Motorola's Legendary RAZR Flip Phone Is Making a Comeback (engadget.com) 135
An anonymous reader shares an Engadget article: The year was 2004, and Motorola had just announced what was then an insanely thin flip phone, the RAZR V3. It was -- and still is -- a head-turner, and eventually over 130 million units were sold in total. Such were the glorious days of Motorola. Twelve years later, the now Lenovo-owned brand appears to be prepping a relaunch of this legendary model, according to its teaser video of a nostalgic walkthrough at a high school.The teaser is available on YouTube. Nice of Motorola to try doing something different from most of its rivals. However, a flip phone -- with a tiny display and those buttons (assumption) -- may not have much of practical case in 2016.
I preferred the RIZR myself (Score:2)
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One big advantage of a flip-phone is built-in screen protection for when you have it in your pocket with other objects potentially.
I never used a flip-phone back in the day, because the audio quality was lower than candy bar handsets (because of the thinner speaker diaphragms needed to fit the thin earpiece area) and lower battery life (because the body didn't have to fold in half, a candy-bar could have a much longer battery cell on the back).
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Old people (Score:1)
those over 30, want a phone not a tease box iPhone.
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Hipsters will snatch these up like they're going out of style.
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New part of the hipster uniform --
Muslim-style beard
Thick, black glasses
Flip Phone
You forgot:
skinny jeans (black, of course)
plaid shirt (the kind your grandad owned)
vinyl LP (carried ostentatiously under the arm)
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And a dog. Which they take everywhere - supermarket, kids' playground (even if the don't have kids), swimming pool.
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Don't forget the fixed gear road bike
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...and cans of Pabst Blue Ribbon carried in a bag made of hemp.
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skinny jeans [and] plaid shirt
Not sure; I don't follow hipsters, but the plaid shirt revival has been pretty mainstream for at least four years now, and while I'm not sure about jeans specifically, the "skinny trousers" thing- generally chinos- seems to already have been and gone at least a couple of years back.
(Ditto "I'm W.G. Grace, motherf****r" beards, which every man and his dog have been sporting for years now, and thick-rimmed glasses which have become a common if not ubiquitous look among mainstream-thinking-they're-hipster fe
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I'd have assumed that actual hipsters- who stereotypically hate things as soon as they go mainstream- would have dumped them before that, even if it's the stereotypical "hipster" look.
You're correct in that all of those things have been around for ages, but the defining element of hipsters is that they combine all of those things at the same time to form their signature look.
As a friend of mine said, "They want to be different, just like everyone else!", and the irony wasn't lost on me.
Hipsters want to be different and edgy and unique, yet their consistency of style is as close to a uniform as anything I've ever seen. Hipsters are no harder to spot in a crowd than clowns or Air Force off
Re:Old people (Score:5, Funny)
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like they're going out of style
and they will, really fast.
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You'd like to give your senile grandma a simple phone. What they call a phone doesn't have a screen. The thing is there are far better choices. At&t advertises the SpareOne Emergency Phone for this reason.
Re:Old people (Score:4, Interesting)
Well, yes, because battery life trumps everything for us.
What I'd really like is a flip phone with a replaceable battery that can also serve as a mobile access point.
Re: Old people (Score:1)
Sounds about right. Then I can use whatever tablet I want when I want and still just carry the phone when I'm going light.
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Well, yes, because battery life trumps everything for us.
Sounds like you want an Android phone. In Ultra low power mode you can make and receive phone calls, text messages, and you get close to 2 weeks battery life.
Best of all push a button and you get your mobile accesspoint, just don't expect the battery to make it through to the end of the day while doing so.
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That's indeed what I have, but (a) ultra low power mode doesn't allow you to use it as an access point, (b) you can't swap out batteries to ensure network connection and (c) it's actually inconvenient to carry a large converged device AND a tablet.
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Sounds like a bad choice of device. There's no reason android devices need to be large, and there's no reason android devices don't have swappable batteries. Shop around a bit.
But yes you won't get a mobile access point while in low power mode on any phone I've seen.
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Well, there was that 'kid' in the video with an '06 varsity jacket on. Is 28 old enough?
Might make a splash with those who've had enough. (Score:5, Interesting)
I'm tired of being distracted every minute of the day, and tracked endlessly by everyone.
I'd think about one. And take the battery out when I don't want to be tracked at all.
Re: Might make a splash with those who've had enou (Score:2, Informative)
I just switched back to using an old Nokia dumb phone, I have an ipad mini with 4g when I want data on the go. It's kind of a nice combo really
Re: Might make a splash with those who've had enou (Score:5, Interesting)
I have a samsung convoy 3 and an ipad 2. I need my phone to work as a phone more than anything else.
Verizon is planning on retiring their 2g and 3g networks in 2020-2021 yet its 2016 now and afaik they do not have a single dumb cellphone that works on their 4G network.
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Why do you need a dumb phone when you need a phone to work as a phone?
What's important to you, calls and battery life? Most modern android handsets come with ultra low power mode that give you all the features of your dumbphone including the multiple week battery life, and best of all if you get in a pickle where only the mighty internet can help you then you have access to that again at the push of a button.
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What's important to me is that the hardware is small enough to not be distracting in a pocket, and that it's not vulnerable to the dings and dust of outdoor work. Hence I use a $12 flip phone. It has decent battery life and does the job, and if it does get busted it's cheap to replace.
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Well that's disappointing.
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Well, everything here is just speculation. It *could* be a stylish 'feature' phone, it could be an android flip phone with number pad, it could be something more exotic and unique. It could be nothing more than a marketing video prodding Millennials to remember when Motorola was *the* hottest thing (to the point of being Apple's go-to-market strategy for mobile at one point).
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I wouldn't be disappointed yet. Considering Lenovo has produced nothing but a teaser I would have to say [citation needed] before declaring this to be a flip android smartphone.
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I hear phones are starting to have RFID strips and readers in them; If so that makes it possible for a connected/powered phone to record when it walks by a phone w/o battery in it; and I suppose relay the phone w/o batteries position/ID.
Best phone shape ever made, imo the motorola Droid3 xt862... slide out 4 row keyboard, USB, HDMI, removable battery and microSD slot.. The hardware was buggy forcing reboot every 24-96 hours but the perfect shape.. Would pay a fortune for the same "phone" with x86 processor
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In all seriousness, I'm still using the RAZR V9 I bought years ago. The outside display has a dead spot in it just over one of the touchscreen buttons (this damage is recent), and the outside glass is cracked, and the rubber coating recently peeled off the battery cover, but it still works fine as a phone, and that's all I need. I still can't justify the expense to purchase or operate a smartphone, especially with what a swisscheese they are so far as security goes. I'd welcome
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"By the way, if the government wants to track you they can do it without a phone."
Sure, but why not force them to do it the "hard way" via boots on the ground and with a valid *specific* court order?
It's a little bit like having an "expensive" computation as part of an encryption routine: if tracking an individual is "expensive" then it will only be used when absolutely necessary, which in my opinion is a good thing.
I'll give you a use case (Score:2, Interesting)
My mom wants a cell phone that has decent battery life, makes and receives phone calls, is thin and nothing else. She loved her old Razr. Take a guess what she'll want when she sees this?
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I'd agree but, assuming this thing isn't as dumb as the old phone (it'll probably be running android), it's probably going to have just as shitty a battery life as any other android phone, possibly worse.
If they manage to do it right, I'll be tempted to get one, but I won't hold me breath.
Re:I'll give you a use case (Score:5, Interesting)
Strictly speaking, simply running Android doesn't mean it *has* to be the smartphone we all know and hate.
Japan, for various reasons, caught on relatively late to the smartphone craze and has had a number of flip style phones that you'd swear are BREW, and look pretty close to the late-model LG feature phones (Voyager, etc) circa 2010, but actually use an Android OS -- simply without all the Google stuff actively on top of it.
One example: http://www.kyoex.com/sharp-504sh-aquos-keitai-android-5-1-flip-phone-unlocked/ [kyoex.com]
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I use my Galaxy S1 as a dumbphone (2G standby only, no data/wifi/bt/gps), and get about 7-10 days from a charge. With the original 5 year old battery.
If you want better, the Xperia Z3 Compact gets 38 days of 3G standby (according to Sony).
You want battery life, then don't use the extra "smart" functions that drain the battery.
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How about you get any android phone with an ultra low power mode function. Then at least she can have everything she wants, and on the off chance that she may be stuck somewhere and need to do a quick google she has that ability too.
Consumers want "small" phones ! (Score:2, Insightful)
My Palm Pre was perfect, but I cannot buy a decent phone like it any more.
Why do manufacturers refuse to make capable "small" ( i.e. non-phablet, 4" or smaller screen ) phones ?
The Sony Z3 Compact is almost the only player in this area, I do not understand why.
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How about the Samsung S3 mini?
It is not a modern small phone. It is mostly just an old phone.
The screen resolution is several generations behind flag ship (800x480).
The OS is stuck at 4.x, two generations below current.
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What was lost (Score:2)
What I liked most of mine (Palm Pre and HP Pre3) wasn't as mush the size as the physical keyboard and the wonderful card-based/touch-based UI.
(apparently so good that even iOS and Android are currently attempting pale copies of it).
I dont appreciate the Android UI, it mostly reminds me of a cluttered windows desktop (with dozens of icon).
Jolla's SailfishOS (different kind of cards, and another way to do touch-based UI) is the closest thing to come nearly webOS's UI's usability.
(My main gripe is that it stil
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WHat about the iphone SE?
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Yes, because my definition of phablet has not changed over the years, while the sheeple's definition has.
If a phone does not fit comfortably in a normal hand, it is a phablet.
5" phones do not fit comfortably in a normal hand.
Touchscreen? (Score:2)
Why not add a touchscreen? For that matter, make the keypad a touchscreen too. Now that would be a head-turner.
Legend has it... (Score:4, Insightful)
There was a time when several generations of people lived with phones that had no screens at all. In fact, some of those people still walk among us, although they may move more slowly than they once did.
There are some people who prefer to use a phone just for talking (and, strange though it may seem, listening). Sure, they skew older, but you're kind of dumb to overlook the segment completely.
Re:Legend has it... (Score:4, Informative)
>"There was a time when several generations of people lived with phones that had no screens at all. In fact, some of those people still walk among us,"
You must be REALLY young. Just without screens??
There are quite a few people walking around (and just fine too) who for many years had NO CELL PHONES AT ALL not just as children, but as adults. Yep. I had even graduated college before having one of those new-fangled, talk-only, screenless, pocket cell-phones.
Imagine a world where you really could be untrackable and unreachable. Where you had no constant beeping or messages. Where there were no distractions while you were thinking or reading or lounging. Where you could eat dinner out without annoying phones ringing and text tones, and people taking photos of you without your permission. Where you could have a conversation, in person, with someone... without being rudely interrupted several times yourself or by them looking at a stupid device. Where you could drive a car and reasonably expect that other drivers were paying attention to only the road. It existed.
In some ways it was bad. In others, it was quite good.
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I think you missed the point of the post you are replying to. How you got more upvotes than he did I will never understand.
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No, I don't think I miss what he said or meant.
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OK, I see your point. I was thinking in only the context of cell phones.
Consider it admitted :)
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You must be REALLY young. Just without screens??
...
Imagine a world where you really could be untrackable and unreachable. ... Where you could drive a car and reasonably expect that other drivers were paying attention to only the road. It existed.
You must be REALLY naive then. People stopped paying attention to the road as soon as they had anyone else around, or lipstick or razors or a crossword or a billboard... arguably the biggest lesson cars can teach us is that people are really distractible when doing incredibly dangerous activities that have become mundane.
In some ways it was bad.
Yeah, like the whole being out of touch in emergency situations thing...
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Oh, you're good. Just dangling the notion of "untrackable and unreachable", ideas that will appeal to some modern readers. If you'd instead started talking about "telephone cords", everyone's eyes would have glazed over, and you'd have lost them.
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Oh, that is very true. But the cell phone perfected it and made it 10 times worse than all those other things combined.
Battery Life (Score:2)
Um.. the Razor was the iPhone of it's day (Score:1)
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Well, we just have to see what in the world they are teasing (if anything). One *hopes* that if they are trying to declare a device as game changing as the RAZR was, they have something meaningfully interesting up their sleeve rather than something simply banking on nostalgia. Some technology is possible to make some interesting things, will see if motorola returns to leadership and actually releases something first.
I'll take one (Score:3)
My old black Razr V3 still works fine but the main reason I don't use it anymore is the crappy, weird headset connection. Give me a new model with a 3.5mm headset jack, sell it to me unbranded & unlocked & I'll take it.
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I had a V3xx with that wacky "through the USB port" headset. I wished it had a 3.5mm jack because it had a fairly nice MP3 player for the time.
Yeah it has bluetooth...really the V3xx has bluetooth (and 3G), but back then stereo bluetooth headsets with reasonable quality sound for music were more pricey than they are now.
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Yeah it has bluetooth...really the V3xx has bluetooth (and 3G), but back then stereo bluetooth headsets with reasonable quality sound for music were more pricey than they are now.
All of those phones have shit bluetooth. I had a couple different RAZRs towards the end of their existence, V300 and V500 before that. All of them skipped while playing mp3s via bluetooth, and only via bluetooth (not via wired headset) where my newer phones all do fine.
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My colony's Motorola Razr v3t as well as 2/2015, until we got iPhones.
Making a comeback? Really?!??! (Score:4, Insightful)
I still use my original RAZR flip phone. So original in fact that it was pre-GPS chip (and yes, they do exist). It amuses me when I pull it out and use it and other people see it. And then I point out al the advantages:
1. Its smaller and lighter than smart phones
2. I don't have to charge it every day
3. I can (and do) drop it onto hard surfaces with the only worry being trying to find where the #@$%# battery cover bounced off to
And sure I could have a computer in my pocket, by why do I need one when I have 5 computers in arms reach and sit in front of one most of the working day? I also have a dedicated GPS in my car.
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Razr v3 was the best phone I've ever had - great form and function.
Light, durable, easy to carry, a nice feel in your hand. Just a nice piece of engineering.
I haven't used it in years but its still sitting here ready to go - it makes me question my move to other devices, and makes me a bit sad, every time I catch sight of it.
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Yes. The kind of people who are still in highschool mentally or physically. It's a great two way filter.
Can Nokia Bring Back The 7110? (Score:1)
The RAZR was good, but for me the most iconic phone has been the Nokia 7110. The thrill of pressing the slide release button was simply unrivalled. The almost dangerous speed that the spring loaded slide came down at clearly said "I'm the boss" to everyone around. Never has answering a phone been so exhilarating.
While the slide was the main feature, lets not forget the two tone colouring that changed between green and magenta depending on the viewing angle. It was also the first phone with WAP, so you c
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The RAZR was good, but for me the most iconic phone has been the Nokia 7110. The thrill of pressing the slide release button was simply unrivalled. The almost dangerous speed that the spring loaded slide came down at clearly said "I'm the boss" to everyone around. Never has answering a phone been so exhilarating... At least give us a phone with a slide so I can once again feel the pure exhilaration of pressing that slide release button. I need that in my life!
If they're smart, they'll do something like this for the 20th Anniversary release of The Matrix.
Holy sh*t, we're old.
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Time ghost:
https://xkcd.com/1393/ [xkcd.com]
But it was the earlier Nokia 8110 that was in the Matrix, not the 7110, which came out in '99.
I'd rather see ... (Score:4, Interesting)
a slider phone with:
Touchscreen, bigger than the n900
Full QWERTY
Unlocked bootloader
u-boot
Large removable battery
With all the usual sensors and IO
As open a firmware stack as possible for the RF.
FPGA for encryption/decryption
Re:I'd rather see ...illeagal (Score:4, Informative)
Having an open RF stack is illegal for a licensed transmitter. The FCC does not allow any changes at all to the conditions to which the device was approved. Small changes can be made via a class 2 permissive change, but allowing you, the user access to change the RF properties is very illegal.
And with good reason too. You would be surprised to know how much damage to a network just one fucked up phone can cause.
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Open RF Stack ! = Changes to the conditions to which the device was approved.
Open means that you can see the source.
Changes means modifying the binary installed in the device after approval.
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Every mobile phone I've ever used had a removable battery. Motorola, Nokia, AT&T, etc. But then I've never stooped to owning an iPhone.
It was good enough for Captain Kirk (Score:2)
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"The only problem is they can't use common proprietary methods of communication."
There is so much wrong with this sentence, I don't even know what to write...
If this is what they're doing... (Score:2)
Bring back flip phones (Score:1)
Yessss... Tired of soap bar touch screen phones.
Down side is flip phones will kill the aftermarket repairs for cracked gorilla glass screens on soap touch screen phones :)
I'm still using a flip-phone (Score:2)
I have a laptop, a camera, and a GPS, all of which are better stat wise than any smart phone. When I leave the house you can get a hold of me still, but I'm not distracted by my addiction to trolling Facebook political pages. Having the internet at every waking moment is often more of an inconvenience than it's worth, and if I REALLY have to look something up it can usually wait until I get home. The only thing I don't like about it is that everyone just assumes I'm poor, but with a hipster marketing cam
I owned one, and it was great (Score:2)
I owned one of these and it was great a great phone for its time. I still have it in a box somewhere.
It had a slick marketing feature in the box design- you pulled a tab on the box and it unfolded up and back, popping the phone up like it was the Hope diamond. The box design probably sold a bunch of them all by itself. You'd pull the tab, the phone would pop up, and people would go, "Ooooh!"
It was a good phone too, slim, durable, and worked great.
Would buy (Score:2)
If it supports 3G/4G global standards. I'll be losing my (original) RAZR when AT&T drops 2G equipment later this year. I don't need all the garbage that iPhone/Androids have. Particularly with that 'must have data plan' bullshit that carriers pull with 'smartphones'.
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Garbage (Score:2)
Submitters can't write, and the editors can't read.
may not have much of practical case in 2016. (Score:1)
(doesn't anyone speak english anymore?)
SubjectIsSubject (Score:2)
I have one at home next to my desk (Score:1)
I'll buy one if it's really small... (Score:2)
If you're carrying a tablet anyway... (Score:2)
The hardware was good but the software was junk (Score:2)
I did a brief stint doing software development for Motorola back when the original RAZR was considered "state of the art" and without revealing any company secrets, I can tell you the software stack that ran on those things was garbage and a pain in the ass to work with.
Lets hope any new RAZR runs on a sane software stack.
Samsung Gusto (Score:2)
I carry a Samsung Gusto flip phone, and have for several years now. It does what I need it to do quietly and efficiently. I have to take a laptop and hot spot with me everywhere to cover for work so I don't need, or want a smart phone. I have an in car GPS system, and work pays for the laptop and hotspot so I do quite well with a small well protected flip phone in my pocket.
http://www.samsung.com/us/mobi... [samsung.com]
The RAZR was the worst phone I ever owned (Score:2)