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  Motorola Razr 40 Ultra

  The Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) offers some promising specifications, a refreshed design and a lovely big cover display that makes for a really striking device. There's some good colour options too.

  £1049 on Motorola

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  Motorola Razr (2022)

  For its 2022 update, the Razr got some much-needed attention from Motorola. It addressed all the necessary elements, delivering a much more affordable phone with flagship power and a great display.

  See at Amazon

Motorola has announced not one, but two flip phones to its folding phone portfolio with a naming strategy that's, well, a little complicated. In the US, the flagship device is called the Motorola Razr+, with the cheaper Razr (2023) expected to launch in a couple of months. In the UK and Europe, the two devices nod to the company's Motorola Edge 40 Pro, with the main model called the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra and the lite model called the Motorola Razr 40.

The two devices follow the Motorola Razr (2022), which hasn't been around all that long, and they sit either side in terms of price. How do they compare though, which should you choose and if you're considering upgrading, should you?

For a full detailed comparison of how the Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and Razr 2023 (Razr 40) compare, we have you covered in a separate feature. Here though, we are comparing the Motorola Razr+ (40 Ultra) and the Razr 2023 (Razr 40) to the Motorola Razr (2022).

Price, availability, specs

The Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) will start at $999 in the US and £1049 in the UK. The device is available from 1 June across Europe and the UK, and you'll be able to buy it from a number of retail outlets. For those in the US, it will be available before the end of June.

The Motorola Razr (2023) 40 meanwhile, will be available in the coming weeks, though it will be cheaper, with a starting price of £799 in the UK. It's not expected to be getting a US launch till a few months later, so there's currently no US pricing for this model.

The Motorola Razr (2022) launched in August 2022 so as mentioned, it's not been on the market that long. It launched at £949 in the UK and around $1230 in the US so the new Razr models are positioned either side of the 2022 Razr in terms of price. It only comes in Satin Black as a colour option, while the Razr 2023 (Razr 40) comes in Sage Green, Vanilla Cream and Summer Lilac and the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) comes in Infinite Black, Glacier Blue and Viva Magenta.

You can see how the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra), Razr 2023 (Razr 40) and the Razr (2022) compare in the spec table below (swipe across for more), though we have gone into more details further down this feature to highlight their key differences.

• 	Motorola Razr 40 Ultra	Motorola Razr 40	Motorola Razr (2022)
  SoC	Sanpdragon 8+ Gen 1	Snapdragon 7 Gen 1	Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
  Display	6.9-inch inner, 3.6-inch outer	6.9-inch inner, 1.5-inch outer	6.7-inch inner,
  RAM	8GB / 12GB LPDDR5	8GB LPDDR4X	8GB / 12GB LPDDR5
  Storage	256GB / 512GB UFS 3.1	256GB UFS 2.2	128GB / 256GB / 512GB UFS 3.1
  Battery	3800 mAh	4200 mAh	3500mAh
  Operating System	Android 13	Android 13	Android 13
  Front camera	32MP	32MP	32MP
  Dimensions	73.9 x 170.8 x 6.9mm (open)	73.9 x 170.8 x 7.3mm (open)	167.0 x 79.8 x 7.6mm (open)
  Colors	Infinite Black, Glacier Blue, Viva Magenta	Sage Green, Summer Lilac, Vanilla Cream	Satin Black
  Weight	188.5g	188.6g	200g
  IP Rating	IP52	IP52	N/A

Design and build

There have been quite a few design changes from the Motorola Razr (2022) to the Motorola Razr+ (40 Ultra) and Razr 2023 (Razr 40), with the most notable seen in the cover display, especially in the case of the Razr+. While all three models retain the horizontal fold, delivering cute and pocketable formats when closed and long and slender devices while open, the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and Razr 2023 (Razr 40) offer a more seamless finish overall.

The same hinge is used across both the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and Razr 2023 (Razr 40), which has been redesigned from the 2022 model, so you get a similar look between the latest models compared to a boxier look on last year's model.

All three models have a dual camera lenses present on the outside, though where the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and Razr 2023 (Razr 40) incorporate the dual lenses within the outer displays, the Motorola Razr (2022) has the outer display separate. The Razr 2023 (Razr 40) offers a much neater design overall when shut compared to its predecessor, while the Razr+ is more striking with its lovely large outer display.

When open, all three Razr models feature a centralised punch hole camera at the top of their displays. The Razr+ and Razr 2023 are more premium in their finishes though, with flatter edges and reduced bezels, as well as an official IP52 water repellant coating.

Display

When it comes to displays, there are two on all three Razr models being compared here. The Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) has a 6.9-inch pOLED main display with a 2640 x 1080 pixel resolution that delivers a pixel density of 413ppi. It has a 22:9 aspect ratio, a peak brightness of 1400nits and a refresh rate of up to 165Hz. Its external display is 3.6-inches with a pixel resolution of 1066 x 1056 pixels and a pixel density of 413ppi. This is the largest external display on a flip phone, with only the Oppo N2 Flip coming close in terms of size. It looks great too, especially with incorporating the cameras.

The Motorola Razr 2023 (Razr 40) also has a 6.9-inch pOLED main display, which has the same resolution and aspect ratio as the flagship model. It does have a slightly lower refresh rate at 144Hz however. Its outer display is smaller too, at 1.5-inches with a 368 x 194 pixel resolution, offering a pixel density of 284ppi. There’s a 60Hz refresh rate on board and once again, the camera lenses are incorporated into the display housing.

The Motorola Razr 2022 has a 6.7-inch main display with an 81.3 per cent screen-to-body ratio. There’s a 2400 x 1080 pixel resolution that delivers a pixel density of 393ppi, and it offers a ratio of 20:9 aspect ratio. Its outer display is 2.7-inches with a 800 x 573 pixel resolution so it's a little larger than the Motorola Razr 2023 (Razr 40) but not as neat as it doesn't incorporate the cameras.

Hardware

Moving under the hood, the Motorola Raz+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and the Razr 2022 both run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 mobile platform. It's flagship hardware, though not the latest available after the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 launched in November 2022. It does mean though that you don't get a performance increase in terms of chipset with the Razr+ model too, so if you're considering upgrading, you'd be doing it for the design improvements rather than chipset enhancements. The Motorola Razr 2023 (Razr 40) takes a slight step down to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 1, though this is still a very capable platform.

The Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and the Motorola Razr 2022 both come with a choice of 8GB or 12GB of RAM, while the Motorola Razr 2023 (Razr 40) is only available in one variant that offers 8GB of RAM and 256G of storage. Storage options for the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) are 256GB and 512GB, while the Razr 2022 comes in 128GB, 256GB and 512GB options. None of the models offer microSD support.

On the battery front, the Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) has a 3800mAh battery with 33W fast charging and 5W wireless charging. The Motorola Razr 2023 (Razr 40) has a larger 4200mAh battery, and it too offers 33W fast charging and 5W wireless charging. The Motorola Razr 2022 has a 3500mAh battery and it delivers 30W fast charging but no wireless charging.

All three models have a side-mounted fingerprint sensors within their power buttons. They all have various software features too though the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) and the Razr 2023 (Razr 40) both have a feature called Flex View that allows for multiple angles, and there’s a Photo Booth mode too that snaps four photos three seconds apart and combines them in a collage. The Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) is also more capable in terms of the notifications and information it offers on its front screen.

Cameras

When it comes to the camera offering, all three Razr models being compared here have a dual main camera, along with a punch hole front camera. There are some differences in the resolutions offered by the lenses though, and it’s also important to remember that a higher resolution doesn’t immediately translate to better results.

With that in mind, the Motorola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) has a 12-megapixel main camera with f/1.5 aperture and 1.4µm pixels with OIS, alongside a 13-megapixel wide angle camera with an f/2.2 aperture, 1.12µm pixels and a 108-degree field of view.

The Razr 2023 (Razr 40) has a 64-megapixel main camera with f/1.7 aperture and 0.7µm pixels with OIS, along with a 13-megapixel ultra wide sand macro sensor with a 120-degree field of view, f/2.2 aperture and 1.12µm pixels.

The Razr (2022) meanwhile, has a 50-megapixel main camera with f/1.8 aperture and 1.0µm pixels with OIS. There’s a secondary 12-megapixel ultra wide sensor with f/2.2 aperture, 1.12µm pixels and a 120-degree field of view, which is the same as the Raxr 2023 but different to the Razr+.

On the main display, the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra), the Razr 2023 (Razr 40) and the Razr 2022 all have a 32-megapixel front camera with an f/2.4 aperture and 0.7µm pixels so no changes to the sensor here.

Conclusion

The main differences between the latest Motorola Razr models and the 2022 Razr is the design. The newer models definitely step the design up, delivering a more seamless finish, along with more exciting colour options and more premium result overall. The Morotola Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) offers a larger external display too that’s really rather striking and considerably more useful than flip phones have offered in the past.

The Razr 2023 (Razr 40) is a really decent price though for the specifications it offers. Its outer display isn't as big as the Razr+ (Razr 40 Ultra) but it has price on its side and there are still some excellent specifications powering this device.

The Motorola Razr 2022 isn’t likely to be the device we would recommend out of these three devices, unless it sees a big price drop, though if you're considering upgrading, you may be better waiting until next year. All three Razr's in this feature run the same hardware after all. If you're looking to take the Razr plunge though, the Razr+ would be our first choice based on the specs, though followed very closely by the Razr 2023 given its price point.