Motorola One Power review: The device puts an end to battery anxieties

Price: Rs 15999
Rating: ****

Pros: Stock & bloat-free Type-C, 5,000mAh, 205 grams Android interface, 2 to 3 day battery life, includes fast charging (TurboPower), good performance, metal back panel & solid build quality


Battery anxiety is a real thing — it’s why power banks are so popular. Apart from making hardware that’s more efficient, the obvious way to improve battery life in a smartphone is to fit a physically larger battery inside. And that’s exactly what Motorola has done with the One Power.

The phone name is quite literal actually: One for Android One, and Power because it has a massive 5,000mAh battery inside. That brings with it another set of downsides: the phone becomes thicker, bulkier, heavier and generally goes against what many people want in a smartphone. It’s the classic adage of ‘win some, lose some’.

Motorola phones always had close-to stock Android interfaces but the partnership with the Android One platform means that you’re assured of timely updates. And we’re not just talking about security updates either — the phone is going to get updated to Android 9.0 soon and will continue to be supported by Google directly for the next two years at a minimum.

As is usual for Android One, you get the rounded icons, zero bloatware apps, built in Assistant and Google lens. Motorola has added their own enhancements like Dolby Audio, Moto Display (lockscreen notifications), screen colour temperature adjustment and Moto Actions (flashlight and camera gestures).

The design of the phone is unremarkable but it has an air of efficiency and no-nonsense. The notch design has been done to death so we hardly consider that an advantage. It does have a metal back, sturdy design, triple slot (dual SIM + expandable memory), 3.5mm jack, USB type C port (fast charger included) and a conveniently placed rear fingerprint scanner.

The Snapdragon 636 processor is a good performer and you won’t find a cause to complain, especially for the asking price. As for the camera app, it’s fairly basic — includes a portrait mode (the only place where the depth sensing camera comes into play), auto mode and expert mode (all manual controls). Response is snappy and results are acceptable in good light. However, there is a tiny bit of shutter lag and we’ve seen far better camera performance from competitors like the Mi A2. The selfie camera fares better actually — it offers good results in most scenarios and also has a front LED flash.


Other things we like are the Widevine L1 certification (it can stream Netflix and others at full HD unlike many others at this price range) and the stellar LTPS IPS display (nice colour, high resolution and high viewing angles).

The use case for this phone is clear: it’s for the person who wants a fuss-free phone that lasts really long without constantly plugging in to a power outlet. Asus’ Zenfone Max Pro M1 does pretty much the same thing for cheaper. If you’re not too concerned with battery life but need a more stylish phone with better performance, consider the Realme 2 Pro. For anyone looking for better camera performance, consider the Mi A2.