Revisiting The Motorola Razr – Now With Android 10! [Into The Fold Episode 2]

Hi, this is Wayne again with a topic “Revisiting The Motorola Razr – Now With Android 10! [Into The Fold Episode 2]”.
When you’re locked in a brutal battle with an intractable adversary, what do you do You play to your advantages.? Well, the biggest advantage Motorola’s razor has over the Samsung competition. Besides nostalgia is this large external display. And with the update I’m about to show you, it just got a whole lot more useful., I’m Mr. Mobile, and on this episode of “ Into the Fold”, an exclusive first look at Android 10 for the Motorola razor. A found.

That’S pushing the boundaries of what you can do with a foldable without even opening it. (, upbeat tech, music, ), So naturally, Android 10 coming to the razor is just a good thing in general. It takes it to software parity with Samsung’s Galaxy Z, flip.. It brings over the expected upgrades like gesture, navigation and dark mode and, most importantly, it demonstrates that Motorola’s standing behind its foldable. For a company with frankly spottier reputation than most when it comes to updates, following through on this particular promise, is reassuring.. This software also ports a few features from Motorola’s Edge flagship, but let’s save those for last, because the biggest changes are out here.. Now, even with the software that was loaded at launch, you could access a lot of functions while the razor was closed. Thanks to the familiar mode hold display.. Thankfully, that’s still here and Motorola tells me it has no plans to retire it, but there’s now a deeper layer waiting when you unlock the phone. Kind of miniature version of Android 10 that you control with gestures.

Swipe left to right and it’s camera shortcut.. You can go back home with an up or a back swipe and then check out the other side., A shortcut’s panel, where you can drop a few favorite contacts and with a tap call them on. Speakerphone. Reminds me of back in the Nextel days when I could make calls without opening my flip, because Motorola gave me the buttons on the outside to do it. A rare feature then, and now.. Oh and there’s also a dial pad. If you just wan na punch in the numbers yourself., Of course, the primary function of the outer display is notifications.

In the new paradigm. You swipe up and you’ll see them arranged in a prioritized list of cards.. Now, personally, I prefer the older Moto display with its wire frame design language and that neat trick.

It does were it detects when you approach it.. It does this by using the speaker to blast out an ultrasonic wave that you can’t hear, but the phone can hear and it also hears when those sound waves, bounce off your approaching hand.. It’S really cool. Anyway. Moto display isn’t going anywhere and I’m thankful for that.. But the new cards format might ease the learning curve for those who haven’t owned a Motorola phone before..

You know, instead of figuring out a whole new interface. It’S just like the notification shade, you’re already used to. And just like that main notification shade your media apps share space alongside your messages. With cards to control playback. And if you’re, taking an exercise, walk turn-by-turn directions come up in their own card that sits on top Of the stack., What if you get a message in the middle of all this Well just hit reply and your keyboard, pops up.

Complete with your own theme, customizations and everything to let you tap or swipe a response without even opening the phone.. Now you might be asking why anyone would want to do all this stuff on a tiny 2.7 inch display when a big luxurious 6.2 inch panel is just a wrist flick away, and the answer comes in three parts.. First is just plain: efficiency.. Critics of folding phones. Point out that they’re not always easy to open with one hand.

And sure they might have a point. ( phone slamming ), So the more you can do on the outside the better.. The second reason is: protection. Folding displays in general are very fragile and Motorola’s.

Particular implementation here causes the panel to lift up slightly when you open or close it.. Now the razor has a water repellent nano-coating on its internal components, but I’m not eager to test it. In a rainstorm., So again the more you can get done out here on the exterior display, the more situations you’ll be able to use the phone in. And the third reason battery life.

The razor’s battery is quite small for a modern phone and in my case it Typically dies after 12 hours of heavy use instead of the 16 or 18 I’ve gotten used, to.. The smaller and lower resolution outer screen is more power efficient., So using it instead of the big one can help. Folks. You know. I always talk downsides if they’re, here and yeah. Some of this is a little undercooked. For one thing, the new cards view doesn’t yet show notifications from as many apps as Moto display, does. Reminders, weather even the razor’s own housekeeping tips.

Just don’t show up. Other times an app will create a card, but it doesn’t give you as much text or information as Moto display does in the same instance.. I was able to talk to Motorola’s engineers about this., I mentioned it would be nice, for example, to have calendar widgets on the outside display or be able to send a text from it, and they told me they’re actively working on new features, just like those. They’re.

Also, broadening that notification support to include more apps., Unfortunately, some things like not being able to compose a reply from a Gmail notification. Yeah, that’s an Android restriction which Google would have to lift. On the whole, even in its current state.

I think there’s enough good here. In the form of added capability to offset those frustrations. Now, if Moto display wasn’t still here to fall back on, I’d, be annoyed with how much is still missing, and you can certainly make the point that having two competing UI approaches on the screen might confuse some Users., That’s how I felt on day one, but now I’m actually glad to see this kind of experimentation..

I mean this is why I made this video an episode of “ Into the Fold”. Instead of just a hands-On or whatever., Foldables are still the wild west of design and it’s great to see manufacturers exploring how we interface with them., Trying several approaches to see what works best. If you’re the type to say well for $ 1,500.

I should have a perfect experience.: Hey, I’m not gon na, say you’re wrong necessarily., But also you probably shouldn’t buy a foldable phone for a few generations and that’s fine. Speaking of “ Into the Fold ,”, let’s zoom out for the rest of this and fulfill part Of our mission, which is seeing how foldables like the razor, have evolved and aged since announcement. Well, first off, I know you’re gon na ask so no don’t expect any miracles from the camera..

There have not been significant changes to the tuning here. So, while new features like Color Spot and Cut Out might be fun on a better shooter, it continues to be just okay on the razor. Kind of like my quarantine hair..

I know I miss my barber too., Then there’s wear and tear. With all foldables there’s the omnipresent apprehension of breakage and this phone is hardly an exception.. While Motorola is adamant that those durability issues on the first round of review devices were isolated instances, I’d be lying. If I said these creases didn’t concern me a little. And that’s why I’ve been using the Galaxy’s E flip and Galaxy fold as much as I can for the past few months, and it’s also why I postpone the long term review of the ladder to episode.

Three of “ Into the Fold.” Guys, I just need a little more time with it to really get a complete sense of how it’s holding up.. For the same reason, I’m gon na mix the razor into my daily rotation and use it just as often as I can till Motorola takes it back.. So far, no … Squeaky hinge, but keep asking me on social.

Subscribe on the Mr. Mobile. Ask me in the comments..

I will never not want to talk about foldable phones, so please hit me up anytime., Oh this. Just in I promised you more coverage at the beginning of this video. So back to you other me., Thanks slick.

Yeah. I promised I’d touch on the new interface. Motorola so-called My UX is more customizable now, and it’s also plenty fast. Despite the razor’s older processor., I had been worried about Android 10’s edge, swipe back gesture feeling a little funky on the razor, but it doesn’t. The only speed bump is with the home gesture, which the chin kind of interrupts until you figure it out..

Finally, let’s talk about this blush gold huh. When I unboxed it, I thought it was gaudy AF, but it’s one of those colors that changes depending on the lighting.. Sometimes it’s hammered copper. Other times it’s weirdly pinkish. Other times it’s like a big, hearty bar of gold-pressed latinum..

Do I wish they’d just make the classic silver from the 2004 razor? Oh God yes.. What are they thinking not doing that, But this shade it does grow on you and there’s always black. If you just wan na go stealthy about it. Motorola tells me this update will hit razors in the field by mid May.

In the US. The phone is still available exclusively through Verizon and yeah. It’S still $ 1,499.. A recent buy one get one offer made it much more attractive for a limited time, but sadly that limited time ended.

Yesterday. Deals like that, of course, seldom stick to singles. So I’ll keep an eye on it and let you know on a future episode of “ Into the Fold” if another one comes calling. Time for you to sound off friends..

Does the new interface change your perception of the razor or folding phones in general? Did you take advantage of that BOGO offer If so how’s it going? Let me know down in the comments. This video was produced following six days with a razor review sample running a pre-release build of Android 10 provided by Motorola.. I conducted two interviews with company engineers, NPR people for information and quotes, but the company did not provide any compensation for this coverage and, as always, I never allow the subjects of that coverage to preview or approve my content before I publish it.. That means they’re.

Seeing this for the first time right alongside you., Please subscribe to the Mr. Mobile on YouTube if you’d like to see more videos like this. Until next time, thanks for watching stay safe at home for now, but in spirit, stay mobile, my friends, .