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New waterproof Moto G 2015 is a budget powerhouse smartphone

The third-gen Moto G (2015) is now official, although you’d be forgiven for thinking it already was on account of all the leaks we’ve seen.

Nevertheless, Motorola took to the stage at an event in London today to tell all about its new budget flagship.

The Moto G 3 (2015), for clarification, is the successor to both 2014’s Moto G and 2015’s Moto G (4G) – confusing, we know.

Motorola Moto G 3 (2015) features

For starters, the device features a 5-inch display and a HD 720 x 1280 pixel resolution – just like last year’s model. There’s sturdy Gorilla Glass 3 in tow, too.

At the Moto G’s heart lies Qualcomm’s quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor clocked at 1.4GHz, which means graphics are handled by a capable Adreno 306 GPU.

That’s a boost from the old model’s 1.2GHz chip.

moto 01Moto G specs

There are three core variants of the Moto G (2015) – an 8GB storage model with 1GB of RAM, a 16GB edition with 1GB of RAM, or a 16GB version with 2GB of RAM.

There’s also a microSD card slot for good measure.

The device offers dual-SIM capability, and supports 4G/LTE connectivity, just like the other 2015 Moto G.

Motorola has opted to include a 13-megapixel rear-facing camera this time around, which is an upgrade from the old 8-megapixel sensor featured on earlier models. It has colour-balancing flash and an IR filter too.

The front-facing camera is also getting an upgrade from a 2-megapixel image resolution to a selfie-tastic 5-megapixels.

The device is powered by a 2,470mAh battery and runs on Google’s latest Android Lollipop OS.

Related: Best Android Smartphones 2015

Excitingly, the new device is the first Moto G that falls under Motorola’s Moto Maker scheme, which means buyers can customise the front and back of their handsets.

It ships in black and white, but there’ll be loads of cases available too.

moto 02Moto G cases

Related: Best Android Smartphones 2015

While we’re on design, it’s also worth mentioning that the handset is fully waterproof up to a meter depth for 30 minutes. Dunk away, people.

The device is on sale right now, with the price boldly proclaimed to be “one third” the price of flagship phones – savings of $400 to $500, apparently. No surprise there…

In the UK, you’ll be able to pick it up from £159 for the 8GB model with Three, O2, or Vodafone.

“You shouldn’t have to settle for old outdated technology to have an affordable phone,” says a Motorola spokesperson.

If Motorola’s launch has got you hankering for a new handset, check out our smartphone group test video below:

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