How Much Of An Upgrade Is The Razr 50 Ultra Over The Razr 40 Ultra?
The Motorola Razr 40 Ultra was received pretty well, but on paper, the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra seems to be a very capable successor. Let’s break down the differences between these two foldable smartphones.
| Motorola Razr 40 Ultra | Motorola Razr 50 Ultra | |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 |
| RAM | 8 GB, 12 GB | 8 GB, 12 GB |
| Storage | 256 GB, 512 GB; UFS 3.1 | 256 GB, 512 GB; UFS 4.0 |
| Cover Display | 3.6 inches, AMOLED, 144Hz, 1056 x 1066 pixels, HDR10+, 1,100-nit peak brightness | 4.0 inches, AMOLED, 165Hz, 1272 x 1080 pixels, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 2,400-nit peak brightness |
| Inner Display | 6.9 inches, LTPO AMOLED, 165Hz, 1080 x 2640, HDR10+, 1,400-nit peak brightness | 6.9 inches, LTPO AMOLED, 165Hz, 1080 x 2640, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 3,000-nit peak brightness |
| Rear Cameras | 12MP, f/1.5 with OIS + 13MP Ultrawide, f/2.2; 4K/60, FHD/120 video support | 50MP, f/1.7 with OIS + 50MP 2x Telephoto, f/1.7 with OIS; 4K/60, FHD/960 video support |
| Selfie Camera | 32MP, f/2.4; 4K/60 video support | 32MP, f/2.4; 4K/60 video support |
| Battery | 3,800 mAh | 4,000 mAh, |
| Charging | 30W wired charging, 5W wireless charging | 45W wired charging, 15W wireless charging, 5W reverse wired charging |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6e, Bluetooth 5.3, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0 | Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0, OTG |
| IP Rating | N/A | IPX8 |
| Launch Price | $999 | $999 |
The Design
The designs of the Motorola Razr 40 Ultra and Razr 50 Ultra are not too distinct. I’d expect a less trained eye not to be able to tell them apart from each other in the wild. They have similar dimensions and weight, though there are a few differences one can catch.
Most notably is the bigger cover display on the Razr 50 Ultra, which takes up almost the entire cover of the device. This shrinks the bezels too, including the bezel on the back half of the device. However, besides that and different colorways, the design language mostly stays intact.
The Screens
The foldable display is what makes a foldable phone so unique, and in this case, both phones have a 6.9-inch LTPO AMOLED screen with a 165Hz refresh rate, FHD+ resolution, and HDR10+ certification. However, the Razr 50 Ultra comes with some slight upgrades, including Dolby Vision certification and 3,000-nit peak brightness (up from 1,400).
The cover display is an obvious improvement. The Razr 40 Ultra “made do” with a 3.6-inch 144Hz AMOLED panel with 1,100-nit peak brightness and HDR10+ certification. However, the Razr 50 Ultra doesn’t only step the size up to 4 inches, it brings LTPO technology, a higher 165Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision certification, and a higher 2,400 brightness. There’s a world of difference there, making this a much easier to use cover display.
The Chipsets And Memory
Both devices pitch their tents with Qualcomm. The Razr 40 Ultra had the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip providing its firepower while the Razr 50 Ultra goes for the closer-to-the-top-of-the-line Snapdragon 8s Gen 3. That means the Razr 50 Ultra also gets the newer Adreno 735 GPU in place of the Adreno 730.
Both devices are available in the exact same three storage configurations: 8/256GB, 12/256GB, and 12/512GB. However, the Razr 40 Ultra uses UFS 3.1 while the Razr 50 Ultra uses UFS 4.0. Neither phone has expandable storage though.
The Cameras
The selfie camera on both phones stay the same: a 32MP unit. However, the rear cameras change up quite significantly. The Razr 40 Ultra toted a 12MP main camera with a 13MP ultrawide. With the Razr 50 Ultra, the main camera gets an upgrade to 50MP. Motorola also opted to replace the ultrawide camera with a 50MP 2x telephoto.
The Batteries And Charging
The Razr 40 Ultra had a 3,800 mAh battery — rather small for an “Ultra” phone. The new model steps that up just a tad, but at least brings it to the 4,000 mAh mark. Charging also goes up 50% — 30W on the 40 Ultra to 45W on the 50 Ultra. The same applies to wireless charging, which went from a pretty slow 5W to a more standard 15W mark. The Razr 50 Ultra also introduces 5W reverse wired charging (though I wouldn’t quite say it has enough battery for itself, talk less of sharing with others).
The Miscellaneous Factors
The Razr line finally gets IP certification as the Razr 50 Ultra boasts of IPX8 water resistance, which is a major boost over last year.
On top of that, with a bigger cover display, the Razr 50 Ultra is the first phone to come with Google Gemini preinstalled and you’ll be able to access it from the cover display (as well as Google Photos too),
The Pricing, And Which Should You Get?
Both phones launched at $999, though the Razr 40 Ultra can obviously be gotten for cheaper — about $650 on Amazon — at this point. The question is, which one should you get right now?
Truth is, I’m all for the Razr 50 Ultra. It is one of the most significant upgrades over a predecessor that I’ve seen. It has a bigger battery, faster wired and wireless charging, a better processor, a superior cover display and foldable display, faster storage, water resistance, and a better primary camera. All for the same launch price?
Motorola hit a home run with this phone and even at the Razr 40 Ultra’s current price, the extra money is totally worth it to get the 50 Ultra. That’s my opinion, at least.
