It's still too early in the year to say for sure, but we've got a serious feeling that Motorola's Edge 70 is going to make a reappearance after 2026 is done as a Stuff Gadget Awards winner. It's almost incredible that this phone only costs R10,000 (likely less), given how thin, how attractive, and how packed with hardware it is. The only folks likely to see any kind of disappointment are those who consider a smartphone a vehicle for a camera setup. Even then, the Edge 70 puts up a decent showing for its price tag.
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Design
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Display
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Performance
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Battery
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Camera
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Value
Motorola isn’t a name we see often in relation to South Africa in 2026, so the Moto Edge 70 was… somewhat of a surprise. The brand has changed hands a few times over the years, from its dumbphone origins (when it was everywhere in SA) to, eventually, Lenovo. Its absence, based on our time with the Edge 70, really should be corrected. Hard.
This is because, for the price, you’re getting a surprisingly capable smartphone. There are some concessions, which are to be expected from a sub-R10,000 handset, but fewer than anybody might reasonably expect. Plus, Motorola has managed to spit out a genuinely attractive device for not very much money.
Lean green machine
There are two really striking elements to the Motorola Edge 70. The first should be obvious, based on the name. When you discount the camera bump, the phone measures a mere 6mm through the side. It’s not the skinniest phone you’ll ever encounter. The Apple iPhone Air has it beat by about 0.5mm, and Huawei has something even slimmer in the Mate XT Ultimate. Moto’s phone is still, relatively speaking, almost invisible from the side.
From the rear, it’s an attractive sight as well. There are several shades for the phone from Motorola, but South Africa has the Bronze Green hue, a Pantone colour. It’s supposed to go with the 6.7in OLED display, which has a similar validation. The textured back feels great, if a little soft, and it’s obvious you’re supposed to conceal it beneath a clear cover. There’s one of them in the box.
Elsewhere, standard phone layout rules apply. Physical buttons on the top right, ports and speakers on the bottom. There’s a single physical key on the top right that summons Moto AI, should that be a thing you need in your life. There are less attractive phones on the market that cost far more (and are thicker) than the Edge 70.
Stuffed full
You can’t base everything on looks, unless you’re a Twitch streamer or some other social media phenomenon. Motorola has outfitted this (technically) budget smartphone with solid enough specs that Samsung should probably start watching its back. The 6.7in OLED supports 120Hz refreshes, HDR10+, and an impressive 4,500 nits of brightness when you need it. The Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 is also more than speedy enough for the price. 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage are genuine surprises for any smartphone at this price point.
Performance is better than we were expecting, across the board. The Edge 70’s screen gives Samsung’s best a run for its money, while the Android 16 interface is largely crisp and clean. Motorola has a small collection of in-house software pre-installed, but it’s unobtrusive (and might even prove useful). Other than Google’s standard app loadout, Facebook and Instagram are present at first startup.
Running apps, even multiple instances, shows little slowdown or stuttering. You can get better speeds, sure, but you’ll pay at least double what you’re paying for the Edge 70. That makes performance a win by… pretty much every metric.
Seeing double
If there’s any place where the Motorola Edge 70 falls (and it’s a very short drop), it’s the camera setup. Even then, it’s only really a problem if you’re comparing it to phones that cost twice as much. There are three 50MP sensors in this phone — two in the rear and one in the front. You’d never guess this was the case, since the rear panel looks like it hosts at least three. One of those little golden circles is unoccupied.
Whether you’re using the front or rear cameras, images are acceptable for the Edge 70’s price tag. Better lighting equals better images, with the camera software being smart enough to tell you when you’re wasting your time shooting in Ultra-Res. There’s detail to be had, though some shots will turn mushy in close-up if you’re using poor light.
For just about any other R10k smartphone, performance here would be unremarkable but acceptable. Stacked against what else Moto’s Edge 70 offers, camera performance can seem like a disappointment. Just check your receipt again, and it’ll all click into place.
Perplexing choice
Like every other phone you’ll see in 2025/2026, AI is a feature here. Moto AI isn’t something that’s built in-house, with Perplexity handling some duties, Microsoft’s Copilot sorting out others, and Google’s Android AI features also present on the device. Either you’ll use it or you won’t, but there’s nothing really essential hiding anywhere.
The 4,800mAh battery is far more useful, keeping the phone powered for at least a day. Where that battery lives, given the phone’s 6mm thickness, is something we were wondering about, but it’s there, and it works. Moto has also splurged on IP68/IP69 ratings for the Edge 70, putting R10,000 smartphones that don’t have it even further on the back foot.
Motorola Edge 70 verdict
We don’t like to call Stuff‘s Gadget Awards winners too early in the year, but Motorola’s Edge 70 is a solid contender for either our Budget or Affordable Smartphone categories at the end of 2026. It’s hard to imagine anyone bringing anything better to the local market in that time frame. There are loads of RAM and storage, the look and feel are excellent, and the cameras are only a drawback if you’re looking at more expensive phones that also pack the features the Edge 70 does. If you’re sitting on an upgrade (and are okay with buying from Vodacom, who are the only local reps), this one should perform in excess of what you’re paying for it.
