Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

My requirements for a phone are very few. Other than the ongoing need for it to serve as an electronic leash (which technically is my wife’s requirement anyway), I principally need it run Android Auto, which my previous, long-in-the-tooth budget phone, running Marshmallow with just 1.5 GB of RAM and 16 GB of on board storage, was simply unable to do. My new phone search criteria were straightforward: It had to be compatible with T-Mobile’s network; had to be running Android Oreo; had to have at least 3 GB of RAM/32GB of on board storage. As Android Auto can be a bit flaky, I felt the less bloatware it came with, the better and I really didn’t want to spend more than $300 as I couldn’t justify the expense. Having done quite a lot of research, the MotorolaG6 came out as the best choice for me: Motorola phones are known for not having too much additional software installed, and while there are a few 'Moto' phones in this price bracket, the review ratings for the G6 were exceptional. I was going to buy the standard 3GB RAM/32GB Storage, but the amazon exclusive 4GB RAM/64 GB Storage seemed like a bargain, although I was a little wary of the fact that it came with a few Amazon apps preinstalled. I’ve had the phone for a week now and I couldn’t be happier: • The phone feels very solid and the deep indigo is a nice color. • Call quality is very good. • Speed of operation is very quick – Android Auto runs seamlessly and with no lag while switching between tasks • The fingerprint reader (which wasn’t a must have for me) has been a pleasant surprise: it seems to work very well and has made waking the phone and logging into banking apps etc. much less hassle • The ‘moto” features: ‘chop’ twice to activate the flash-light, twist twice to activate the camera are also quite useful. • While the Amazon apps that are bundled with this edition cannot be uninstalled, it’s up to the user if they wish to run/use them and they don’t seem to get in the way. I was a bit concerned that Alexa would usurp/interfere with Google Assistant, but it does not. • The camera doesn’t seem to be anything special, but that was never a deal breaker for me. • I’m told it’s not a gaming phone as the processor isn’t state of the art, but that’s just the icing on the cake for me. It certainly seems more than adequate for what I need it to do. I think If you’re looking to upgrade from a lower end budget phone, you can’t go wrong with this phone: it’s got a lot of bang for the buck with a few features you didn’t know you needed and almost none that you don’t.