Motorola Razr 2023 : Moto’s new Flip Phone Review
The Motorola Razr family is embarking on a new chapter with its 2023 lineup, marking a significant departure from its predecessors. Moto has taken a fresh approach to design, resulting in a revamped version of its iconic foldable phone. With the premium model already on the market, we’ve had ample time to put the Motorola Razr Plus 2023 through its paces for our review.
It’s evident that Motorola has hit the mark with this iteration, as it stands out as the premier choice among flip phones and ranks among the top foldable devices available. The competition, notably the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, has been surpassed by Motorola’s offering, although Samsung is poised to retaliate with the upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 5.
Motorola Razr 2023 vs Razr Plus
Here’s a summary of the key points about the Motorola Razr 2023 and Razr Plus:
- Both models feature a large 6.9-inch foldable display with no visible gap between the halves.
- They are dust resistant and capable of withstanding splashes, although they are not waterproof like Samsung’s Galaxy Z foldable phones.
- The Razr Plus distinguishes itself with a larger cover display compared to the standard ticker screen on the base model Razr. However, the base model Razr boasts a larger battery and is expected to be more affordable.
- The Razr lineup introduces Motorola’s new vegan leather texture on the back of each phone. The Razr Plus, specifically, offers this texture in the exclusive Viva Magenta Pantone Color of the Year variant.
- The base model Razr’s construction includes glass, making it slightly heavier compared to the Razr Plus.
- The Motorola Razr Plus is already available, while the release date for the base model Razr remains uncertain.
- The price for the Razr Plus is $999.99 / £1,049.99 / AU$1,499.
Motorola Razr 2023 Design
The Motorola Razr 2023 introduces a significant redesign compared to its predecessor, the Motorola Razr (2022). Both the standard Motorola Razr 2023 and the premium Razr Plus 2023 feature the same chassis and display. The hinge mechanism and crease are identical in both models, resulting in a seamless closure with no visible screen gap. When closed, both phones are notably the thinnest flip phones available on the market.
Razr Plus Cover Design
The standout design feature of the Motorola Razr Plus is its expansive new cover display. Measuring at 3.6 inches square, this display dominates the phone’s face and extends around the camera lenses. Unlike a typical notification space, this cover display functions as a mini smartphone, offering access to apps, maps, games, and various widget options. Meanwhile, the more affordable Motorola Razr opts for a smaller external bar window. However, it compensates for this with other features, including the utilization of a premium vegan leather finish, previously exclusive to the Viva Magenta variant of the Razr Plus.
Motorola Razr 2023 Display
Both the Motorola Razr 2023 and the Motorola Razr Plus 2023 boast the same internal display. However, due to the Razr Plus’s more powerful chipset, its screen offers slightly enhanced capabilities. The internal display is a large 6.9-inch screen, surpassing the size of its flip phone counterparts. With a 22:9 aspect ratio and 2640 x 1080 pixels, the display provides crisp visuals. In the Razr Plus, the display can refresh up to 165Hz, while the base model Razr offers a refresh rate of up to 144Hz.
The use of LTPO technology allows the screen to dynamically adjust its refresh rate to conserve power when necessary. Moreover, it supports HDR10+ content, delivering vivid contrast and reaching a peak brightness of 1400 nits. Despite the minimal crease, which is more felt than seen, the teardrop hinge ensures a nearly flat fold with no discernible gap between the screen halves when viewed sideways.
Razr Plus Cover Display
A notable enhancement in the Razr Plus is its substantial new cover display. Boasting a 3.6-inch OLED panel with 1066 x 1056 pixels, this display represents a significant upgrade over previous models and many rival flip phones. With a refresh rate of up to 144Hz and support for HDR10+, the cover display offers impressive performance and functionality.
Motorola Raze 2023 Cover Display
The smaller Motorola Razr cover display features a 1.5-inch OLED panel with 194 x 368 pixels and a refresh rate of up to 60Hz. Both the larger and smaller OLED screens can emit 1000 nits at peak brightness.
Motorola Razr 2023 Camera
The premium Motorola Razr Plus distinguishes itself with a superior camera setup compared to the less expensive Motorola Razr, although the specifications might not immediately convey this difference. While the cheaper phone boasts a higher megapixel count on the sensor, the story goes beyond mere numbers.
Motorola Razr Plus Camera
The Motorola Razr Plus introduces a groundbreaking wide f/1.5 aperture lens, a first for flip phones. According to Motorola, this wider aperture allows up to 44% more light compared to the narrower f/1.8 aperture lens found on rival phones like the Galaxy Z Flip 4. In our review, we found the performance of the Motorola Razr Plus camera to be satisfactory for most photography tasks, offering unique angles and perspectives. Notably, the cover display can serve as a viewfinder for selfies, leveraging the primary camera for higher-quality shots.
The Razr Plus 2023 features a 12MP sensor with significantly larger pixels than the 64MP camera on the standard Motorola Razr 2023—four times larger, to be precise. This design enhances the sensor’s ability to capture photons in low-light conditions, potentially resulting in better low-light photos.
Both the Razr Plus and the Razr utilize a second 13MP camera for ultrawide shots and “macro” photography. While these features represent an improvement over previous Motorola attempts at simulating macro mode, the results are not exceptional. Additionally, the front-facing camera on both phones utilizes a 32MP sensor, combining pixels to produce an overall 8MP image through a technique called pixel binning. However, with the cover display serving as a viewfinder for the primary camera array, the need for the front-facing camera diminishes, particularly on the Moto Razr Plus.
Motorola leverages the folding design creatively in its camera functionality, offering various shooting modes that utilize the folded state as a tripod or a photo booth. Additionally, users can hold the phone sideways, with half the screen dedicated to video controls while the other half functions as a viewfinder, reminiscent of traditional camcorders.
Motorola Razr 2023 Battery Performance
Motorola assures users that the Razr is capable of sustaining all-day battery life. However, with the Razr Plus, particularly with frequent use of the external display upon closing the phone, users may need to exercise more caution to preserve battery longevity. In our assessment, heavy reliance on the external display noticeably accelerated battery depletion.
Despite advancements in other areas, charging speed remains unchanged, with both models supporting 30W charging, consistent with last year’s model. While this outpaces the charging capabilities of Samsung’s flip phones, it falls short of the rapid charging rates offered by competitors like OnePlus.
This year’s Moto Razr introduces wireless charging, albeit at a modest 5W rate. Compared to the swifter 15W charging prevalent in modern smartphones, the Razr’s wireless charging may seem sluggish.
Motorola Razr 2023 Specifications and Features
While the exterior undergoes a complete overhaul, the internal components of the new Motorola Razr Plus and Motorola Razr remain familiar to those who have followed smartphone developments over the past year. Both phones utilize mobile platforms introduced by Qualcomm in 2022.
The Razr Plus is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset, mirroring the configuration of the Galaxy Z Flip 4. Despite the emergence of newer flagship smartphones utilizing the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 platform, Motorola’s decision to employ last year’s top-tier platform likely serves as a cost-saving measure.
Motorola Razr 2023: Chipset and Performance
The base model Motorola Razr is equipped with the Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 chipset, commonly found in mid-range smartphones such as the Samsung Galaxy A74 and the OnePlus Nord series. While performance should meet typical user needs, the chipset’s capabilities limit the display refresh rate to 144Hz, unlike the Razr Plus, which can achieve up to 165Hz.
Pricing details for the base model Razr have not yet been released, but the use of a mid-range chipset suggests a considerable reduction in price compared to the premium Razr Plus model.
Memory and Storage
Both phones come with 8GB of RAM, but there are differences in memory technology and storage capacity. The Razr Plus boasts LPDDR5 memory, while the Razr uses LPDDR4X. Additionally, the Razr Plus offers a generous 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage, whereas the Razr provides 128GB of storage on the UFS 2.2 standard.
Connectivity
The Motorola Razr Plus features a cutting-edge Wi-Fi stack capable of supporting a wide range of bands and standards, including 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/k/v/r/ax, as well as Wi-Fi 6e. In contrast, the Razr offers fewer specialized Wi-Fi modes and supports 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax and Wi-Fi 6e.
Both phones utilize a USB Type-C port operating at USB 2.0 speeds. Users have the flexibility to choose between an eSIM or a physical SIM card for connectivity, depending on their carrier preferences.
Your articles are extremely helpful to me. May I ask for more information?
Your articles are extremely helpful to me. Please provide more information!
Thank you for writing this post. I like the subject too.
Thank you for your articles. They are very helpful to me. Can you help me with something?
Your articles are extremely helpful to me. Please provide more information!