Motorola Moto G06 Power review: you get what you give with this cheap phone

Why you can trust TechRadar

We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

Motorola Moto G06 Power: two-minute review

Looking for a cheap phone – a very cheap phone even – that can do all of the basics? Then the Motorola Moto G06 Power could be a mobile well-worth considering. For just £89, this budget device will let you do all the important stuff: think phone calls, WhatsApp messaging, and web browsing.

best Motorola phones. And doing that is nice and easy thanks to the familiar and effective Android 15 operating system, which is paired with Motorola’s simple Hello UI.

You’re also able to take some snaps with the G06 Power, thanks to its main camera, which offers an effective photo resolution of 12.5MP, and an 8MP selfie camera. Again, quality isn’t the best here, but you can take fairly clear captures in natural or low-lit conditions and hop on video calls without a hitch.

The general theme here is that you’ll have to sacrifice a fair bit on quality for a phone in this price bracket. For example, there’s no 5G or Wi-Fi 6 support, so you won’t be able to access the best network speeds. The IP64 waterproof rating is also hardly the best around and the phone’s built-in speakers can sound unrefined.

However, there are a few areas where this model excels. The most obvious is in regard to battery life. You’re getting a 7,000mAh capacity battery with the G06 Power; that’s exceptional, and will easily get you through a day of use, even if you’re dipping into more power-intensive apps.

Another highlight is the inclusion of a 3.5mm port on the top of the device. This is something that you won’t often come across on modern smartphones, but it’s a really welcome addition, enabling you to enjoy wired, higher-resolution music without sacrificing the USB-C port, which can be dedicated to charging alone.

All in all, I was satisfied with the Motorola Moto G06 Power. It did very little to wow me, performance was pretty rocky, and its display was pretty unremarkable. But for £89, I wasn’t expecting anything special. Essentially, this does everything it needs to for the price and, if you need a phone for less than £90, it will get the job done.

Time shown on the Motorola Moto G06 Power

(Image credit: Future)

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: specs

Main camera and sensor on the Motorola Moto G06 Power — (Image credit: Future)

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Dimensions	171.4 x 77.5 x 8.8mm
Weight	220g
Screen	6.88-inch LCD
Resolution	1640 x 720
Refresh rate	120Hz
Chipset	MediaTek Helio G81 Extreme
RAM	4GB
Storage	64GB
OS	Android 15 (at launch)
Rear cameras	50MP f/1.8
Front camera	8Mp f/2.1
Battery	7,000mAh
Charging	18W wired charging, no wireless charging

Motorola Moto G55 5G, say. It’s got a basic look, with a decently large 6.88-inch screen, solid feel, and textured casing on the back – it’s not going to wow anyone, and it’s not exactly razor thin, but it’s still quite a modern-looking device.

All of the G06 Power’s buttons are kept on one side – something I always appreciate, as it means I’m less likely to accidentally press a button while gaming, for example. They’re also well-sized and easy to use.

Something that Motorola likes to flaunt is its partnership with colour specialist Pantone, which has led to some pretty unique colour variants for phones like the Motorola Edge 50 Neo. There’s nothing overly vibrant this time out, but the two colour options – Laurel Oak and Tapestry – are classy and understated, and make for a nice change from the usual black, silver, or white that most manufacturers offer.

Let’s look a little more at the practical aspects of this phone’s design, though. First of all, I’m a huge fan of Motorola’s decision to include a 3.5mm slot on the top edge of the device. This means that you can enjoy high quality audio from some of the best wired earbuds or IEMs, like the 1More Triple Driver In-Ear Headphones or the Sennheiser IE 200.

This phone also offers OK protection against damage. It uses the scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 3, and also has an IP64 dust and waterproof rating. This means it’s essentially fully dustproof, and protected against multi-directional water splashes – think raindrops, for instance. However, that’s not as impressive as other Motorola devices – like the IP69-rated Motorola Edge 60 Fusion – which can be fully submerged underwater for extended periods without accruing damage.

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: display

Motorola Moto G06 Power with display on — (Image credit: Future)

Unremarkable 720p LCD screen
But has a respectable 120Hz refresh rate
Peak brightness of just 600 nits

Design-wise, the G06 Power seems decent for a sub-£100 phone, but when we turn towards the display, its limitations start to become all too apparent.

First of all, and perhaps most importantly, this display’s resolution is very low for a phone that was released in late 2025. It’s just 720p – not even full HD – so you won’t be able to enjoy your favourite movies, series, YouTube videos and more in the best quality.

Samsung phone, however, those greens looked true-to-life and rich, creating a far more appealing viewing experience.

Sure, there are ways to alter the display’s output – you can swap between a Natural and Saturated presentation in system settings, alter colour contrast levels, and more. But regardless of your calibration, you’re not going to get the sharp detail and eye-popping colours that pricier models can offer.

Other than disappointing colour reproduction, I also picked up on underwhelming contrast and brightness. The display’s peak luminance of 600 nits plays quite the part here – that’s low, even for a budget device, considering a rival like the Samsung Galaxy A15 delivers 800 nits. That low brightness means the phone performs poorly outdoors, and I found it hard to read or view on-screen content in bright conditions.

In spite of its unremarkable picture quality, the G06 Power’s display does have a 120Hz refresh rate, which is pretty decent. That means that you’ll be able to play some mobile games at up to 120fps, if they support such a frame rate.

Android 15, which is as customizable, easy-to-use, and intuitive as ever on the G06 Power. Motorola claims that it will update to Android 16 in due course, and that you can expect three years of security updates. That’s not particularly good, but still in-line with most of its G-series mobiles.

The usual Motorola UI touches are here too, which open up a few nice options. You’re getting gesture controls, attentive display, media controls, and more. The UI is well laid-out and simplistic, making it highly accessible for all users.

Something I appreciated quite a bit about the Moto G06 was its more stripped back approach to AI functionality. When I reviewed the Motorola Edge 60 Fusion, I felt as if it was constantly trying to push uninteresting AI tools onto me – thinking generated wallpapers, playlists, and notification summaries.

But the G06 Power doesn’t try to force these superfluous features onto you. Instead, it delivers a much more streamlined, bloat-free user experience. AI can be found on the device, with some camera integrations and Google Gemini functionality, but it’s not the star of the show here.

Having said that, the G06 Power isn’t totally bloat-free. And that’s because it automatically downloaded a bunch of apps that I didn’t want at all. I’m not talking about the useful stuff, like Google Chrome or YouTube. No, instead I raise you Toon Blast, Block Blast, and the dreaded Temu. If I wanted this software, I’d be capable of downloading it myself, thank you very much.

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: cameras

50MP camera realistically operates at 12.5MP
Basic 8MP selfie camera
Quality isn’t great overall, but does the job

As you may expect, the Motorola Moto G06 Power is no powerhouse in the cameras department. However, it does produce perfectly acceptable results for a phone in this price range, in my view.

The star of the show is the 50MP Quad Pixel camera system, which essentially combines four pixels into one to capture what are effectively 12.5MP photos. I took a variety of snaps throughout the day in my city, both indoors and outdoors, and the quality was about as I’d expected.

In natural light, buildings and cars looked clear enough, although I hardly got the most detailed or dynamic images around. It was a similar story when taking photos inside: the vivid blue of my vase was captured decently, but a restricted resolution meant that the intricacies of a rose inside were lost.

The G06 Power uses digital processing to make photos clearer in low light, and this worked fairly well in my experience. I took a photo of a street at night, and although some details were blurred, the overall finish was solid enough. In a darker room, the camera held its own, ensuring a pigeon figure was easily discernible.

When zooming in, the camera’s restrictions became very apparent; a lot of clarity is lost, and already low-detail elements can look pretty messy. But again, that’s nothing out of the ordinary for cameras on a phone this cheap.

With the 8MP front-facing camera, the story is much the same. When taking a photo of myself, my skin tone and eyes looked pretty colour accurate, although it wasn’t the brightest of images. Finer details, like lines on my face and individual hairs weren’t the sharpest, but again, I was satisfied with what I saw.

In the video domain, things are about as basic as it gets. You can film in up to 1080p, at 30fps, which isn’t going to compete with some of the best budget phones. But still, motion was as smooth as I expected, and image quality was steady.

Image 1 of 5

Photo taken on Motorola Moto G06 Power showing buildings in natural light — A picture of buildings in my city, taken outdoors in natural light.(Image credit: Future)

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: performance

Constant issues with stuttering
Underwhelming built-in speakers, but good audio support
No 5G or Wi-Fi 6 capabilities

Given this phone costs less than £90, it may not surprise you to hear that it has some glaring performance issues.

Even with only a couple of apps open, I was experiencing fairly consistent delays when sifting through menus, scrolling across webpages, and opening software. Some other basic functions, like switching out of full-screen mode on a YouTube video, also caused some slow-down.

As you can imagine, then, some more demanding commands can be tough for the G06 Power to handle. I downloaded Genshin Impact, a pretty intensive 3D game, and even loading it up took a full minute. When I was finally through the door, the game did stutter quite a bit, although some segments were functional.

Ultimately, the phone’s MediaTek Helio G81 Extreme processor and 4GB of RAM just won’t be enough for mobile gamers. This model is even pretty weak for general productivity and daily tasks, so unless you’re fine with a little bit of stuttering and delay, you’ll probably want to step-up to something more powerful.

Something I also want to touch on is audio quality. Now, I have to be honest, the phone’s built-in speakers aren’t very good. When watching The Boy and the Heron, audio wasn’t the most controlled or balanced, and in Genshin Impact audio could get a bit distorted. However, this phone does support Dolby Atmos, LDAC, and wired listening through its 3.5mm port, meaning it’s awesome when paired with some of the best earbuds or best headphones.

Finally, it’s worth noting that the Motorola Moto G06 Power does not support 5G or Wi-Fi 6. As a result, you’ll be missing out on the best network speeds and connectivity options, which could prove to be a sticking point for some buyers.

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: battery life

USB-C port on the Motorola Moto G06 Power — (Image credit: Future)

Very high 7,000mAh battery capacity
18W wired charging
No wireless charging

Other than its incredibly low price, the most enticing aspect of the G06 Power is its battery life.

That’s right, it has a phenomenal 7,000mAh capacity battery, which means it can live for quite some time. Its processor is hardly the most demanding either, so it will drain at a fairly slow rate. Motorola says that the battery will last as long as 62 hours, but even if you’re using more intensive apps, you’ll easily get a day’s use from the G06 Power without needing to charge it.

You can check up on battery health status, usage history and more in system settings, but there’s more available if you go digging. For instance, you can activate a battery saver mode, toggle adaptive battery, and enable overcharge protection, which limits charging to maintain superior health.

In terms of charging technology, things are kept pretty basic, though. This model supports 18W wired charging, but has no wireless charging capabilities.

Should I buy the Moto G06 Power?

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Attributes	Notes	Rating
Design	Basic but decently modern-looking, nice 3.5mm port, only IP64 waterproof rated.	3.5/5
Display	720p only, fairly low peak brightness, but 120Hz refresh rate isn’t bad.	2.5/5
Software	A simple yet effective approach to software, but has some annoying bloatware.	3/5
Cameras	You won’t get very sharp or detailed images at all, but quality is as you’d expect for the price.	3/5
Performance	Lots of stuttering and delay, but still functional, decent audio support.	2.5/5
Battery life	Basic charging tech, but 7,000mAh capacity is excellent and long-lasting.	4/5

Motorola Moto G06 Power review: also consider

Swipe to scroll horizontally

Header Cell – Column 0	Motorola Moto G06 Power	Motorola Moto G55 5G	Samsung Galaxy A17 5G
Price	£89	£199	£199
Dimensions	171.4 x 77.5 x 8.8mm	161.6 x 73.8 x 8.1mm	164.4 x 77.9 x 7.5mm
Weight	220g	179g	192g
Cameras	50MP main	50MP main; 8MP ultra-wide	50MP main; 5MP ultra-wide; 2MP macro
Battery	7,000mAh	5,000mAh	5,000mAh

How I tested the Motorola Moto G06 Power

Tested for one week
Used at work and in day-to-day life
Assessed gaming, camera and battery features, among other things

I tested the Motorola Moto G06 Power across an intensive week-long period, trying it out in a wide range of environments, like the office, at home, and out on walks.

In my time testing the phone, I exhausted all of its core features – stuff like different display configurations, camera options, and gesture controls. I also tried listening to music via the included 3.5mm port, and tried out a bunch of games like Genshin Impact, to test performance.

Motorola Moto G55 5G and Motorola Edge 60 Fusion, to name just a couple.

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Q3SGZvVME52nCCr7vs6YFk-1920-80.jpg

Source link
harry.padoan@futurenet.com (Harry Padoan)