Motorola review
Moto G4 Plus
A decade after its launch, the Motorola Moto G4 Plus remains a notable budget landmark, though heat-induced ghost touch and battery degradation define its long-term reality.
A decade after its launch, the Motorola Moto G4 Plus remains a notable budget landmark, though heat-induced ghost touch and battery degradation define its long-term reality.
Pros
- +Removable rear shell grants easy access to SIM and microSD card slots
- +Clean, lightweight Android software experience
- +Decent 16 MP camera for its era with laser autofocus
- +1080p IPS display remains sharp for basic viewing tasks
Cons
- −Infamous ghost touch issue under heat or fast charging
- −Snapdragon 617 chipset struggles under modern application loads
- −Battery requires midframe disassembly to access and replace
- −Legacy Micro-USB port is prone to physical wear over time
Overview
First launched in mid-2016, the Motorola Moto G4 Plus represented a pivotal moment for Motorola's mid-range lineup. Positioned above the base Moto G4, it brought key hardware upgrades including a 16 MP main camera with laser autofocus, a front-mounted square fingerprint sensor, and memory options going up to 4GB of RAM. Looking at the Moto G4 Plus offers an interesting case study in budget smartphone aging and hardware sustainability.
While it originally shipped with Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow and eventually received an official update to Android 8.0 Oreo, time has shifted this device from a daily driver into a lightweight secondary handset. You can explore full specifications and technical details on our Moto G4 Plus device page.
Design and build
The Moto G4 Plus uses a practical, utility-first design language. It features a Corning Gorilla Glass 3 front face protecting a 5.5-inch 1080p IPS LCD panel, wrapped in a plastic frame with a micro-textured removable plastic rear shell.
Peeling off the back cover reveals dual SIM card slots and a dedicated microSD card tray—a luxury rarely seen in contemporary phones. However, despite the removable back plate, the 3000 mAh battery is not instantly hot-swappable; it sits anchored beneath a screwed-down midframe assembly. The physical build is lightweight at 155 grams, but the overall plastic chassis lacks formal water resistance ratings beyond Motorola's basic splash-resistant coating.
Everyday performance
At the heart of the device is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor, a 28nm octa-core chip paired with 2GB to 4GB of RAM depending on the tier. Performance is strictly limited to light duties. Launching current web browsers or modern applications strains the processing cores, resulting in noticeable UI stutters and sluggish multitasking.
However, for offline media playback, basic e-reading, or dedicated local audio playback, the 1080p display still provides sharp visuals with decent color accuracy. The front-mounted square fingerprint sensor remains responsive for unlocking, though its placement—resembling a non-clickable home button—remains a quirky design artifact of its era.
Battery, durability, and longevity
The original 3000 mAh Li-Ion battery delivered respectable endurance in its prime, but original battery cells are severely degraded unless previously replaced. Thermal management on the 28nm Snapdragon 617 chipset is mediocre, causing the device to warm up rapidly under continuous load or during TurboPower fast charging via the Micro-USB port.
Durability wise, the Gorilla Glass 3 front holds up reasonably well against minor scratches, but plastic frame corners can show wear and denting from drops. Keeping the device usable today almost always requires replacing an aged, swollen, or fast-draining battery.
Common issues owners hit
Long-term Moto G4 Plus ownership is defined by a few well-documented hardware quirks:
- Ghost Touch Glitches: The single most widespread defect on this model. Excess heat from the Snapdragon processor or fast-charging voltage causes digitizer interference, triggering phantom screen taps.
- Micro-USB Port Wear: Frequent cable insertion causes wear on the internal micro-USB solder joints, leading to loose connections or charging failure.
- Rapid Battery Degradation: Aging original batteries often cause sudden power-offs around 20–30% charge level.
- Thermal Throttling: Prolonged video capture or app usage heats up the upper midframe significantly.
If you are diagnosing phantom taps or battery degradation on your device, check our common problems hub and step-by-step repair guides to evaluate midframe teardown procedures.
Who it's for
The Moto G4 Plus is no longer practical as a primary daily smartphone due to outdated hardware and software support. However, it remains suitable for:
- Hardware tinkerers looking for an accessible legacy repair project.
- Dedicated offline media players or e-readers utilizing the microSD expansion slot.
- A basic backup voice and SMS device on compatible network bands.
Bottom line
The Motorola Moto G4 Plus was a standout mid-ranger for its era, offering clean software and solid optics at an accessible tier. Today, its longevity is hampered by digitizer heat sensitivity and an aging processor, but its accessible construction makes it a straightforward device to maintain for lightweight retro utility.
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Verdict
While no longer viable as a primary smartphone, the Moto G4 Plus survives as a light legacy device for offline tasks and basic media, provided ghost touch and battery health are managed.
