Foldable telephones could also be area of interest, however Motorola’s Razr lineup stands out as a leader in the category. With enjoyable colours, varied textures and that satisfying flip-phone snap, clamshell telephones are a preferred alternative for folks seeking to get away from extra predictable mobile designs. It is probably we’ll see the following era of Razr telephones later this month, hopefully with some key upgrades that might assist the units stand out much more.
The Razr Ultra is Motorola’s most premium clamshell providing. Final yr’s mannequin had a 4-inch cowl show and a 7-inch inside show, two 50-megapixel rear cameras (in addition to a 50-megapixel selfie digital camera) and a beneficiant 4,700-mAh battery. As CNET’s Patrick Holland put it, the 2025 Extremely was additionally “flipping costly,” at $1,300. However these first-rate options make it a worthy rival to Samsung’s $1,100 Galaxy Z Flip 7, one other common alternative within the foldable phones house.
Motorola is doubling down on foldables with the upcoming launch of its first book-style telephone, the Razr Fold. With a smooth design and a powerful 6,000-mAh battery, it is probably to provide Samsung a run for its cash in one other foldable sector as comparisons with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 inevitably pour in. The Razr Fold is slated to launch in North America this summer time.
Within the meantime, we’ll probably be taught extra concerning the 2026 Razr Extremely because the anticipated springtime launch date looms. That offers me a while to dream up what I might prefer to see Motorola add to its premium flip telephone to make it a good stronger contender in an more and more aggressive house.
A cheaper price can be nice
Telephones are costly, and foldable telephones are much more so — which is why many people avoid getting one within the first place.
The 2025 Razr Extremely’s $1,300 worth is prohibitive, even when it’s a nice telephone that comes with a powerful 512GB of storage. The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7 is not a lot better at $1,100 for 256GB of storage, however that also shaves off a number of hundred {dollars}. (Motorola has now discounted last year’s Razr Ultra to $800, presumably because it clears inventory forward of upcoming releases.)
It could be nice if Motorola made the Razr Extremely’s pricing a bit of extra aggressive not solely towards the Z Flip 7, however in comparison with different premium slab telephones. Which may entice extra folks to dip their toe into foldable waters in the event that they’re on the fence. Sure, there are extra reasonably priced choices such because the 2025 baseline Razr and the Razr Plus, however the Razr Extremely being priced the identical as Samsung’s top-of-the-line S26 Ultra powerhouse is difficult to justify.
As telephones develop into extra superior, they’re additionally getting pricier — and that is with out a RAM shortage that threatens to hike costs as properly. The Samsung Galaxy S26 and S26 Plus begin at $100 greater than final yr’s, although the baseline mannequin now comes with the next 256GB base storage stage. I hope Motorola steers clear from discovering causes to up the price of its telephones, too.
Extra years of software program and safety updates, please
A part of why the Razr Extremely’s $1,300 price ticket was so laborious to swallow final yr is that the telephone solely comes with three years of software program updates and 4 years of safety updates. Examine that to the Galaxy Z Flip 7’s seven years of software program and safety updates and it is laborious to not really feel a bit of shortchanged with the Razr Extremely.
Most premium Android telephones, foldable or in any other case, include seven years of assist. In actual fact, even Motorola’s upcoming Razr Fold may have that prolonged assist timeline. It is time the clamshell Razr telephones hop on the bandwagon. That is very true for the ultra-pricey Razr Extremely.
Convey again the skinny design of the OG Razr
OK, this one’s a little bit of a pipe dream, however with the thin phone craze gripping the cellular business, it is not completely unattainable. What made the unique, non-smartphone Razr stand out most was its sleekness, and it could be nice to see the Razr Extremely undertake a equally thin design.
Samsung solely slimmed down its book-style Galaxy Z Fold 7 final yr, however I might prefer to assume clamshell telephones such because the Z Flip 7 and Motorola Razr will sometime expertise an analogous evolution. It might not occur this yr, however I might be thrilled if it did. Notably, Motorola launched the Edge 70 in worldwide markets final yr to compete with different skinny telephones together with the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge and Apple iPhone Air, so it is potential that common blueprint might present up in future clamshell Razr telephones.
I am not getting my hopes up, although. OnLeaks and XpertPick reportedly obtained entry to CAD renders of this year’s Razr Ultra, which appears to be barely thicker than final yr’s telephone. Whereas the 2025 Razr Extremely was round 15.7mm thick folded and seven.2mm thick unfolded, the renders counsel the upcoming telephone might measure 15.8mm folded and seven.8mm unfolded — a distinction folks would admittedly hardly discover. However that is nonetheless not the course I might ideally prefer to see.
The marginally bigger dimensions might be the results of extra digital camera {hardware} or a bigger battery. These can be welcome updates, so a thicker telephone is not so unhealthy a tradeoff. However it could be nice if we might have all of it: improved battery life, extra highly effective cameras and a thinner telephone. I will preserve dreaming till it (hopefully) comes true.
