Motorola’s 2024 Razr Plus is a damn fun flip phone with the same old flaws

It’s uncommon to consciousness delighted by a telephone successful 2024, but that’s nan Motorola Razr Plus, baby.

Sure, phones are astonishing small computers. For $999, which is what nan Razr Plus costs, they should be. But they’re mature products — devices alternatively than objects of delight — and for nan astir part, they’ve blended into nan inheritance sound of our lives. But nan Razr Plus is different, and not conscionable because it folds successful half.

I’ll springiness you an example: 1 of nan inheritance options for nan media controls connected nan screen surface is simply a turntable. When euphony is playing, nan grounds spins pinch 1 of nan camera cutouts astatine nan center. Press region and nan needle will assistance disconnected nan grounds and stop. Are you kidding me? That’s adorable. 

There’s truthful overmuch I for illustration astir nan Razr Plus that nan disappointments sting a small much than if this was conscionable immoderate aged slab-style phone. The screen surface is incredibly useful — moreover much truthful this twelvemonth pinch immoderate adjuvant UI improvements. It comes pinch an IPX8 rating, importantly upgrading its h2o resistance. And improvements to nan hinge this clip astir make nan crease each but vanish erstwhile you’re utilizing nan soul screen. Important stuff! But meaningful improvements and moments of delight don’t rather outweigh nan Razr Plus’ shortcomings successful nan agelong run.

If you’re caller to modern flip phones, fto maine springiness you nan elevator pitch: large telephone inside, mini telephone outside. With nan telephone flipped open, you person a normal smartphone pinch a large surface that does each nan emblematic stuff. But erstwhile you adjacent it, nan screen surface almost acts for illustration a 2nd telephone truthful you tin get basal things done for illustration cheque notifications and respond to texts without opening up your telephone and coming look to look pinch everything connected nan large screen. Personally, I emotion ‘em.

Motorola sells 2 versions of its modern return connected nan classical flip phone: nan Razr Plus and a much basal Razr. This year, some Razr models travel pinch bigger screen screens. The Razr Plus’ is simply a generous 4 inches connected nan diagonal versus past year’s 3.6-inch screen. It mightiness moreover beryllium astir nan aforesaid size arsenic nan surface connected your first iPhone, moreover though it feels compact compared to a modern telephone display. The bezel connected apical of nan surface (are we calling that a forehead?) is overmuch smaller than connected nan erstwhile generation. It almost makes past year’s exemplary look for illustration a prototype.

There are besides a batch much ways to customize nan screen surface this clip around. You tin prime a fistful of app shortcuts to put correct connected nan screen screen’s main page — previously, you had to swipe to a abstracted sheet earlier you could entree immoderate apps. The almanac sheet is overmuch improved, surfacing much accusation pinch a fewer much viewing configurations. 

Even nan travel for allowing apps to unfastened connected nan screen surface is better. On past year’s model, you had to unfastened nan telephone to o.k. an app for nan screen surface — conscionable erstwhile per app, but for each azygous app. Now, you tin o.k. and unfastened nan app correct from nan screen surface notification. You person 3 options actually: allow, not allow, aliases — my favourite — “not correct now,” which allows maine to conscionable slow backmost distant without making a committedness erstwhile I mindlessly pat connected a Threads notification. Not correct now, Satan.

Overall, nan screen surface acquisition is miles amended than nan erstwhile generation; much mature and little for illustration you’re testing beta software. I’d return this each clip complete nan Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5, and yes I cognize astir Good Lock. Motorola put a batch of thought into each facet of nan display, and it shows. Oh, and earlier we get to nan full different telephone attached to this phone, outcry retired to 2 different screen surface additions: Google Assistant (including Gemini!) and an always-on display. All of my dreams are coming true.

The screen surface is simply a delight, but nan soul surface is overmuch much pedestrian. It’s a 6.9-inch 1080p OLED, and while nan solution didn’t fuss maine overmuch successful my testing, this surface is large capable to use from a higher pixel count. It doesn’t get rather arsenic agleam arsenic I’d for illustration outside, either. It’s fine, but you tin decidedly get a amended show connected a slab-style telephone for nan aforesaid magnitude of money — aliases even a spot less.

The bully news is that Motorola adopted a caller hinge creation this twelvemonth that minimizes nan quality of nan crease erstwhile nan telephone is afloat unfolded. There’s besides nan upgraded IPX8 rating; there’s nary charismatic particulate resistance. The Razr Plus is certified to withstand afloat immersion successful caller water, a large betterment complete nan erstwhile gen’s “splashproof” rating. Importantly, an IPX8 standing besides puts nan Razr Plus connected level crushed pinch nan Galaxy Z Flip 5 (and, very likely, nan Z Flip 6, which is owed retired soon). 

The soft touch connected nan backmost sheet is simply a bully touch arsenic always, but nan basking pinkish exemplary I tested comes pinch a caller “vegan suede” material, and I don’t deliberation it’s a alteration for nan better. It feels much papery, and I don’t deliberation it’s going to deterioration good complete time; my reappraisal portion has a mates of faint scratches that don’t budge erstwhile I effort to buff them retired pinch my finger. Considering this isn’t some bougie case — it’s nan actual telephone — that seems beautiful bad. The different colors — peach fuzz, midnight blue, and outpouring greenish — travel pinch a vegan leather decorativeness for illustration last year’s pinkish model, and for what it’s worth, that seems to person held up fine.

The Razr Plus uses a Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 chipset, which occupies a benignant of upper-mid-tier, low-flagship abstraction successful Qualcomm’s progressively confusing lineup. In nan US, nan Razr Plus comes pinch 12GB of RAM and 256GB of retention — patient numbers. The operation is plentifulness for my day-to-day, and an extended Pocket City 2 session didn’t taxation it much. And I person zero complaints astir artillery life, which is simply a existent compliment for a flip telephone since they thin to travel pinch smaller batteries. The Razr Plus’ 4,000mAh compartment provided capable powerfulness to get done a time of dense usage and past some.

But I americium erstwhile again asking Motorola to activity connected its package support. The Razr Plus comes pinch 3 years of OS upgrades and 4 years of information updates. That’s fine; 4 years is astir apt arsenic agelong arsenic astir group will want to bent onto this phone. But Samsung and Google now committedness 7 years for their high-end phones — moreover nan $499 Pixel 8A comes pinch 7 years of support. I can’t thief but want much from a $999 phone. Motorola’s way grounds for timeliness isn’t great, either; 2023 Razr Plus owners only conscionable started getting their Android 14 update — not a bully look erstwhile Android 15 is conscionable a fewer months away.

Camera capacity has been different anemic area for Motorola successful nan past fewer years, and I’m sorry to opportunity that hasn’t changed successful nan Razr Plus.

Motorola seems for illustration it’s trying to reside nan rumor pinch a caller characteristic called photograph enhancement engine, which it says uses AI to amended sound simplification successful debased light, amended bokeh connected image mode photos, and boost move range. That conscionable sounds for illustration a database of everything telephone makers person been utilizing AI for complete nan past decade. Regardless, nan caller photograph processing pipeline hasn’t addressed immoderate halfway problems: image mode subjects are poorly isolated, inheritance blur isn’t convincing, and colour reproduction is uneven.

The strategy knows what to do pinch bright, abundant ray — I sewage immoderate awesome photos from nan acme of a hike. But mean ray continues to beryllium a challenge, pinch level over-brightened images and reds saturated to nan constituent of clipping. 

The Razr Plus trades past year’s ultrawide for a 2x telephoto lens, providing immoderate bully zoom options for portraits. There’s besides a 4x integer zoom for much reach, and value is decent arsenic agelong arsenic there’s plentifulness of light. Without nan ultrawide connected nan rear panel, you don’t person nan aforesaid opportunity for get-everyone-in-the-photo group selfies, but nan main camera is wide capable to get a mates of group successful nan shot.

So, here’s nan dilemma: I emotion utilizing nan Razr Plus, but I find it very difficult to recommend. The screen surface is simply a awesome portion of nan flip telephone experience, and everything astir it is amended this clip around. It’s easier to use, does much adjuvant things, and is overmuch much customizable. If you’re a flip telephone enthusiast for illustration me, it has each nan correct moves.

But I wouldn’t urge it to personification who’s much casually willing successful a flip telephone aliases finds nan nostalgic facet appealing. You tin get a overmuch amended camera successful a slab-style telephone that costs a batch less, and a bully camera matters erstwhile it’s nan 1 you transportation each day. Motorola’s way grounds for timely package updates remains spotty, too. And nan soul surface conscionable isn’t up to nan standards of a modern flagship phone. 

It’s worthy looking astatine nan modular 2024 Razr if $999 seems steep for nan Plus. Unlike past year, it comes pinch a large screen surface for illustration its sibling, and it’s besides IPX8-rated. I haven’t tested it yet, but $699 is awfully compelling for that group of features. In nan meantime, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 is conscionable astir nan corner. Motorola could study a point aliases 2 from Samsung’s package approach, pinch speedy updates and agelong support timeframes. Then again, Samsung could return a fewer cues from nan Razr Plus, excessively — it’s a delightful phone.

Photography by Allison Johnson / The Verge