Flashback: Motorola RAZR V3 - the little clamshell that could

24 November 2019
One of the most successful phones ever and yet it failed to keep up with the times.

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It's a nice phone for people who are too broke to buy today's flip phones. It can stop them from whining.

    • L
    • LizH
    • 4HB
    • 05 Oct 2021

    Lol. Yeah, they did. Thousands of bar type phones, before, during, and after the Razr

      • B
      • Brian
      • APC
      • 18 Feb 2020

      I just wish someone would invent a phone that is all one piece doing away with that sqeaky breakable hinge.

        • ?
        • Anonymous
        • 2Au
        • 26 Nov 2019

        Extreme_Boky, 25 Nov 2019Worst phone I ever bought. The hinge broke right after the ... moreHave you ever think about the warranty? If warranty runs out any phone manufacturer cant repair your phone for free. Is this the first time happen to your or shall I say common sense is not a common thing for you?

          • ?
          • Anonymous
          • K5@
          • 25 Nov 2019

          Droid razr family were forgotten

            • D
            • AnonD-731363
            • SH3
            • 25 Nov 2019

            Well to me this was the one phone with most sucessors.

              • V
              • V3re
              • MuJ
              • 25 Nov 2019

              This phone had more than 2 versions. I had V3re

                • E
                • Extreme_Boky
                • Xr0
                • 25 Nov 2019

                Worst phone I ever bought. The hinge broke right after the warranty period expired. I only used the phone to make a phone call every now and then and was not abusing it in any way. Motorola did not want to hear about it, they washed their hands clean despite the obvious product defect.

                Never bought a Motorola phone again.

                  • s
                  • s-pen pusher
                  • PMT
                  • 25 Nov 2019

                  Fayth, 24 Nov 2019nobody made a big deal when V3i didn't have headphone jack.... moreback then, phone manufacturers mostly use proprietary charging and audio ports. i was only a handful are using the mini-usb. the razr v3 is provided with a headset that plugs into the mini-usb port.

                    Had one, bought one cheap, new in 2008 with edge, drived by seeing how good it looked in Sopranos show :) Was great feature phone, had big gorgeous screen and still catchy design :)

                      • e
                      • evo
                      • NMv
                      • 24 Nov 2019

                      @kingslayer: same for me... Those were the golden years!

                        My RAZR Story

                        The RAZR was released in November 2004 for $600 on Cingular first. I remember going on Phonescoop to check out all the phones. At the time in 2004, Wi-Fi wasn't a thing for alot of people yet. I didn't even know what Wi-Fi was until getting my Sony PSP phat in June 2005. And it was still only on Wi-Fi "b" which was pathetic.

                        So many of us weren't browsing the web on our phones yet and social media was only big on our desktops and laptops. We were all simply excited about taking VGA photos from our dumb phones. My interest was mostly on flip phones / clamshells because I loved hearing it close and the overall designs were better than the Nokia candybars at the time. Especially the Motorola flip phones which looked sexy.

                        So 2005 happens and I see RAZR everywhere. Everyone has it. One of my co-workers had one. I didn't see the big deal because my $400 Motorola V600 was similar and was released 6 months earlier. Just happened to be chunkier but the design was amazing for its time other than the top hinge scratching itself everytime we opened and closed the phone. Moto added a rubber strip on mine but it still scratched.

                        I hear many say the RAZR was their first phone. It wasn't for me. The Audiovox 9155, Qualcomm 1960, Nokia 3310 (AKA 3360 on Cingular), Nokia 3595, Sony Ericsson T616, Sanyo 5500, and Motorola V600 came before it. So my black V3 was my 8th phone I ever used. And like I said before, I wasn't in love with it. Software was buggy. Battery life felt shorter. Felt boring to use.

                        The original RAZR had a removable battery. Most phones came with it before 2007-2008. Even the Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 had it. Shame this new one isn't like that. The og RAZR didn't have 3.5 mm headphone jack. Most phones around 2004-2006 didn't have it. The RAZR 2 V8 and V9 had a 2.5 mm if I recall correctly. So I didn't do much multimedia with phones pre-iPhone / pre-App Store.

                        In 2006 when I went to London, Paris, and Spain or in 2007 when I went to New York and the Philippines, the gadgets I always brought with me were my RAZR, iPod (5th gen), and PSP. Among those three, my personal favorite was the PSP only because it had an external speaker that my iPod didn't. I also began hating iTunes around that time because it kept crashing my Windows desktop.

                        I actually owned two black RAZRs. The second one came from my mom because the RAZR I got was from a BOGO deal in 2006. I lost my first one for years not knowing it fell on the side of a reclining chair in our personal home theater. I used the one my mom had because she already had a silver one only a few months prior in late-2005.

                        Back then, I only used my phone to make calls and texts. My Sony VAIO laptop was my main porn and social media machine. So I use the V3 for about two years but I was having iPhone envy throughout 2007. I think getting my RAZR was bad timing. I regret never getting the Sony Ericsson W810 which had a music player and auto focus or K890 with Xenon flash instead.

                        I felt like buying the RAZR was re-buying my V600 with a different, far thinner shell. If I had to rank all 34 phones I used for a considerable time (at least one month), the RAZR wouldn't even rank in my Top 20. So why am I so excited about this Razr when I never cared for the original like other people do? It's not like I'm driven by its nostalgia. Because I have a fondness for flip phones. I wouldn't get into the phone hobby like I did over 15 years ago without them.

                          There is nothing wrong reliving 2004 again. I started my phone hobby / addiction in 2004. I didn't visit GSM Arena until 2004. I loved the years of 2003-2005. I remember that time I was working as a Pizza Hut driver or in some office and had a Thai girlfriend with natural D cups. Good times...

                          Nov 2003 - Bought a Sony PlayStation 2
                          Dec 2003 - Bought a Microsoft Xbox
                          Jan 2004 - Bought a Nintendo GBA SP and GameCube
                          Jan 2004 - Bought a Sony T616 (d got addicted to phones)
                          Feb 2004 - Bought a Sanyo SCP-5500
                          May 2004 - Bought a Motorola V600
                          Nov 2004 - Went to the Philippines
                          Dec 2004 - Registered for Friendster and MySpace
                          May 2005 - Went NYC
                          June 2005 - Bought a Sony PSP
                          Most of 2005 - Frequently visited SoCal theme parks
                          Oct 2005 - Bought an Apple iPod (5th gen)
                          Nov 2005 - Went to Europe for the first time
                          Dec 2005 - Got addicted to watching LOST
                          Feb 2006 - Bought a Motorola RAZR V3
                          June 2006 - Went to Paris and London
                          Sept 2006 - Got into NBC's Heroes

                          Throughout 2004, me and my gf went to Vegas frequently. Attended it back to back (2004 & 2005) for New Year's Eve. Got her into horse racing. From Dec 2004 - April 2006, me and her attended many Clippers games.

                          Throughout 2005, went to theme parks because we were season pass members, still were into horse racing, and watched plenty of summer movies that year. Actually saw Revenge Of The Sith three times that first week (midnight, digital, IMAX).

                          Throughout 2006, YouTube became big and MySpace was the social media site to go to for Americans before Facebook and Twitter took over. From 2003-2005, I also visited Tijuana alot with friends and family. Zona Norte, baby. Was recently there just two months ago after not going there since 2009.

                          I have fond memories of that time. But I actually do prefer the current times I'm living in (2017-Present). Far less stress when no gf is around and I have more money to spare for myself.

                            • ?
                            • Anonymous
                            • mcB
                            • 24 Nov 2019

                            In school everyone watched this phone not teacher.

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • uvG
                              • 24 Nov 2019

                              Anonymous, 24 Nov 2019I still love my graphite V3i I've bought in 2007 and used i... moreAmazing
                              Today's Chinese lasts 1.5 years

                                • ?
                                • Anonymous
                                • nD%
                                • 24 Nov 2019

                                Motorola RAZR V3 - the little clamshell that couldn't - there I fixed your title

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • asx
                                  • 24 Nov 2019

                                  SG75, 24 Nov 2019Why didn't you mention about V3x?V3x didn't look similar to V3 (apart from name) - was clamshell but completely different design, much thicker

                                    • F
                                    • Fayth
                                    • r@s
                                    • 24 Nov 2019

                                    nobody made a big deal when V3i didn't have headphone jack.
                                    why complain when Apple remove it

                                      V3i, 24 Nov 2019Had a v3i used it for years. But these phones had a major i... moreThere was Motorola modding community, which would have helped you out just like XDA.

                                        V3i had EDGE (2g) modem, though Motorola didn't gave Edge connectivity. But edge connectivity could have been unlocked by SEEM edits. We were able to increase iTunes songs limit to 100. Thanks to Motorola modders. I miss those good days.

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