Foldable smartphones have been gaining immense popularity over the past few years, whether in a compact clamshell foldable form or a bulkier phablet type.
Motorola unveiled its Razr 40 Ultra smartphone earlier this year, packing two screens and seamlessly blending the nostalgia of the iconic Moto Razr of yore with the cutting-edge technology of today.
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra features a sleek profile. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
Starting at a price of ₹89,999, the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra features a sleek profile, an improved cover screen that outshines its rivals, and a smooth interface.
We tested the phone for a fortnight to decipher its potential chances in the flooded smartphone market. And here are our findings.
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Design
The Razr 40 Ultra’s design is a departure from the “edgy” aesthetics of its predecessors. It embraces a rounded, thin form factor that feels just right, whether folded at 15.1mm or open at 6.99mm.
The phone measures 6.99mm in thickness when unfolded. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The phone’s compact design makes it extremely portable when folded. When opened, it transforms into a sleek device sporting a 6.9-inch screen which is larger than most smartphones today.
The sleekness is enhanced by the lack of a noticeable gap between the folded halves. Meticulous craftsmanship is revealed in the rear-facing cameras, which sit flush with the cover display’s glass surface. While the matte finish on the rear panel make the phone somewhat slippery, the glossy frame and hinge ensure a better grip.
The water-drop hinge reduces creasing on the folding display, but sadly prevents the device from completely folding flat.
The phone’s compact form factor makes it extremely portable when folded. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The power and volume buttons occupy the right side of the phone, while the left features the SIM-tray. This model does get speaker support, with one each on the top and bottom of the phone. The USB Type-C slot is located next to the downward facing speaker.
Display and speakers
The phone packs a 6.9-inch inner and a 3.6-inches cover screen. Both screens come protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. The inner screen is an FHD+ OLED panel with support for HDR 10+, 165Hz refresh rate, 360Hz touch sampling rate and 1400 nits’ peak brightness.
The screen displays high-levels of contrast with deep blacks and supports Widevine L1, allowing you to stream Full-HD content on Netflix and other platforms. The large screen combined with high refresh rates made web browsing and social media scrolling extremely pleasant. Watching content on Netflix, Hotstar and other locally stored videos was enriched by the excellent contrast, vivid colours and good saturation.
Users can opt between the Natural and Saturated colour profiles for the screen. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The screen is adequately bright and outdoor usage was convenient. Users can opt between the Natural and Saturated colour profiles for the screen; we stuck with the Saturated colour one.
Smartphone speakers often make or break a viewing experience; but Motorola stands it ground here. The device comes with a dual speaker setup with Dolby Atmos support; output is loud with decent separation.
The cover display on the Razr 40 Ultra is an absolute visual delight. It is larger than the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and offers much more functionality. From typing Whatsapp messages to watching YouTube videos, you can accomplish almost everything without needing to open the phone.
Gaming on the cover display feels reminiscent of a portable console from the early 2000s. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The external display is a 1:1 aspect ratio gem, measuring 3.6 inches diagonally. With a resolution of 1,066 x 1,056 pixels and a crisp 413ppi, it’s a visual treat. The adaptive refresh rate, ranging from 60Hz to 120Hz, ensures efficient power management. Motorola also ships the phone with in-built games for the cover screen, which work well.
Plus, gaming on the cover display feels reminiscent of a portable console from the early 2000s. Nostalgia strikes again.
Software
The phone ships with Android 13 with Motorola’s near stock UI that also offers extensive customization options. allowing you to select from various built-in fonts, wallpapers, and themes. The dual displays’ integration is seamless, with the outer display’s fluid operation setting it apart from competitors. In terms of software, Motorola excels with its near-stock Android experience.
The interface is refreshingly bloatware-free, with notable apps like Family Space, Moto, Moto Secure, and Moto Notifications. However, my time with the device was not bug-free; some apps, notably VPN apps and PhotoRoom did not run.
The Razr 40 Ultra’s design is a departure from the “edgy” aesthetics of its predecessors. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
Motorola’s MyUX enables users to view notifications and use full apps on the external display seamlessly. Further, per-app settings for transitioning between displays are a delightful touch.
Performance and connectivity
Under the hood, the Razr 40 Ultra packs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC with up to 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and up to 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage. While some may consider the processor slightly dated, it still delivers potent performance for daily tasks and gaming.
The phone was easily able to run Call Of Duty: Mobile at high settings. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The phone was easily able to run Call Of Duty: Mobile at high settings without any issues. While this isn’t unusual for smartphones, the Razr 40 Ultra does generate some heat during extended gaming sessions, particularly when settings are cranked up to ‘Very High’ graphics and frame rates.
Connectivity options are plentiful, including Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, and robust 5G support.
Battery
The phone is backed by a 3800mAh battery with support for 30W fast wired charging and 5W wireless charging. Considering its slim profile, the Razr 40 Ultra sees a commendable battery life.
The phone is backed by a 3800mAh battery. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The outer display’s usefulness reduces the need to open the phone frequently, contributing to its longevity. With casual usage, we could get a full day.
Camera
The phone packs two rear-facing cameras that can also be used to click selfies since they are embedded in the cover display.
The phone packs two rear-facing cameras that can also be used to click selfies. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The 12-megapixel primary camera with OIS and the 13-megapixel ultra-wide one deliver good results in daylight, albeit with slightly limited dynamic range. The primary sensor is noticeably superior to the ultra-wide sensor-- as expected.
We were blown away by the selfie performance of the two sensors on the cover screen. You get detailed images with commendable sharpness and pretty accurate skin tones. The pictures are a bit saturated but the results are noteworthy.
The camera hardware on the Razr 40 Ultra may not compare to other phones like the Samsung Flip and Fold series, but the larger viewfinder for framing shots (cover screen) and the seamless integration definitely gives it an edge in the selfie department.
Street-lit scenes exhibit good dynamic range. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
Low-light photography reveals the camera’s limitations but Night mode improves performance. Street-lit scenes exhibit good dynamic range but limited fine detail. Low-light ultra-wide shots suffer from focus issues and softer details.
Using Night mode can improve performance in low lighting conditions. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The phone’s portrait mode works decently. However, we did notice an exposure issue while shooting portraits in areas where there were multiple light sources with varying brightness.
During my time with the device, I encountered shutter lag, which is somewhat frustrating while trying to capture a candid moment or a fast-paced scene.
This shot was taken after dark using Night Mode. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
Video recording at 4K 30fps strikes a balance between detail and stabilization. The camera app, unfortunately, tends to heat up the device quickly, leading to sluggish performance.
Low-light ultra-wide shots suffer from focus issues and softer details. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
Selfies from the dedicated 32-megapixel front camera are sharp and well-exposed in most scenarios. However, we would recommend you to use the rear cameras(when unfolded) to click selfies using the cover screen as they offer the best-in class performance.
Verdict
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra features a sleek design, impressive displays, best-in class selfie shooters and smooth performance. While the inner OLED display delivers vibrant visuals and larger screen estate, the cover screen can be used to perform various tasks without needing to open the phone.
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra features a sleek design, impressive displays and efficient selfie shooters. | Photo Credit: Varun Krishan
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra is a compelling choice for those seeking an impressive feature set within a stylish, compact form factor that can transform into a larger device. This foldable smartphone firmly holds its ground in the competitive arena of foldable devices.
