The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra: A Game Changer for Foldable Smartphones?
The Motorola Razr, a name synonymous with iconic design and innovation, has re-emerged in the world of foldable smartphones. While the original RAZR V3, a beloved device among many millennials, might not have anticipated the futuristic, sleek design of the Razr 40 Ultra, it’s a testament to the continuing evolution of foldable technology. After spending two weeks with Motorola’s latest and arguably most premium smartphone offering in India, I believe the Razr 40 Ultra stands out as a game changer – but for all the right reasons.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra Price in India
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra is priced at Rs. 89,999 in India. This price point brings it into direct competition with other premium foldable devices like Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 and Oppo Find N2 Flip. For this price, you get a device with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. The Razr 40 Ultra is available in two stylish finishes: Viva Magenta and Infinite Black. The review unit I received was the sleek Infinite Black option. Included in the box, alongside the phone, are a 33W charger, a transparent TPU hard case, and a USB Type-A to Type-C cable for charging.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra Design
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra boasts a sleek, rounded appearance, which exudes a sense of sophistication, whether it’s folded (15.1mm) or open (6.99mm). The fact that both halves of this foldable device sit flat against one another, with no gap between them, contributes to its overall slim appearance when folded, especially when compared to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, which is noticeably thicker.
Motorola has meticulously designed the two rear-facing cameras to sit flush with the cover display’s glass surface. This cover display is a sight to behold: made of Gorilla Glass Victus, it’s not just durable but also incredibly stylish. Motorola has flawlessly embedded the two cameras and the separate LED flash into the display, creating nearly perfect cutouts around each element. The 3D curved-edge glass screen, which wraps around the top edges of the metal frame, further enhances the Razr 40 Ultra’s polished and premium appearance.
A unique feature of this edge-to-edge cover display is that it allows for customization of the phone’s “skin,” so to speak. You can change the wallpaper to alter the look of the top half of the device. It’s interesting that Motorola chose not to incorporate an LTPO panel on the front display, as a constantly displayed wallpaper (like on an iPhone 14 Pro) would have permanently altered the look of the top half of the device. While the display does support an always-on feature, it’s only activated for a few seconds when you move the phone, before returning to its mirror-black appearance.
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra’s rear panel has a matte finish that’s quite slippery, which can make holding the device a challenge, especially when operating with one hand. Thankfully, the frame and hinge have a glossy finish, offering a slightly more secure grip. If you’re partial to a brighter color, I would recommend the Viva Magenta finish. It features a faux-leather textured back, making it easier to hold and operate.
The phone’s hinge is also a point of interest. While the new water-drop hinge minimizes the crease on the inner folding display, it doesn’t fold flat. This means there will always be a slightly concave appearance when the phone is open. Despite not folding completely flat, the hinge’s design makes it less noticeable than previous generations.
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra comes with an IP52 rating, making it one of the only foldables to offer dust protection. However, water protection is rather basic, which is a stark contrast to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4’s IPX8 rating that offers better protection against splashes of water, but no dust protection. Oppo’s Find N2 Flip, on the other hand, offers neither, at least officially.
The device’s fingerprint reader is cleverly embedded into the power button on the right side, offering a seamless and familiar way to unlock the phone.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra Specifications and Software
When it comes to core specifications, the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra emerges as a strong contender, even compared to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4, which previously set the benchmark for foldable devices in this segment. The Razr 40 Ultra is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC. This may seem a bit dated by today’s standards, but it still delivers ample power for gaming and daily app usage. The phone also has 8GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage, with no room for expandable memory. The inclusion of 256GB of storage (compared to the Galaxy Z Flip 4’s base model with 128GB of storage at the same price point) makes the Razr 40 Ultra a more attractive option for those who prioritize storage space. Oppo’s Find N2 Flip also offers the same 256GB of storage at the same price, but utilizes a MediaTek Dimensity 9000+ processor.
Communication standards include Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, and support for several 5G bands. The phone has a single physical nano-SIM card slot and also offers secondary e-SIM functionality. Both SIMs can be used in dual-standby mode. There’s a USB 2.0 Type-C port at the bottom. The phone is powered by a 3,800mAh battery and can be charged using the 30W charger included in the box.
Motorola’s software approach is renowned for its near-stock Android experience. The Razr 40 Ultra takes this experience to new heights with the addition of the second cover display. The software is built on Android 13, and offers extensive customization options. Users can choose from different built-in fonts, wallpapers, and matching themes. Even the icons can be customized, just like on a Pixel smartphone. Bloatware is minimal, with a few essential apps like Family Space, Moto, Moto Secure, and Moto Notifications.
Unlike other vertical folding smartphones available in India, Motorola’s MyUX allows users to view notifications and even run full apps on the external display. There are also per-app settings that control transitions from the external display to the internal one and vice versa. This feature is incredibly impressive and works seamlessly with a large majority of third-party apps.
This external display on the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra evokes a sense of nostalgia, reminiscent of the Nintendo Gameboy Advance or a Playdate while playing games. Motorola has included a collection of preinstalled mini games which are highly addictive and entertaining, cleverly designed to make the most of the external display. Even regular casual games like Subway Surfers can be played without any problems.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra Performance
Benchmark scores are consistent with expectations for a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1-powered device. The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra scored 9,76,130 points in AnTuTu, and 1,826 and 4,703 points in Geekbench’s single and multi-core tests, respectively.
Gaming performance was pleasantly surprising, especially for a foldable device. While the phone does get warm after five minutes of playing Call of Duty: Mobile at ‘Very High’ graphics and framerates (with all settings enabled), I didn’t notice any performance drops during gameplay.
One notable heat generator is the camera – using the camera app for only five minutes was enough to make the device uncomfortably hot. This heat, unfortunately, affects the camera app’s performance, resulting in sluggish image capture, and stutters in video recordings that would otherwise be smooth under optimal conditions.
The dual speaker setup delivers an immersive audio experience, whether gaming or watching movies. While I did find the left speaker slightly louder than the right speaker (when held horizontally), it did not impede the overall quality.
The main display on the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra is a pOLED panel with a full-HD+ resolution. It offers a 165Hz maximum refresh rate and a 360Hz touch sampling rate. The 22:9 aspect ratio main display, measuring 6.9 inches diagonally, provides ample room for viewing content and reading text. The display is bright enough for outdoor use, but the colors can appear somewhat jarring at the default ‘Saturated’ color setting. I found the ‘Natural’ setting to be closer to accurate and more appealing. The new hinge effectively minimizes the display crease, making it barely noticeable.
One detail I observed is that the display frequently drops to 1Hz, which is beneficial for battery life, but seemed to be capped at 120Hz for most use cases. The only way to force the display to its full 165Hz potential is in games, using Motorola’s Gametime tools. Motorola claims that the main display supports HDR content, but this was only supported in the YouTube app, with Netflix not recognizing this capability.
In terms of durability, the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra’s folding display doesn’t feel quite as resilient as Samsung’s ultra-thin glass on the Galaxy Z Flip 4, but it’s still sturdier than the Find N2 Flip, which has been reported as quite delicate. Despite frequent gaming and extensive use over two weeks, I only encountered one minor dent on the Razr 40 Ultra’s display, which was barely visible.
The external display has a 1:1 aspect ratio and measures 3.6 inches diagonally. It boasts an impressive resolution of 1,066 x 1,056 pixels with a crisp 413ppi, matching the internal display. This display offers a 144Hz refresh rate that dynamically adapts based on the content being viewed. I generally observed refresh rates ranging between 60Hz, 90Hz, and 120Hz, with the latter occurring primarily during high-end games like Call of Duty: Mobile. While the reflective nature of the outer display results in slightly duller visuals compared to the internal one, it’s still sufficiently bright for outdoor use.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra Camera
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra features two rear-facing cameras embedded within its cover display. These include a 12-megapixel primary camera with OIS and a 13-megapixel ultra-wide camera with a 108-degree field of view (FOV) that can also capture macro photos. Selfies are handled by a 32-megapixel camera embedded in the inner folding display. Both the front and rear camera systems are capable of recording video at 4K 60fps.
The dual displays enable a range of creative camera capabilities. The rear cameras, when folded, can be used to capture selfies in either a 1:1 square ratio or the traditional 4:3 ratio. The cover display can also be used as a viewfinder, and the external display can be propped up in tent mode for hands-free selfie capturing.
In daylight, images from the primary camera showcase good detail but with slightly limited dynamic range. This becomes apparent in the shadows and when the camera is pointed towards a light source. Despite these limitations, the camera’s HDR system handles darker areas better than brighter areas, which often show clipping in odd lighting scenarios. Overall, the images present a slightly contrasted look. Colors are also saturated, although some users may prefer this aesthetic. I also noticed minor purple fringing in brighter scenes.
In low light, photos using Night mode surprisingly deliver impressive results. I found using this mode superior to the primary camera’s Auto mode, as it produced better dynamic range while maintaining sharpness despite longer exposure times. In street-lit scenes, dynamic range is excellent, while finer details, such as grass and foliage, tend to be less prominent. Colors are also well-rendered compared to Auto mode photos. However, dimly-lit scenes exhibit visible noise in darker areas.
The ultra-wide-angle camera performs well in daylight, capturing photos with good sharpness, colors, and dynamic range. In fact, the ultra-wide camera consistently delivers more consistent colors, shot-to-shot, compared to the primary camera. Lens barrel distortion is well controlled, and details are also quite good. However, in low light, details suffer, and the camera struggles to focus even in street-lit situations, leading to softer or out-of-focus images. Tapping the screen to lock focus before shooting leads to improved results.
The ultra-wide-angle camera also functions as a macro camera, capturing impressive photos with good color and dynamic range, allowing you to get close to the subject.
Selfies appear sharp, clear, and well-exposed with accurate edge detection. However, nighttime selfies tell a different story, with mostly flat textures resembling a painting. I found using the primary camera for selfies resulted in better results in all lighting conditions.
Shooting videos at 4K 30fps is the optimal setting, delivering good detail and stabilization. However, the auto-exposure adjustment presents some issues, leading to a flickering appearance in the video. Recording at 4K 60fps produces a more contrasted video with less detail. The framerate also displayed fluctuations during recording. The Razr 40 Ultra can also record HDR10+ video at 4K 30fps, but this option lacks stabilization and results in choppy footage, among other issues.
Recording video in low light was not a positive experience. 4K 30fps footage appeared dark, contrasted, and noisy. Stabilization was also a challenge, and the same exposure-related issues observed in daylight footage were present. 4K 60fps footage appeared even darker and noisier but displayed a more stable framerate.
Verdict
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra is a phenomenal device, representing a strong contender in the competitive foldable smartphone market. Motorola has successfully innovated in a segment filled with cutting-edge technology, achieving this without resorting to gimmicks. The cover display is by far the best currently available in the market, though that could change quickly. The fluid display and software optimization contribute to one of the most practical user experiences in this segment. The device also boasts a capable set of cameras and offers a macro mode, adding to its versatility.
While the Razr 40 Ultra is not without its shortcomings, the most significant issue is the heating problem that arises when using the camera app. However, at Rs. 89,999, it’s difficult to find a foldable smartphone packed with so many features that delivers a sleek design and exceptional functionality at this price point. The new flagship Razr should attract many premium Android users seeking a fresh and innovative smartphone experience.