The Motorola Razr 50 Ultra feels very familiar if you've ever used a modern flip phone like the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6. Its form factor, screen setup, and general usability are solid, but it doesn’t push any boundaries.
What stands out, however, are the brilliant displays and the versatile camera array, both of which advance the flip-phone category.
If you're looking for a reliable flip phone with high-end visuals and decent photography features, this one delivers—just don’t expect groundbreaking innovation.
Design
As mentioned, the design is very familiar. The Razr 50 Ultra folds vertically, and it has a cover screen you can use for various things, like reading messages and viewing social media. This means you don’t have to open the phone every time you get a notification.
It’s a great-looking device. With an aluminium frame and leather back, it looks premium and sleek. It comes in four colours: Midnight Blue, Spring Green, Peach Fuzz, and Hot Pink. This is a good range, and they all look good.
Like all flip devices, you can fold the Razr 50 Ultra into what Motorola calls “Flex View” and sit it on a surface like a laptop. It’s great for watching a video, filming yourself, and making video calls. The device will also adapt to what you’re doing; for example, if you’re watching YouTube, the video will be on the top screen, and the comments will be on the bottom. And, of course, you can close the lid fully to make it smaller and easy to fit in a bag or pocket.
The cover screen uses Gorilla Glass Victus, which adds a good level of protection from scratches and drops. The hinge is robust and strong. It snaps into place when opening and closing the device, and while the crease on the screen is still relatively visible, you’ll only notice it if you go looking for it. This is aided by the brightness of the screen (more on that below).
The on/off and volume up and down buttons are located on the right side of the device, and it utilises a USB-C port for charging. All pretty standard stuff.
Display
The Razr 50 Ultra’s displays are impressive. The specs here are significantly better than the competition.
The main screen is a 6.9-inch, 2640 x 1080 AMOLED display with a 165Hz refresh rate and a whopping 3,000 nits brightness. The cover screen is a 4-inch, 1272 x 1080 resolution screen with a 165Hz refresh rate and 2,400 nits max brightness.
Both screens are smooth, exceptionally bright, and look great. They’re compatible with what Motorola calls “Smart Refresh Rate,” in which the refresh rate changes depending on what you’re doing in an attempt to save battery life. This can range from 1Hz to 165Hz. If you’re playing games, the refresh rate will be higher, and if you're surfing the web, it will automatically drop down.
The touch capabilities for both screens are nice and responsive. I didn’t have any issues navigating the device using the cover screen for everything. It works well.
Cameras
The Razr 50 Ultra has a dual camera array on the back: a 50 MP, f/1.7 (wide), 24mm main camera and a 50 MP, f/2.0, 2x optical zoom telephoto lens. This is a good array for a flip phone, and you’ll be able to take great social media-worthy photos with it.
The highlight here is the 2x optical zoom. This will allow you to take better and clearer zoomed-in photos, and it's something the Galaxy Z Flip6 doesn't have.
The selfie camera is a 32 MP, f/2.4 lens. This allows for a great amount of detail for a selfie camera. However, the MP count isn’t always the be-all and end-all; while the Razr 50 Ultra produces more detailed images than the competition, it isn’t quite as good in low-light photography.
Both cameras support 4K video filming at 30 and 60 fps. The main camera also boasts optical image stabilisation, which helps to keep the camera steady when taking zoomed-in photos.
Performance
The Razr 50 Ultra uses the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor. On our Geekbench 6 CPU benchmarks, the device achieved a single-core score of 1666 and a multi-core score of 2545, which puts it in the mid-range category for performance.
During my time with the device I found it to be more than capable for everyday tasks like browsing, messaging, and light multitasking. It performed smoothly with no noticeable lag. However, when engaging in more resource-intensive activities, such as moderate gaming the performance began to taper off slightly.
We also tested the GPU capabilities using the 3D Mark Wildlife test. The Razr 50 Ultra maxed out the standard test, so we tried the extreme test, where it achieved a score of 3217 with an average FPS of 19.27.
This phone will perform reasonably well for casual to moderate gaming, handling 3D titles and visually intensive apps without significant issues. However, in demanding games with advanced graphics, users may notice some stuttering or reduced frame rates, which may affect the fluidity of gameplay.
Battery
The Razr 50 Ultra boasts a 4,000mAh battery, which is standard for a foldable phone. It was good for a day's moderate usage, like browsing and social media. However, with more intensive tasks like gaming or using the camera extensively, I needed to charge the phone more frequently. Of course, the battery life will vary depending on how you use it. The battery life will suffer if you have the brightness at 100% all day.
You can always get a bit more juice by setting the screen to a 60Hz max refresh rate and by turning on power saving mode, though.
The Razr 50 Ultra supports 45W fast wired charging, allowing you to get up to 70% in just 30 minutes and a full charge in about 45 minutes. It also supports 15W wireless charging and 5W reverse wired charging.
Verdict
The Motorola Razr 50 Ultra boasts the best display on a modern flip phone, providing a stunning visual experience and a su[er smooth 165Hz refresh rate. The camera is also decent, with its 2x optical zoom capabilities. However, its lack of innovation and average performance hold it back.
While it’s an excellent choice for users who want high-quality visuals and reliable functionality, it doesn't offer anything particularly new, making it more of an incremental improvement than a game-changer.
