the system by Google which all devices running the OS will get. Notification Cooldown, for example, which prevents one's phone from making a noise and jumping around when receiving a barrage of messages! Be careful with that one as it's on by default - though to be fair you do get a warning and link to turn it off. Advanced Protection is there for anti-phishing, theft detection and spam filtering, though Moto's own Security suite has for a long time now been robust.

I like the fact that Moto have, somehow, gone their own way and rejected some of the Material 3 Expressive elements that Google have been pushing out. I don't want my battery percentage in a battery icon thank you - so great that Moto have kept the option as it was. I don't want an Apple style Control Centre - I like the (more) traditional way that the Notification Shade swipe-down works, though for those who want it, it can be turned on. They call it "Modern style". I guess even Moto think that Apple is 'modern'! I like how HelloUI looked. We don't need change for change's sake and Moto have done well here leaving stuff out and offering options. The way Android was supposed to be.

So why does the Edge 60 Neo hold Pole Position for me when I have so many other options to choose from? Well, physically, it's the perfect balance of size and weight for viewing, using one-handed, popping in a pocket and it's also robust with IP68/IP69/MIL-STD-810H. The P-OLED screen is bright, colourful and vibrant. It gets 5 OS Updates and 5 years of security (although there is now some question, which needs clarity, about the 5 years of security actually being 4). There's plenty of storage (for most people), loads of RAM and as far as I'm concerned a perfectly good camera setup - with "macro" too. The speakers' output is great with a decent soundstage too, the fingerprint scanner is good enough, improved over the 50 Neo and when used in tandem with face unlock and lift to wake isn't needed much of the time anyway. A nice big battery, well-performing, with Qi Charging and fast wired if needed. And to top it all off, full access to the Smart Connect system. Oh and did I mention that it has the best AoD there is, on any phone?! Take all that into account and actually, on some counts, even the flagship Signature can't beat it.

I do love my little Neo (and the one before it). It might not be as powerful and capable as many out there, but for the price and for me, the feature set and benefits are unique. And haven't been ruined by this Android 16 update, unlike some!