Motorola announced its next flagship device headed to North America: the Motorola Edge (2021).
A successor to last year’s Motorola Edge and Edge+ (of which only the Edge+ came to Canada), the Edge (2021) is an interesting, if odd, device. It’s very similar to the 2020 Edge+, but also quite different. For one, the Edge (2021) ditches the premium 800-series Snapdragon chipset for a Snapdragon 778G. However, the Edge (2021) sports a very similar main rear camera, but trades off the secondary cameras for worse sensors.
Where the Edge+ was clearly meant to be a high-end, premium flagship that competed directly with Samsung’s top-line smartphones, the Edge (2021) feels more like it straddles the line between mid-range and high-end. In fact, the Edge (2021) seems to be a mix of 2020’s Edge and Edge+.
There’s nothing wrong with that, of course, but it remains to be seen if the trade-offs (and resulting price drop) work out to a better phone for your money.
Motorola Edge (2021)
Motorola Edge
Motorola Edge+
Display
6.8-inch Full HD+ LCD display, 144Hz refresh, up to 576Hz touch latency
6.7-inch FHD+ OLED Endless Edge display, 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10
6.7-inch FHD+ OLED Endless Edge display, 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10+
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Qualcomm Snapdragon 765
Qualcomm Snapdragon 865
RAM
6 or 8GB
4GB
12GB DDR5
Storage
128 or 256GB
128GB expandable up to 1TB with microSD card
256GB UFS3.0 with Turbo Write
Dimensions (in.)
168 x 76 x 8.85mm
161.64 x 71.1 x 9.29mm
161.1 x 71.4 x 9.6mm
Weight
200g
188g
203g
Rear Facing Camera
108-megapixel main with Ultra Pixel Tech, f/1.9 aperture | 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle | 2-megapixel depth
64-megapixel f/1.8 Quad Pixel | 16-megapixel f/2.2 Ultra-wide angle and Macro Vision | 8-megapixel telephoto with 2x optical zoom | time of flight sensor
108-megapixel f/1.8 Quad Pixel with OIS | 16-megapixel f/2.2 Ultra-wide angle and Macro Vision | 8-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto 3x optical zoom and OIS | time of flight sensor
Front Facing Camera
32-megapixel with Quad Pixel Tech
25-megapixel f/2.0 Quad Pixel
25-megapixel f/2.0 Quad Pixel
OS
Android 11
Android 10
Android 10
Battery
5,000mAh
4,500mAh
5,000mAh
Network Connectivity
5G (Sub-6 and mmWave), 4G/LTE, 3G, 2G
5G: Sub-6 | LTE/UMTS/HSPA+/GSM/EDGE
5G: mmWave and Sub-6 | LTE/UMTS/HSPA+/GSM/EDGE/CDMA
Sensors
Proximity, Ambient light, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Magnetometer (compass), barometer
In-display fingerprint reader, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, ambient light, sensor hub, barometer
In-display fingerprint reader, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, ambient light, sensor hub, barometer
SIM Type
Single nano SIM
Hybrid Dual SIM (2 Nano SIMs or 1 Nano + 1 microSD
Nano SIM
Launch Date
September 2, 2021
April 22, 2020
April 22, 2020
Misc
Colours: Nebula Blue
Colours: Solar Black, Midnight Magenta
Colours: Smoky Sangria, Thunder Grey
Display
Motorola Edge (2021)
6.8-inch Full HD+ LCD display, 144Hz refresh, up to 576Hz touch latency
Motorola Edge
6.7-inch FHD+ OLED Endless Edge display, 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10
Motorola Edge+
6.7-inch FHD+ OLED Endless Edge display, 90Hz refresh rate, HDR10+
Processor
Motorola Edge (2021)
Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Motorola Edge
Qualcomm Snapdragon 765
Motorola Edge+
Qualcomm Snapdragon 865
RAM
Motorola Edge (2021)
6 or 8GB
Motorola Edge
4GB
Motorola Edge+
12GB DDR5
Storage
Motorola Edge (2021)
128 or 256GB
Motorola Edge
128GB expandable up to 1TB with microSD card
Motorola Edge+
256GB UFS3.0 with Turbo Write
Dimensions (in.)
Motorola Edge (2021)
168 x 76 x 8.85mm
Motorola Edge
161.64 x 71.1 x 9.29mm
Motorola Edge+
161.1 x 71.4 x 9.6mm
Weight
Motorola Edge (2021)
200g
Motorola Edge
188g
Motorola Edge+
203g
Rear Facing Camera
Motorola Edge (2021)
108-megapixel main with Ultra Pixel Tech, f/1.9 aperture | 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle | 2-megapixel depth
Motorola Edge
64-megapixel f/1.8 Quad Pixel | 16-megapixel f/2.2 Ultra-wide angle and Macro Vision | 8-megapixel telephoto with 2x optical zoom | time of flight sensor
Motorola Edge+
108-megapixel f/1.8 Quad Pixel with OIS | 16-megapixel f/2.2 Ultra-wide angle and Macro Vision | 8-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto 3x optical zoom and OIS | time of flight sensor
Front Facing Camera
Motorola Edge (2021)
32-megapixel with Quad Pixel Tech
Motorola Edge
25-megapixel f/2.0 Quad Pixel
Motorola Edge+
25-megapixel f/2.0 Quad Pixel
OS
Motorola Edge (2021)
Android 11
Motorola Edge
Android 10
Motorola Edge+
Android 10
Battery
Motorola Edge (2021)
5,000mAh
Motorola Edge
4,500mAh
Motorola Edge+
5,000mAh
Network Connectivity
Motorola Edge (2021)
5G (Sub-6 and mmWave), 4G/LTE, 3G, 2G
Motorola Edge
5G: Sub-6 | LTE/UMTS/HSPA+/GSM/EDGE
Motorola Edge+
5G: mmWave and Sub-6 | LTE/UMTS/HSPA+/GSM/EDGE/CDMA
Sensors
Motorola Edge (2021)
Proximity, Ambient light, Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Magnetometer (compass), barometer
Motorola Edge
In-display fingerprint reader, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, ambient light, sensor hub, barometer
Motorola Edge+
In-display fingerprint reader, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity, ambient light, sensor hub, barometer
SIM Type
Motorola Edge (2021)
Single nano SIM
Motorola Edge
Hybrid Dual SIM (2 Nano SIMs or 1 Nano + 1 microSD
Motorola Edge+
Nano SIM
Launch Date
Motorola Edge (2021)
September 2, 2021
Motorola Edge
April 22, 2020
Motorola Edge+
April 22, 2020
Misc
Motorola Edge (2021)
Colours: Nebula Blue
Motorola Edge
Colours: Solar Black, Midnight Magenta
Motorola Edge+
Colours: Smoky Sangria, Thunder Grey
Speaking of price, Motorola confirmed the Edge (2021) will be available in Canada “in the coming months,” but didn’t share any details about price. However, Motorola did mention that the phone would be available with Rogers, Freedom Mobile and other Canadian carriers.
In the U.S., the Edge (2021) will cost $699.99 (about $884.68 CAD) but with a limited-time, introductory discount of $200, making it just $499.99 (or $631.91 CAD). The phone will be available in the U.S. starting September 2nd, with pre-orders opening on August 23rd.
Decent specs, two OS upgrades and more
With that out of the way, let’s dig into the specs to see what you get for your money. The Motorola Edge (2021) offers either 6 or 8GB of RAM, 128 or 256GB of storage, a 5,000mAh battery and a 6.8-inch FHD+ LCD display with a 144Hz refresh rate. Despite keeping the ‘Edge’ name, Motorola ditched the edge display this time around, with the Edge (2021) offering a flat panel. Some may dislike the move, but I had several issues with the curved edges on the Edge+. Thanks to the 778G, the phone also boasts support for Sub-6 and mmWave 5G.
The Edge (2021) comes with a charger in the box and supports 30W TurboPower charging. The phone is IP52 water-resistant and runs Android 11 out of the box. Motorola promised at least two major OS upgrades (so the 2021 Edge should get Android 12 and 13) and two years of security updates. That’s certainly not great by current standards, but definitely better than what Motorola promised for the Edge+ at launch (to be fair, the company was quickly bullied into offering longer software support for the phone).
Speaking of software, Motorola also confirmed that its ‘My UX’ experience would ship on the Edge (2021). It offers a combination of theme customizations (nearly identical to what Pixel phones offered in Android 11) and several other features via a Motorola app, such as the twist gesture to launch the camera.
Camera could be good
Motorola also spent time highlighting the camera on the Edge (2021). As I mentioned up top, the camera seems fairly similar to last year’s Edge+ with a few cost-saving downgrades. I’ll be interested to see how it performs in real-world testing, but I’m not getting my hopes up. I wasn’t a fan of the Edge+ camera, and given that the Edge (2021) hardware is at best the same and in most cases worse, I expect it’ll be a similar story this time around.
First, the main rear camera offers a 108-megapixel shooter, just like last year. It’s also got a 1/1.52-inch optical format, f/1.9 aperture, 0.7µm pixel size and uses what Motorola calls ‘Ultra Pixel’ tech, which is a fancy way of saying the Edge (2021) combines nine pixels into one to improve low-light performance. There’s also an ‘Ultra-res’ mode that will let users take full 108-megapixel photos.
Next up is an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera with a 119-degree field of view (FOV). It also has Macro Vision if you want to take close-up shots, an f/2.2 aperture and a 1.12µm pixel size. Finally, the third camera is a 2-megapixel depth camera with an f/2.4 aperture and 1.12µm pixel size.
Around the front is a 32-megapixel selfie camera with f/2.25 aperture, 0.7µm pixel size and ‘Quad Pixel’ tech, which is similar to Ultra Pixel tech but combines four pixels into one instead. The selfie camera is an improvement over the Edge+ on paper, but it remains to be seen how it performs in real-world testing.
Ultimately, the Edge (2021) looks like it could be a decent phone. On paper, it looks like a promising device that maintains a lot of what made the Edge+ good, while also cutting a few areas to keep the price down. That said, I’m worried the price might still be too high in Canada, especially if the camera experience is subpar again this year.
Of course, we’ll have to wait for a full review of the Edge (2021) to know whether it offers better value this year. Keep your eyes on MobileSyrup for a review and more about the Canadian launch of the Edge (2021).
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