It was almost a year ago to the day that Motorola revealed its partnership with Pantone, promising to release some of the best Android phones with the best colour options – the kind of finishes you won't find anywhere else (certainly not on the best iPhones anyway – key to timing given the reveal of the iPhone 15 series this week).
For 2023, Motorola is stepping up to the plate once more, revealing its latest Neo handset – the Edge 40 Neo, an update of last year's Edge 30 Neo – complete with a distinctive colourway called 'Caneel Bay'. As you can see from the photographs on this page, it's a vibrant blue colour (the name presumably being derived from the bay of St John of the US Virgin Islands).
I got to handle the Edge 40 Neo ahead of its full reveal to get a taste of what the handset is all about. And just like other recent Motorola 'Edge' products – such as the Edge 40 Pro – the first thing that struck me about the handset (save for that bright colour finish, of course) is just how slim and comfortable to hold it is. The curved edges make it feel more slender and lighter than my other current go-to Nothing Phone (2).
But before I run away with the fuller spec of this phone, back to the other key aspect of this piece's headline: the Edge 40 Neo's price! It'll go on sale for just £299 in the UK, with other regions to be announced. Although, as with so many of its devices, Motorola won't range this in the USA. For fans in ol' Blighty, however, that's great value for a good-looking, well-built handset – which comes with 256GB storage as standard!
If you're not a major fan of the Caneel Bay option, then there are other finishes: Soothing Sea is like a minty-green sea-like hue; Black Beauty, on the other hand, is a fairly deep shade of black (as you'd hope with such a name). All three options are Pantone, with the former two being 'vegan leather'. I think fans will enjoy these distinct colours, as was the case with the Viva Magenta finish for the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra.
In terms of spec skinny, the Edge 40 Neo features a MediaTek 1050 processor, 5000mAh battery with 68W fast-charging (and the charger is included in the box), a 6.5-inch OLED panel with 144Hz refresh rate, IP68 water-resistance, and a 50-megapixel main rear camera that's complemented by a wide-angle which is also macro-capable. All in all, that's a lot of spec for £299 – which is why I think fans will love the price, placing this as a contender in the best cheap phones category, no doubt.
