Motorola Moto G06 review: Covers the basics at a rock-bottom price

Best Prices Today: Moto G06

For Apple users, a budget phone only goes as low as £599 (for the iPhone 16e). For Android users, a low-cost handset could cost one-tenth of that. 

Motorola’s Moto G06 is the company’s sequel to the G05, which came out in January, and with it comes a smattering of improvements: there’s a bigger screen, a higher refresh rate, better dust and water resistance and a slight increase in heft.

Buyers looking at this inexpensive handset are probably not those upgrading on a six-month cycle, however, and to its credit Motorola has made a competent device in its own right – albeit with some compromises.

Design & Build

• Large screen
• Headphone jack
• Fingerprint scanner

There’s no hiding the fact that the G06 looks like a device from last decade. Right at the top of the 6.88-inch screen is a teardrop notch for the selfie camera, a design choice harking back to 2017, while at the bottom is a hefty black chin.

Still, however, it has a decently large screen. While the phone feels light at 194g, it doesn’t feel flimsy. On its back is a vegan leather (plastic) finish which won’t pick up any fingerprints and is certainly soft, but it takes some getting used to when compared to the metallic finish of more expensive devices. 

Motorola throws in a no-nonsense plastic case for added protection, which actually feels better than the kitchen-counter type of cases on its more expensive models, such as the Moto G86 Power.

Another quality the G06 can boast over its more expensive counterparts is a 3.5mm headphone jack located on the phone’s head, something that should be considered a necessity for budget devices.

Locking the phone can be done with a standard password or passcode, through a snappy face-unlock feature, or via the fingerprint scanner on the right-hand side of the device – a reasonable position for most people but one that would make this handset annoying for lefties. It could easily be replaced with an under-screen scanner.

Screen & Speakers 

• 120Hz refresh rate
• Passable colours
• Decent sound

The Moto G06 comes with a HD+ display (1640 × 720) that supports a 120Hz refresh rate and can reach a peak brightness of 600 nits. 

On paper, these specifications sound impressive, but in practice, the screen is only passable. Colours appear muted and washed out, and the overall viewing experience lacks the refinement seen on higher-end models such as the Moto G86 Power.

The 120Hz refresh rate… doesn’t fully disguise the display’s shortcomings

Watching Wild Isles with David Attenborough’s narration over the UK’s landscapes highlights these limitations. Water that should shimmer with blue tones instead looks grey, and underwater shots lose the vibrancy of green kelp. When an orca’s dark fin slices through the water, the G06 can’t quite convey the inky depth you would expect, leaving the scene looking flatter and less immersive.

The 120Hz refresh rate generally provides smooth motion, but it doesn’t fully disguise the display’s shortcomings. Ghosting is noticeable when scrolling, with text appearing blurry in motion.

Audio performance is similarly functional but uninspiring. The built-in speakers are fine for casual listening, but their small size and limited output mean that headphones are essentially required to enjoy richer, fuller sound. While the display and speakers both serve their purpose, the G06’s hardware ultimately struggles to deliver the vivid, immersive experience that its larger, pricier siblings can manage.

Specs & Performance

• 4GB RAM
• 64GB of storage
• “RAM Boost” mode

Our review model of the Moto G06 sports 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, although that can go up to 8GB RAM/256GB ROM for those who want more space for apps, photos, and files. 

We wouldn’t recommend a storage upgrade though. There’s a slot for a 1TB microSD card which will likely be much cheaper.

Open social media and it takes the G06 a little time to bring up the keyboard and settle in

The actual running of the device is something of a mixed bag. Apps such as Beeper, Gmail, and Google Maps all run adequately using the Helio G81 processor – but only once everything has loaded. Open social media and it takes the G06 a little time to bring up the keyboard and settle in. Once it has done that, typing remains relatively smooth.

Similarly, even games like Pokémon Unite largely operate well, although you can feel the phone straining to keep up. Personally, I wouldn’t recommend using this device for anything more strenuous than Candy Crush.

Motorola phones can use part of the phone’s storage to boost its processing power through Moto’s “RAM boost” mode, which creates “virtual RAM” from your phone’s internal storage – moving less critical background processes into this virtual space, freeing up actual RAM for the apps you’re actively using. 

In theory this improves multitasking capabilities, but I didn’t notice a difference and it can drain the battery faster and put wear-and-tear on the storage chip. 

Moto G06 benchmarks

Cameras

• Natural colour balance
• Moving subjects hard to capture
• Useless zoom

The Moto G06 relies on a single 50Mp rear camera, supported only by an ambient light sensor. Image quality is perfectly serviceable for the price, but what stands out most is its colour accuracy.

Unlike many budget Android phones that attempt to compensate for weaker hardware with aggressive image processing, Motorola has resisted the temptation to oversaturate. The G06’s colour balance is refreshingly natural, producing photos that feel more true to life than the overly vivid images often seen from competing models. The downside, of course, is that shots lack the kind of vibrant “pop” that can make social media photos stand out.

In other areas, though, the G06’s limitations are hard to ignore. Autofocus is noticeably sluggish when trying to capture moving subjects such as birds or animals, making it difficult to get sharp images on the first attempt.

Fine detail is another casualty of the single-lens setup. Textures that should appear crisp – like the grain of a carved wooden ornament – often look smoothed over. In close-up shots, subtle differences in lighting can also throw the focus off. For example, when photographing a slice of cake, the reflections on a nearby fork appeared slightly blurred, and the fruit jam filling inside the sponge looked soft or out of focus.

Shots lack the kind of vibrant “pop” that can make social media photos stand out

The G06 also struggles with shadow detail. Dark areas tend to lose definition, and the camera often fails to capture the depth and variation within deeper tones. Blacks are indeed black, but subtle shades – such as the darker reds within lighter hues – are easily lost, resulting in flatter, less dynamic images overall.

Zoom performance, meanwhile, is virtually non-existent. With no dedicated telephoto lens, any attempt to capture distant subjects quickly exposes the limitations of digital zoom. When used to photograph a distant church surrounded by trees, for instance, the resulting image lacks detail and clarity, instead resembling a soft, impressionistic rendering rather than a faithful representation.

Ultimately, the Moto G06’s camera system is straightforward and dependable within its limits. Its natural colour balance gives it a certain honesty that some rivals lack, but the trade-off is a noticeable absence of depth, fine detail, and flexibility. For everyday snapshots in good light, it performs well enough – just don’t expect miracles when it comes to motion, zoom, or texture.

Battery Life & Charging 

• Lasts more than a day between charges
• 5200mAh battery
• Slow charging

Motorola’s phones have long had a reputation for solid battery life, and the Moto G06 continues that trend. In everyday use – a mix of web browsing, map navigation, video playback, and messaging – it comfortably lasted more than a full day on a single charge.

Unfortunately, charging speeds have taken a step back. The G06 supports only 10W wired charging

The endurance is thanks to its sizeable 5200mAh battery, the same capacity found in last year’s Moto G05. Unfortunately, charging speeds have taken a step back. The G06 supports only 10W wired charging, compared with the 18W offered by its predecessor, which makes topping up noticeably slower.

Adding to the frustration, Motorola no longer includes a charging brick in the box. Using the supplied USB-C to USB-C cable and a standard 9V third-party charger, the G06 reached just 14% in 15 minutes and 28% in 30 minutes during testing. That’s fine if you tend to charge overnight, but not ideal if you need a quick power boost during the day.

Software & Apps

• Android 15
• Moto Unplugged app
• Hefty bloatware

The G86 Power 5G runs Android 15, but only has two years of security updates ahead of it – a significant disappointment for a phone that will likely last much longer, but will never see the already-released Android 16.

The disappointments continue with Motorola’s own suite of extras over the top, and a bundle of bloatware. Numerous apps, including TikTok, AI browser Perplexity, LinkedIn, Amazon Music, Microsoft Copilot, Temu, Facebook, Pinterest, Solitaire, Block Blast, Vita Majong, Toon Blast, Candy Crush Saga, Booking.com and Monopoly Go are all there by default – and while their presence might help the brand to keep the phone’s cost down, it reduces some of the glamour of getting a brand-new device.

There are bright spots in the custom software layer. The device includes a tidy “chip mode” for notifications, which consolidates alerts in a centralised “bubble view” on the home screen – a visually pleasing and functional way to manage interruptions. 

The Moto Unplugged feature also lets you hide distracting apps entirely for a set period, not merely mute their notifications. That said, it’s frustrating that Unplugged cannot (at this stage) be scheduled automatically according to time of day (e.g. during work hours or at night). That omission limits its usefulness.

Price & Availability 

The Moto G06 has an RRP of £109.99 in the UK. It’s currently available from Motorola’s website for £100, but other retailers have it for considerably less. You can buy it for £69 from Currys, or £69.99 from Amazon, putting it at the low end of the budget market.

It’s not available in the US. But you can see our top recommendations in our round-up of the best budget phones we’ve tested.

Should you buy the Moto G86 Power 5G?

The Moto G06 is a functional, unambitious device that does just enough to justify its place in Motorola’s line-up – but little more. Battery life is solid, and colour accuracy from the camera is surprisingly good, yet almost every strength is offset by an obvious compromise.

Performance feels sluggish, charging is painfully slow, and the design looks several generations out of date. Even Motorola’s tidy software touches can’t make up for the sheer volume of preloaded apps or the short update window.

It’s a phone you’ll buy because it’s cheap, not because you want it. Dependable, yes – but a little dated and frustrating to use.

Specifications

• Android 15
• 6.88in, 1640 × 720 (HD+) LCD, 120Hz
• MediaTek Helio G81 Extreme
• 4GB / 8GB LPDDR4X RAM
• 64GB / 128GB / 256GB storage, expandable up to 1TB microSD
• Front Camera: 8Mp, f/2.0
• Rear Camera: 50Mp, f/1.8, Quad Pixel, PDAF, LED flash
• Side-mounted fingerprint reader, Face Unlock
• 4G LTE, 3G WCDMA, 2G GSM
• Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (dual band 2.4 & 5 GHz)
• Bluetooth 5.0
• USB Type-C 2.0
• 5200mAh battery, 10W charging
• 171.35 × 77.5 × 8.31 mm
• 194 g
• IP64 water-resistant design
• Build: Glass front (Gorilla Glass 3), plastic frame, eco leather back
• Launch Colours: Pantone Laurel Oak, Pantone Arabesque, Pantone Tapestry, Pantone Tendril

Best Prices Today: Moto G06