From 2004 to 2020, the journey of the Motorola RAZR
In 2004, Motorola's RAZR V3 became an instant hit with its sleek and shiny body, dual screens, and the flip design. However, things changed with the arrival of the iPhone in 2007. It's 2020 now, and Motorola has reincarnated the RAZR, bringing back the iconic handset in a futuristic foldable form-factor. But frankly, how has the RAZR phone changed over the past 16 years?
RAZR 2004 vs RAZR 2020: Design
With the foldable RAZR, Motorola has maintained the aesthetics of the original- the same sleek, flip design, dual screens, and a thick base. However, the anodized aluminum body we saw in 2004 has been replaced with some glass and plastic. The reincarnated model also gets a metal hinge and frame, flexible screen, dual batteries, which makes it twice as heavy as the original RAZR.
All about the displays
The 2004 RAZR had a 2.2-inch TFT main screen with 176x220 pixels resolution while the smaller secondary external display had a resolution of 96x80 pixels and supported just under 5,000 colors. On the foldable RAZR, the internal screen is a 6.2-inch flexible OLED panel with HD+ (2142x876 pixels) resolution. There's also a 2.7-inch external display for accessing notifications, music, and calls.
The 2004 RAZR came with a single VGA camera
The original RAZR V3 came with a single VGA camera that could record short video clips. However, it didn't have a selfie camera. Fast-forward to today, and you have the foldable RAZR offering a single 16MP (f/1.7) main camera and another 5MP selfie camera.
Under the hood
Not much is known about the internals of the RAZR phone from 2004. However, it did come with a paltry 5.5MB storage that could save 1,000 contacts, 30 call logs, SMSes, emails, and even some games. The handset also had a 680mAh battery. In comparison, the folding RAZR has Snapdragon 710 chipset, 6GB RAM, 128GB of storage, and a combined battery capacity of 2,510mAh.
Pricing: The surprise figure
The original RAZR was not a cheap phone. With a two-year contract, the handset was available for $500, while unlocked models were priced around $650. Interestingly, Motorola sold over 50 million handsets between 2004 and 2006. In comparison, the new folding RAZR costs $1,500.
