Motorola Moto G84 5G Vs Motorola Moto G85 5G: Should You Upgrade?

It feels like yesterday, when Motorola released their Moto G84 5G device back in August 2023. Yet, in just 11 months or so, Moto G85 5G is here knocking the door for your upgrade decision. Although user’s might feel a bit awkward to switch in just 1 year later, but Motorola did bring some new changes to offer this year along with its eye-catching curved design.

To find out what major changes Motorola brought this year with the Moto G85 5G, we might have to dig a bit deeper into both Moto G84 5G against the Moto G85 5G, and try to understand whether you should upgrade to the new variant or not. Without further ado, let’s dive right into today’s comparison review about Moto G84 5G versus the Moto G85 5G.

Table of Contents

• Key Differences
• Design
• Display
• Camera
• Performance
• UI & OS
• Battery Life
• Specifications
• Verdict

1. Key Differences : Moto G84 5G vs Moto G85 5G:

Motorola Moto G84 5G	Motorola Moto G85 5G
1300 Nits Peak Brightness	1600 nits Peak Brightness (Brighter Display)
Snapdragon 695 5G	Snapdragon 6s Gen 3 (New Chipset)
Android 13	Android 14 (Latest OS)
16MP Front Camera	32MP Front Camera (Upgraded)

Check Latest Price of Moto G84 5G vs Moto G85 5G

2. Design & Build: Moto G84 5G Vs Moto G85 5G:

Design & Build
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
☑️ 166.8 grams or 168.3 grams;	☑️ 171 grams Or 173 grams for vegan leather;
☑️ IP54, dust and splash resistant;	☑️ Water repellent design.
☑️ Boxier Camera cutout.	☑️ Curved Camera cutout.

When it comes to the first overview while holding the device, you do see some design changes in terms of overall looks. 

As for the previous Moto G84 5G, there’s a little boxer panel at all edges, even the display had less curves compared to the new variant.

There’s a Pantone color palette branding at the back below the Moto logo. Due to its leather back and exclusive Viva Magenta color, holding the device feels quite good. There’s a soft touch to it whenever you are using the device, which is a good thing for user experience.

Looking at the new G85 5G from Motorola, you do get quite a few changes in terms of overall design elements. Noticeable pantone color branding on the back of the device, which is also missing in the new Moto G85.

While the button placement and the finger reader remained exactly the same as before, you do get a more curvier design now. Motorola did bring its premium feel to most of their devices with curved edges for the display.

3. Display: Moto G84 5G Vs Moto G85 5G:

Display
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
☑️ 6.5-inch Display;	☑️ 6.67-inch Display;
☑️ Under display fingerprint;	☑️ 395 max pixel per inch;
☑️ 1300 nits peak brightness	☑️ 1600 nits peak brightness

Now let’s talk about the display of both the devices. When it comes to the Moto G84 5G, the display looks great with a 6.5-inch P-OLED panel. There’s a maximum of 120Hz refresh rate, which makes it smooth to play games with high fps and scrolling internet. The display is flat and has a minimum screen-to-body ratio of around 85.7%, now this is good, but not as gorgeous  when you compare it with the display of Moto G85.

On the other hand, with the new Moto G85 5G, you  get a greater 6.67-inch display, just .17-inch higher compared to last year’s model. Due to higher screen size, the pixel per inch got lowered eventually.

Now this is not a major change as due to the P-OLED panel, the viewing angle seems quite promising. Motorola introduced a curved display as well with the G85 5G this year, which looks premium at first glance. As for the screen-to-body ratio, you get around 8% higher viewing angle, for about 92.70% on the new G85 5G. 

Making it greater viewing compared to last year’s G84 5G. There’s another change in the high brightness section, as you get around 1600 nits peak brightness now with the Moto G85 5G, so a little brighter compared to last year’s model.

 4. Camera: Moto G84 5G Vs Moto G85 5G:

Camera
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
50MP Wide, 8MP Ultrawide, 1080p	50MP Wide, 8MP Ultrawide, 1080p
16MP Wide, 1080p	32MP Wide, 1080p

Camera qualities are almost similar except just changes in megapixels for the front lens. While the other lens like the rear lenses remained just as before.

For the Moto G84 5G, you get a dual rear camera with one 50mp wide angle camera and a 120° field of viewing 8mp ultrawide lens. Daylight photos look quite good when you capture them at ease. Motorola did not provide 4K shooting capabilities, which seemed quite odd with that asking price. Front camera was 16Mp with similar FHD videography capability.

In comparison with the new Moto G85 5G, the rear camera’s megapixel is just exactly the same with similar dual lens and megapixels.

Sadly, Motorola did not bring 4K recording with the updated G85 5G, as the rear and front camera still comes with 1080p recording. One thing worth mentioning is about the front camera of the Moto G85 5G, as you get just double the camera with 32 megapixels, which was just 16Mp for the previous model.

5. Performance: Moto G84 5G Vs Moto G85 5G:

Performance
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G	Qualcomm Snapdragon 6s Gen 3
12GB RAM With 256GB Storage	8GB/12GB RAM with RAM Boost
Dolby Atmos Sound, Hi-Res Audio	Dolby Atmos Sound

For the previous G84 5G from Moto, you get one of the trending chipset inside, which is the Snapdragon 695 5G, gives you around 2.2GHz octa-core processing power along with 12GB max ram speed. Internal storage gives you just 256GB, and thankfully there is a microSD slot.

For users wondering about higher storage options, Motorola sadly did not include any. Running day to day apps had no issues and playing casual games was just okay like Free-fire or Pubg Mobile in HD mode.  In terms of movie watching, there was Dolby sound to enjoy greater quality movie sound.

Now, when you check out the Moto G85 5G this year, Motorola changed the internet chipset from 695 5G to Snapdragon 6s gen 3, while it does come with a new name but delivers similar 2.2GHz processing power. In terms of Ram or Rom, you get up to 12GB of Ram and 256GB storage with a dedicated microSD slot.

Motorola does mention that you can expand the ram with Ram boost technology, which will give you around 12GB more ram instead of just 12GB. One thing Motorola did not include like the previous model is the Hi-res audio with the G85 5G.

6. UI & OS: Moto G84 5G  Vs  Moto G85 5G:

UI & OS
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
Android 13	Android 14
2 Year OS, 3 years of Security Updates	2 Year OS, 4 years of Security Updates
Moto Features	Moto Features

As for the software capabilities, it seems Motorola isn’t really concerned about overall user experience improvement.

Stock android experience is there, though Motorola does give you pre-installed applications on both the devices. There are few Moto features like gestures which might attract you. Like opening up flashlight, split screen or sidebar application viewing.

In comparison, on the Moto G84 5G, you get an Android 13 on-board, which was the previous year’s latest Android OS. There were also 2 years of OS updates and 3 years of security updates from Motorola. Gestures and Moto features are helpful, especially for users who love quick access to their widgets.

On the other hand with the new Moto G85 5G, you get the latest Android 14 along with 2 years of OS updates and 4 years of security patches from Motorola. A little extra years of security updates from Motorola. Smart connect is available just like before, you can easily connect the phone with the computer for file sharing and larger viewing experience.

7. Battery: Moto G84 5G  Vs Moto G85 5G :

Battery
Moto G84 5G	Moto G85 5G
5000mAh	5000mAh
33W Wired	30W Wired

Here’s come something that users need the most but companies forget about including anything in every year’s new phone releases. Yes, we are talking about the battery life or charging speed, both are important for any smart device. 

Motorola Moto G84 5G and Moto G85 5G both come with 5000mAh battery. Last year, with the G84 5G, you did get around a day’s charge without losing beat. There’s also 33W wired charging speed, to give you quicker battery recharge. The 33W charging speed is not like the competition, though it does the job.

As for the new Moto G85 5G, there’s still the same old 5000mAh battery, although now you don’t get the 33W wired charging, instead you get 30W wired charging. “Why would Motorola even lower the charging speed instead of increasing?” It is a mystery which needs solving. Even after a year’s break, Motorola still continues to provide the same old battery power to its new device gives you a disappointing feeling.

8. Overall Specs:

Here is both device’s technical information for a better overview of the Motorola Moto G84 5G specification against the Motorola Moto G85 5G’s specs:

Specs	Motorola Moto G84 5G	Motorola Moto G85 5G
Display	6.5 inches | 85.7% Screen- To- Body ratio | P-OLED | 120Hz | 1300 nits	6.67 inches | 90.8% Screen- To- Body ratio | P-OLED | 120Hz | 1600 nits
Body	Dimension: 160 x 74.4 x 7.6mm Weight: 166.8 g / 168.3g (Vegan Leather)	Dimension: 161.91 x 73.06 x 7.59 mm Weight: 171g / 173g (Vegan Leather)
Camera	Rear: 50 MP (wide), 8 MP (ultrawide) | 1080p Front: 16MP | 1080p	Rear: 50 MP (wide), 8 MP (ultrawide) | 1080p Front: 32MP | 1080p
Platform	Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G (6 nm) | Octa-Core | Adreno 619 | Android 13	Qualcomm Snapdragon 6s Gen 3 (6 nm) | Octa-Core | Adreno 619 | Android 14
Ram-ROM	256GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM | Memory Slot	128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM | Memory Slot
Audio	Dual stereo speakers | Dolby Atmos | Moto Spatial Sound | Hi-Res Audio	Stereo speakers | Dolby Atmos
Battery	5000 mAh | 33W Wired	5000 mAh | 30W Wired
Sensors	Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass	Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
Connectivity	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac | Bluetooth 5.1	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac | Bluetooth 5.1
Features	My UX | Moto Secure | Moto Space | Moto Connect | Moto Hub  | Moto Game Time	My UX | Moto Secure | Moto Space | Moto Connect | Moto Hub  | Moto Game Time
Colors	Marshmallow Blue, Midnight Blue, Viva Magenta	Olive Green | Cobalt Blue | Urban Grey

Verdict

Long story short, the Motorola G84 5G and the Motorola G85 5G both give you reliable performance. All the specs and overall internal hardware seems promising, though there’s no major changes instead of the outer design and curved display for the front.

You do get the beautiful viewing while holding the phone, although when it comes to performance both devices seem to have similar results. Even the battery life and camera qualities are almost carbon copy.

Bottom line, if you are raising a question, whether you should invest in the new Moto G85 5G or you should choose the G84 5G from last year, then do choose the last year’s model. As there’s just the chipset tag change with no major performance boost. And, you still can get a good deal out of the older device if the price is still low and if only the product is available in the market right now.

Get the Motorola Moto G84 5G, if:

• You need a good looking phone in a budget price;
• You require a reliable performance for day-to-day smart life;
• You want a good sound experience from the high-res speakers.

Get the Motorola Moto G85 5G, if:

• You want a updated processor from Motorola;
• You require the best looking curved display phone;
• You need a latest 5G phone with greater Ram Boost technology.