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Motorola's newest phones dethroned Samsung, and these 6 features prove it

Motorola's newest phones dethroned Samsung, and these 6 features prove it
Motorola's newest phones dethroned Samsung, and these 6 features prove it

In this galaxy, Motorola is making better phones.

For the past couple of years, I’ve had a brief but passionate love affair with Samsung foldables. That changed with the release of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, which disappointed me so much that I now own a Motorola Razr Fold instead. I’ve since discovered a surprising number of ways in which Motorola phones are simply better.

My phone shockingly has a better camera

Who expected to get better shots from a Motorola phone?

Camera lenses on the back of a Motorola Razr Fold.
Bertel King / How-To Geek

My Razr Fold has a superior camera to that of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 I left behind. In many regards, it's a better shooter than the Galaxy Z Fold 7 as well. The Z Fold 7 has a 200 MP main lens, joined by a telephoto that is only 10MP and an ultrawide that is 12MP. These lenses are smaller than those of the Galaxy S26 Ultra, despite the Z Fold 7 being a more expensive phone.

All three of these cameras are 50MP on my Razr Fold, which means I can take any kind of shot without suffering from abrupt drops in quality. This camera setup is the same one you find on the Motorola Signature, Motorola's flagship slab. That makes Motorola the only company in the US making a foldable whose cameras aren't compromised.

The effort has been noticed, with the Razr Fold camera taking the top spot among foldable cameras in DXOMARK’s listing while also scoring above all non-foldable Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel devices.

Motorola has figured out multitasking

It's far easier to juggle multiple apps

Three apps open side by side on a Motorola Razr Fold.
Three apps open side by side on a Motorola Razr Fold.

When I saw someone demonstrate the multitasking features on the Razr Fold, this almost single-handedly convinced me to buy the phone. You see, I use my phone as my PC. How well I can manage multiple apps plays a big part in how productive I'm able to be.

I have written before about how I manage app windows on an Android phone as though I were using a PC. I've also expressed how getting early access to Android's built-in 90:10 split feature was reason enough for me to download a beta version of Samsung One UI. Motorola goes a step further.

While it's unwieldy to juggle more than two apps on a Samsung phone, Motorola makes it very easy to switch between three. I can have three phone-sized apps open side-by-side and slide them as needed. If I need a larger view, I can expand the apps into a carousel where one app is nearly full screen and the edges of the other two apps are tucked underneath, making it easy to rotate between them.

Motorola has significantly faster charging

I do not stress over charging my phone

Razr logo on the back of a Moto Razer Fold.
Bertel King / How-To Geek

The first phone I used to replace my PC wasn't a foldable—it was the Moto Edge+ 2023, Motorola's most premium slab phone at the time. The thing I missed most about that phone when I switched to a Galaxy Z Fold 5 was the fast charging. Moto's phone could charge at 68W, while my Samsung phone could only charge at 25W, despite having over twice the sticker price! In case that's not bad enough, the Z Fold 7 has the same 25W max charging speed.

This difference meant that instead of topping up my phone in only 20 minutes, I had to wait closer to an hour. Motorola phones have only gotten faster since. My Razr Fold supports fast charging speeds of 80W. I can plug my phone in before taking a shower or having breakfast, and by the time I've finished, there’s a good chance I have enough charge to make it through the rest of the day.

My phone lasts much longer on a charge

All thanks to a significantly larger battery

App icons on the inner screen of an unfolded Motorola Razr Fold.
Bertel King / How-To Geek

Not only do I now charge my phone more quickly, but I go a longer period of time between charges. This is important, because I am far more demanding on my phone than most. After all, my phone is a work computer that I have open all throughout the day. Plus, as a foldable, the internal screen requires more power than that of a typical phone.

That's why it helps that this phone has a massive 6000mAh battery, larger than that of any Samsung phone. In fact, even if you buy a Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, your battery will still be smaller than that of a Google Pixel 10a, which is roughly 1000mAh less than the battery in the phone I’m writing these words on. My Z Fold 6 had an even smaller 4400mAh battery, which went unchanged in the Z Fold 7.

Motorola has fully embraced the stylus

My phone is still thin and retains Samsung’s lost Bluetooth features

A Moto Pen Ultra on top of an unfolded Motorola Razr Fold displaying a notes app.
Bertel King / How-To Geek

My foldable-based workflow depends heavily on having a stylus. I use mine comfortably for hours at a time, a feat I cannot manage with only my thumbs. It also helps me navigate desktop websites with precision.

While there is no way to slot a stylus into a foldable phone, I used to happily carry my S Pen around with me everywhere. Then Samsung ditched the S Pen with the release of the Galaxy Z Fold 7, removing the Wacom digitizer in pursuit of thinness. The Z Fold 7 has sold very well, so Samsung is hardly feeling intense pressure to bring the stylus back, even if the company is still working on it.

The Razr Fold supports an optional Moto Pen Ultra. Not only is the writing precise enough for my needs, but this pen comes with the kind of Bluetooth features that Samsung took away—such as using the stylus as a clicker when taking photos. A stylus isn't reserved only for Motorola's most premium phones, either. The Moto G Stylus is the most affordable phone you can buy that comes with one built-in.

Motorola has smarter gestures

These movements stick with you for life

The Quick Capture gesture on a Motorola phone.
The Quick Capture gesture on a Motorola phone.

Motorola has the best smartphone gestures in the business. All it takes is owning one Moto phone, and you will be chopping your phone to turn on the flashlight long after switching to a different brand where the feature does nothing. I rarely ever tap my phone's camera icon, because I can more quickly give my phone a double twist to take a photo instead.

My Razr Fold has baked another gesture into my muscle memory. I can now simply tap the back of my stylus against a table to capture a screenshot.

Samsung has some gestures baked into its phones and accessories like the Galaxy Watch, but I rarely ever use them. They don't function as consistently and, quite frankly, don't feel as nice to perform.

I ditched Samsung, and I have no regrets

As much as I loved my Z Fold 6, my Razr Fold is a superior device in nearly every way. I haven't even mentioned the ways in which Motorola Smart Connect is better than Samsung DeX for watching video or playing games. While I do personally miss the under-display camera and the way I could customize anything in a Galaxy phone using Good Lock, those are sacrifices I’m willing to make in exchange for all that I have gained.

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