Razr foldable phone

[fjtorres]

Motorola announced new Razr.
Ships in january.

CNET has full coverage:

https://www.cnet.com/features/motoro...it-snaps-flat/

https://www.cnet.com/features/motoro...ldable-future/

https://www.cnet.com/news/motorola-p...new-franchise/

"As I fold the Motorola Razr in half for the first time, the most amazing thing happens: It softly snaps shut from top to bottom, one side laying flat on top of the other, without a visible gap between the two halves of the screen. With this simple act, Motorola has solved one of the biggest design conundrums that the Galaxy Fold and other foldable phones have yet to figure out. Over the course of the crisp fall day I spent at Motorola's Chicago headquarters, it becomes clear that the Razr -- with its foldable 6.2-inch screen, 16-megapixel double-duty camera and $1,500 price tag -- is the best designed, most completely thought-out foldable phone to date.

Streamlined. Utterly pocketable. Nostalgic, with a sharp futuristic edge.

If the $2,000 Samsung Galaxy Fold is the foldable phone for early adopters who want to show off their wealth and sophistication, the Motorola Razr could be a foldable phone best suited for the rest of us -- or at least for those of us comfortable with spending $1,500 on a phone. (For reference, the 512GB iPhone 11 Pro Max costs roughly the same price. It converts to about £1,170 or AU$2,200.)

Much more at the source.

Short version?
Unmistakably a phone, not a tablet.
Hinge is key; protects screen folding area yet folds flat.
Price is high but cheaper than other foldables.
Pocketable.

Give it a couple of years to come down in price and prove itself but it should fly.
Revenge of the flip phone.

[Quoth]

It's a Motorola badge on a Lenovo phone. That might mean it's better, I don't know.
Motorola is gone:
1) Semiconductors split to two companies.
2) Domestic Radios long gone.
3) Not sure who bought the two way radio business.
4) Infrastructure sold to Nokia (they only sold Phone liabilities to MS, kept all IP and name, phone badge licenced out. Nokia still does other stuff)
5) Phone division sold to Google / Alphabet, who kept IP and sold or licensed (not sure which) name for phones only to Lenovo.

So there is zero connection between this phone and older actually Motorola phones.

IMO two separate displays would be better, this is a likely fragile gimmick. The Samsung, OTH is an attempt at a tablet that folds into your pocket.

£1,500 is silly to spend on a phone, but then it's madness buying €1000 Apple phone that can ONLY use rechargeable wireless buds. The Apple ones are €250 in Ireland and can't be adjusted for your ear, nor have the battery replaced. You can get better sounding corded earbuds, with a mic, for €12. They have replaceable & interchangeable outers to suit your ear.

You can still get real flip phones for people that only want to text & call. Or a smartphone at 1/10th the price of this Motorola branded Lenovo.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_Mobility

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by FrustratedReader

It's a Motorola badge on a Lenovo phone.

Wrong, Lenovo owns Motorola but if you read the article you'll see the R&D was done in the US by at least some of the developers of the original Razr.
It's a true successor to the old phones.

The have facilities in California, the midwest, Japan, and elsewhere.
In that, Lenovo is a lot like Apple with R&D and design on tbe US and assembly elsewhere. A true multinational.

(The hinge, for example, is derived from the Yoga tablets, a Japanese design.)

Think about it, they paid billions to Google for Motorola mobility yet Google kept most of the patents so what were they buying? Not just the name, but also the people and corporate expertise. The same as with the IBM computer businesses they bought.

New owners, same company.

[Deskisamess]

That old Razr flip phone was such a good design. Larger buttons, thin but wide enough to easily handle one handed. My husband and I both really liked them. None of the other flips phones we had were nearly as good.

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Think about it, they paid billions to Google for Motorola mobility

Certainly they got more than MS got from Nokia. Nearly $11 Billion and at the end they got factories to close and developers to lay off, just liabilities.

[leebase]

Lenovo bought the Motorola phone company from Google, not merely licensing the name.

[Catlady]

I loved my old Razr phone, but this--I don't think so, even ignoring the outlandish price; I'm not pining for a flip phone anymore. Pretty cool, though.

[tomsem]

It’s good to see the folding concept is improving, for those who want such a thing. For me it doesn’t even rise to level of ‘nice to have’, but I can see it would have advantages for some people (screen is protected when it’s put into a pocket or purse with other objects).

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by FrustratedReader

Certainly they got more than MS got from Nokia. Nearly $11 Billion and at the end they got factories to close and developers to lay off, just liabilities.

Which one reason why Nadella ended up as the new CEO, to excellent results, so far.
(Just because you have money to burn doesn't mean you *like* burning it like that.)

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by tomsem

It’s good to see the folding concept is improving, for those who want such a thing. For me it doesn’t even rise to level of ‘nice to have’, but I can see it would have advantages for some people (screen is protected when it’s put into a pocket or purse with other objects).

Plus it is truly pocketable and needs no case.

In practice it isn't really a fliphone but rather a "soap bar" that folds.
That makes it as useful as any other android phone, but with the smaller better-protected screen when folded.

The price would have to come down by two thirds at least before I would consider buying one but since they really don't make 4in minis anymore, a folded 6" might be the next best thing for me.

I just hope my S3mini lasts long enough for that.

[tubemonkey]

Cool phone, outrageous price!

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

Cool phone, outrageous price!

Agreed. I actually like the concept a lot, but not enough to pay $1,500.

[Dopedangel]

It will sell well even at this price though well is relative. They won't sell few hundred million but I do expect them to sell 1-2 million at least which will be a few billion in sales. I think foldable phones will take another 2-3 years to start hitting the $500~ range. The samsung fold might have had problems but the few people that have bought it seem to love it so I think this will be more than just a fad.

[fjtorres]

Specs, we have specs:

Here are the specifications of the new Razr:

Operating System: Android Pie 9.0
Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 719
Memory: 6GB
Storage: 128GB
Display: Flex View 6.2-inch pOLED HD (2142 x 876) 21:9, Quick View 2.7-inch gOLED (600 x 800) 4:3
Battery: 2510 milliamp-hour
Size: 72 x 172 x 6.9 mm (open), 72 x 94 x 14 mm (closed)
Weight: 205g
Rear camera: 16-megapixel f/1.7, EIS, Dual Pixel AF, Laser AF
Front camera: 5-megapixel f/2.0
SIM Card: eSIM
Connectivity: 802.11ac, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC
Charge port: USB-C
Security: Fingerprint reader
Color: Noir Black

Courtesy of zdnet:

https://www.zdnet.com/article/motoro...96500774529668

The high price isn't just because of the screen.

More at the source, like:

On the outside of the clamshell phone is a 2.7-inch Interactive Quick View Display, which allows you to swipe through messages, control music, take selfies, and adjust settings. The original Razr had similar features when closed but on a much smaller display.

[Quoth]

eSim is nasty for travellers. Yet another Apple pain like notched screen, no earphone socket and reducing buttons.