You can’t buy the highly anticipated Motorola Razr Fold yet, but I went hands-on with the upcoming foldable for the second time in as many months. That isn’t a humble brag, it’s a testament to just how long Motorola has spent teasing this phone. Motorola previewed its first book-style foldable at CES in January, then again at MWC in March, and once more this week at its own Razr 2026 series launch event in Los Angeles. If you’re tired of the drawn-out runway to the Razr Fold’s official launch date, I don’t blame you. I do come bearing good news — the Razr Fold is launching in the U.S. next month with a price tag that undercuts the Galaxy Z Fold 7.
The wait is finally (almost) over. Motorola’s Razr Fold will be the third competitor to the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 that North America desperately needs. It brings a taste of global foldable technology stateside, with a high-capacity silicon-carbon battery and an optional active stylus. The more I try it, the more I think the Razr Fold can successfully pull buyers away from Google and Samsung foldables.
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About this article: Motorola provided travel and lodging for its Razr launch event in Los Angeles. The company had no input in this article, and didn’t see it before publishing.
The Razr Fold finally has a release date and price
The teasers are over: you can really buy the Razr Fold next month
Credit: Brady Snyder / MakeUseOf
Motorola trickled out Razr Fold details over the last five months, including the phone’s core specifications. However, without the foldable’s pricing and availability details, it was impossible to put the Razr Fold’s offerings in context. The Razr Fold will go up against the Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 7, priced at $1,800 and $2,000, respectively. So, Motorola could get away with worse Razr Fold specs if it hit a more attractive price point, or go for dominant specs and target top-dollar pricing. Now that the figures are official, it’s clear the brand did a bit of both.
The Motorola Razr Fold will be available for pre-order May 14, 2026, with full retail availability coming a week later on May 21. The foldable will cost $1,899.99 at retailers like Best Buy and Motorola’s online store. Motorola ended up splitting the middle between the Pixel 10 Pro Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 7 in terms of pricing. The Razr Fold is $100 more expensive than Google’s foldable while slotting in at $100 cheaper than Samsung’s foldable. The price tag could look even more appealing if the next Samsung or Google foldables come with higher prices as a result of the industry-wide component shortage.
For now, though, the Motorola Razr Fold still has one more trick up its sleeve. It ships with 16GB of memory and 512GB of storage as standard. Meanwhile, you’d need to spend $2,200 for the 512GB model of the Galaxy Z Fold 7. If you wanted 16GB of RAM, only the 1TB configuration of the Galaxy Z Fold 7 offers it, so you’d be stuck spending $2,500.
Oh, and Motorola’s own newly announced Razr Ultra 2026 starts at $1,500. When you look at the smartphone market and how things are trending, the Razr Fold’s official price sounds competitive.
SoC
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5
RAM
16GB
Storage
512GB
Battery
6,000mAh silicon-carbon
Operating System
Android 16
Front camera
32MP external, 20MP internal
Dimensions
Open: 144.46 × 160.05 × 4.55 mm Closed: 160.05 × 73.6 × 9.89 mm
Colors
Blackened Blue, Lily White
Weight
243g
Charge speed
80W wired, 50W wireless, 5W reverse wireless
IP Rating
IP48/IP49
Stylus
Moto Pen Ultra (sold separately)
Release date
May 21, 2026
Main Camera
50MP, f/1.6
Wide-Angle Camera
50MP, f/2.0, 122˚
Cellular connectivity
5G Sub-6
Cover screen
6.6-inch LTPO pOLED, 165Hz, 1080 x 2520 pixels, 1B colors
Main screen
8.1-inch LTPO pOLED, 1B colors, 120Hz, Dolby Vision, HDR10+, 6200 nits
Telephoto Camera
50MP, f/2.4, 3x optical zoom
Audio
Dolby Atmos
Software Update Policy
7 years of Android OS upgrades
It’s the opposite of the Galaxy Z Fold 7
And here’s the thing: Motorola’s Razr Fold strategy just might work
The Motorola Razr Fold might be the best challenger to the Galaxy Z Fold line we’ve seen in North America. Don’t get me wrong, the Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold has a few things going for it, like inbuilt Qi2 magnets and IP68 durability. However, the overall performance and build quality leave a lot to be desired. Specifically, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is thick, heavy, and less performant than Samsung’s best. The Motorola Razr Fold has the potential to serve as a worthy alternative, at least in a few areas.
Motorola isn’t chasing specs, though. The Razr Fold’s 9.89mm thickness when closed and 243-gram weight won’t make this the thinnest or lightest foldable on the market. Motorola’s camera bump is even bigger than Samsung’s, and the Pantone Blackened Blue or Lily White colorways could add unnecessary thickness to the device. The point is that the Razr Fold will be the foldable you’ll actually want to live with, even if it isn’t the thinnest, lightest, or most powerful.
While the 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage are nearly future-proof, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 chip on the inside is a step below flagship-caliber.
Credit: Brady Snyder / MakeUseOf
It makes up for that with a fantastic 8.1-inch main screen with a 2K resolution. The cover screen is a satisfying 6.6-inch display with a quick 165Hz refresh rate. The Razr Fold’s screens are ever-so-slightly larger than the Galaxy Z Fold 7’s display panels, but both covers sport a 21:9 aspect ratio. The key feature is the one that Samsung unceremoniously removed from the Galaxy Z Fold 7: stylus support.
The S Pen Fold Edition was a staple on Galaxy Z Fold devices throughout most of the lineup’s history. That changed with the Galaxy Z Fold Special Edition, a Korea and China (rebranded as Fold W25) exclusive, which omitted the digitizer needed for stylus functionality for the sake of thickness. This change persisted with the Galaxy Z Fold 7 worldwide that officially axed S Pen support. By all accounts, the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 8 and future Samsung foldables at large won’t support active styluses either.
So, it’s notable that Motorola is launching a foldable with an active stylus just as Samsung is killing its own. Motorola’s Moto Pen Ultra is sold separately and costs an extra $100, and it’s the only solution for foldable users in North America wanting an active stylus. It comes with a USB-C charging case and all-day battery life. The pen is a little on the thin side and can only be inserted into the charging case in a certain way. Aside from those caveats, it seems like a great feature that could prove to be the Razr Fold’s calling card.
These 5 features make the Razr Fold compelling
There are 4 things about Motorola’s first big foldable that concern me
Credit: Brady Snyder / MakeUseOf
I’ve used Google and Samsung foldables as my daily driver in the past, but there’s something about the Motorola Razr Fold that excites me. There’s plenty to like, including the large 6,000mAh battery. I find that my Galaxy Z Fold 7 runs out of charge far too quickly, and the Razr Fold could change that. Throw in the 80W wired charging, 50W wireless charging, and 5W reverse wireless charging speeds, and there’s another feature Samsung and Google can’t match. Active stylus support, IP49 water-resistance, and Gorilla Glass Ceramic 3 on the front are other compelling aspects of Motorola’s foldable.
I have some concerns, too. Namely, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 needs to hold its own against Samsung and Google foldables to justify the price point. The thickness and weight also can’t detract from the experience too much. Finally, Motorola’s seven-year Android OS upgrade promise feels like a breath of fresh air, but it needs to actually deliver these promised updates on a timely and consistent basis.
If the Razr Fold can do all that, it’ll be a serious Galaxy Z Fold 7 competitor that costs $100 less.
SoC
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5
Storage
512GB
Battery
6,000mAh silicon-carbon
RAM
16GB
Operating System
Android 16
The Motorola Razr Fold is a formidable challenger to Google and Samsung foldables in the U.S., complete with a 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery and stylus support. It packs slick Pantone colorways and an 8.1-inch foldable OLED display. Plus, it can charge at a whopping 80W over a cable and at 50W wirelessly. You can pre-order it starting May 14, with full retail availability beginning May 21.
