What you need to know
- Motorola announces the new Moto G Stylus 2026, which goes on sale for $499 on April 16.
- The Moto G Stylus features a new active pen, which enables pressure sensitivity and tilt detection on supported apps.
- The phone is powered by a Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 with 8GB of RAM and a brighter display, and a larger fast-charging battery.
- At launch, Motorola will bungle the device with the Moto Tag, Moto Watch, and Moto Buds Loop.
For years, the Moto G Stylus has offered a built-in stylus pen, but it’s always been a passive pen with no particularly special tricks. That’s changing with the Moto G Stylus 2026, which now comes with an active pen not too unlike the S Pen on Samsung phones like the Galaxy S26 Ultra.
This means that, unlike previous models such as last year’s Moto G Stylus 2025, this new pen supports features like pressure sensitivity and tilt detection. For any digital artists out there, this should appeal to you, as it means you’ll be able to produce more precise drawings in supported apps. Or, if you want, you could have AI clean things up with Motorola’s Sketch to Image feature.
Motorola highlights how you can use the new active stylus with the Notes app and across the UI, such as dragging and dropping images, magnifying text, complex calculations with the Handwriting Calculator, and Circle to Search. And by pressing the button on the stylus, you can highlight and send text to the Notes app.
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According to Motorola, the new pen lasts about 100 hours per charge, and can fully charge in just 15 minutes when you slide it back into the Moto G Stylus 2026. It’s also tough, with a combined IP68/IP69 rating for water and dust resistance.
As for the phone itself, the Moto G Stylus 2026 shares a lot of similarities with its predecessor, albeit with some notable upgrades. The design and dimensions are pretty much identical, but the 6.7-inch Super HD display is now brighter, with a peak brightness of up to 5,000 nits, and it supports Water Touch technology, so you can navigate the touchscreen even in the rain.
The phone is also tougher, and like the new stylus pen, it is rated for IP68/IP69 water and dust resistance.
The camera system is roughly the same, with a 50MP primary sensor and a 13MP ultrawide. However, Motorola is adding more of its Moto AI, and alongside the Photo Enhancement System, users will be able to use Motorola Signature Style, which tailors images to the user’s preferences based on the subject.
There’s also Action Shot for fast-moving objects and Super Zoom, which promises to deliver clear images with hybrid zoom.
Android 16 is running the show with HelloUX on top, and Motorola promises two OS upgrades and three years of security updates. And powering it all is the same Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 with 8GB of RAM, although Motorola has upgraded the memory with LPDDR5X.
Lastly, Motorola has increased the battery capacity to 5,200mAh while retaining the same thickness, and charging remains at a quick 68W wired and 15W wireless.
The Moto G Stylus 2026 will be available for $499 on April 16 with 128GB and 256GB variants, which is notably $100 more than its predecessor, but Motorola is throwing in some interesting goodies for anyone who buys the phone. The company says the 128GB option will be bundled with a four-pack of Moto Tags, while the 256GB model will come with a Moto Watch, Moto Tag, and Moto Buds Loop, which actually sounds pretty enticing.
Android Central’s take
I’ve reviewed pretty much every Stylus model over the past several years, and the last two models have been surprisingly great. Last year, I noted that “I can’t help but wonder if Motorola would be better off including an active stylus like an S Pen for potentially better usability.”
It looks like Motorola listened, and the company seems dedicated to active styluses, as evidenced by its announcement of the Moto Pen Ultra for the upcoming Razr Fold. And while I wish Motorola had upgraded the Moto G Stylus 2026’s chipset, the other upgrades look promising.
I’m excited to see whether this is really a cheap alternative to the Galaxy S26 Ultra and whether the new active pen and other changes are worth the extra $100.
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