2023 Razr real user reviews

[cbreze]

I'm really starting to get an itch for this device. We've all seen the You Tube reviewers doing their thing with the new Razrs but nothing beats a real user getting the device and giving us their impressions in a real use case scenario. I see some are already getting or about to get their new Razor. Maybe we can make this that thread where we can learn and ask questions about this new Razr from actual new owners. So new Razor owners, what do you like, or how do you like it? Any disappointments? Positives/Negatives? TIA everybody!

 

[darrinS]

i will start this off with some random thoughts. keep in mind i have only had this 1 day so far.

internal display: this is my 1st experience with a foldable although i've wanted one ever since samsung's first. i have never even seen one in real life. i was afraid my ocd would drive me crazy with the crease. but on the razr+ i don’t see it in normal use. i can feel it when i slide my finger over it, but can’t see it when i am using the phone or watching videos. also, i hate the feeling of old school plastic screen protectors. my prior phone was a Vivo x90 Pro and they also come with a factory installed screen protector. it is the old school type i used to buy and wet apply. a soft sticky type feel. the razr+ has a screen protector on it, i can see it around the selfie camera, but i can’t feel it. it must be some type of rigid material and it feels like glass. a+ on the internal screen.

external display: as every reviewer has said, the external display is SO useful. i can run all my apps (fastmail, beeper, maps, reddit, YouTube, spotify ...) on it just fine. its very comfortable to hold and use folded up. so many times i grab the phone, i have no need to open it.

software: i've had a few phones from different makers (vivo, sony, google, samsung) and i am really enjoying this first modern motorola experience. (years ago i had a motorola phone but i don’t think it had android, windows i think.) they have a sidebar option where you slide left from around the area of the volume button and it opens a small window with some frequently used apps or a option to see more. then when you tap on an app, it opens in a smaller window which can be expanded. but you can use the app in the smaller window on top of whatever else you're doing. ive used bitwarden and the play store like this and its great for multitasking. sony xperias have something similar but the app opens fullscreen. i like the moto take better. i also like the selection of wallpapers available. it might be only me, but i like setting up my phone with some nice wallpapers that i don’t have to install a 3rd party app for. moto offers some really nice "interactive" wallpapers that animate as you swipe from your pages. in contrast the vivo had some boring plain wallpapers.

those are my initial thoughts. i am really enjoying this phone. probably since its a different form factor, but i can’t remember ever being this excited about a phone. for sure its been a long time.

 

[cbreze]

Thanks for your comments. Makes me excited to get mine which I decided to order earlier today. The black was a no go, to boring and the blue was sold out currently so red it is. I think I will like the grippier backside of the red anyway since I’m planning on going case less at least for the time being.
Got to spend some time checking one out at the local BestBuy and decided hell yeah, why not. I’ve got a couple of other phones up on swappa so the cost will mostly be covered.
I think the number one reason for me getting it was the small size when folded. So tired of humongous phones. This is the best of both and with that small screen when closed it should work out well to do most things I need. There was another moto phone next to the razr in the store and I compared the open razr size to it side by side and it was nearly the same size! Now that non foldable was huge! July 7 is my delivery date, hoping it comes early. I’ll be posting my thoughts after that.

 

[AndroidFanboy8]

I'm really starting to get an itch for this device. We've all seen the You Tube reviewers doing their thing with the new Razrs but nothing beats a real user getting the device and giving us their impressions in a real use case scenario. I see some are already getting or about to get their new Razor. Maybe we can make this that thread where we can learn and ask questions about this new Razr from actual new owners. So new Razor owners, what do you like, or how do you like it? Any disappointments? Positives/Negatives? TIA everybody!

OMG the outer screen is ace. You can use it for any daily phone use case easily without needing to flip open phone. This device is a game changer and what I noticed 1st was how clean the UI is, compared to Samsung which loads lots of bloatware. Finally a fully functional outer screen. I'm coming from. Sam Galaxy Z Flip 4 and this device tops it. I'd get one!!!

 

[bkeaver]

I think the worst thing about this is battery. I wish it was a little bit better but other than that I have been really enjoying this for sure.

 

[jbjtkbw007]

I think the worst thing about this is battery. I wish it was a little bit better but other than that I have been really enjoying this for sure.

The more you use the outside screen, the less battery you will use. I've seen several mention this is the numerous reviews I've read or watched on YouTube. I've only had mine for a day, but using that outside display, I'm not noticing as much of a drain as when I have it open.

 

[bkeaver]

The more you use the outside screen, the less battery you will use. I've seen several mention this is the numerous reviews I've read or watched on YouTube. I've only had mine for a day, but using that outside display, I'm not noticing as much of a drain as when I have it open.

Yeah but really I'm not going to sit and browse and do most things on the front screen. To me the front screen is only useful for the quick things.

 

[jbjtkbw007]

Yeah but really I'm not going to sit and browse and do most things on the front screen. To me the front screen is only useful for the quick things.

This is true in most cases, but I'm finding that it's great for the quick social media check and time-wasting or messaging was really smooth on it when I was chatting with my kid this morning. You'd be surprised how much you can actually get done on the outside screen.

 

[AndroidFanboy8]

I think the worst thing about this is battery. I wish it was a little bit better but other than that I have been really enjoying this for sure.

I'm still about 25% at bedtime.....and that's with alot of inner and outer screen time!!!
Overall I've been using the outer screen like a mini display and really needed full screen a handful of times. The outer screen gives you alot of options and most apps were able to access on the outer screen,no issues yet.

 

[abkollin27]

I got my RAZR a week ago from AT&T. So - had to go with black. I was an Android user for years after Blackberry - but switched to Apple for three years back in 2020. So glad to be back with Android. I am really enjoying this new RAZR. I am finding the external screen to be very helpful and love carrying a phone that is so small. My only concern is how slippery the phone is. I have it in a case right now - which is okay. It does detract from the beauty of the phone. I also bought some grip tape and am considering using that and going case-less. Just something to keep my OCD going. Motorola did great with this new phone!

 

[abkollin27]

I got my RAZR a week ago from AT&T. So - had to go with black. I was an Android user for years after Blackberry - but switched to Apple for three years back in 2020. So glad to be back with Android. I am really enjoying this new RAZR. I am finding the external screen to be very helpful and love carrying a phone that is so small. My only concern is how slippery the phone is. I have it in a case right now - which is okay. It does detract from the beauty of the phone. I also bought some grip tape and am considering using that and going case-less. Just something to keep my OCD going. Motorola did great with this new phone!

Update - I purchased some grippy tape to put on the RAZR and try using it without a case. The case adds about 4mm of bulk and dust gets stuck in the edges of the external screen case. Now - I just have to not break the phone!

 

[darrinS]

Update - I purchased some grippy tape to put on the RAZR and try using it without a case. The case adds about 4mm of bulk and dust gets stuck in the edges of the external screen case. Now - I just have to not break the phone!

pics please

 

[AndroidFanboy8]

I switched from the ZFlip 4.
One the major positives I've noticed with the RAZR+ is how fast and zippy it is and both screens have amazing visual clarity when looking at YouTube or streaming.
And the UI is sooooo clean and very much like a pixel experience. I'm also using a fold 4 and always hi cups and clearly throttling is happening.

 

[abkollin27]

pics please

I purchased the Grip Kit on Amazon for $12.99.

 

[darrinS]

I purchased the Grip Kit on Amazon for $12.99.

thanks, looks good!

 

[cbreze]

My 3rd day review. OK, had the Razr 3 days now and thought I'd give my thoughts on it. The first day and a half I was having serious thoughts of thinking this was a mistake and I'd end up returning it. Reason being, #1 , I couldn't get the speech to text function to function. I rely on this feature a lot and it would be a huge downside if it doesn't work. 3rd reboot seemed to do the trick and it has been working flawlessly so YAY! But, outer screen still didn't give me any love for this issue, Then last night it just started to work right out of the blue. And does it ever work, so accurate, Apple ya listening! Probably not.
So now that this issue has been resolved the little screen has become fully much more functional, I like that.

At first I was having trouble opening the phone smoothly and was afraid of drops, I put a case on it and this helped, also the case helps with preventing phantom touches of the screen and causing havoc. A good reason for a case. I'm not a big flipologist type so I open with 2 hands, one holding the phone as the other one opens. When I get a call I have it set to open to accept the call and sometimes I accidentally brush the power button and decline the call, so need to work on that. Happens when I pull it out of a pocket also. I think this will get better as time goes by and won't be the issue it currently is. The case also makes this a little less of an issue as the buttons are a bit more recessed.

So I'm thinking this is a keeper. I have a couple of iPhones I was using and a pixel 7 I sold to help finance the Razr. Those types of phones, slabs were just getting a little boring. The Pixel 7 was just to damn big for me and the size was really starting to bug me. The iPhone 13 mini was the sweet spot for size but then the screen was sometimes a little to small to do certain things. The speech to text function and in fact all the text function on that phone were terrible, trying to correct a typo was a chore moving the cursor to where it needed to go was a pain. Talk typing made frequent mistakes that had to be corrected. Android has this problem licked and is miles ahead of apple in that regard. I also missed the android widgets functionality. So happy that I have a small phone now that has a big screen only when I want it. Win/Win for sure.
After more time with the Razr I'm sure I'll get better at it and stop hanging up on people. It does come with a little learning curve but nothing I can't handle.
And, battery life so far has been outstanding!!
I'll probably have more comments in the days ahead, Cheers!!

 

[Laura Knotek]

I purchased the Grip Kit on Amazon for $12.99.

LOL at the name. That's something cats and cows have in common.

 

[Mr. Lucky]

The phone is great but there is a lot of misinformation and omissions in many of the online videos. And since Motorola's strong suit does not seem to be documentation, you just have to experiment and try things for yourself. Case in point:

• I've seen it stated many times online that the outer cover is plastic. Perhaps that's true for the red variant that covered in the faux leather, but the black and the blue models use a version of Gorilla Glass.
• Many videos state that the ability to resize the outer screen depends on using gesture navigation and pressing the bar visible at the bottom of the screen. I'm a motorcycle rider so never use gesture navigation, to prevent things happening accidentally. I found that you can do the same thing with 3-button navigation, just press the square 'recent apps' button and then select screen size. You can also set the default view on a per-app basis within Settings.
• I've also seen videos stating that transitioning from internal to external screen necessitates tapping the Continue button on the outer screen. It's actually only necessary to do that if you have it configured that way - choices are "Don't transition", "Tap (Continue) to transition", and "Auto transition", again, on a per-app basis.

 

[cbreze]

Thumbs down for the lack of timely security updates. Just noticed mine is from May 1st. Almost 3 months behind in security updating. Is this typical of Moto? I thought they were trying to do better.

 

[rvbfan]

Yes, it is typical of Moto and many other manufacturers. And to be fair they are doing better. In the past you'd have been lucky to get one or two a year.