TL;DR
- Motorola has launched the Edge 50 Pro smartphone.
- The company says this is the first phone with a Pantone-validated camera and display.
- Motorola’s new phone is only available in India right now, with a recommended price of ~$383
The Motorola Edge series is a solid alternative to the iPhones and Galaxies of this world, bringing some premium stylings, super-fast charging, and more. We’re just about due for another entry, so say hello to the Motorola Edge 50 Pro.
Motorola is positioning the Edge 50 Pro as an upper mid-range, camera-focused smartphone, and the company says this is the first phone with a Pantone Validated camera.
The Pantone-validated phone
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
“Every Pantone Validated device has met Pantone’s evaluation and grading criteria by simulating the full range of real-world Pantone colors,” the smartphone brand explained.
So what does that mean in English, then? Well, Motorola says the Edge 50 Pro is able to capture true colors and skin tones as a result of this validation. This wouldn’t be the first phone camera to tout more accurate skin tones, as TECNO and Google have both made progress in this area, but more accurate skin tones and colors are always welcomed.
Motorola’s phone also gets Pantone validation for the screen, with the company claiming that the display shows more accurate colors and skin tones.
What about the rest of the Motorola Edge 50 Pro?
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
Take a look at the spec sheet, and it’s clear that the Edge 50 Pro isn’t quite on par with last year’s Motorola Edge 40 Pro when it comes to horsepower. Flagship silicon makes way for a mid-range Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 chipset here. You’re also getting 8GB of RAM in the base model compared to 12GB in last year’s phone.
The rest of the spec sheet is pretty good, though. We’ve got a 6.7-inch 1.5K curved OLED screen (144Hz, 2,000 nits peak brightness), a 4,500mAh battery, your choice of 125W wired charging or 50W wireless charging, and 256GB of storage. This is all wrapped up in a metal frame, vegan leather back (or acetate finish for the pearl variant), and an IP68 rating.
What about the photography experience? We have a rear camera system that brings to mind the Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus. There’s a 50MP f/1.4 main camera (Motorola says it has two-micron pixels but we’re guessing that’s after pixel-binning), a 10MP 3x telephoto lens, and a 13MP ultrawide camera with macro support. Expect a 50MP f/1.9 selfie camera with autofocus.
Motorola also touts a bunch of software-related features, such as the Hello UX atop Android 14, Ready For desktop mode, trademark gestures, and a nifty generative AI theming tool that generates wallpapers based on your outfit. The Edge 50 Pro will get three major OS upgrades and four years of security patches — a long way behind the best in the industry but not the worst update pledge.
Motorola Edge 50 Pro pricing and availability
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
The Edge 50 Pro just launched in India and will be available from April 9. The phone has a recommended price of Rs 31,999 (~$383) for the 8GB/256GB model, while the 12GB/256GB variant will cost Rs 35,999 (~$431). Motorola is also offering various promotions and benefits to take the base price down to Rs 27,999 (~$336). The cheaper model ships with a 68W charger while the 12GB/256GB variant has a 125W charger.
There’s no word on wider availability, but the Edge 40 Pro didn’t come to the US. So we’re guessing the Edge 50 Pro won’t land stateside, either.