Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsDual Sim, Removable Battery; Better Phone Than Moto G4
Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2017
Notice: Just discovered that this phone uses the same battery (GK40) as the Moto G4 Play. It is not yet being offered by Amazon for the Moto G5, but it is for the Moto G4 Play so easy to replace your G5 battery when necessary.
I'm very happy with this phone (it replaces a Moto g4 "standard version"). Among the reasons:
1. Dual sim. I am an expat in the Dominican Republic and in the past I have been traveling with 2 phones when going to the US. Now I just have to move a couple sliders as the plane nears either country to begin making calls as soon as plane lands.
2. I like having a removable battery even though I might not keep the phone until the battery dies. But you never know. At least now I am assured that if the battery dies prematurely I can replace it
3. The print reader is a plus for me. With the G4, to put the phone to sleep I had to short press the power button then to wake it up I again short pressed the power button and put in my 4 digit password. With this phone, once it is turned on I don't need to press the power button for anything until I am ready to turn it off. To put it to sleep I just press the print reader, then to wake it I just press the print reader again. The phone wakes up immediately and is ready for business.
This phone is a bit smaller than the G4. I liked the size of the G4, but this phone feels good in my and the size difference doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would.
I have read reviews about annoying background noises when you are on a call, but I don't experience that. I get very good reception and the people I talk with say they can hear me clearly, without noise or distortion, and the volume is good.
I am happy with the camera, too. It is as good or better than the one on my G4. The saturation is a little better, too. When you set up the camera you are asked if you want rich color or natural. I chose natural, but still the color is a bit richer than on my G4. Not over saturated, however. The pictures look good and I don't have to do as much editing on the camera as I did with the G4.
I think the video is a bit better, too. A little more color and a bit sharper. I sent a clip to someone I chat with and she commented very positively about the new phone based on the video.
The sim cards are smaller on this phone than the G4, nano size, and where you put them is different. There is a good illustration of where they go in a little user guide that comes with the phone but the guide is in Spanish. Apparently this international version was designated for Spanish a speaking country. However,there are short videos on YouTube showing what goes where and what to do it that will make it all clear for you if you don't read Spanish. I do but still found the videos helpful.
The screen is brighter and the colors are richer. I find it more appealing to the eye.
The phone comes with only 32 GB of storage, however, I put in a 128 GB SD card and added it to internal storage. Now I am loaded for bear and will likely do more with movies and videos than I did with the G4. I can't move it between phones since it is in internal storage, but when I get a new phone I can format it and use it in that phone.
I wasn't sure if I should spend the money for the G5 since the G4 was only a year old. But I really wanted a dual sim phone and now I have that as well as other things I didn't have on the G4. I am glad I did the upgrade.
