Motorola Razr 2022 review

Introduction

After a bit of a hiatus, Motorola continues its efforts in the foldable clamshell niche. The Motorola Razr 2022 is the latest in the line and, undoubtedly, the most polished device to come out of it. It has been official for a good two months or so now and just recently received an international release as well. Although the clamshell form factor is alive and well, in a rather odd development, the Razr 2022 has departed from the iconic Razr design, arguably for the better.

The Razr 2022 no longer features the signature “chin” on the bottom. Instead, its display is much larger and extends all the way to the bottom and top bezels, now complete with a smaller punch hole for the selfie camera.

Not only is the Razr 2022 physically refined, but unlike its predecessor, the Razr 5G is now a proper flagship with internals to boot. It sports the top-dog Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset, a gorgeous 6.7-inch, 144Hz, HDR10+ display and stereo speakers, to name just a few highlights.

Motorola Razr 2022 specs at a glance:

• Body: 167.0×79.8×7.6mm, 200g; Plastic front (opened), glass front (closed, Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame (7000 series), hinge (stainless steel); Water-repellent coating (IP52).
• Display: 6.70″ Foldable AMOLED, 1B colors, 144Hz, HDR10+, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 393ppi; Second external AMOLED display, 2.7 inches, 60Hz refresh rate, 573 x 800 pixels.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8475 Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1×3.19 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.75 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.80 GHz Cortex-A510); Adreno 730.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• OS/Software: Android 12, MYUI 4.0.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 50 MP, f/1.8, 1/1.55″, 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.2, 120-degree, 1.12µm, AF.
• Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.4, (wide), 0.7µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 8K@30fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30/60fps.
• Battery: 3500mAh; Fast charging 30W.
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; stereo speakers.

Motorola is clearly pulling out all of the stops this time around to create a true flagship-level foldable in line to compete with devices like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 and the Huawei P50 Pocket. Motorola’s pricing for the Razr 2022 certainly matches this ambition, leaving us only with the question of whether the Razr 2022 lives up to expectations.

Before we get to any of that, we should take a quick look at the lavish retail box the Razr 2022 ships in.

Unboxing

The Razr 2022 ships in a large, stylish black box with raised lettering on the top and a magnetic lid. The latter is very “clicky” and satisfying to open and close, which is a great reference to the phone’s hinge.

The first thing you see in the box is the Razr 2022 unfolded and nestled inside a sturdy plastic tray. Inside the box, you also get a 30W TurboPower Type-C PD charger along with a Type-C to Type-C cable.

There is also a funky but functional, two-piece hard, transparent snap-on case for the phone.

And finishing off the list of items, we have a SIM ejector and some leaflets. Not the richest retail package around, but not bad either.