A new era of flip phones

Motorola announced two new “stylish pocket-sized smartphones” to its Razr series: the Razr 50 Ultra and Razr 50.

We’ve compared the features of both and highlighted the differences between the two below. Keep reading to learn more about the new flip phones and gauge which one will suit you better. 

Motorola Razr 50 Ultra has a larger external display

Although both handsets are pocket-sized, the Razr 50 Ultra not only boasts a slightly larger external display than the Razr 50 but it is also the “industry’s largest” at four-inches. The Razr 50’s external display retains the same size as the Razr 40 Ultra at 3.6-inches.

Even so, both external displays use Gorilla Glass Victus to help protect the screen from drops and scratches.

Both Razr 50 handsets will also feature Google’s AI-assistant Gemini, accessible directly from the external display, plus new customers will receive access to Gemini Advanced for three months at no extra cost. In addition, new to the external display is Google Photos access, a dedicated Spotify panel and a Bose panel for faster controls.

The Razr 50 Ultra has a 50MP telephoto lens

Motorola promises that the new Razr 50 Ultra has “Motorola’s best Razr camera technology yet” thanks to the “50MP high-res main camera system with Moto AI camera capabilities and Google Photos AI-powered editing features.” 

In addition to the 50MP main sensor, the 50 Ultra also includes a 50MP telephoto lens which offers 2x optical zoom and promises to capture “stunning, flattering portraits”.

Although the Razr 50 also has a 50MP main lens, this is supported with a 13MP ultrawide/macro vision lens, which is also found on the Razr 40 Ultra. We found the ultrawide shots captured with the Razr 40 Ultra were “fine in well-lit environments” but when it came to low light conditions, images were “much darker, muddier and generally softer” than the main lens.

The Razr 50 Ultra runs on Snapdragon 8S Gen 3

The Razr 50 Ultra boasts the more powerful processor of the two flip phones, running on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8S Gen 3. This new processor is the latest addition to the Snapdragon series and “promises to deliver the most sought-after 8-series capabilities to more Android flagship smartphones”.

Notably, Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 also includes support for on-device generative AI features, LLM models including Google’s Gemini, plus updated AI camera capabilities. 

The Razr 50 Ultra offers a number of AI-powered camera features including a Photo Enhancement Engine for simultaneously applying multiple shooting modes into one and Super Zoom which uses an AI-based machine learning algorithm to capture far away details. 

The Razr 50 instead runs on the 4nm MediaTek Dimensity 7300X processor, which Motorola explains will offer “better power efficiency to outlast all occasions” and enhance “AI based tasks while supporting visuals and new experiences”.

The Razr 50 Ultra is available in four colours

Perfect for the style conscious, the Razr 50 Ultra has a wider choice of colours including Midnight Blue, Forest Green, Peach Fuzz (Pantone’s Colour of the Year 2024) and the iconic Hot Pink. 

The Razr 50 is available in three different colours including Beach Sand, Koala Grey and Spritz Orange in vegan leather.

The Razr 50 has a larger battery

At 4200mAh, the Razr 50 has a slightly larger battery capacity to the Razr 50 Ultra’s 4000mAh. Even so the Razr 50 Ultra boasts faster charging capabilities, with 45W Turbo Charging compared to the Razr 50’s 30W.

Otherwise they offer 15W wireless charging although this charger is sold separately for both handsets.

The Razr 50 is cheaper

The Razr 50 currently has an RRP of £799 and will be available “early July” according to Motorola.

The Razr 50 Ultra is pricier, with an RRP of £999 and is now available from selected retailers.