The Motorola Razr name has been around for many years, but in 2019 the company revived its classic flip phone to incorporate a folding display.
The initial model was followed in 2020 with a 5G version, but since then we’ve not heard much about a potential successor. Now it seems that one is on its way, so what should we expect from the Motorola Razr 2022? Here are all the news and rumours we’ve found so far.
When will the next Motorola Razr be released?
There was some suspicion that Motorola had retired the Razr models after muted response to the first two generations. But a recent post on Weibo by the Lenovo General Manager Chen Jin, who is responsible for Motorola’s smartphones, stated the following (translation from Chinese via Google Translate):
“Back in time on November 14, 2019, Motorola’s new Razr was launched. As the industry’s first vertical folding screen smartphone, it once again led the industry’s innovation.
The star orbit hinge technology independently developed by Lenovo Research Institute was the only seamless and crease-free hinge technology that was put into mass production in the world at that time. I think innovation is always the driving force of the industry.
I hope we are not drooling, but take more actions, including silently preparing for the third-generation Razr folding screen phone: more advanced chip computing power, better human-machine interface, and of course, a more atmospheric appearance. This product, we do our part, will be the first to be listed in the Chinese market!”
While we do know that Motorola is now working on the next generation Razr, there’s no official release date at the time of writing. So, we need to look back to the previous models to give us some clues. Here’s when they made their debuts:
Obviously, we didn’t see a new Razr in the autumn of 2021, so either Motorola will use a new release window, or it just means that the new Razr will come around the same time as its predecessors but with a two-year gap – by which time it will likely be up against the expected Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4.
How much will the Motorola Razr 2022 cost?
As with the release date, there is no official price available for the Motorola Razr 2022, so once again we’ll take our waypoint from the early versions. Here’s what they cost when they were introduced:
Motorola Razr – £1,499/US$1499/€1599
Motorola Razr 5G – £1,399/$1,399/€1499
The Motorola Razr was one of the first devices with a foldable display, and this can be seen in the eye-watering prices of the first two generations. These were comparable to the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, which itself started off at those kind of prices, but has since dropped to the more acceptable £949/$999/€1,049/₹84,999 for the Samsung Galaxy Flip 3.
Motorola will need to match those figures if it wants the new Razr to succeed, as Samsung has really put down a marker in the new flip-phone space.
What about the 2022 Motorola Razr specs and design?
Almost nothing is known about the specifications of the next generation Motorola Razr. But Chen Jin’s post mentioned above does point towards a few things. He mentions “more advanced chip computing power,” which is something we’d expect with any new flagship device.
The Motorola Razr 5G came equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 5G, which is a solid chip but not quite the same as the 800-series that has been the mainstay of most premium devices over the past couple of years. Hopefully, Motorola will adopt the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 platform this year, or at the very least use last year’s Snapdragon 888.
The 8 Gen 1 is exactly what’s predicted in one of the first spec leaks for the device, which comes from XDA Developers. The site’s sources say it will be combined with 6GB, 8GB, or 12GB of RAM and 128GB, 256GB, or 512GB of storage.
Another element mentioned in the Weibo post is “better human-machine interface,” which could mean the software experience. The Razr 5G shipped with Android 10, using Motorola’s typically clean and simple Android skin, so it was pretty good to begin with. Whether Jin is referring to the potential use of Android 12 or a new Lenovo/Motorola version of that OS remains to be seen. Of course, we’re at the mercy of translations here, so it could also refer to the physical design of the device itself.
Perhaps our favourite part of the post is that last improvement Jin outlines, “a more atmospheric appearance.” We’re not entirely sure what this means, but if it’s a cool new design for the casing then that would be welcome, although the Razr 5G was already a very handsome device.
The XDA Developers report above sheds a little more light on what to expect. The main display is likely to be 6.7in – larger than the previous 6.2in panel – and is believes to be a 120Hz, Full HD+ AMOLED. There’ll be a small, centred punch-hole selfie camera at the top of this display, expected to be 32Mp.
The main rear camera is apparently 50Mp, and will be joined by a 13Mp ultra-wide lens.
Finally, you can expect some sort of external display to return, though details are unclear as of yet, and support for both NFC and UWB – a.k.a. ultra-wideband, the positioning tech that drives the likes of the Apple AirTag tracker and also has smart home applications.
As more news becomes available, we’ll update this article. So be sure to check back periodically. In the meantime, check out our guide to the best phones coming in 2022 and best phones to see which models are worthy of your attention.