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Lately, Motorola’s Moto G Stylus has blurred the road between mid-range and high-end, providing the most effective of each worlds at a really attainable worth. The Moto G Stylus 2026 makes an attempt to proceed this legacy by mainly taking a well-liked Galaxy S26 Extremely characteristic and sticking it on a telephone lower than half the value.
That stated, instances are powerful proper now for the buyer electronics trade, and the continued RAM scarcity is forcing firms to make sure concessions with their smartphones. We knew that finances and mid-range smartphones may really feel essentially the most stress, and the Moto G Stylus 2026 appears like a transparent instance of how nobody is proof against the consequences of rising RAM prices.
Swipe to scroll horizontallySpecs
Class
Moto G Stylus 2026
OS
Android 16 (Howdy UX)
Updates
2 OS, 3 12 months of bi-monthly safety updates
Show
6.7-inch Tremendous HD (2712 x 1220), OLED, 120Hz, 5,000 nits
Chipset
Snapdragon 6 Gen 3
Reminiscence
8GB LPDDR5X
Storage
128GB/256GB, UFS 3.1, expandable
Rear Digital camera 1
50MP large, Sony – LYTIA 700C, f/1.8, OIS, 1μm (2μm with pixel binning)
Rear Digital camera 2
13MP ultrawide+macro, f/2.2, 120° FOV, 1.12μm
Entrance-facing Digital camera
32MP large, f/2.2, 0.7μm (1.4μm with pixel binning)
Audio
Twin stereo audio system, Dolby Atmos, 2 mics, FM radio
Safety
Gorilla Glass 3, IP68+IP69, MIL-STD-810H
Battery & Charging
5,200mAh, 68W wired charging, 15W wi-fi charging
Connectivity
5G (sub-6), Bluetooth 5.4, Wi-Fi, NFC
Safety
Fingerprint sensor, face unlock
Dimensions
162.15 x 74.78 x 8.29mm
Weight
192.3g
Colours
Pantone Lavender Mist (as reviewed), Pantone Coal Smoke
It is clear Motorola was aiming to avoid wasting on manufacturing prices because the design of the Stylus 2026 is kind of equivalent to its predecessor. The scale, dimensions, buttons, and even the placements of the underside speaker and mic are the identical. The one distinction is the slight change within the digital camera housing design, however even that may be very refined.
The Stylus 2026 differs from the Stylus 2025 in its rear texture. Motorola continues to make use of vegan leather-based on its telephones, however the Stylus 2026 goes for a twill-inspired texture that each seems and feels fairly good. My unit is the Pantone Lavender Mist colorway, a pinkish-purple tone that basically stands out and is the extra fascinating of the 2 coloration choices.
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(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
The marquee stylus is one other change Motorola made, shifting from a passive pen to an S Pen-like energetic one. Which means the built-in stylus helps options like tilt detection and stress sensitivity. There aren’t many apps that may benefit from these options, however I discovered note-taking fairly nice, and the pen itself is barely thicker than earlier variations, which makes it good to carry.
While you take the stylus out of the telephone, the display is off or on the lock display, it will robotically open the Notes app so you can begin writing or drawing. Taking it out previous the lock display reveals a floating menu the place you can begin a brand new word (or add to at least one), annotate no matter’s on the show, begin a display recording, open Sketch to Picture, or enlarge textual content. Beginning a brand new word opens the built-in Notes app, which is surprisingly succesful and allows you to mix varied forms of content material, together with textual content, pictures, and transcribed recordings, and add notes to collections for straightforward administration.
Sketch to Picture can be supported within the Notes app, which makes use of AI to transform your drawings into pictures. You should utilize it to generate entire items of “artwork,” or you should utilize it to wash up your individual drawings, though the outcomes fluctuate, because it appeared hesitant to appropriately generate my badly-drawn R2-D2.
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(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
Hovering the pen over the show exhibits a pointer so precisely the place it’s interacting with the show. In the event you press the stylus button whereas hovering, you possibly can activate Circle to Search, which appears very becoming for a stylus and is considered one of my favourite makes use of of the pen. That stated, urgent the button while you’re not hovering does nothing, which is form of an unlucky limitation.
Just like the Galaxy S26 Extremely, the stylus on the Moto G Stylus 2026 would not assist Bluetooth controls, so you possibly can’t, as an illustration, use the Stylus as a distant shutter button for the digital camera, which appears like a missed alternative. Nonetheless, for the value, I believe this is among the finest stylus pens I’ve seen for a mid-range smartphone, and it is fairly a welcome improve from earlier iterations.
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(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
On that word, there are another noteworthy upgrades value mentioning. The show continues to be a Tremendous HD AMOLED panel, which seems nice, and with the brightness bumped to five,000 nits peak, it is loads seen outside.
The battery capability has additionally been elevated, although by solely a mere 200mAh. The Stylus 2025 already had an all-day battery after which some, so I am not fairly certain the small bump was value it. I can get by means of a complete day with none battery anxiousness, going from 7 a.m. to midnight with round 15% of battery, and relying in your use, you possibly can most likely obtain Motorola’s estimated 44 hours of battery life. That stated, for a telephone that is already fairly thick, it will’ve been good to see Motorola take after the OnePlus Nord 6, which has a 9,000mAh battery.
Charging continues to be 68W, which is quicker than even the Galaxy S26 Extremely, in order that’s a serious profit, as is the 15W wi-fi charging.
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(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
Sadly, efficiency is one other space with just about no change. That is to not say the Moto G Stylus 2026 would not carry out effectively, however the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 is identical chip utilized in final 12 months’s mannequin, and it will have been good to see Motorola transfer to one thing extra succesful, just like the Snapdragon 7 Gen 4.
On the one hand, I haven’t got any issues opening or switching between apps, and the general expertise is simply high quality. Nevertheless, gaming efficiency leaves a bit to be desired, and even whereas taking part in video games like Honkai: Star Rail on medium settings, I seen fairly just a few dropped frames. It would not break my gaming expertise, however in the event you’re an enormous cellular gamer, you probably will not be happy with the efficiency.
(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
One more reason a chip improve would’ve been good is AI. Motorola places all of its AI eggs in its flagship baskets, so the Edge or Razr collection, however given the rising presence of AI on midrange telephones just like the Nothing Cellphone 4a Professional, Motorola’s choices right here really feel a bit missing. Exterior of the options discovered within the Notes app and Google’s Gemini choices, there’s not a lot to play with right here.
Moto AI is not the strongest AI suite, however I’d’ve preferred to see options like Catch Me Up or Bear in mind This.
(Picture credit score: Derrek Lee / Android Central)
Thankfully, Motorola brings a few of its AI to the digital camera, resembling Motion Shot, which adjusts the shutter velocity to seize fast-moving objects. The cameras produce fairly good pictures for essentially the most half; the standard is roughly the identical as final 12 months’s mannequin, which is not a nasty factor (till you zoom past 2x).
This 12 months, Motorola launched its Signature Fashion mode to the Stylus, which makes use of a “distinctive Moto coloration model” powered by AI. The result is usually pictures with punched-up distinction and saturation, and it may be hit-or-miss relying in your desire.
Talking of desire, you may as well customise the Signature Fashion by importing and adjusting pictures of meals, landscapes, and portraits so the AI can study your tastes. That stated, I usually discover it higher to only keep on with the conventional digital camera mode, because it appears to get the job carried out simply high quality.
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However “simply high quality” is basically how I’d describe the general expertise with the Moto G Stylus 2026. It retains all the nice issues about its predecessor, however makes little effort to essentially enhance on it. The brand new energetic S Pen-like stylus is a pleasant contact, for certain, however a built-in stylus is in the end a distinct segment, nice-to-have characteristic, not a purpose to purchase the telephone.
The Moto G Stylus 2026 is an efficient telephone, however at $499, Motorola is charging a $100 premium over its predecessor, and I am unsure it is value it, particularly given different telephones just like the Pixel 10a (or Pixel 9a) and Nothing Cellphone 4a. For the value, these telephones really feel extra cohesive, with arguably higher cameras and extra strong AI choices.
In case you have the Moto G Stylus 2025, there is no must improve. The Stylus 2026 is more durable to advocate at $499, however in the event you’re in search of an inexpensive different to the Galaxy S26 Extremely, this may hit the mark, particularly if you’ll find a superb deal.
Inexpensive S Pen
The Moto G Stylus 2026 is among the few smartphones with a built-in stylus pen, and in the event you’re an artist or simply desire to put in writing over typing, this could be the telephone for you.
Motorola Moto G Stylus 2026: Value Comparability
