Motorola Edge vs OnePlus 8: Who does sub-£600 phones better?


Mid-range, mostly affordable phones are getting better all the time and two of our favourite ones right now are the Motorola Edge and OnePlus 8.
The two phones are available at similar prices (£599 for the OnePlus 8 and £549 for the Motorola Edge) and are hoping to give buyers who shudder at the thought of parting with a grand for a phone a valid alternative. But,  which is the better device? Let’s have a look and see.
You can also read our full reviews of the two phones by following the links below.

Read our full OnePlus 8 review
Read our full Motorola Edge review

Screen and Design
Displays used to be one of the first things companies sacrificed when trying to keep a phone’s cost down. But thankfully that’s not the case here. Both of these phones have really nice OLED displays that wouldn’t look out of place on a far pricier handset.
Both the Moto Edge and OnePlus 8 pack 6.7-inch screens, however the much narrower design of the Edge makes it feels smaller and slightly easier to hold.
OnePlus 8 Both have curved screens, but Motorola’s is way more pronounced, with the screen drooping right off the edges. It’s eye-catching yes, but it does affect usability. It adds an extra reflection when you’re using the phone outside and can lead to unintentional touches / inputs. The curve on the OnePlus 8 isn’t quite as harsh, yet the wider body still causes some usability issues.
Both devices support HDR10 playback, pack FHD+ resolutions and support 90Hz (rather than the usual 60Hz) for smoother scrolling. We would say the 90Hz panel is better on the OnePlus – it just looks and responds that bit better and faster. They also both have optical fingerprint sensors underneath their screens for unlocking.
With displays that take up much of the phones fronts, neither handset has much room for design flourishes. The Motorola Edge has a glossy back, while our OnePlus 8 review unit sported a minty green matte finish that was rather delightful – a bit like a bathroom from the 70s. Neither phone is IP rated here in the UK. The only other design difference of not is that the Edge has a headphone jack and SD slot.
Moto Edge Camera
Unless you’re plumping for a Pixel 3a, there’s still a notable gulf in camera quality on phones this price and true flagships.
Both phones take good, usable photos, especially if you just want to share snaps on social media. But they also both struggle in low-light and  various other challenging situations, like mixed light environments. Here you’ll still see greater gains by spending a bit more (or a bit less in the case of the Pixel 3a).
Both phones have three cameras on the back, though you can instantly discount the 2MP macro sensor on the OnePlus 8 as nothing more than window dressing. The rest of the setup includes a good 48MP main camera and a 16MP ultrawide....

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