- Analysis by KJ David
A less-expensive -- and obviously lower-specked -- version of Motorola's 5th-generation Moto E mid-ranger, the Moto E5 Play opts out of the big-battery race and suffers from a couple of underwhelming cons.
For one, the E5 Play is the only model in the batch that Motorola unveiled in April 2018 that does not adopt the 18:9 aspect ratio 
. Instead, its 5.2-inch IPS screen sticks to the conventional (as of this specs-based review) 16:9 setup, with a so-so 1280 x 720 HD resolution. Moreover, it passes up on Near Field Communication, aka NFC , which we think should be a standard pro among middle-class smartphones like this one.
As for hardware, it drops from the original E5's hearty 4000mAh battery power to only 2800mAh , though it still comes comes with a 10W rapid charger 
and promises a full day's worth of usage on a single charge. Alongside its battery is a basic 1.4GHz quad-core processor (either a Snapdragon 425 or a 427 iteration) and a budget-class 2GB RAM.
Fortunately for this Play edition, its internal pros and cons also include a 16GB memory expandable by up to 128GB , which was still considered a reasonable storage cap in this market segment when it came out. It also features a fingerprint reader embedded right into the Motorola logo on its rear as well as Moto Actions , Motorola's self-branded suite of gesture-based controls.
When it comes to imaging, the Moto E5 Play does not seem like a big threat versus many other 2018-released mid-range smartphones, touting a low-key 8-megapixel rear-facing camera and a 5-megapixel-only front-facing cam . There's a slight consolation, though, in the form of its front-firing LED flash , which Motorola calls Selfie Light, a facet that not a lot of models in the middle-class department offer.
Check Out: Best Selfie Phones
Like many other Motorola Androids, the E5 Play is equipped with a front-ported speaker and a dual-microphone setup, but it curiously lacks the Dolby audio enhancements that made its E5 base model and the more-ambitious E5 Plus variant a tad more interesting multimedia-wise.
It does, however, retain the brand's signature water-repellent coating , which sounds like a nice touch, even though it does not make it totally waterproof, as in the case of the best waterproof smartphones on the market -- most of which have full-blown rugged IP certifications.
So, given its aforementioned pros and cons, the Motorola Moto E5 Play caters to practically-minded shoppers who want an unassuming, but not entirely-basic budget smartphone.
** This phone is also known as: Motorola Moto E5, Motorola Moto E Play Gen 5
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