Hello again Moto

Fifteen years after the original, Motorola, and their new owners Lenovo, are making a statement with an “impossible” feat of engineering.

The Motorola Razr V3 that launched back in the early 2000s was an innovative and stylish fashion accessory rather than a mobile phone. Celebrities flocked to own one, it came in black or pink and there was even a Dolce and Gabbana super expensive (at the time) edition.

In 2006, two years after it’s initial launch, the V3 was so successful that Motorola was selling nearly 25% of the world’s mobile phones, second only to Nokia who were undoubtedly the reigning kings of all things mobile in the old days. So what happened? The iPhone happened.

Motorola’s market share started slipping rapidly downwards and it just never stopped. It is now hovering at around 2%. So Motorola needed to do something iconic, something breathtaking, something completely different…In a world of rectangular smartphones, the new Razr has a foldable 6.2in screen with another smaller screen for notifications on the outer shell.

It is true that Samsung may have pipped them to the post with it’s Galaxy Fold but the big difference here is that the Razr has a “zero-gap hinge”. This design element will be the unique selling point for the Motorola device over the Samsung, plus of course that ‘retro Razr appeal’. The rush to be first to market with a foldable phone has also meant that the Samsung device has had a multitude of problems initially, which have since been sorted. Motorola have also promised to replace the screen free of charge within 24 hours while under warranty.

Incredibly they have also managed to keep the thickness of the phone close to the original which is vital as the delicately slim body of the V3 was definitely one of key reasons for it’s popularity. It also comes in at $1500 which is $500 less than the Samsung foldable device.

So what are the other differences between the old Razr and the new?

• Instead of the old keypad, the new Razr is now pimped with a single pliable OLED, or organic light emitting diode. This technology is considered to be the pinnacle of picture quality in the land of high end displays.
• Although it looks very similar to the original, hence capturing the retro buzz of the device, it has a fingerprint scanner on it’s bottom lip which the first Razr definitely did not have.
• It has two screens including a Quick View Display on the outside which can interact with the key apps that you need on the move such as Spotify as well as show notifications. The panel can also be used as a camera viewfinder for selfies, one of the main reasons to even own a smartphone in 2019 for many of us.
• The camera itself boasts a 16 megapixel shooter with a 5 megapixel ‘selfie’ front facing lens.
• The Quick View Finder is completely compatible with the OLED which means that you can jump from one to the other seamlessly.
• The flip itself is also different as the screen continues over the hinge. The Razr’s Flex View sits in a way that should prevent creasing too.

Motorola claims that the new Razr will run for up to 36 hours from a single charge which is a bold claim and will be loaded with Android 9 This is not the latest Google’s software so may be drawback for some, but it’s unlikely to be an issue for most people, given that it’s the design of the device that will mostly appeal

The new Motorola Razr will be available in the US and select European markets from December. It will be coming to the UK, exclusively on EE and you can register for launch updates from Direct Mobiles here.

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