Motorola Razr Extremely (2025) assessment: wanting sharp

The Motorola Razr Extremely is one thing particular, however it’s not fairly Extremely.

It’s beautiful. It’s a delight to make use of, and even after a number of generations of this revamped Razr flip format, checking bus arrival instances on the outer display screen nonetheless appears like getting away with one thing. This telephone is quite a lot of issues — however Extremely feels a bit too robust.

This can be a new addition to the Razr lineup, sitting atop the trio of flip telephones in options and worth, beginning at $1,299. You get a better decision internal display screen, Qualcomm’s strongest cell processor, double the space for storing, and an upgraded selfie cam. Oh, and a devoted button to summon Motorola’s AI options, however extra on that later.

Is it a reduce above the remainder of the Razr household? Positive. Is it a stunning telephone? Undoubtedly. It’s simply that Extremely is a loaded time period, particularly should you’re speaking about Android telephones. Samsung has set the tone for what makes a telephone extremely, which presently means quite a lot of cameras and principally each high-end spec you may consider. This Razr has loads of allure and a powerful checklist of specs, however it nonetheless highlights the hole between the easiest slab-style telephones and flip telephones — even Extremely ones.

Did I point out how good this telephone seems? I truly did a double tackle at the very least one event after I noticed it in my tote bag. My assessment unit’s aspect rails are a goldish, bronzy shade that emphasizes the nice and cozy tones of the wood again panel. It’s actual wooden, too, although a bit little bit of give after I press down on the middle suggests it’s a skinny layer on high of one thing else.

The 4-inch 1080p outer display screen covers nearly your entire entrance of the telephone. It’s responsive and easy, and Motorola’s cowl display screen software program stays my favourite method to work together with a flip telephone. You swipe between panes, together with a brand new display screen for widgets, and a well-recognized one devoted to apps you may allow to run on the small display screen. That is the place issues get attention-grabbing.

Opening Instagram on a tiny four-inch display screen sounds horrible, and it’s. That’s sort of the purpose. The display screen is sufficiently big to deal with checking notifications, typing a response, and taking fast actions in apps like beginning an exercise in Strava. For every thing else, you’ll need to use the internal display screen. It helps me reduce a few of my senseless scrolling after I have to open the telephone to examine an Instagram notification.

The internal show measures 7 inches with a 1224p decision — a hair greater and sharper than the 6.9-inch 1080p screens on the opposite two Razr fashions. It’s an excellent show. I preferred it far more as soon as I modified the colour setting to “pure” from its default “vivid,” which overdoes it with the reds, for my part. Outdoors, the display screen was just a bit dimmer than I’d like in vibrant circumstances; even when peak brightness mode kicks in, it’s not fairly sufficient to be snug to make use of in direct daylight.

Motorola says the brand new hinge is extra sturdy and reduces the crease when the display screen is open. I don’t often discover the crease on a foldable distracting, however this one virtually disappears once you unfold the telephone. The earlier hinge felt a bit floppy when you opened the telephone previous 90 levels; this one has higher resistance.

The Razr Extremely has an IP48 score, persevering with to supply full water-resistance like final 12 months’s fashions. This was reassuring after I watched my child drool instantly into the telephone’s hinge. The “4” score for particle resistance positive seems friendlier than the X of the earlier fashions, however that doesn’t imply it’s dust-resistant. The internals are protected from particles as small as one millimeter, greater than the grain of mud or sand that would wreak havoc on the telephone’s internal display screen. The Extremely has stood as much as loads of abuse to date, together with publicity to the dusty inside of my tote bag and manhandling by my toddler. Lengthy-term sturdiness stays much less sure than a slab-style telephone, although.

Motorola can also be debuting a set of AI options it’s been beta testing. “Catch Me Up” summarizes notifications from messaging apps, “Keep in mind This” recordsdata away screenshots, textual content, and pictures so you may ask about them later, and “Pay Consideration” begins a voice recording with automated transcription. The fast model of my expertise through the week I’ve been utilizing them? Meh.

I like “Keep in mind This” as a repository for screenshots of issues I’d in any other case go away open in a Chrome tab forever, however I didn’t discover it as helpful in a private assistant. I added screenshots of particulars for some upcoming flights, and it bought issues proper after I requested questions on them, like what time my flight was leaving. However it’s additionally a bit gradual to answer a question since a part of it runs within the cloud. Within the time it takes to search out the data, I might have simply opened the Delta app and checked myself.

I’m reserving some judgment as a result of these options are extra helpful the longer you reside with them, and Motorola’s method is sensible. Every part depends on you manually including data to the service — it requires a Motorola / Lenovo account — which avoids a number of the ickiness of an always-listening or watching AI system. It additionally means you want to habituate to saving screenshots and knowledge in a brand new location, and you’ll inevitably neglect to do this.

Motorola has made each effort to get you to have interaction with its AI. There’s a devoted AI key to launch two of those features with a protracted press or double press. You’ll be able to disable both, however you may’t assign non-AI features to this key, which sort of sucks. There’s a distinguished homescreen icon for the Moto AI app, a floating bubble, an choice to have the display screen get up once you have a look at it, and extra. Someway, it feels overwhelming and forgettable on the identical time. However I haven’t given up on it fairly but, I plan to maintain testing these options.

The entire above describes an excellent flip telephone, which I’ve come to anticipate from Motorola. However is it an Extremely? Another {hardware} specs assist make that case: a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, 16GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and a Gorilla Glass Ceramic layer on the outer display screen. There’s as much as 68W wired charging and as much as 30W wi-fi charging. Nothing to sneeze at.

The Razr Extremely behaves like a top-shelf Android telephone. It renders Pocket Metropolis 2’s 3D mode with no hiccup, and although it warms up with quick charging or prolonged gaming, I by no means noticed a drop in efficiency. Battery life is a vibrant spot too, particularly for a flip telephone that has to surrender a few of its internal actual property to the hinge. Even on a day the place I spent a while utilizing the Razr propped as much as stream a video of the Vatican on Pope Watch, tracked a 45-minute bike experience whereas streaming audio, and dialed into a gathering, I used to be solely all the way down to about 50 p.c by bedtime. That’s slab telephone battery efficiency from a flip telephone, an actual achievement.

It’s slated to obtain three OS upgrades and 4 years of safety updates. That’ll be sufficient for most individuals, however Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 6 provides seven years of OS and safety updates. It’s simpler to know the shorter software program longevity on a cheaper telephone, however on this $1,300 Extremely? That’s more durable to justify.

The story of utilizing a Motorola telephone digicam goes like this: you may take some very nice pictures with it, however you may’t be solely positive which of your pictures will end up properly and which is able to obtain some questionable processing. It does properly with flattering lighting, like indoors together with your topic subsequent to a giant window. It could possibly produce an honest portrait mode portrait. Different instances, pictures can look a bit overbrightened, oversaturated, or a mix of the 2. These items appear to occur extra usually in “meh” lighting — overcast and grey circumstances, or a dimly lit room.

This Razr has a 50-megapixel extensive digicam and a 50-megapixel ultrawide, with a 2x crop zoom possibility by way of the primary one. I ponder if a 50-megapixel selfie digicam is overkill, since you should use these on the outer panel with the entrance display screen for selfies. Possibly it’s there so that you’ll look further crisp in your Zoom conferences, or possibly it’s there to lend one other air of Extremely. Arduous to say.

There’s one thing intangible in regards to the Razr that’s arduous to clarify with out utilizing it for a short while. I don’t even absolutely perceive it myself. Why does it really feel so good hailing an Uber from the front-facing display screen as an alternative of opening the telephone? Why is it so satisfying to drag up my digital boarding go on the quilt display screen utilizing one hand whereas I’m wielding a espresso and a rolling suitcase with the opposite? Why does it really feel so triumphant to snap the telephone shut after firing off a zinger within the group chat? I don’t know, however it simply does.

For all of the flip telephone advantages, it comes with some acquainted flip telephone drawbacks. The internal display screen folds, positive, however it’s not as vibrant or sharp as these on the very best slab-style telephones. It’s moderately sturdy, however mud remains to be a priority. You get an ultrawide and respectable crop zoom to enhance the primary digicam, however another slab-style telephone at this worth comes with a devoted telephoto lens. There are fewer tradeoffs than on earlier flip telephones, however they nonetheless exist.

“Extremely” is within the eye of the beholder, actually. If a flip telephone with a stacked spec sheet and a stunning exterior end sounds Extremely sufficient, this Razr will delight you. It’s arduous to argue that case for anybody who’s extra casually desirous about a flip telephone, particularly contemplating the caliber of slab-style telephone you possibly can get for $1,300. However this telephone is very particular as an object, a instrument, and a factor of magnificence.

Pictures by Allison Johnson / The Verge