Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 review: Living up to the name
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To say that the Razr Ultra 2025 took me by surprise is a bit of an understatement. The phone is currently the most powerful flip phone on the market, with specs that rival even more traditional premium flagships like the Galaxy S25 Ultra. And with a price that matches Samsung’s top-of-the-line model for 2025, Motorola seems to have a lot of confidence in the Razr Ultra 2025 following the line’s success in recent years.
But is Motorola too confident in the Razr Ultra? Does the company have what it takes to charge Samsung-level prices for a phone? I’ve spent a week with the Razr Ultra 2025, and while my thoughts are mostly final, this is how my time with the phone has been and why I think it deserves your consideration.
Derrek Lee has reviewed nearly 20 Motorola phones over the past several years and has used flip phones as his daily driver since 2023, giving him great insight to how they’ve improved and how they can get better.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Price and availability
The Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 was announced on April 24 and preorders began on May 7, with open sale starting on May 15 in the United States. Two configurations are available: 16GB+512GB ($1,299) and 16GB+1TB ($1,499, only at Motorola.com).
The phone comes in four different color options, courtesy of Pantone: Scarab (Altandara), Rio Red, Cabaret, and Mountain Trail (wood). Availability will depend on the retailer and carrier.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Design and display
- The Razr Ultra retains Motorola’s unique styling with vegan leather, Alcantara, and wood finishes.
- The main display is sharper and more vibrant than previous models.
If you’ve followed the Razr series for the past few years, then the design of the Razr Ultra 2025 shouldn’t surprise you. It looks nearly identical to its predecessor, which in this case would be the Razr Plus 2024, sporting the same curved frame, rounded corners, and massive cover panel. The differences lie in the slightly larger display size, the new materials on the back, and the IP48 water and dust resistance for improved durability.
The Razr Ultra 2025 color options are quite interesting this year, as Motorola continues to move away from muted shades. I have the Rio Red color on my unit, which incorporates Motorola’s now-standard vegan leather and is admittedly the least interesting Razr Ultra 2025 color. I previously spent some time with the soft Alcantara and the hardy wood finishes during my hands-on, and I must say, Motorola has given users quite the selection of sensory goodies to choose from.
I also like that Motorola switched from a glossy frame to brushed metal, as it gives the overall design a rustic sheen.
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Opening the phone feels great, thanks to the new titanium-reinforced hinge. It’s stronger and makes it easier to open the Razr Ultra with one hand. It almost springs open with a satisfying click, which sounds about as good as it does when closing the phone.
When the phone is open, you’re greeted with a 7-inch OLED display that looks much punchier than previous models. This is likely a result of the Pantone collaboration, which aims to provide “authentic and vivid images.” The sharper Super HD resolution also makes content look crisper, while the variable 165Hz refresh rate helps make UI elements move with a slick, buttery smoothness.
Motorola gives you three display presets for how it displays colors: Natural, Radiant, and Vivid. I would suggest Radiant, as it splits the diff and gives you a bit more vibrancy without overdoing it. There are also a few settings for eye protection, including Flicker prevention for users with PWM sensitivity, which is nice to see as Motorola continues improving the overall quality of its displays.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Specs and performance
- The Snapdragon 8 Elite with 16GB of RAM provides phenomenal performance.
- Battery life and charging speed should impress power users.
The Razr Ultra 2025 is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite, making it the first flip phone to feature this chipset. It’s coupled with 16GB of RAM, which puts it well above other flagships, including those from Samsung. It may seem like overkill, and it probably is, but the result is the kind of performance you’d expect from a top-tier flagship phone, as I experienced no lag or hiccups in my use.
|
Category |
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 |
|---|---|
|
OS |
Android 15 (Hello UX) |
|
Display (internal) |
7-inch, pOLED, 464ppi, Super HD, LTPO 165Hz, HDR10+, 4,500 nits peak brightness |
|
Display (external) |
4-inch, pOLED, 165Hz, LTPO, 3,000 nits peak brightness |
|
Chipset |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite |
|
RAM |
16GB LPDDR5X + RAM Boost |
|
Storage |
512GB or 1TB, UFS 4.0 |
|
Rear Camera 1 |
50MP, f/1.8, 1.0μm, 12.6MP Quad Pixel Technology, 2.0μm, Instant all-pixel PDAF, OIS, Pantone Validated Color and Skin Tones |
|
Rear Camera 2 |
50MP ultrawide, f/2.0, 122° FOV, 0.6μm, 12.6MP Quad Pixel Technology, 1.2μm |
|
Selfie Camera |
50MP, f/2.0, 0.64μm, 12.6MP, Quad Pixel Technology, 1.28μm |
|
Audio |
3 mics, dual stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos, Snapdragon Sound |
|
Connectivity |
5G, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, UWB |
|
Security |
Fingerprint sensor, Face unlock |
|
Protection |
IP48, Gorilla Glass Ceramic |
|
Battery |
4,700mAh, 68W wired charging, 30W wireless charging, 5W reverse charging |
|
Dimensions (open) |
73.99 x 171.48 x 7.19mm |
|
Dimensions (closed) |
73.99 x 88.12 x 15.69mm |
|
Weight |
199g |
|
Colors |
Pantone Scarab, Pantone Rio Red, Pantone Mountain Trail, and Pantone Cabaret |
Motorola managed to stuff a pretty large 4,700mAh battery into the Razr Ultra 2025, which should help offset the more powerful chipset and higher-resolution display. So far, I have no complaints with battery life, although my usage has been a little skewed as my testing has involved me using the phone more than usual. You’ll get a full day of use, and while I don’t imagine going beyond that, I plan to update this review with my findings as my usage patterns normalize.
Power users will enjoy the 68W charging, which tops up the phone in roughly 40 minutes. Although I haven’t been able to test out the top 30W wireless charging speed, as all of mine top out at 15W, it’s good to see someone in the U.S., aside from OnePlus, moving the needle on charging speeds.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Software and AI
- Software promise is good, but falls behind competitors.
- Moto AI feels like a solid offering even if it’s not baked into every aspect of the OS.
- Motorola could do more to give other AI models beyond Perplexity more visibility.
The Razr Ultra 2025 runs Android 15 and will receive three OS upgrades and four years of security updates, which notably falls behind other flagship competitors. The latest version of Hello UX also isn’t much different from Motorola’s Android 14 software, although there are many Motorola or Razr-specific features sprinkled throughout.
The focus is on AI, and Motorola stuffed as much as it could into its Moto AI software, which feels like a much more mature and comprehensive offering than what was offered in last year’s beta, with more easily accessible features that you can find in the dedicated Moto AI app. For example, notification summaries are available with the click of a button and are now actionable, and Moto AI will pull up contextual actions based on whatever’s on your screen when you trigger it, similar in a way to Gemini.
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Image Studio and Playlist Studio are fun ways to use AI to generate images and context-based music playlists (a feature YouTube Music should steal), although the latter is currently limited to Amazon Music, which I imagine won’t do many people much good.
The Razr still features Gemini and some Google AI features to complement Moto AI. And unlike Galaxy AI, Moto AI isn’t injected into every aspect of the OS, which some may find refreshing. That said, there are many ways to trigger it, from the new dedicated AI button to double-tapping the back of the phone.
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One of the coolest ways to trigger Moto AI is with Look & Talk. If the Razr Ultra 2025 is in Tent or Stand mode, all you have to do is look at it, and it will begin listening to you. You can also ask follow-up questions, but you’ll have to wait until it’s done speaking or press the mic icon to interrupt it. It’s not as seamless as Gemini Live, which will let you interrupt it mid-sentence, and I hope Motorola will enable this in future updates.
Motorola partnered with as many companies as possible to give Moto AI on the Razr Ultra a unique edge, although I think the execution could use some work. For instance, you can ask Moto AI a question and then tap “Explore with Perplexity,” which is a nice way to get users to dive deeper into a topic, but I rarely found myself doing this.
I would like to see this type of visibility extended to other AI agents that consumers are likely more familiar with, such as Copilot, Meta AI, or Gemini. You can always tell Moto AI to “Ask Copilot” or the like, but I would be more inclined to press a button to “Explore with Gemini” than I would with Perplexity, even if Motorola is throwing in a free Perplexity Pro trial. This would also just be a good way to visually show consumers that they have options aside from Perplexity.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Cover screen
- Cover screen remains just as functional as ever, if not more.
- Users can now set app shortcuts and more app and widget panels.
The cover screen experience hasn’t changed much from the Razr Plus 2024, which is great. In fact, it got better with Android 15. Not only can you natively use apps on the cover screen, but you can also press and hold for additional actions, and now even set shortcuts to certain app functions on the app panel for even faster access to things without opening the phone.
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You can also set multiple app and widget panels, which can come in handy if you want separate app pages instead of scrolling through a single panel. That said, the overall functionality of using apps on the cover screen is still the same and remains one of my favorite ways to use the Razr.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Cameras
- Images are punchy and detailed, with better low-light performance.
- There are plenty of AI features to give users more control over how images are captured and how color is processed.
I plan to dive deeper into the cameras in a separate camera review, but for now, I can say that I’m pretty pleased with Motorola’s improvements here. I much prefer the inclusion of an ultrawide sensor over the 2x telephoto sensor on last year’s Razr Plus. This way, Motorola can have the best of both by utilizing the primary camera for some in-sensor zoom and an ultrawide sensor for group photos and macro shots.
Lo and behold, the Razr Ultra 2025 takes great photos from the primary sensor, even at 2x zoom. The colors feel much punchier than I’m used to seeing from Motorola, which is likely a product of the Pantone collaboration. Dynamic range also feels improved, with better handling of low-light and nighttime images. The result is images that feel more Samsung in terms of color and saturation, while the added depth and definition remind me a bit of a Pixel.
I wouldn’t say image quality is anywhere near the impressive quality of the cameras on OPPO, OnePlus, or Vivo phones, but so far, I feel pretty confident that the Razr Ultra 2025 can compete fairly comfortably among the best Android cameras.
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Motorola also includes some AI tricks to help users customize how the camera handles colors based on the subject, which is a neat way to personalize the camera experience. That includes Action Shot for fast-moving subjects, Group Shot, which is Motorola’s version of Best Take, and the new Air gestures for controlling video capture without touching the phone.
Video capture also feels quite improved from previous models, thanks to better color reproduction and overall more stable recording, even at 4K60 or 8K30.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Competition
In North America, the Ultra’s only competition is the Galaxy Z Flip 6, Samsung’s model from 2024. It’s a great phone overall, thanks to the powerful Snapdragon chipset, great battery life, solid set of cameras, and long software support. However, given that it’s last year’s model, performance will likely not match the newer Snapdragon chip from Qualcomm.
In a way, the Galaxy S25 Ultra is also a direct competitor, as the Razr Ultra specs and price more closely match Samsung’s best. It gets a slightly beefier Snapdragon chip, more camera lenses, and a more robust software offering. However, color options aren’t as interesting, it has less RAM, and it charges much more slowly.
Other notable flip phones include the Xiaomi Mix Flip, which also has a large cover screen, and the TECNO Phantom V Flip 2, which aims for the lower-end with a more affordable price point.
Motorola Razr Ultra 2025: Should you buy it?
You should buy this if…
- You want a powerful flagship Android phone with plenty of AI experiences.
- You want a versatile camera with a large cover screen viewfinder.
- You want good battery life, fast charging, and a very useful cover screen.
You shouldn’t buy this if…
- You want a long and reliable software update promise.
- You want a dedicated telephoto camera for enhanced zoom.
- You don’t want to spend more than $999 for a smartphone (may be worth waiting).
Motorola may thrive in the midrange with phones like the Moto G Stylus 2025, but the company is clearly feeling itself with the Razr. The Razr Ultra 2025 represents the absolute best of Motorola, from its iconic design to its impressive specs and a fun suite of AI features.
The partnership with Pantone is clearly paying off, as evident by the display and camera improvements, while the Snapdragon 8 Elite gives the Razr a new edge as a premium Android smartphone.
Of course, the price tag may be hard for some to justify, and the update promise could be better if you don’t plan on upgrading in the next three or four years. However, I feel like the positives easily outweigh the negatives and the Razr Ultra 2025 is easily one of the best foldables… no, one of the best phones of 2025.
The ultimate flip phone
The Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 represents the best a flip phone can offer, thanks to the powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite, a great set of cameras, and a suite of fun and useful AI features.
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