What Is The Better Device? The Motorola Edge 50 Pro Or The OnePlus 12R?
Choosing between the Motorola Edge 50 Pro and the OnePlus 12R might seem like a tough decision, but hopefully, after we walk through this little analysis, you’ll find it easier to hit the “Buy Now” button on one of them. Let’s get into it.
The Designs
Design is subjective, so what I like, you might not. Regardless, since you’re listening to me right now, I’ll tell you what I like. Visually speaking, I think the circular camera module layout has been over-flogged, and the Edge 50 Pro stands out much better to me. I find it to look higher class. By no means do I think the 12R is unattractive though.
In terms of build quality, both phones have aluminum frames but that’s where the similarities stop. The OnePlus 12R comes with a glass back, but with the Edge 50 Pro, depending on the color you get, you’ll end up with a vegan leather or wood back (yes, I said wood). Plus, the Edge 50 Pro beats the 12R with IP68 water resistance versus IP64.
So, I’m certainly a bigger fan of what the Motorola device has going on for it in this department, though your mileage may vary.
The Screens
Displays are easy things to compare. Both screens are close to the same size, with the 12R toting a 6.78-inch AMOLED screen, and the Edge 50 Pro with a marginally smaller 6.7-inch pOLED unit, and both are protected with Gorilla Glass and are HDR10+ certified. Now, there’s a lot going on with the displays, but let’s break it down.
The OnePlus phone has a 120Hz screen against 144Hz in the Motorola device. However, the 12R gets an LTPO display, which means it has a more variable refresh rate than the Motorola, which usually results in better battery life. The resolutions are also extremely close, with both falling into the 1.5K range. It’s hard to pick a winner based on this alone.
However, this is where the OnePlus 12R clinches it. It’s got a 4,500-nit peak brightness and Dolby Vision certification, but the Edge 50 Pro hits 2,000-nit peak brightness and comes with Pantone validation. The thing is, Dolby Vision is a recognized certification and the Edge 50 Pro and Ultra models are the only phones with Pantone-validated displays, so there’s not much to go by on what that brings to the table. As a result, it’s close, but the OnePlus device takes it.
The Chipsets And Memory
The OnePlus 12R goes full flagship when it comes to the chipset, opting for 2022’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, but the Edge 50 Pro takes a more conservative approach with the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 powering things.
Both phones share a base configuration: 8GB/128GB. However, you can spec the 12R up to 16GB/256GB and the Edge 50 Pro to 12GB/512GB. So one has more storage, and the other has more RAM. However, the OnePlus 12R opts for UFS 3.1 storage while the Motorola goes for UFS 2.2.
In this battle, thanks to a faster storage standard (even if you get less), more RAM, and a much better chipset, the OnePlus wins.
The Cameras
Now, cameras. I once wrote a long piece several years ago about how you can’t determine camera performance from megapixels alone, and that remains true. But until there are camera samples available, it’ll be hard to compare the real-world performance of both. We have no choice but to compare what they do on paper.
The primary camera of the OnePlus 12R is a 50MP f/1.8 camera with PDAF, Laser Autofocus, and OIS. Pretty nice, until you see the 50MP f/1.4 camera with multi-directional PDAF, Laser Autofocus, and OIS on the Edge 50 Pro. The wider aperture means more light, and likely better shots in low light.
Both phones have an ultrawide. The 12R has an 8MP ultrawide with a 112° FOV, but the Edge 50 Pro has a 13MP ultrawide with autofocus and a 120° FOV. Now, the OnePlus 12R goes for a 2MP macro as its third lens (and I consider that to be next to pointless), while the Motorola Edge 50 Pro goes for a significantly more useful 10MP 3x telephoto with OIS and PDAF. The only win the OnePlus has regarding the rear camera setup is that it can record 4K/60 while the Motorola only does 4K/30. Regardless, there’s an easy winner here.
The selfie camera is 16MP on the 12R, but 50MP with a wider aperture and autofocus on the Edge 50 Pro. Plus, it is capable of recording at 4K/30 as opposed to FHD/30 on the OnePlus phone. The camera battle is really no contest.
The Batteries And Charging
The OnePlus 12R has a much bigger 5,500 mAh battery compared to 4,500 mAh on the Motorola Edge 50 Pro. Both phones can also harness very fast charging, with the OnePlus 12R capable of 100W when wired and the Motorola 125W. The Motorola also gets a leg up with 50W wireless charging and 10W reverse wireless charging, neither of which the 12R can claim.
I’ll call this one a tie because I prefer having a bigger battery, but the Motorola brings a slightly faster charging speed and wireless charging to the table.
The Miscellaneous Factors
Both phones support 5G and have NFC, and that much is expected. However, there’s a lot of shaking up in the battle between the two phones here.
The OnePlus 12R gets Wi-Fi 7, and the Edge 50 Pro sticks with Wi-Fi 6E. The OnePlus 12R has Bluetooth 5.3, but the Motorola takes it a step further with Bluetooth 5.4. The OnePlus phone has an IR blaster, a favorite feature of mine, but there’s nothing of the sort for the Motorola.
The OnePlus has USB Type-C 2.0, however, the Motorola pushes things up to USB Type-C 3.1 along with DisplayPort 1.4 so you can use your Edge 50 Pro in desktop mode when plugged into an external display. Things are very back and forth here, so I might say it is another tie, though I lean more towards what the Edge 50 Pro, especially with the Type-C standard.
The Pricing, And Which Should You Get?
The Motorola Edge 50 Pro starts at €700 (~$743), while the OnePlus 12R launched at a much lower $500.
With the price in the frame now, it makes things a lot harder to decide. You’re paying about 50% extra on what you’d pay for a 12R if you want to get the Edge 50 Pro. But, the question is, does it bring 50% more to the table with a smaller battery, weaker chipset, slower storage, and slightly inferior screen; but a better design, much better cameras, and faster charging?
If you ask me, the answer is no. But for some people, it doesn’t always boil down to the price. I would prefer to see the Edge 50 Pro in my hand daily, so if budget isn’t an issue for you, that might be the way to go. At the end of the day, there’s no accounting for taste, and hopefully, this piece has helped you make a decision, regardless of which phone you choose.
