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Motorola jumped into 5G with both feet in 2019 with the 5G Moto Mod, and the company has launched several smartphones with fully integrated 5G since then. Moto’s latest 5G effort in the US is the Motorola One 5G, which will cost less than $500. This device will launch only on AT&T and Verizon, but Verizon’s phone will add millimeter wave 5G, and you know what that means.
I’d expect this phone to be very much like the recent Moto G 5G Plus from Europe. Here’s what we’ve got for the US release.
Motorola really went wild with the camera setup here. While the One 5G has yet another dedicated macro camera, this one might actually be useful thanks to the ring light. That’s separate from the flash, allowing you to illuminate close-up objects to avoid shadows. There’s also a respectable 48MP primary and an 8MP ultrawide sensor on the rear. The fourth rear module is a depth sensor. You get two selfies cameras, as well—one wide and the other ultrawide. So, it’s similar to Google’s third-gen Pixels there.
The display has two hole punches for the front-facing cameras, and they’ll probably stand out more than you’d think. This is an LCD panel (as opposed to OLED), so there will be visible shadows around those cameras. There’s plenty of display, though. This is a huge 6.7-inch 21:9 screen—very narrow and tall like Sony’s recent phones, but it has a faster 90Hz refresh. Moto has implemented a shortcut feature on the side-mounted fingerprint sensor that can open the notification shade, launch apps, and so on. It looks more useful than Sony’s frustrating Side Sense feature, too.
While the One 5G has a Snapdragon 765G similar to the Moto Edge, it will slot in below that $700 phone. Motorola hasn’t settled on a price yet, but it’s provided some general guidance.
In the U.S., Motorola is delivering on its sub-$500 5G commitment with the new motorola one 5G, which will be coming soon to AT&T. Verizon will launch a unique variant with connectivity to its 5G Ultra Wideband network in early October.
The language implies the price will be under $500 for AT&T’s sub-6GHz version but higher for the “unique variant” with Verizon mmWave. No surprise; Verizon’s UW phones are usually more expensive than non-UW versions. It’ll be interesting to see how close Moto can get to the $500 mark with Verizon 5G. AT&T will launch its version in September, and Verizon will follow in October.
Official AT&T price
Motorola has provided a new statement on pricing, but only for AT&T.
In the U.S., the new motorola one 5G will be available September 18 at AT&T. For a limited time, you can get it for just $5 a month (that’s over half off) when you add a new line on an AT&T unlimited wireless plan and purchase the device on qualifying 0% APR installment plan.
With AT&T’s 30-month plans, that works out to roughly $150. The full price is $444.99, which is pretty strange. We asked if there is some significance to the unusual price point, but Motorola says no. There’s no word on Verizon’s pricing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s over $500.
