Motorola Edge 40 Neo review: a stylish, compelling contender

Here's our take on Motorola's new smartphone - Edge 40 Neo.

• By Ashish Kumar -
Published On: September 27, 2023

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo makes a compelling case for itself in the sub-Rs 25,000 segment with its solid specifications, which closely mirror those of the more expensive Motorola Edge 40 (review) smartphone. This handset stands out as one of the few in the segment to boast an IP68 rating and a 144Hz refresh rate display. Moreover, it runs near-stock Android OS and features the all-new MediaTek Dimensity 7030 SoC. Read on to find out whether these impressive specs on paper translate into equally impressive real-life performance in our Motorola Edge 40 Neo review.

Verdict

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo is a smartphone that deserves serious consideration given its price. It excels in design, offers an impressive display, and boasts excellent battery life. While there is room for enhancement in the camera and performance departments, the device as a whole delivers a compelling package.

Design and display

• The Moto Edge 40 Neo follows the same design language as its older sibling, the Edge 40. The device showcases a luxurious vegan leather back, complemented by gently curved edges and a sleek frame. Despite its appearance, it's worth noting that the frame is constructed from plastic. However, this material choice doesn't compromise the handset's durability. An outstanding feature of the device is its IP68 water and dust resistance certification, a unique feature within its segment.

• The handset boasts a svelte profile, measuring just 7.9mm in thickness and weighing a mere 172 grams. This makes it exceptionally easy to carry without giving your wrist a workout. While the rear panel may not exude the same level of refinement as its pricier counterpart, the Edge 40, it still manages to captivate with its contrasting metal camera platform and elegantly placed Motorola logo at the centre. 
• The handset comes in three colour options: Caneel Bay, Soothing Sea, and Black Beauty. The last one doesn't have a vegan leather finish at the back like the other colour options. I received the Caneel Bay variant for review, which has a somewhat flashy appearance. If you prefer a more subtle look, the Soothing Sea variant is worth exploring. 
• The phone's USB Type-C port for charging and data transfer can be found at the bottom edge along with a speaker grille and SIM-ejector tray. The volume and power buttons, which might be slightly hard to reach without resorting to finger gymnastics are positioned on the right spine. The fascia of the device sports a curved 6.5-inch 144Hz pOLED display with FHD+ resolution, DCI-P3, DC dimming, HDR10+ support, and 1300 nits peak brightness.

• The viewing experience remains on par with the more expensive Moto Edge 40 smartphone. It offers rich, vibrant, and crisp colours, accentuated by deep blacks that elevate the quality of content. Moreover, the phone boasts a commendable peak brightness level, ensuring comfortable outdoor usage. The 144Hz adaptive refresh rate of the screen ensures smooth touch responsiveness and fluid animations. If you are concerned about the battery, you have the option to adjust the refresh rate to 120Hz or 60Hz.
• The Moto Edge 40 Neo speakers nicely complement the viewing experience. The phone boasts stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos, which delivers crisp and powerful audio. For security, there is an in-display fingerprint scanner, which works quite accurately and unlocks the device in a jiffy.

Cameras

• The Motorola Edge 40 Neo also share its similarities with the Edge 40 in the camera department. The handset sports a dual rear camera setup, featuring a 50MP main sensor with OIS and a 112-degree field of view (FoV) 13MP ultra-wide lens. It is a good camera setup to boast about in favourable lighting conditions. Both primary and ultra-wide cameras offer quick auto-focus and shutter speed, and the images that you get are rich in detail. The colours, however, may appear somewhat over-processed, diverging from the actual scenery.

• That being said, the images look social media-ready, with sufficient dynamic range to make them visually appealing. Additionally, there is minimal warping around the edges of the frame in ultra-wide shots. The phone's ultra-wide sensor also serves as a macro sensor, and it does a better job of capturing close-up shots compared to the dedicated 2MP snapper.
• In low light, the main sensor particularly stands out for me. The sensor churns out some pleasing shots for the price. There is enough sharpness and level of detailing. Furthermore, you have the option to employ the night mode to reduce noise. 

• For selfies and video calling, the Edge 40 Neo employs a 32MP snapper in the punch-hole setup. Again, I like what the sensor does in a well-lit environment. There is a noticeable tendency toward oversharpening the facial detailing, but apart from that, the selfies look quite promising. As for portraits, which use computational mechanisms to separate foreground from background, could have done better with edge detection.

Performance and software

• At the core of the Motorola Edge 40 Neo lies MediaTek Dimensity 7030 SoC. This new 6nm mid-range SoC is 5G-capable and comes with two Cortex-A78 cores and six efficiency Cortex-A55 cores. The chipset ensures the smartphone delivers respectable performance in real-world and synthetic benchmark tests. 

• The Moto Edge 40 Neo scores 1,048 points in the single-core and 2,538 points in the multi-core Geekbench tests. Its AnTuTu score stands at an abysmal 4,40,956 points, but that's due to the app's inability to measure the phone's GPU score. As for the CPU Throttle test, the handset reported a drop of 30 percent from its peak performance while running 50 threads for half an hour. 
• In terms of real-world performance, the handset exhibited no struggles or throttling during regular usage. It swiftly launched applications, facilitated seamless screen transitions, and managed multitasking with ease. Additionally, the Edge 40 Neo delivered a satisfying gaming experience, running BGMI with HDR graphics and high frame rates. That said, the phone may heat up after a while and result in performance throttling. While this may concern heavy users, for regular users, the device's performance remains more than sufficient.
• Here's a speed test done using Airtel 5G Plus network in Gurugram, Haryana.

• Coming to the software, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo operates with the MyUX skin on top of Android 13 right out of the box. The handset is confirmed to get at least two major software updates. Be that as it may, the current user interface (UI) closely adheres to the stock Android aesthetic, featuring a clean and minimalist design with minimal bloatware. Nevertheless, there are still a few customisation options available to tailor your smartphone to your preferences. 
• Similar to other Motorola devices, the Edge 40 Neo provides a variety of gesture-based inputs, such as twisting to launch the camera app and performing a double chop to activate the flash. Motorola has also introduced an Edge light feature on this smartphone, which illuminates the edges with different lights to indicate notifications. This functionality proves particularly handy when the phone is placed face down.

Battery and charging speeds

• The Motorola Edge 40 Neo is equipped with a 5,000mAh battery, providing ample power to last at least a day between charges. With moderate usage, I consistently achieved a little over six hours of screen-on-time on this device, which is decent. In the PCMark battery test, the handset scored 8 hours 13 minutes, which is low for its standard.
• Regarding charging, the handset can reach a full charge from 0 to 100 percent in under an hour thanks to its 68W fast charger.

Final verdict

The Motorola Edge 40 Neo impresses with its stylish design, IP68 rating, and high-quality display. Its performance also remains respectable for everyday tasks and casual gaming, and the camera setup impresses with good results in favourable lighting conditions, even though there's some over-processing of colours. However, it falls short as a performance powerhouse compared to rivals like the iQOO Z7 Pro and Infinix GT 10 Pro in the same segment, which may leave heavy users wanting more.

Editor's rating: 8.5 / 10

Reasons to buy

• The handset boasts a svelte profile.
  
• The display is quite impressive for the price.
• Battery life is good enough to last an entire day with moderate usage.
• The software adheres to the stock Android aesthetic.

Reasons not to buy

• The handset may overheat at times and result in performance throttling.
• The cameras oversaturate the colours.