Can Motorola's DROID RAZR HD for Verizon, a 4G LTE Android phone, stand up to the competition?
With a massive battery, 4G LTE and some neat software tricks, the Google-owned Motorola DROID RAZR HD is poised to take on devices like the iPhone 5 and the Galaxy S3. Does it succeed? Let's take a look.
The Good
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD has some of the best battery life I've ever seen from a smartphone and it really sets the bar power management moving forward.
The DROID RAZR has an impressive 2,530mAh battery, but Motorola was able to pack it into a very slim and pleasing package. We've grown accustomed to even the best smartphone only being able to last a day -- and by a day, we generally mean eight to nine hours with real usage -- but the DROID RAZR HD is the first smartphone in a while that I don't have to religiously plug in every night. I can't even imagine how great the battery life on the upcoming DROID RAZR MAXX HD will be.
Motorola is promising 16 hours of talk time, six hours of continuous 4G LTE streaming and 20 hours of music streaming. I haven't talked on the phone for 16 hours straight but I can tell you that the battery life is superb. If you're the type of person who constantly has their phone dying when you go out after work, the DROID RAZR HD is the device for you because it will get through that happy hour, dinner and even a movie without coming close to dying.
You're not going to sacrifice looks and quality for that battery life, as the Motorola DROID RAZR HD is an incredibly well-built phone. Whether it's the soft finish of the kevlar backing, the lovely green notification light or the well-produced bezel and buttons, the DROID RAZR HD shows an attention to detail that should be lauded. I'd still put the iPhone 5 ahead of it terms of overall design and build quality but the DROID RAZR HD isn't as far behind as some Apple fans may have you believe.
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD has a very similar design philosophy as the DROID RAZR and the RAZR MAXX: a little blocky, somewhat ruggedized design. I think there are some other devices out there that are more visually appealing than the DROID RAZR HD but Motorola's latest device is no ugly duckling. Your personal preference will weigh in heavily on whether you think the DROID RAZR HD is a good-looking phone or not.
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD has a 4.7-inch display with a 1280 x 720 resolution and it has some spectactular viewing angles. The color are pretty vibrant too, and videos and games look pretty nice. Those who are super into the nitty-gritty details may notice a slight off-color tint sometimes and the pixels per inch aren't as high as something like the iPhone 5 but it's a really nice screen to look at and interact with.
Motorola's latest DROID phone also comes with enough horsepower to make sure that it will still be a competent device through your two-year contract. It sports a 1.5GHz dual-core Snapdragon processor and this performs admirably for most apps and games. I had some issues (more on that below) but I'm confident the DROID RAZR HD will have the power to stand up to many future Android games and apps for years to come.
The DROID RAZR HD launches with Android Ice Cream Sandwich and while we're disappointed that the Google-owned Motorola can't release a phone with Android 4.1 Jelly Bean, Motorola has included some nice software tweaks without distracting from the Android experience. For example, when you swipe your homescreen to the left, the default setting brings you to a quick-access menu to all your shortcuts. It's a small detail, but one that I think many of you will use.
Motorola's Smart Actions software could eventually be its best contribution to Android because it has the potential to make your smartphone much smarter. This allows you to set up a series of actions for your phone depending on the circumstances. For example, you can set up a driving series where the phone detects when you're driving and it will automatically pair your phone with your car, launch vehicle mode and turn your ringer volume up. In this mode, you can even set your phone to auto-text those calling you that you're driving and you'll get back to them.
You can use the predefined Smart Actions or set up your own based on your personal preferences, and these can even be used to launch third-party apps. This can have a bit of a learning curve and it's not quite as seamless as it sounds but I continue to look forward to the Motorola Smart Actions evolving and eventually maybe becoming a core part of Android itself.
If it needs to be said, the Verizon 4G LTE network is blazing fast and it is now in 400 markets. The Motorola DROID RAZR HD utilizes this 4G LTE superbly and this makes browsing the Web and downloading apps a snap. The Motorola DROID RAZR HD also had nice call quality and the speaker was loud without getting too distorted.
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD has a solid, 8-megapixel camera that can produce some fantastic pictures. As with any Android phone, it's very easy to share these shots with various social networks and it's simple to loop in new services, thanks to the flexibility that's involved with Android.
I still have some problems with the camera and you can check out some of the examples here: HDR mode, standard settings, close-up shot and a shot from the front-facing camera (all photos have been resized but not touched otherwise). The DROID RAZR HD can produce 1080p HD video and it looks really nice, although the audio recording can be problematic.
The Motorola DROID RAZR has a nice screen, is masterfully well-built, utilizes Verizon's best-in-class 4G LTE and it will give you the type of battery life that the competition dreams about.
The Bad
While the Motorola DROID RAZR HD definitely deserves some praise, it is by no means a perfect device.
Let's start with the camera: The DROID RAZR HD has a solid camera but it's not in the same class as the iPhone 5, Galaxy S3, HTC One X and I'm not expecting it to be as good as the upcoming Nokia Lumia 920 or the Galaxy Note 2. Simply put, the DROID RAZR HD doesn't have as good of a lens or camera software that it deserves.
The absolute standard for the high-end market that the DROID RAZR HD is trying to be a part of is the ability to take instantaneous shots with very little shutter lag. The latest DROID RAZR HD is miles ahead of its predecessors but still lags behind the cream of the crop.
Sure, a few milliseconds here and there may sound like nitpicking but having a slow shutter speed is the difference between capturing that magic moment with your kids and getting a blurry mess of a picture. For many people, the camera is one of the most important parts of a smartphone and the DROID RAZR HD falls a tiny bit short. It's not horrible, but not best-in-class.
It's disappointing to see that a Google-owned company can't release the latest version of Android and even though Android 4.1 is slated to hit it eventually, we prefer brand new devices to have the latest version of the platform. Motorola hasn't done that much monkeying with Android but what it has done has led to mixed results.
While I like the quick access to shortcuts and Smart Actions, I'm not in love with the visual aesthetics Motorola has added. Instead of getting your five or seven home pages out of the gate, you're hit with an "Add a page" screen. It's not difficult to understand or set up but I don't really see why it should be there.
Android itself has a lot going for it: It's powerful, flexible, works immaculately with Google's services and it's easy to add new apps and features. The app, content and accessory ecosystem is not quite up to par with the iPhone but most users, even first-time smartphone buyers, should be more than satisfied with the software on the Motorola DROID RAZR HD.
The Final Take
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD for Verizon Wireless has a lot going for it: It has some of the best battery life we've ever seen, is well built, can tap into a robust and fast 4G LTE network and it's packed with enough power to make it a good handset for the length of your contract. On the downside, the camera is not quite as good as some of the other top-tier devices around and it doesn't launch with the latest version of Android.
We're still waiting to see Google's impact on Motorola's handsets, and the DROID RAZR HD was likely already in the pipeline before it was acquired by the search giant. In some ways, the DROID RAZR HD is the independent Motorola's last real smartphone.
If that's the case, Motorola has gone out with class. The DROID RAZR HD is a perfect device for those who are sick of having to constantly charge their smartphone and want a well-produced handset on a blazing fast network.
The Motorola DROID RAZR HD for Verizon Wireless will be available Oct. 18 for $199.99 on a new, two-year contract. You can purchase it on Verizon Wireless' Web site.