Moto Razr first impressions: A retro phone reimagined

The Moto Razr is undoubtedly an iconic mobile phone from an era past. Over the last few years, there were multiple round of rumours promising the return of the phone. Well, Motorola finally put all those rumours to rest when they unveiled the all-new Moto Razr, with a vertically foldable display. So far, Only Samsung has a foldable smartphone that sells globally, with Huawei’s Mate X being limited to China only. The Moto Razr is set to be available soon, and we managed to spend some time with the phone at Lenovo’s booth at CES. Here’s what we walked away with.

Look and Feel

Perhaps the most iconic thing about the Razr was its flip mechanism. Motorola has retained that with the new Razr, but the phone is no longer “razr thin.” The new Razr is notably thicker than its predecessor, whether its closed or open. The reason for this is actually quite simple. Smartphones have a lot more inside them than older feature phones used to. Additionally, the hinge mechanism on the Razr would have also taken some clever engineering.

Handling the phone for some time, there are a number of things that quickly become apparent. First, the phone has a heavily textured back, which adds serious grip to the phone. You wouldn’t want an all-display phone slipping out of your hands and shattering now would you? Second notable takeaway from my brief time with the phone was that the top half of the outer shell holds onto fingerprints like nobody’s business. On there we also find the camera bump, which though noticeable, isn’t something that will aesthetically or ergonomically get in the way.

Using the Razr

Once you flip the phone open, you get a lush 6.2-inch display aligned vertically. You can use your thumb to flip the phone open without worrying about damaging the screen. Just don’t jam the tip of your nail into it though. What was notable about the display was the fact that unlike the Samsung Galaxy Fold, there is no visible crease on the Razr’s display. Yes, that’s even if you look at it from various angles.

When you’re dealing with such a tall display, reachability could be an issue. We were not able to check out how Motorola circumvents this issue, but what we do know is that the icons on the home screen were always arranged in the bottom half. The other exciting feature present on the Razr was the capacitive fingerprint sensor on the lower lip.

First Impressions

The Moto Razr doesn’t surprisingly feel heavy, but it does feel wider than its predecessor. More importantly, the phone feels extremely premium, without really taking anything away from the original design. Having another foldable phone come out is definitely a plus for this category of devices, but it isn’t without its problems. For starters, there are the questions around the durability of the plastic OLED panel. The other concern is with the user interface and how Motorola or even Google will eventually adapt Android to take into account these extended displays.  Regardless, the Razr was definitely a fun little device to experience and even though its not as thin as its predecessor, it is still a promising foldable phone.

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Swapnil Mathur

Swapnil was Digit's resident camera nerd, (un)official product photographer and the Reviews Editor. Swapnil has moved-on to newer challenges. For any communication related to his stories, please mail us using the email id given here. View Full Profile