Just a day after Samsung launched the Galaxy Z Flip4, motorola (or rather Lenovo) has already announced the new moto razr 2022 in China — which was supposed to be launched earlier last 2nd of August.

A cleaner, bolder look

For the past two iterations of the modern and foldable moto razr, they’ve stuck with the classic moto razr V3‘s aesthetic from almost two decades ago. In this year’s moto razr, that’s not the case anymore.

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Gone is that big chin from the moto razr and moto razr 5G. Instead, we’re getting a cleaner foldable just like any clamshell phone we’ve had for a while. motorola says this new look strikes balance in sophistication and elegance.

More durable hinge

With motorola’s precise and seamless craftsmanship, they’re able to create the third-generation of the moto razr.

Unlike other foldables with obvious hinge gaps, they started the “zero-gap hinge” design to make the screen flatter with less visible crease as possible. This year, they’re keeping the same technology with an improved inner arc radius of just 3.5mm plus six layers of protection.

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There are also 122 custom-built tiny parts to make the hinge more refined when opening and closing. The hinge is also made of 7000 Series aluminum and a customized super tough steel mesh for durability.

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For better feel and protection when folded, the front glass has Corning Gorilla Glass while the back cover is made up of AG Glass with a silky, velvet-like texture.

First 144Hz foldable

By removing that old chin, motorola has also ultimately bumped its inner display for maximized usability and screen real estate.

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The new screen is 6.7-inch Full HD+ pOLED display with a 144Hz refresh rate — making it the first foldable to do so. It also has HDR10+ and 1 Billion color support, as well as DC dimming and Double SGS certification for low blue-light emission.

As you can also see, the old notch was gone from the past two generations. It was then replaced by a punch-hole cutout just like how Samsung did it with the Galaxy Z Flip line.

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To make the entertainment experience fuller, the moto razr 2022 features stereo speakers that support Dolby Atmos, RichTap technology for better haptic feedback, and a three-mic array with motorola’s noise cancellation algorithm.

Improved cover display

The cover display size of the moto razr 2022 still measures at 2.7-inches with a gOLED panel.

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With the new hinge design, the moto razr 2022 can be used when half-folded. There’s standing mode where you can use and multitask two apps at the same time. There’s also the ambience mode that can serve as a mini bedside clock. Lastly, there’s tripod mode for taking gesture selfies or a timelapse.

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Other than new watch faces and additional app support, you can even use both displays simultaneously when shooting stills and footages. That’s a nice touch if you want your companion to see what you’re recording (or maybe get accidentally exposed if one is being silently recorded).

Small in size, but not in performance

Another big improvement in the newest moto razr is none other than the use of a flagship-grade processor, the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1. For the record, the two moto razr predecessors were launched with midrange-grade Snapdragon chipsets.

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The moto razr 2022 is being offered in three configurations: an 8GB + either a 128GB or 256GB configuration or a lone 12GB + 512GB model. Battery is 200mAh shorter than its Samsung counterpart with a 3500mAh battery capacity. The moto razr 2022 also supports 33W fast charging out of the box.

Two is better than one

To make way for two cameras, Motorola (or Lenovo) has decided to push the camera modules at the far left part instead of the usual center positioning.

This gives us a 50MP f/1.88 wide (main) camera equipped with omnidirectional PDAF (Phase Detection Auto Focus) and OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) for those sharp and jerk-free video recordings. It also has a sensor size of 1/2.55-inches and a pixel size of 2.0μm.

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The other one is a 13MP ultra-wide camera with a 121-degree Field of View (FoV) and aperture of f/2.2. Also, the punch-hole cutout inside houses a 32MP f/2.45 selfie camera with a pixel size of 1.4μm.

Pricing and Availability

Starting this August 11, the moto razr 2022 is currently available for pre-orders in China with a base price of CNY 5,999. 256GB and 512GB options are priced CNY 6,499 and CNY 7,299 respectively.

This makes it the more affordable foldable than the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 being sold at CNY 8,499 in China for a base 256GB variant.

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The official global prices of the same configuration is more expensive at US$ 1099.98 / S$ 1,498 / ₱62,990 (vs moto razr 2022’s US$ 962 / S$ 1324 / ₱53,572). But with taxes and shipping, Chinese smartphones will still come at a price if you buy them directly from the Mainland.

Pricing and availability in other regions have yet to follow. For now, we have to wait if motorola (or Lenovo) will launch the moto razr 2022 outside China.