RAZR Reviewed in Store

**shadrap** · 11-05-2011, 08:08 PM

Well I decided to pop in to my local Verizon and guess what they had the RAZR on display and activated. So I ran it through it paces and below is what I found.

Camera: The camera is unfortunately about the same as the Bionic. Maybe a touch better but not noticeably. It will pass but is not in the top tier. I sent the photos by text to my iPhone hence the second was a screenshot to show the package they are offering.

Build: I love the way it feels. You are really taken aback when you hold it the first time. It's slimmer and lighter than I imagined. Strength feels excellent. The only negative thing I saw was the Kevlar back is kinda easy to scratch.

Screen: The screen looks great. Dark and rich colors really pop. It is improved over the Bionic. If you look really really hard you can see the pentile. But most will not notice.

Other Stuff: OS is pretty much the same. Speedy with great reception. I did try out Smartcast. It is awesome and very customizable. You can pretty much set anything to start or stop based on triggers.

**wowpaw** · 11-05-2011, 08:36 PM

I don't have a Bionic so I'm wondering.. what do you mean the same? In what ways is it a negative? Pic quality?

**shadrap** · 11-05-2011, 09:15 PM

Just not up there with the best GS2, iPhone etc...

**the one and only M** · 11-05-2011, 09:28 PM

Its' real disappointing to hear that the Kevlar scratches easily.

**Eclipse2K** · 11-05-2011, 09:36 PM

The Kevlar scratches up easily? Are you kidding me right now? I was getting annoyed with the kickstand on my Thunderbolt scratching up and peeling. I take care of my electronics, this better not scratch just because I'm holding it or put it on a table.

**bkorver** · 11-05-2011, 10:09 PM

Maybe a case might not be a bad deal after all...

**shadrap** · 11-05-2011, 10:24 PM

I couldn't resist and put my fingernail into it. It will definitely scratch. Maybe I was being picky, but with regular use it will happen.

**SSHGuru** · 11-05-2011, 10:37 PM

It may scratch but it will stop a bullet...

How about the Nexus with it's all glass screen - no Gorilla Glass...

**carter17** · 11-05-2011, 11:25 PM

Last time I checked the screen on the rzar was not pentile or am I wrong... anyone? Also if u sent the pic via text they will be very compressed so this is no real indication of what the pics will look like

**n00basaurus** · 11-05-2011, 11:49 PM

I put my fingernail to it pretty hard and it seemed to hold up pretty good.. maybe I just didn't look close enough.

**xoomer1** · 11-05-2011, 11:52 PM

you obviously have not owned the bionic...I have the bionic and just gave it to my wife and took her X.....now I have an excuse to get the razr...The Bionic smokes the iphone

Originally Posted by Shadrap

Just not up there with the best GS2, iPhone etc...

**Eclipse2K** · 11-06-2011, 01:03 AM

Originally Posted by n00basaurus

I put my fingernail to it pretty hard and it seemed to hold up pretty good.. maybe I just didn't look close enough.

I hope so. I take care of my phone and when its in my pocket, I always have it in a pocket pouch to protect it. If it can withhold more than the Thunderbolt kickstand, ill be fine.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

**AeroEngi** · 11-06-2011, 02:03 AM

I'm not worried about the durability of the phone, what concerns me is the camera and the screen.

Sent from my Droid Incredible using Tapatalk.

**a250gpreguy** · 11-06-2011, 02:08 AM

Hey OP, thanks for sharing! Glad I held off the Bionic since this is coming out and I'm finally due an upgrade.
Ch

Sent from my NookColor using Tapatalk

**dhendriksen** · 11-06-2011, 08:11 AM

I'm heading to VZW today to return some accessories...hopefully they have it at my local VZW store.

Has anyone asked them to sell you one? Those guys are so in the dark it wouldn't surprise me one bit if they didn't realize it is not released for public consumption yet.

**shadrap** · 11-06-2011, 09:16 AM

I just want to clear up a little bit of the info. I went back to Verizon last night. I took photos with both the Bionic and the RAZR. The RAZR does have a faster shutter speed, no doubt. Not instant, but faster than the Bionic. The green box definitely locks on quicker. With that said. The resulting photos were not much different.

If you look at the photos I posted above, you will see what I mean. The lack of sharpness and the hazy look are common with both cameras.

Remember I am coming from an iPhone 4 and 4s. The RAZR is not in the same league and for that matter neither is the Nexus from the photos I have seen.

It is one of those things where you have to pick your poison. Below is how I believe the top 4 phones on Verizon stack up. If you hate iOs just drop the iPhone from the stack. Some of this is based on speculation and some is based on my experience. Again this is just my take and some is subjective.

Camera: iPhone 4s>Rezound>GN>RAZR
Durability: RAZR>GN>Rezound>iPhone 4s
Screen: Rezound>iPhone 4s>GN> RAZR
Feel/ Materials: RAZR>iPhone 4s>GN>Rezound
OS: GN>RAZR>Rezound>iPhone 4s
Battery Life: RAZR>iPhone 4s>GN>Rezound
Accessories: iPhone 4s>RAZR>Rezound>GN
Radio/ LTE: RAZR>Rezound>GN>iPhone 4s
Storage/ Cloud: iPhone 4s>RAZR>Rezound>GN
Processor/ GPU/ Speed: iPhone 4s>GN>RAZR>Rezound

It all boils down to what you want the phone to do and what you will be using it for.

Rooting/ Roming: GN
Media/ Music: iPhone 4s or Rezound
Work: RAZR

Will I still be getting the RAZR? Yes I probably will. The photos taken with the RAZR will pass for most things like Facebook or quick remember this shots.

The build quality is awesome and besides a back that will probably scratch. I have held nothing in my hand that feels this solid.

The screen is gorgeous and though it's not as great as Rezound, Nexus, or iPhone. The trade off will be worth the durability factor. I really don't think the average user will notice.

Battery life on the RAZR should be superior to the Nexus and Rezound. It is the same type of battery used in the iPhone and when you add in Smartcast. The device should have a battery life that tops any other LTE device.

Motocast/ Smartcast for me are a really big. My phone will be used for work, exercise, and media in that order. With these built in apps. You can really stream line what you want your phone to do. Could you do this with other apps? Yes, but Moto has streamlined it into the OS as well as anyone could have including Apple.

I buy phones like most people go to dinner. To be honest if the camera was better and the screen had a few more dpi. It would be as close to perfect as I have seen. Especially once the upgrade to ICS comes. Again all of this is subjective opinion and one persons thoughts. So take it with a grain of salt.

**RETG** · 11-06-2011, 10:39 AM

Very interesting.
Well, it ain't bullet proof and I would love to prove that to any donated phone, but Kevlar is five times stronger and more heat resistant than the comparable size material, so it will add strength to the back. I have also read it has an aluminum cage for strength (believe I also read stainless steel too, but aluminum makes more sense to keep weight off the phone). Along with the gorilla glass it should be a phone that takes some banging around even outside of a case.

I'll still wait a few months and hopefully ICS will be on the phone. Moto, in my opinion from having an X, does not have a good track record with handling OS upgrades.

But I really like the looks of this phone, and from personal experience, prefer a moto over most others due to the stronger radio function, which is a requirement where I live.

**giper54** · 11-06-2011, 11:42 AM

I played with one today and I did not like the display at all. I could see the pixels and it had a screen door effect for me. The thunder bolt's display looked much better and I was extremely surprised. I really wanted to like the razr I am hoping the rezound's screen is as good as the specs say it should be.

**THARD11** · 11-06-2011, 02:10 PM

Just got back from V store going through the Razr for a good while, most people there I had never even heard of the phone before, I am just not seeing the screen door effect. I am a pretty picky videophile and know what screen door looks like and I do not see it on this phone. The screen is very similar to the Samsung screens, very dark, smooth blacks. The Bionic was right next to the display unit and with both screens set to max brightness the Bionic was noticeably brighter. The phone is very fast very faint lag, nothing like my Fascinate. Camera takes pictures pretty fast although it seemed a little slow to start up after you touch the camera icon. Does anyone else find the black background with white letters strange on the phone? I guess I am just not used to that. May help some to pick up on the letters a little faster. The spread on the keyboard in portrait mode was very good not cramped at all. I guess the extra width the phone has helps with that. I think I am in for this phone on Friday.

**jroc** · 11-06-2011, 02:12 PM

Really? The TBolt screen looked not just better, but much better? Interesting....lol

**MarkyD311** · 11-06-2011, 05:04 PM

Same camera as the Bionic? Deal breaker.

I love everything else about this phone, but for me, an excellent camera in a phone that is supposed to last me 2 years is a "must."

**TvTechGuru** · 11-06-2011, 05:09 PM

Everyone has different perspectives and ways of describing things. I'm waiting to see it for myself in the store.

Plus the screen isn't Pen Tile, it's Super AMOLED Advanced. Is that first picture really from the RAZR? It looks too blurry and unfocused. I call BS on all this. Sorry, but it's like you're trashing the phone on purpose and making up stuff.

**mjforte** · 11-06-2011, 05:17 PM

Most of the gripes about the Bionic's camera are merely software related. It takes forever to focus, but if you've rooted and used the Cheesecake app to upgrade to newer firmware such as the 5.7.893 update, the camera lag is fixed. Or use an alternate app such as Camera Zoom FX to get better pictures. I think Motorola just has poor camera software, but the hardware is still good.

**mjforte** · 11-06-2011, 05:20 PM

Originally Posted by DM_Droid

Everyone has different perspectives and ways of describing things. I'm waiting to see it for myself in the store.

Plus the screen isn't Pen Tile, it's Super AMOLED Advanced. Is that first picture really from the RAZR? It looks too blurry and unfocused. I call BS on all this. Sorry, but it's like you're trashing the phone on purpose and making up stuff.

I believe the new screens that Motorola is using are still Pen Tile, just a different type of Pen Tile than on the Bionic. The RAZR is using a RGBG subpixel arrangement instead of the RGBW arrangement of the Bionic. There are some benefits to the Bionic's screen such as superior brightness though and I actually like the screen. People need to get off the term Pen Tile and just look at the screens for themselves. It's funny because the GS1 phones all had Pen Tile screens but nobody seemed to care then.

**balthuszar** · 11-06-2011, 05:53 PM

Originally Posted by carter17

Last time I checked the screen on the rzar was not pentile or am I wrong... anyone? Also if u sent the pic via text they will be very compressed so this is no real indication of what the pics will look like

the screen on the razr is qHD, but not pentile...so you're correct