Initial Stuff Verdict

The Edge 50 Ultra is a seemingly strong alternative to the usual flagships, if not quite up there with other Ultra-branded phones for bleeding edge hardware.

Pros

Chipset promises power and efficiency

Capable camera hardware

Real wood finish is an attention-grabber

Cons

Battery could be bigger

Extremely high bar for photography at this price

Introduction

The Ultra label carries a lot of baggage these days. It denotes some of the best smartphones on sale; ones that seemingly have more camera smarts than a DSLR, better performance than some desktop computers, and screens bright enough to outshine the sun. The Motorola Edge 50 Ultra, though? That’s something a little different.

Sure, it sits on top of Motorola’s refreshed Edge line-up, and is packing a trio of capable camera sensors. But it doesn’t have the most powerful CPU, or the biggest battery, and refuses to give up on curved-edge glass at a time rivals have moved back to flat panels. On the plus side it doesn’t cost four figures, like many of its rivals do. So how does it stack up in comparison?