Lenovo-owned Motorola has launched several phones this year, hitting a range of price points. The Moto Z aims for the higher end of the market, the Moto G falls towards to lower end of the mid-range, while the latest Moto E continues to fulfill the budget sector.

How does the Moto E3 compare to last year's model though and do you get more for your £100 this time around?

We have put 2016's Moto E3 up against 2015's second generation of Moto E to see what the differences are and how much has changed.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Design

The Motorola Moto E3 takes its design cues from the Moto G4. It has a slim body that measures 8.6mm, a front-facing speaker at the bottom and the rear has a camera lens and LED flash housed in the same raised element.

The signature indented "M" is also present beneath the camera and flash array. The Moto E3 has a footprint of 143.8 x 71.6mm and hits the scales at 141g.

The Motorola Moto E second generation is a little bulkier than the latest model, measuring 12.3mm at its thickest point, but it is smaller at 129.9 x 66.8mm. It weighs 145g so it is slightly heavier than the new Moto E.

The rear features a larger camera lens, still centralised like the new Moto E, but there is no LED flash. The signature indented "M" sits in the same place, while the front has one speaker at the top, but not the bottom.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Display

The Motorola Moto E3 has a 5-inch display that is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3. It is an IPS LCD display and it has a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, which results in a pixel density of 294ppi.

The 2015 Moto E has a slightly smaller 4.5-inch display, which is the same size as the Moto G when it originally launched. It too is an IPS LCD screen and it is also protected by Gorilla Glass 3.

The resolution on the second generation of Moto E is 960 x 540 pixels, which results in a pixel density of 245ppi. That means the new Moto E does theoretically have a sharper display than its predecessor, but the difference is pretty minor because of the size increase and won't be noticeable to the human eye.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Cameras

The Moto E3 features an 8-megapixel rear camera, with an LED flash as we mentioned, coupled with a 5-megapixel front-facing camera. The rear will be capable of 720p video recording and it will offer features including burst mode, HDR and panorama. 

The second generation of Moto E has a 5-megapixel rear camera with an aperture of f/2.2. It doesn't offer a flash of any kind but the LTE model is also capable of 720p video recording. The front-facing camera on 2015's model of Moto E is VGA, which means the new model should offer significant improvements when it comes to selfies and video calling.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Hardware

The Motorola Moto E3 features a quad-core 1GHz MediaTek processor, along with 1GB of RAM, 8GB of internal storage, microSD expansion up to 32GB and a battery capacity of 2800mAh.

Last year's Moto E features a quad-core 1.2GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor and 1GB within the LTE model. It also comes with 8GB of internal storage and microSD support for storage expansion up to 32GB.

The 2015 Moto E has a battery capacity of 2390mAh so the new Moto E should last a little longer, although it does have a larger screen to power.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Software

The Moto E3 launches on Android 6.0 Marshmallow and features very little bloatware over the top, delivering an almost pure Android experience. It will no doubt see an update to Android Nougat shortly after the software launches officially towards the end of September.

The previous Moto E originally launched on Android Lollipop, but it has since been updated to Marshmallow. It too has very little bloatware meaning quick software updates. It isn't yet clear if it will be updated to Nougat though.

Motorola Moto E3 vs Moto E (2015): Conclusion

The Motorola Moto E3 sees some quite significant developments over the second generation. The design has improved, the display is larger and offers a higher resolution and the battery capacity has also increased.

The Moto E3 also sees some good developments in the camera department including the addition of a rear flash and an increase in resolution, the latter of which should be especially noticeable in the front-facing snapper.

You get quite a bit for your £100 with the Moto E3. For those choosing between the two devices being compared here, the new model is definitely the one to opt for. For those considering moving from last year's model to the Moto E3, there certainly appears to be plenty to warrant the upgrade.