The Motorola Razr 5G is unlikely to take on Samsung's Galaxy Z Flip 5G in battery life
The Galaxy Z Fold 2 5G is without a doubt the most highly anticipated new foldable device left to be commercially released this year, but before Samsung finally starts shipping its latest crown jewel, Motorola will also unveil its second modern Razr generation to try to divert some attention away from the Galaxy Z Flip 5G.
Codenamed Odyssey and widely expected to go official under the Razr 2 5G label, this somewhat confusing bad boy aims to "flip the smartphone experience once again" as early as September 9. While those leaked images from a couple of weeks ago seemed as straightforward as these things come, the confusing part is that multiple recent rumors pointed in the direction of a 2021 launch.
Razr 5G or Razr 2 5G? How about both?
Because it would certainly be... unwise of Motorola to announce the phone next month and then keep prospective buyers waiting a full calendar quarter (or more), we can only assume all that gossip about a delay was just that - unfounded gossip. Unless there are actually two different 5G-enabled Motorola Razr variants in the pipeline.
This theory appears to be supported by a recent tweet from Evan Blass, which suggests whatever's right around the corner will be dubbed the Motorola Razr 5G rather than the Razr 2 5G. Meanwhile, the battery capacity of a device going by the XT2071 model number has been revealed, and honestly, we're not quite sure where this particular puzzle piece fits.
In case you're wondering, last year's reborn Razr carried the XT2000 model number, so this is definitely a sequel... of some sort. That's also made crystal clear by the presence of two batteries featuring a rated capacity of 1,180 and 1,453mAh respectively. That amounts to a grand total of 2,633mAh, but the typical cell capacity, which is what smartphone manufacturers always use in their marketing materials, is likely to exceed 2,800mAh.
That just so happens to largely coincide with the 2,845mAh battery size rumored all the way back in May for Motorola's then-unnamed Razr (Gen. 2), aka XT2071-4.
A clear step forward, but plenty of room left for improvement
Although vastly superior to the combined 2,510mAh cell capacity on the first-gen foldable Razr smartphone, this simply doesn't sound enough to give Samsung a run for its money. Certainly not if the Razr 2 5G is set to sport a main display with a diagonal of 6.85 inches, up from the 6.2-inch screen of its predecessor and the 6.7-inch Galaxy Z Flip 5G, which packs a considerably larger total typical battery capacity of 3,300mAh.
That brings us back to a two-model upgrade theory, with an iterative Motorola Razr 5G update presumably set to be released in September and a proper Razr 2 5G sequel with a big screen and other meaningful improvements likely to see daylight at some point next year.
If that wild guess pans out, it would definitely be easier to accept a handset with an upper mid-range Snapdragon 765 processor in tow, as well as a single 48MP rear-facing camera. Granted, it would still be hard to recommend the Razr 5G over the Snapdragon 865 Plus-powered Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5G, but at least we'd have something to look forward to in terms of serious Motorola foldable upgrades.
Who knows, maybe the company also learned its lesson and the 5G-capable Razr will actually be priced in line with its specifications, rumored to include 8 gigs of memory, 256 gigs of internal storage space, a single 20MP selfie shooter, and 18W fast charging technology as well.
Things that are NOT allowed: