Both the Motorola Moto X Style and the Gionee Elife E8 were announced just yesterday and fortunately or unfortunately, both happen to fall in a similar price bracket as well. The Gionee Elife E8 packs in plenty of horsepower with its MediaTek Helio X10, but the Motorola Moto X also has plenty going for it when it comes to both features and design.

Coming to the factor that brings them both together in this comparison, the Gionee Elife E8 is priced at Rs 35,000 while the Motorola Moto X Style is priced at Rs 30,000 (16 GB) and Rs 32,000 (32 GB).

However, going through their hardware specs, one can tell that there is plenty that sets them apart.

Construction: Winner: Moto X

The Gionee Elife E8 comes with what appears to be an all-metal design, that does mimic the older Elife E7 in a way. But it is just the frame that is made of metal, while the back cover is plastic . However what you get with that design is a slippery smartphone. Gionee does offer a removable back cover, but that again does not allow access to the battery so it makes little sense. Again that 6 inch display will not make holding this behemoth any easier.

The Moto X Style on the other hand is a bit smaller with its 5.7 inch display. The design is getting a bit old coming from the original Moto X, but has plenty of grip, and slims down towards the edges making it easier to hold. Surprisingly, Motorola also managed to squeeze in two speakers that deliver a great audio experience. Lets also not forget that the Moto X Style comes with a splash proof coating, so in case you happen to drop water on it, it will still work flawlessly.

Hardware and Performance: Winner: Elife E8

Both the Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 and the MediaTek Helio X-10 are performance high-end chipsets. While we have already witnessed the Snapdragon 808 in the LG G4, and the MediaTek Helio X-10 in the HTC One M9+, they both fall in the same bracket. But the Snapdragon 808 does heat up due to its fewer cores so you may want to look at the Gionee Elife E8 for a cooler smartphone.

Both smartphones come with 3 GB of RAM and even provide memory card slots for external storage. But what you get with the Elife E8 is a fingerprint reader, something that is soon becoming a standard amongst both mid-range, high end and premium devices. So if you are looking for a complete package in terms of hardware, the Gionee Elife E8 is a better choice. Oh and there is that FM Radio that is not present in the Moto X Style.

Camera: Winner Moto X Style

In the camera department, Gionee’s Elife E8 comes out on top with its 24 MP camera, but this time around Motorola has worked on its 21 MP unit and the quality does look pretty much in line with the flagships out there.

Again on the Moto X Style, you get a 5 MP front facing unit for selfies versus the 8 MP unit on the Elife E8. While the latter sounds better, Motorola comes out on top with its front-facing LED flash, that will make your selfies a lot better.

Software: Winner: Moto X Style

While smartphone processors have gotten more powerful and cooler, we must admit that software and customisations do matter. The LG G4 was a clear example how even the Snapdragon 808 was slowed down thanks to LG’s heavy customisations and skinning.

The Gionee Elife E8 comes with the company’s Amigo OS 3.1 with Android 5.1 Lollipop as the base. While the customisations are helpful in camera department, it will slow the smartphone down gradually thanks to its heavy skinning. On the other hand, fewer customisations means you barely get any options on the camera with the Moto X Style, but you do get a faster interface.

Custom skins also mean that the firmware update release cycle will be a lot slower. Motorola with its “barely there” customisations will indeed be the first of two to deliver Android 6.0 Marshmallow and for many, this matters.

Conclusion

All-in-all, our winner is the Moto X Style. It wins because it is a better overall package that includes a balance of great design and hand-picked hardware.

What the Moto X Style also has over the Gionee is value for money, with just the fingerprint reader missing. But for those who do care about the fingerprint reader being a must-have on their Android purchase, will clearly have to look at the Elife E8.

[Related: The Moto X Style Vs The OnePlus 2; Which One’s Better?]

[Also Read: Top 10 Flagship Smartphones Coming To India This Festive Season]

Tags : Motorola Moto X Style, Gionee Elife E8