Motorola’s first book-style foldable, the Razr Fold, is expected to be launched soon, positioning itself as a strong opponent to phones like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7. Although the devices share some design similarities, there are also notable differences across cameras, displays and batteries.
US orders for the Razr Fold will begin on May 14 on Best Buy and Motorola sites, and will be available on May 21. It will also be sold through Verizon, T-Mobile and Xfinity Mobile in the coming months. The Razr Fold starts at $1,900 for 512GB of base storage.
The Galaxy Z Fold 7, launched last summer, starts at $2,000 for 256GB of storage. Samsung is expected to launch the next generation of its folders in the coming months, although it has not confirmed the details yet.
Motorola revived its popular Razr brand in the form of clamshell-style flip phones six years ago. But for the first time it’s releasing a large book-style phone that acts like a small tablet when opened. Foldable phones form a competitive market that is expected to grow with the expected release of the foldable iPhone. Where Motorola can stand out is promoting the premium feel of its devices, which often double as eye-catching fashion statements.
Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold 7 is equally eye-catching, but for a different reason: It’s insanely thin. At just 4.2mm when open and 8.9mm when closed, it’s one of the smallest foldable phones on the market. The Razr Fold isn’t too far behind, measuring about 4.6mm thick when open and 9.9mm when closed. The IZ Fold 7 weighs 215g, while the Razr Fold is 243g.
Here’s another way two other high-quality folders compare.
Razr Fold vs. Galaxy Z Fold 7 displays
Motorola Razr Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 7 share almost the same display size.
The Razr Fold has a 6.6-inch cover display with a variable refresh rate of 165Hz. The internal display is 8.1 inches, with a refresh rate of 120Hz.
Meanwhile, the Z Fold 7 has a 6.5-inch 120Hz variable refresh rate, and an 8-inch main display with a 120Hz variable refresh rate.
The Razr Fold has a maximum brightness of 6,000-nit on the external display, while the main display has a maximum brightness of 6,200-nit. I haven’t had a chance to take the phone outside yet to see how the screens look in bright sunlight, but my experience with the Z Fold 7 suggests they will be very bright; Samsung’s foldable has a very low 2,600-nit maximum brightness for both displays, which held up well for me when I was out and about.
I can see a crease on the main display of both phones, but it doesn’t get in the way or get in the way when you’re using them.
The main difference between the phones is that the Razr Fold supports the Moto Pen stylus, which retails separately for $100. You won’t be able to put it on the phone (like you can with the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra), but you can slip it into a holster for storage. The Z Fold 7, on the other hand, has included S Pen support for a more responsive design.
Razr Fold vs. Galaxy Z Fold 7 cameras
Foldable phone cameras have come a long way in recent years, and you no longer have to sacrifice polished photos for something new with a unique design.
The Razr Fold has a triple 50-megapixel rear camera system with wide, ultrawide and telephoto lenses. There is a 20-megapixel selfie camera on the inner screen and a 32-megapixel one on the cover screen.
The IZ Fold 7 has a 200-megapixel wide, 12-megapixel ultrawide and a 10-megapixel telephoto camera on the back. There are also 10-megapixel selfie cameras inside and on the cover screens.
Megapixels tell the whole story, so I’m looking forward to taking the Razr Fold out into the world and snapping some shots.
Razr Fold vs. Galaxy Z Fold 7 batteries
Twice the number of screens means there is more need for a stronger battery.
The Razr Fold has a large 6,000-mAh battery. It supports 80-watt wired charging and 50-watt wireless charging, so you should be able to quickly charge your phone, as well as 5-watt wireless charging.
The Z Fold 7’s 4,400-mAh battery is one of its biggest flaws — though it still managed to last me a full day in my testing. Still, I hope the next iteration will increase the battery, especially now that the Razr Fold is giving Samsung a run for its money on capacity.
Razr Fold vs. Galaxy Z Fold 7 processor and storage
The Razr Fold is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 processor, while the Z Fold 7 has a Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. Both can easily power the many AI features loaded into these devices, as well as heavy use cases like gaming or shooting and editing video.
The Razr Fold comes with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. The IZ Fold 7 comes with 12GB of RAM and 256GB or 512GB of storage; there is also a 16GB RAM option with 1TB of storage.
Both phones come with Android 16 out of the box. The IZ Fold 7 has Samsung’s One UI 8 overlay and seven years of software updates and security updates. Motorola also guarantees “7 OS updates and updates up to 7 years from the date of global launch.”
Which phone should you choose?
The Razr Fold looks like a promising option for anyone in the market for a new foldable phone. We haven’t tested the device, but our brief hands-on experience suggests the Razr Fold’s premium feel, sleek design and open displays would make it a solid choice.
The IZ Fold 7, which won a CNET Editors’ Choice Award last year, is a great option if you’re looking for a small foldable phone that feels like a regular slab phone when closed and has great cameras to boot.
We’ll have to see how these two foldable phones compare in the real world.
