A memory management bug is plaguing the second-generation Moto G smartphone from Motorola, making multitasking virtually impossible, according to user complaints.
The new Moto G handset released earlier this year sports notable improvements on all fronts compared to its predecessor, aiming to raise the bar when it comes to what mid-range smartphones can offer. The smartphone has received positive reviews overall and has enjoyed great success since its launch, but a memory management bug is marring the experience for many users.
More specifically, the Moto G (2014) seems incapable of multitasking, closing applications instead of running them in the background as it should. A growing thread on Motorola's Forums sees user complaints piling up in this regards, yet the company has offered no solution so far.
It's worth pointing out that this issue doesn't involve heavy-usage situations with 10+ apps open and running in the background. The Moto G reaches critical memory status even when only one or two apps are active, as soon as you switch to another task. This memory management bug affects the camera app, music streaming, major applications such as Facebook, WhatsApp, or Messenger, and even the SwiftKey keyboard app, among others. Streaming music, for instance, is nearly impossible for many users, as the application will not stay in the background.
"If I am playing music and I keep it in the background while I am for instance browsing internet, it will stop within 10 seconds. It happens with Spotify, Play Music, Ivoox, TuneIn, etc. I have the same issue while playing videos to my Chromecast using Plex, as the phone kills the app if I try to do something else than that," one user complains on Motorola's Forums.
"The only thing that works is to keep the app on the screen. I noticed that it is not a low RAM memory problem, is a management/bug/leak memory problem because I checked the problem using my Nexus 7 2012 (1 GB) and the problem does not exist. Neither exists in devices with 512 mb. This is a critical problem, so Motorola must fix it as soon as possible."
Motorola started rolling out the Android 5.0 Lollipop update to the second-generation Moto G last week, and many hoped the new firmware would fix this bug. As it turns out, nothing has changed in this regards and the Moto G is still plagued by a memory management bug.
The company is yet to address this issue or offer a fix. If you own a 2014 Moto G, drop by our comment section below and let us know if you face similar issues, or if you found a temporary solution.
