Motorola One Vision review: An impressive mid-range phone but should you wait for Xiaomi Redmi K20 Pro? | HT Tech

Motorola One Vision review: An impressive mid-range phone but should you wait for Xiaomi Redmi K20 Pro?

Motorola One Vision sports 6.3-inch Full HD+ display with 3D Corning Gorilla Glass on the back. It offers an industry-first 21:9 CinemaVision. Read our review.

By: KUL BHUSHAN
| Updated on: May 09 2021, 23:40 IST
Motorola One Vision review
Motorola One Vision review (HT Photo)
Motorola One Vision review
Motorola One Vision review (HT Photo)

Brand: Motorola
Product: Motorola One Vision
Key specs: 6.3-inch Full HD+ 21:9 display, 48-megapixel and 5-megapixel rear cameras, 25-megapixel front-facing camera, 3,500mAh battery with Turbo charging, USB Type C port, 3.5mm headphone jack, and fingerprint sensor.
Price: 19,999
Rating: 3/5

Motorola has made some bold changes with its latest One Vision smartphone. From modern colourful back panel to unique 21:9 display, Motorola One Vision marks a big departure from the traditional Moto G series phones. From specs point of view as well Motorola One Vision has leveled up with Samsung Exynos 9609 processor, 4GB of RAM, and 3,500mAh battery.

At 19,999, Motorola One Vision takes on Samsung Galaxy M40, Galaxy A50 and Xiaomi's Poco F1. The Motorola phone will also face competition from Xiaomi's another mid-ranger, Redmi K20 Pro, scheduled to launch in India on July 17.

Before we hold forth, note that the unit we reviewed is different from the one mentioned in our first impressions. We also noticed a significant improvement in the performance in the newer unit. We will elaborate the performance bit later in our review. Read on.

What sets Motorola One Vision apart from the competition is its unique 21:9 aspect ratio. There's a giant punch-hole camera on the left top corner. The aspect ratio makes the screen look taller but apt for watching movies, at least Motorola says so. The 21:9 aspect is fast becoming a standard for modern panels and lot of new content is being shot in this ratio. But still a lot of content is in the older format.

In the case of Motorola One Vision, there are very few things you can stream in 21:9. Upscaling is still not up to the mark. And then there's the punch-hole camera, which is unnecessarily big. Fortunately, it doesn't bother much when streaming videos in landscape mode. Overall, Motorola is thinking ahead with the new aspect ratio, but its pros and cons are yet to be fully explored for modern phones.

A closer look at the gradient colour back panel
A closer look at the gradient colour back panel (HT Photo)
image caption
A closer look at the gradient colour back panel (HT Photo)

From design point of view, a taller phone makes it comfortable for single hand usage. And then it looks good and different from rest of the phones in this segment.

Coming to the camera department, Motorola One Vision features dual-rear cameras including a 48-megapixel sensor and a 5-megapixel sensor. While daylight shots are impressive, its dedicated Night Mode is a lot better than any of the phone in this category. If you love taking macro shots, you will definitely like Motorola One Vision. The depth mode could have been better with more sharpness around the subject. The camera, in general, is very good and most importantly reliable.

Punch hole camera is way too big
Punch hole camera is way too big (HT Photo)
image caption
Punch hole camera is way too big (HT Photo)

Motorola One Vision runs on Exynos 9609 chip which is also the same processor that powers Samsung Galaxy A80. The choice of processor is quite surprising considering the competition mostly offers a MediaTek or Qualcomm chip. During our usage, Motorola One Vision delivered smooth performance. There were no abrupt app crash or lag in app loading. The phone, however, still needs to level up its game when it comes to handling graphic intensive applications. Power users may find the battery backup on One Vision lower than they'd expect. After having used Samsung Galaxy M40 and Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro, it looks like One Vision needs more performance optimisation. Near stock Android experience is something Android purists will like.

Verdict

Motorola One Vision is a unique phone in the under 20,000 category. It's also one of the best phones Motorola has delivered in a really long time. Despite its limitations, the 21:9 display is bold and different. Its camera performance is also on par with the competition. It falters in the performance department which could be a big problem for Motorola. Xiaomi is gearing up to launch Redmi K20 Pro in India. If launched around 20,000, the Snapdragon 855-powered Redmi K20 Pro may steal Motorola's thunder.

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First Published Date: 07 Jul, 13:45 IST
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