Verdict
The Razr 50 Ultra continues Motorola ’s impressive foldable journeying , feature the great and most useful blanket screen around , high - res cameras and a near - crease - less internal screen . It ’s still not perfect , of course , but it fall closer than any clamshell foldable we ’ve seen so far .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Motorola ’s top - end foldable for 2024 , the Razr 50 Ultra , is one of the finest examples of a clamshell foldable headphone I have go steady .
award , the Razr 50 Ultra may not lookthatdifferent from its predecessor but it makes melioration in central area like cover screen tech , functioning , tv camera capabilities and , crucially , AI , to make one of the more interesting foldables to hit the food market in recent months .
In fact , even compared tonewer foldableslike the lately announcedSamsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 , the Razr 50 Ultra stands out with its massive 4 - in cover screen and astonishingly high - atomic number 75 camera .
The motion is , then , is this the foldable that ’ll finally win over you to move from your veritable candybar phone ? That might just be the causa .
The Motorola Razr 50 Ultra come in at a nerveless £ 999 with 512 GB of storage as banner , and is uncommitted to buy in the UK right now . It ’s also available in the US for $ 999 under the slimly different name of Razr+ 2024 .
Design
The Motorola Razr 50 Ultra does n’t bet all that different from theRazr 40 Ultrafrom last year – but considering it was a pretty svelte , stylish foldaway with vibrant colours and a big masking screen , that ’s not a bad thing .
There are a few key differences on crack this year however ; the biggest of which is the cover screen . While the Razr 40 Ultra already had the big back blind on the market at 3.6 inches , the Razr 50 Ultra take it up to 4 inches , practically taking up the total cover of the phone – more on that experience in a bit .
And , like last year , the dual television camera are imbed within the cover covert for a rather futuristic tone . I have comment that the cameras protrude much farther than those of last yr ’s Razr 40 Ultra , but with an upgraded photographic camera apparatus , there ’s a good reason for that .
Continuing Motorola ’s partnership with color experts Pantone , the Razr 50 Ultra is uncommitted in four color including greenish , blue , peach copper ( Pantone ’s colour of the yr ) and a pinkish conclusion that ’s a skillful hat - tilt to the OG pink Razr that plunge 20 year ago . This is definitely a manner - focused smartphone , especially combined with AI - generated wallpaper that can pit your outfit and accessories that turn it into a footling handbag .
These all come with vegan leather rears , an upgrade over the frosted glass back from last year ’s Razr 40 Ultra , but interestingly , the texture depend on the colour option . The blue finish , for exercise , has a elusive slipstream - airstrip design on the vegan leather with two slightly differ textures , while the dark-green finish has a more unvarying expect and feel to it .
Elsewhere , it ’s middling much business as usual – and business , where Motorola ’s foldables are pertain , is good . It sports rounded edge and corners that outfit nicely into the decoration of the script disregardless of whether it ’s undetermined or shut , complete with a power release that doubles as a fingermark scanner and loudness cradle on the right - paw side , and it close up all close when folded .
The Razr 50 Ultra might be 0.1 mm thicker than its predecessor at 7.1 millimeter thick , but that ’s not really that noticeable in everyday use – even when I contain the two side - by - side . The Razr 50 Ultra remains a slim folding with a large internal screen that close down to something that I can easily check in the palm of my paw .
Other improvements come in the sort of Gorilla Glass Victus blind protection on the cover sieve and fullIPX8water electric resistance that ’ll protect it from water damage in up to 1.5 one thousand of H2O for up to 30 minutes , play off the criterion set by Samsung ’s foldables . It even shoot a line tech that ’ll let you apply the phone as normal even when rain droplets are make the screen .
That ’s a welcome summation to the Razr 50 Ultra then , although carry out a higher water system resistance evaluation has meant that junk - proofing has fallen by the wayside . However , Motorola has assure me that , even without an official rating , the fellowship has worked to minimize the area – peculiarly around the hinge – that can let junk in .
Screens
Let ’s start with the cover screen , arguably the most interesting aspect of this year ’s folding , measure in at a boosted 4 inches compared to its 3.6 - inch predecessor . This may not sound like a bighearted startle on paper , but it ’s enormously unlike in real animation .
While the Razr 40 Ultra – and the newerRazr 50 – have a belittled break above the cover , there ’s no such col on the Razr 50 Ultra . The cover blind takes up the entire exterior board , with fairly slender bezels around its bound .
The boastful screen not only pee-pee it easier to take notifications and bask the Motorola - design blanket screen widgets , but it also makes it even easier to practice full Android apps without blossom out the phone . It was already a unattackable tip of the Razr 40 Ultra compared to the likes of the rather limitedZ Flip 5 , and it ’s continuing to get better with the 50 Ultra this twelvemonth .
It means that I can use apps like Google Maps to get direction without having to forever blossom forth the phone , and with it being small enough to fit into the palm tree of my hand when folded , I do n’t mind using it out and about in a urban center where phone snatching is prevailing .
It ’s also aid by the radical - placid 120Hz refresh charge per unit . Admittedly this is n’t a new feature , also available on last year ’s Razr , but it still beat the Galaxy Z Flip 6 ’s 3.4 - inch 60Hz cover screen – and it boasts more advanced app functionality too .
The hinge has also been reworked , get it not only easier to open and close down the earphone one - handed , but further trim the crimp on the inner 6.9 - inch cover . Motorola had already done a stellar line of work with the Razr 40 Ultra , and the 50 Ultra continues that journey .
Of course , there ’s still a bend on the inside screen and you ’ll probably notice it in particularly bright environments , but in most scenarios , I ’d say it ’s skinny to near - inconspicuous . Even when you hook over it with your digit , it feel like more of a fragile extrusion than a canon .
Speaking of , the internal screen is n’t one to sleep on ; it ’s a whopping 6.9 - inch pOLED cover with a 165Hz refresh charge per unit and 3000 nit eyeshade brightness that should make it easy to use in outdoor condition . The latter is particularly important for outdoor employment , as the plastic build of the internal screen make it more reflective than your modal candybar smartphone in hopeful environments .
Elsewhere , the combination of organic light-emitting diode ’s intense colour and deep Joseph Black and HDR10 + backing make the interior CRT screen a satisfying option for scrolling through TikTok , watch YouTube videos or even something a little more long - shape on Netflix . I mirthfully used it to check content on an eight - 60 minutes flight from New York without issue , anyway .
That ’s the nice thing about the foldable nature of the Razr 50 Ultra ; while a 6.9 - inch screen would be too big as a unconstipated candybar phone , the fact that it close up down into two to well slip into a pocket or base is a monolithic summation .
Cameras
Motorola has made a rather interesting decision when it come to the camera oblation of the Razr 50 Ultra – and it might not be what you expect .
While most smartphone company seem to prioritize including primary and ultrawide cameras on dual camera smartphones , Motorola has decided to ditch the 13MP ultrawide of last year ’s model for a high - res 50MP 2x telephoto that sits alongside the upgraded 50MP independent .
This think that the Razr 50 Ultra is much respectable at handling portrait picture taking , as well as general zoom snap , with reasonably impressive results even at the 4x mug thanks to its gamy - res nature .
The 2x zoom surrender a soaked angle well suited to portrait shots , and Motorola utilise AI to further better the bokeh effect for something a lilliputian more natural . It ’s still not sodding , missing the episodic voicelessness of hair and sometimes badly judge distance , but I ’ve been felicitous with the results more often than not .
In fact , even in reasonably low - light events like the Razr launch party in a New York warehouse , I was capable to take some pretty impressive photos of Paris Hilton spin the deck at the 2x mark .
Now you wo n’t be capable to advertise it much further in humiliated light without everything looking a piffling bit like an oil painting , lacking detail in areas , but it ’s moderately self-colored for a foldaway telephoto .
There is a trade - off for this lens , however ; you wo n’t be able-bodied to take those cool extremist - wide scenic shooting that have become so pop in late years with the spate borrowing of ultrawide crystalline lens . For that , you ’ll have to opt for the regular Razr 50 .
Of of course , it ’s the main television camera that most people will use most often , which pass water the inclusion of a boosted 50MP main ( up from 12MP on the previous - gen machine ) with specs like a wide f/1.7 aperture and OIS a welcome upgrade to the Razr experience .
As you ’d await from a gamey - end Motorola in 2024 , daytime guesswork are vibrant and detailed , and , with the f/1.7 aperture , close - ups get a natural bokeh without the need for software processing , though it can contend a bit with specially bright , pictorial scenes like a mystifying orange New York sunset , looking significantly more violent than orangish on the Razr .
You ’ve also got two shooting modes to choose from – natural and enhanced – with the latter hike factor like light and tweaking the coloration to get , what the AI assumes , is the best look for your photo . They ’re certainly more vivacious than the more naturalistic natural mode result , but I reckon the boosted light and other tools that the enhanced mode uses make it the go - to for most .
That ’s especially helpful when take night photos , although the Razr 50 Ultra ’s compounding of a wide aperture and OIS means it ’s perfectly capable of take jolly mellow - quality humble - light slam without it . While some competitors adjudicate to artificially lighten up the image , the Razr 50 Ultra tend to enamor something more truthful - to - life , with a courteous symmetricalness between the light and sour touch .
Of course , with clamshell foldables like this , it ’s notjustthe camera hardware ; it ’s the ways that you could use the camera engineering . The big 4 - inch cover screen doubles up as a finder , countenance you to take in high spirits - quality selfies using the ‘ rearward ’ cameras , and it can be used as a trailer when taking gibe of other people , helping them to pose and find more natural .
There ’s also the fact that you no longer need a tripod to take group shots ; just half - fold up the earpiece , hold out your palm to spark off the trigger and posture . The camcorder mode , trigger off automatically when you half - fold the earphone and apply it sideway like an one-time - schoolhouse 90s camcorder , is a nice touch too .
Finally , there ’s an advance 32MP camera on the foldable screen within . With the power to take selfies using the cover display and the high - re cameras , you in all likelihood wo n’t be using it often , but it is a handy upgrade for video calls and the like , and convey a amazingly good selfie for what I imagine was regard a bit of an afterthought .
Performance
Within the Razr 50 Ultra , you ’ll find Qualcomm ’s latestSnapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipsetalongside 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of UFS 4.0 store as standard . While it ’s not quite as performant as the truly top - endSnapdragon 8 Gen 3 , with performance closer to theSnapdragon 8 Gen 2 , it ’s notthatfar behind either .
Crucially , it ’s a massive upgrade from theSnapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1found in the Razr 40 Ultra – a chipset that was already ‘ old ’ by the clock time it was launched last twelvemonth . This path , Motorola closes the gap between it and the vie Galaxy Z Flip 6 , though , with Samsung ’s foldaway frisk a custom top - end Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 , it still lags behind .
That ’s passably much backed up by our bench mark tests , with the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 deliver results nigher to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 - enabledOnePlus Openthan Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 - equipped devices , specially when it comes to graphics performance .
This might paint a bit of a negative picture of the Razr 50 Ultra ’s functioning , but it should n’t ; the Razr 50 Ultra feels about as slick as you ’d have a bun in the oven from a phone with a high - end processor .
It feels antiphonal , apps exposed instantly and camera processing is pretty quick , and even without the 8 Gen 3 chipset , it can wreak call for 3D game like Genshin Impact with high - level configurations enabled – it just wo n’t be theverybest operation you ’ll find on a foldable in 2024 .
Elsewhere , flagship - tier connectivity including Wi - Fi 7 , Bluetooth 5.4 , support for a whole retinue of GPS networks and NFC , you ’ll be downloading and streaming to your centre ’s content .
Software and AI
Motorola has gone all - in on AI with the Razr 50 Ultra . It offers AI - powered features like the Photo Enhancement Engine , text - based image propagation in the class of Magic Canvas and improved low - brightness photography , but goes further than that .
you could , for example , use GenAI to create a wallpaper that compliment your outfit , and it ’s the first telephone set to runGoogle Geminiout of the box rather than Google Assistant . It has also been fully optimised by Google to run on that 4 - column inch cover video display too , something you ca n’t do on the Z Flip 6 .
regrettably , the truly exciting AI features are n’t amount until later this yr – sometime in the fall – but it ’ll seemingly be deserving the wait .
Moto AI seems to be one of the more fully featured implementations of AI so far . While Motorola has n’t amply revealed its capabilities , it has teased that you ’ll be able to tell it to ‘ pay attention ’ when chatting with admirer to record and summarise your conversations , as well as remind you of anything seasonable from the chat at the relevant time .
It ’ll also be able to look through photos to get entropy , as well as summarise notifications and more .
It does n’t have some of the gimcrack features ofGalaxy AIand co , lacking elements like the ability to remove masses from images , but give that Google Photos ship with the phone and offer this functionality , I do n’t guess it ’s a dealbreaker .
Elsewhere , Motorola ’s execution of Android continues to be close to stock , with only minimal changes to the osmium – and where there are change , they ’re usually for the better . This include component like flicking your wrist to enter the photographic camera , Motorola ReadyFor sassy CRT screen tech and Windows compatibility , with full support for customisable elements like Material You .
The only click in the Razr 50 Ultra ’s software , then , is its recollective - condition backup . While competing foldables like the Galaxy Z Flip 6 bid a humongous seven years of OS upgrades , among the best in the smartphone market at enceinte , the Razr 50 Ultra will only get three OS acclivity and four age of security updates .
It ’s still enough to get you through most regular 24 - month declaration with new lineament and other update , but it does n’t feel quite enough for a telephone set that cost a grand in 2024 .
Battery Life
The Razr 50 Ultra pack a 4000mAh battery – oddly 200mAh small than the regular Razr 50 , though 200mAh more than the Razr 40 Ultra – that , when combined with the power efficiency of the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 , Motorola claim has no issues lasting all day .
I must admit , I was questioning about the claim , specially with a 6.9 - in 165Hz internal video display to power , but those were mostly unwarranted . Do n’t get me wrong , this is n’t a gadget that ’ll keep on going and go , but it made it to the end of the day without a top - up every day of my testing , including a few very meddling days in New York where I was using Google Maps and the photographic camera reasonably consistently .
I would n’t go as far as to key it as a multi - day equipment , commonly finishing the day with around 10 - 20 % in the armored combat vehicle . More specifically , I found that it ’d usually hit around 5 hours of screen - on time between the covert and internal CRT screen before it ’d get low and demand a top - up .
Thankfully , even with comparatively boring 40W debauched charging capability liken to candybar phone like theOnePlus 12and its 120W immobile charging , the little 4000mAh content mean it ’s still pretty rapid at topping up , gain 62 % in 30 minutes and a full charge in just under an hour .
There ’s also 15W wireless charging and , despite not officially endorse the Qi2 wireless charge criterion , the placement of magnets in the phone entail it actually sting to most MagSafe charging supplement without issue . That was a nice surprise , to say the least .
Rounding out the offering is 5W vacate wireless charging , allowing you to top up wireless earbuds and the like without a dedicated courser .
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
The Motorola Razr 50 Ultra check off most boxes for what a good flip phone should extend , from a utilitarian cover silver screen to great cameras and a close kris - less internal screen .
Sporting the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 instead of the full - fat Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 , there are more potent foldable telephone around – including the competingGalaxy Z Flip 6 .
Final Thoughts
Motorola has a winner on its hands with the Razr 50 Ultra ; it not only fixes the few complaint we had about its predecessor but it continue to improve in key areas like the cover screen experience and further reducing the inner display ’s crease – region where competitors like Samsung still need to ameliorate , even compare to its recently - revealedGalaxy Z Flip 6 .
The decision to chuck the ultrawide for a telephoto lens may be a controversial one , but I think it plays well into the selfie - first focus for clamshell foldables in universal . It helps that it performs very well both in well - ignite and low - light situations , with a digital 4x delivering solid effect thanks to the sensor ’s high megapixel count .
It ’s not the everlasting foldaway , lacking in the big businessman department compare to Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 - equipped alternatives , and the rather dissatisfactory three - yr OS ascent promise is underwhelming for such a premium smartphone . I also guess the lack of an ultrawide will plainly be too much for some , no matter of the value of its swap .
However , I think that there ’s still a lot of value to be had here – particularly when you consider that it ships with a supercharge 512 GB of storage as standard , and still manages to come in at a slightly gimcrack price than the aforementioned Z Flip 6 .
Trusted Score
How we test
We test every mobile telephone we reexamine thoroughly . We expend industry - standard tests to compare features properly and we use the earpiece as our main gimmick over the revaluation stop . We ’ll always tell you what we find and we never , ever , admit money to refresh a mathematical product .
FAQs
Yes , and a degenerate charger at that , meaning you may take advantage of the foldable ’s speedy charging from day one .
It has an IPX8 water ohmic resistance rating , which means it can survive being submerged in up to 1.5 m of pee for up to 30 minutes .
The Razr 50 Ultra will get three major atomic number 8 raise and four years of bi - monthly security patches .
Test Data
Full Specs
