Motorola's new Razr telephones really feel like a push again into the massive leagues

Abstract

Motorola’s new Razr fashions present it is critical about main foldables, notably the Razr Extremely.
The Razr+ and Razr Extremely beat Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 6 in some areas — and will even maintain an edge in opposition to the Z Flip 7.
Motorola should still want to repair its worth proposition if it needs to be a dominant power within the foldable market.

This would possibly not imply a lot to you if the Lord of the Rings films got here out while you have been a toddler, however for a number of transient years, the Motorola Razr V3 was the best cellphone you might get. It is not that it was a lot better than different telephones on a sensible degree — this was, in spite of everything, an period when telephones have been nonetheless largely for calls and texts. No, it was all about type, for the reason that V3 was a trendy, ultra-thin

flip phone
fabricated from aluminum, at a time when many telephones have been nonetheless primarily plastic bricks. The V3 was so well-liked that I bear in mind seeing large banners for it hanging in my native movie show.

Everyone knows that since then, Motorola has turn out to be a secondary participant in shopper telephones, dwarfed by rivals that extra shortly embraced smartphone tech, above all Apple and

Samsung
. It has been staging a sluggish comeback with a sequence of Android-based Razr

foldables
, nonetheless, and its new

2025 models
appear meant to go toe-to-toe with the massive guys. The corporate might be poised to regain a few of its former glory, though that may most likely rely on what ships in 2026.

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It’d ache some individuals at Apple, however there’s strong logic to the concept.

The Razr-tipped spearhead

What’s totally different this time round

Motorola

With out delving too far into specs, the brand new Razr and Razr+ fashions are fairly strong. They each have 6.9-inch, 165Hz inner shows, which makes them nice to take a look at, and these are paired with 3.6- and 4-inch exterior screens, respectively. The telephones additionally share 50-megapixel foremost cameras and 32-megapixel entrance sensors. The MediaTek Dimensity 7400X processor within the base Razr is a knock in opposition to it, however in case you care extra about energy effectivity than 3D framerates, you need to be glad. Springing for a Razr+ will get you a Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip, 12GB of RAM, and a 50-megapixel telephoto digicam, amongst different upgrades.

I would give just a little extra consideration to the product that is not simply one other slab of steel and glass.

The place issues actually get fascinating is with the first-ever Razr Extremely. It is a cellphone that, on paper a minimum of, completely decimates Samsung’s well-liked Galaxy Z Flip 6. It has a state-of-the-art Snapdragon 8 Elite, as a substitute of the Flip’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (“for Galaxy,” excuse me). It additionally sports activities 16GB of RAM, one thing you may usually solely discover on laptops and gaming telephones, whereas the Flip is capped at 12GB. Relating to charging, the Extremely helps 30W wi-fi energy and 68W over USB, making the Flip’s 15W and 25W figures appear pathetic. Neither cellphone has a telephoto lens — an enormous miss, in my books — however the Extremely has 50-megapixel entrance and ultra-wide cameras, and the entrance shooter on the Flip is capped at a measly 10 megapixels. There’s much less of a niche with show tech, however a 7-inch 165Hz panel nonetheless beats a 6.7-inch 120Hz one.

Motorola

As if that weren’t sufficient, ornamental choices for the Extremely embrace wooden and Alacantara variations. Whereas Motorola and others have experimented with alternate supplies, it is uncommon for them to point out up on a flagship product, they usually might be a deciding issue for individuals who prioritize type. I do know that if I have been available in the market for a brand new cellphone in the mean time, I would give just a little extra consideration to the product that is not simply one other slab of steel and glass.

Motorola additional appears to be all-in on my concept of blending and matching totally different AI platforms for various functions. Other than its personal Moto AI, there are hooks for Google Gemini, Perplexity, Meta Llama, and even Microsoft Copilot. There’s nothing disappointing about Samsung’s integration of Gemini with its personal AI options, and I will need to see how properly all the things gels on Motorola’s facet, but it surely’s good that an organization is breaking out of the notion that one or two AI fashions ought to deal with all the things.

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It is about points like personalization, resilience, and privateness.

Making an enormous play

However the actual work lies forward

Motorola

Whereas I am undecided that the vanilla Razr and the Razr+ will transfer the needle a lot, the Extremely is clearly a shot throughout the bow, meant to place Motorola on the forefront of clamshell-style foldables, a minimum of till the inevitable

Z Flip 7
. Even then, although, rumors counsel that Samsung’s product may nonetheless have weaker display screen, RAM, storage, and digicam specs. That is sort of surprising — Samsung might be poised to cede some floor, a minimum of within the US.

The revolution is not right here simply but, nonetheless — the principle challenge is value. When it ships in Could, the Extremely will begin at $1,300 for a 512GB mannequin, about $80 greater than an equal Z Flip 6, and a full $200 greater than a 256GB Flip. The Extremely will appeal to individuals who need the most effective, but it surely’s most likely not going to be a mass-market success by advantage of concentrating on a richer demographic, in the midst of a US-instigated commerce battle no much less. To reclaim the throne, Motorola could must push down the Extremely’s value to make it an unbeatable deal.

The Extremely is clearly a shot throughout the bow, meant to place Motorola on the forefront of clamshell-style foldables.

Who is aware of, although — possibly the cheaper Razr fashions will catch on. The $1,000 Razr Plus additionally beats the Z Flip 6 in some respects, value amongst them, which ought to make it extra palatable outdoors the scope of foldable lovers. And whereas the bottom Razr has some weak factors, $800 remains to be cheap in case you insist on having one of many newest foldable units — that is as a lot as a non-folding iPhone 16. Personally, I would somewhat spend my cash on an iPhone, or possibly a Pixel, however not everybody cares about issues like processor specs or

IP ratings
.

Motorola’s prospects for hitting the massive time once more could hinge (no pun meant) on the teachings it learns this yr, and whether or not it may possibly leverage any modest success into one thing extra. It’s, in spite of everything, going up in opposition to a behemoth within the type of Samsung, and in case you take into account tablet-style foldables, there’s an ocean of competitors on the market, notably from Chinese language manufacturers like Oppo and Honor.

One factor Motorola might be contemplating itself fortunate for, a minimum of, is Apple’s hesitancy about becoming a member of the fray. Whereas the primary

folding iPhone
may ship in 2026, it is anticipated to be probably the most costly tablet-style foldables ever produced, probably costing upwards of $2,000. There is not any signal of a clamshell iPhone coming anytime quickly — so if Motorola performs its playing cards proper, it may set up itself as a power to beat lengthy earlier than the 800-pound gorilla enters the room.