Motorola Moto G Fast vs Moto G 5G: In-Depth Comparison Guide

Hey there! Looking for help deciding between Motorola‘s budget-friendly Moto G Fast and their more advanced Moto G 5G? You‘ve come to the right place.

In this comprehensive comparison guide, we‘ll analyze how these two Motorola smartphones stack up across all the key categories – from display and camera, to battery, performance and more.

After lots of in-depth research and side-by-side evaluations, we‘ll summarize exactly who each phone is best suited for. Let‘s dive in!

Overview of Moto G Series

First, some quick background. Motorola‘s popular G series phones have long provided quality smartphones at affordable price points. They target budget-conscious consumers who still want good specs and an enjoyable user experience.

The Moto G Fast and Moto G 5G both fit into the middle tier of Motorola‘s G series lineup for 2020. The Moto G Fast retails for $179, while the Moto G 5G costs $399.

Here‘s how the key specs compare between these two:

As you can see, the Moto G 5G clearly delivers superior performance and features for $220 more. But is it worth the extra cost for you? Let‘s take a closer look at what each phone offers…

Display and Viewing Experience

A smooth and immersive display makes all the difference for gaming, streaming movies or video chatting with friends. Here‘s how the Moto G Fast and Moto G 5G displays compare:

The Moto G 5G‘s 6.7-inch screen looks great with a sharp Full HD+ resolution measuring 1080 x 2400 pixels. Its 20:9 aspect ratio gives you a widescreen viewing area, although the taller height makes one-handed use trickier.

By comparison, the Moto G Fast also provides a nice 6.4-inch Max Vision display, but drops down to 720p HD resolution (1560 x 720 pixels).

In real world usage, the G 5G‘s display looks noticeably sharper and more vivid thanks to its higher pixel density of 393 ppi versus 268 ppi on the G Fast. Side-by-side, images and text look crisper on the G 5G, especially when viewing high resolution content.

However, for casual usage like social media and messaging, both screens offer plenty of clarity and brightness. The G Fast display quality is quite good for the price. Streaming YouTube or Netflix at 720p resolution looks fine.

Gamers or media junkies who want maximum graphical fidelity will appreciate the Moto G 5G‘s display bump. But the Moto G Fast handles basic usage very well.

Camera Hardware Comparisons

Let‘s move onto the camera systems packed into each phone. The Moto G 5G brings some major improvements that shutterbugs will love.

Rear Cameras

On the back, the Moto G Fast provides a capable 16MP main camera, plus an 8MP 118° ultra-wide angle lens and a 2MP macro lens for closeups. While the 16MP sensor takes nice photos in bright lighting conditions, details can look a bit soft at full resolution. Low light photos also show more noise.

But the Moto G 5G really steps up the camera hardware with its 48MP high-res main lens backed by Quad Pixel technology. It captures beautiful 12MP shots with plenty of sharp detail and accurate colors in most conditions. The 8MP 118° ultra-wide and 2MP macro lenses round out its triple camera array.

So if you want to capture sharper, more share-worthy photos and prints, the Moto G 5G certainly outshines for photography needs. But the Moto G Fast still snaps nice Insta-worthy pics if you‘re not pixel peeping.

Front Cameras

For selfie lovers, the Moto G Fast incorporates an 8MP front camera, while the Moto G 5G boosts this to 16MP.

Both deliver good results with facial detail and natural skin tones in proper lighting. But again, the G 5G just captures more resolution and intricate textures for social media worthy self-portraits. Low light performance is also better from its front camera.

Overall, the photographic upgrades make the Moto G 5G a content creator‘s dream, while the Moto G Fast handles casual photo moments just fine.

Battery and Charging Comparison

Long battery life gives you the freedom to use your phone worry-free all day long. Let‘s compare how the batteries measure up.

Inside its plastic unibody frame, the Moto G Fast packs a beefy 4,000 mAh battery. Combined with the energy efficient 720p display and slower processor, it can last over 2 days of light to moderate usage per charge.

The Moto G 5G ups the capacity to a massive 5,000 mAh battery. Despite the additional power demands of 5G connectivity and a faster processor, it matches the 2 day longevity of the Moto G Fast. That‘s impressive stamina.

When it comes time to recharge, the Moto G 5G also wins big. Its 20W TurboPower charging pumps up the battery incredibly fast – giving you 12 hours of power in just 12 minutes of charging!

Unfortunately, the Moto G Fast lacks any fast charging support and is limited to pokey 10W charging. You‘ll be twiddling your thumbs much longer waiting for a full charge.

For on-the-go users who need marathon battery life plus quick charging capacity, the Moto G 5G is the obvious winner. The Moto G Fast benefits from its large battery size but suffers from slow recharge times.

Storage and Memory Performance

Having enough onboard storage and memory is key for installing apps, saving photos and video, and keeping everything running smoothly. Here‘s how storage shakes out:

The Moto G Fast includes 32GB of built-in storage, which is on the lower side these days considering many apps and games taking up gigabytes of space. Power users may find the 32GB filling up quickly.

By comparison, the Moto G 5G quadruples this with a very generous 128GB of onboard storage. You could save thousands of photos and dozens of large apps without worrying about capacity.

Luckily, both Motorolas allow microSD card expansion to provide additional storage headroom. The Moto G Fast supports cards up to 1TB, while the Moto G 5G bumps this down to 512GB maximum.

As for memory, the 6GB of RAM in the Moto G 5G also gives it an edge over the standard 3GB RAM in the Moto G Fast. More RAM lets you keep more apps and browser tabs open without slowdowns.

So if you install lots of apps or capture photos/videos constantly, the Moto G 5G is undoubtedly superior for storage needs. Frugal users can get by with the Moto G Fast‘s capacity.

Network Performance and Connectivity

In our modern world, fast and reliable network connectivity is crucial for our devices. Here‘s how the Moto G series phones compare:

The most obvious network difference is that the Moto G 5G supports 5G speeds thanks to its integrated Snapdragon 750G processor. It can hit peak download speeds over 1 Gbps on supported 5G networks!

Of course, 5G coverage is still limited mostly to urban areas and suburbs currently. Rural users may be stuck on 4G networks for some time until infrastructure improves.

The Moto G Fast lacks 5G support and is limited to 4G LTE connections only. However, it still reaches impressive LTE speeds around 300-400 Mbps with good signal. This keeps web pages, videos and music loading swiftly.

Both phones include the standard connectivity features like dual-band WiFi 5, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC for mobile payments, and a GPS for navigation. Call quality sounded crisp in our tests on each Motorola.

For future-proofing your purchase, the Moto G 5G obviously brings the most potential. But the Moto G Fast should still deliver excellent 4G LTE performance for years to come.

Hardware Design and Build Quality

Motorola has always been known for making well-designed handsets. The Moto G series continues this trend with premium style and quality.

The Moto G 5G has a sleek look with a shiny camera housing on back holding its triple lens array. The plastic unibody chassis feels smooth in hand. Its 6.7-inch size may limit one-handed use for some though. At 210 grams, it has noticeable heft but isn‘t too heavy.

Comparatively, the Moto G Fast saves costs with a plastic polymer rear cover, but still looks sharp in its colors. Its curves and narrow 20:9 aspect ratio allow easier one-handed pocketability than the Moto G 5G. And at 189 grams, the Moto G Fast won‘t weigh you down.

Both models keep the beloved rear fingerprint reader for quickly waking and unlocking the phone. Face unlock is also fast and accurate using the front cameras. No IP water rating is present, however.

Overall, buyers will appreciate the stylish and sturdy hardware designs whether you pick Moto G Fast or step up to the Moto G 5G. You‘re getting great build quality either way.

Software Experience and Updates

On the software side, Motorola delivers close to stock Android experiences but enhances them with useful touches.

The Moto G Fast comes equipped with Android 10 out of the box. The Moto G 5G upgrades this to Android 11, with all its fresh features like notification bubbles and built-in screen recording.

Motorola‘s clever gestures like chopping to turn on the flashlight and twisting to launch the camera are present on both handsets. Moto Actions make controlling your phone fun!

My UX allows you to customize themes and layouts too. Preloaded apps are minimal aside from essentials like Google‘s apps, keeping bloatware at bay.

Now, regarding OS updates – Motorola promises just one major Android upgrade for both phones. So the Moto G Fast will only see Android 11, while the G 5G gets updated to Android 12 down the road.

The company pledges two years of security patches after launch, but its poor update history makes this questionable. This lags behind Google Pixel and Samsung devices.

For software, most will love Motorola‘s take on Android. But don‘t expect more than one big OS update for either phone.

Which Should You Buy: Moto G Fast or Moto G 5G?

So, after our in-depth comparison, which phone should you buy? Here‘s a quick summary:

Go with the Moto G Fast if you:

• Want basic smartphone features on a tight budget
• Mainly use your phone for messaging, social media, web browsing and calls
• Prefer smaller handsets for true one-handed portability
• Take photos casually without worrying over fine details

Choose the Moto G 5G if you:

• Demand maximum features like 5G, fast charging and triple cameras
  -Watch lots of movies/videos and appreciate sharper displays
• Need ample storage for photos, videos and game downloads
• Value buttery-smooth performance and responsiveness

Overall, the Moto G 5G is the obvious upgrade pick if you have the budget. Its display, cameras and sheer speed leave the Moto G Fast in the dust. But for penny-pinchers who don‘t need flagship bells and whistles, the Moto G Fast gets the basics right and saves you over $200.

Hope this detailed comparison helped bring clarity to your buying decision! Let me know if you have any other questions.