Motorola Razr review

Stylish and well specced, but loses its sheen with music and movies Tested at £0

What Hi-Fi? Verdict

Stylish, impressively specified and simple to use, the Razr loses its sheen when it comes music and movies

Pros

  • +

    Slim and light

  • +

    big, vivid screen

  • +

    high-spec

Cons

  • -

    Audio and video performance is found wanting

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The original Motorola Razr is one of the best-selling phones of all time, and its clamshell handset was one of the first to make a style a priority.

It’s perhaps no wonder, then, that the Razr name is back for the smartphone era. Forget the clam, this is a 7mm-slim slice of state-of-the-art design.

Older Android OS, but it’s still speedy
Customised by Motorola, the Android 2.3 operating system (an older version) still feels fresh, fast and intuitive.

A 1.2GHz dual-core processor and 1GB of RAM ensure the Razr is competitive for spec-fans, while the 960 x 540-pixel, 4.3in screen looks big but feels comfortable (though the touch buttons can be a bit of a stretch).

Twin cameras include a serious 8MP, 1080p-video-shooting front-facing camera and there’s a handy mini HDMI output, too.

There’s 16GB of storage, but half is used by the OS. It’s a large imbalance, but there’s still more storage than many rivals offer. There is a microSD card slot, though.

Well integrated social media
Social media is heavily integrated and the Razr does it better than most, thanks to an intuitive way with scrolling.

The music app is neat too, bringing together your library, internet radio, podcasts and DLNA streaming.

Sonically it’s so-so, sadly. It’s not as detailed, clear or solid as rivals – bass lacks power, while vocals lack immediacy.

Switch to videos and, while colours are rich, dark scenes are too gloomy, darker shades lack detail and edges are a little soft.

The business of calling, emailing and browsing the web is handled well, but music and video performance are a little lacklustre for such a competitive market.

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What Hi-Fi?

What Hi-Fi?, founded in 1976, is the world's leading independent guide to buying and owning hi-fi and home entertainment products. Our comprehensive tests help you buy the very best for your money, with our advice sections giving you step-by-step information on how to get even more from your music and movies. Everything is tested by our dedicated team of in-house reviewers in our custom-built test rooms in London, Reading and Bath. Our coveted five-star rating and Awards are recognised all over the world as the ultimate seal of approval, so you can buy with absolute confidence.


Read more about how we test