Motorola launches Moto G8 Plus, 2 Other Phones In The UK

Motorola has now announced a new member of the Moto ‘G’ series with its introduction of the Moto G8 Plus in the UK. The value-focused mid-ranger doesn’t step the series forward drastically but it does offer at least one major update. Motorola says its cameras are the best it has ever included in the series.

The external design also includes two new gradient-rich colors in a design more closely resembling more expensive devices from the company.

The company also took the opportunity to launch a new entry in both its Moto e6 and Motorola One family of devices. Those are the Motorola One Macro and Moto e6 Play.

Moto G8 Plus leads the pack in the mid-range

Motorola’s most powerful new gadget, as expected following numerous leaks, is a mid-range successor to the Moto G7 series. The biggest improvement here is primarily the new triple-sensor camera array.

That starts with the 48-megapixel primary sensor. A dedicated night mode called Night Vision is included, enabled in part by Quad Pixel technology. That allows better detail and light capture.

A 117° ultra-wide angle action cam rated at 16-megapixels is included while another sensor sits at 5-megapixels and is chiefly used for depth sensing. Because of that wide-angle sensor, users can capture landscape videos at up to 240 frames-per-second, even while holding the phone in portrait orientation.

The selfie snapper is a 25-megapixel Quad Pixel camera.

Motorola has equipped its new value-friendly phone with 4GB DDR4 RAM. Behind that, it’s placed 64GB of storage expandable up to 512GB via microSD card. Over the top of that, Motorola bumped up the processor to an octa-core Snapdragon 665 SoC.

Underpinning the operating system and keeping Android 9 Pie going for up to 40-hours on a single charge, the Moto G8 Plus packs a 4,000mAh capacity battery. Up to 8-hours of use can be had from 15-minutes of charging, thanks to the included 18W TurboPower charger.

All of that is packaged in a 6.3-inch Full HD+ display panel set at an aspect ratio of 19:9. Resolution lands at 2280 x 1080 pixels. Surrounding the display, dual speakers are included. Those are Dolby Atmos-tuned and accompanied by dual mics and an FM Radio-compatible 3.5mm headphone jack. Those speakers allow up to 50-percent more powerful bass than previous gadgets in the series.

Motorola is selling the new device in a deep-gradient Cosmic Blue or almost-red Crystal Pink variation.

Here are the Moto G8 Plus specs

Here’s a deeper look at the Motorola Moto G8 specifications.

The Motorola One Macro

Motorola didn’t highlight nearly as many details about its incoming Moto e6 Play and Motorola One Macro. But both devices appear to be solid entries in their respective families.

Like the new Moto G8 Plus and its sister devices — the Motorola One Zoom, Vision, and Action — Motorola centered the design of the Motorola One Macro around the camera.

This time, that’s the Macro Vision camera, which allows focusing at as little as 2cm from the subject. Motorola claims that’s closer than any other available smartphone camera. Motorola incorporates that in a triple-sensor array with a 2-megapixel depth sensor and a 13-megapixel main sensor.

AI is a key feature of that arrangement, optimizing shots and recognizing up to five smiling faces with auto smile capture. Smart composition features are packed in for even better photos.

Behind those cameras, in a sleek-looking package available in either Space Blue or Vivid Ultraviolet, Motorola uses an AI-friendly MediaTek Helio P70 processor. It’s backed up that SoC with 64GB of expandable storage and 4GB of DDR4 RAM.

A 6.2-inch HD+ display is laid over top with a 4,000mAh battery underneath.

The Moto e6 Play

The Moto e6 Play is a new edition of the already-available Moto e6 Plus but, as its name implies, it’s going to bring something different to the table. Placed in the budget segment at a similar price, the device stacks in face unlocking and a fingerprint reader on the back. It also comes with almost identical cameras at 13-megapixels for the primary and 2-megapixels for depth sensing.

Under the hood, Motorola includes a slightly weaker processor with the quad-core MediaTek MT6739 instead of the octa-core MediaTek Helio P22 found in the older gadget. 2GB RAM back that up with 32GB of storage expandable up to 256GB via microSD card slot. A 3,000mAH battery powers the package.

Over top, a 5.5-inch HD+ Max Vision display is in place. Motorola centered that over a conservative frame design that comes in Steel Black or Ocean Blue.

Pricing and availability

Motorola plans to sell its headlining device, the Moto G8 Plus, starting October 28. The device will retail in the UK at Amazon, John Lewis, Carphone Warehouse, EE, and Argos for a starting price of £239. That’s right around $307 but the company hasn’t said anything about sales outside of that region. So it seems likely that the gadget will stay in the UK for now.

The same can be said of the Motorola One Macro, which will be sold at all of the same retailers starting on the same day. Motorola lists a suggested retail for the device at £179 — roughly $230, placing it closer to the top of the budget segment.

Finally, the Moto e6 Play will be sold via Tesco in the UK and that will start at some point in early January of next year. The list price here is less certain but Motorola expects things to start below £99 — or approximately $127.