Razer Phone review
- L
- Liv
- 2pa
- 09 Sep 2019
I've had this phone for a year and I haven't had a single problem with it.
IMO the main reasons to buy this phone (at the time) were the sound quality, GUI responsiveness, stock Android, and the fact it looks different from other phones. These reasons alone make it a worthy contender for anyone, gamer or not.
Minor negatives (for my personal use case) are: battery life (with continuous screen usage), the lack of water resistance, poor camera app, keeping the speaker grills clean, and outdoor brightness. All of these aren't a major issue for me personally, I don't use the phone for long sessions, I installed a new camera app, always use clean hands, I don't tend to drop phones - let alone in water, and I rarely use my phone outside. Battery life could potentially be more of a major issue if you play games for extended periods.
The only major negative (for me) is the screen to body ratio. If Razer released a new phone the same size and shape but expanded the screen size by removing the speaker grills I would consider upgrading in preference to an iPhone or other Android phone. I really don't use the speakers enough to justify the lack of screen real estate, as excellent as they are. To keep the speaker grills with a bigger screen would make the phone too big IMO.
So I think it really depends on what your own phone usage and handling like, as well as your priorities in terms of features. Would I buy it now in 2019? Not personally, I'd buy a 2019 release phone. However it's certainly a viable option for those who prefer to save some money by purchasing an older phone.
- s
- s-pen pusher
- PMT
- 18 Jan 2019
4 months after purchase and the charger stopped working. 5 months after purchase the screen developed an issue, which i found upon research online that it is common with this phone- half the screen freezes and would not respond until you reboot the phone. 6 months after purchase the screen issue got worse and i had to press on the lower back of the device then reboot to make the screen work, which apparently indicates there is something loose inside (could be the lcd controller). tried to contact support for warranty claim but they want me to send the device to singapore and that it may take up to 4 months. tried to have it checked by razer authorized dealers here in manila but none of them would even let me demo the issue because their technicians said they are not familiar with the device. the screen issue is getting worse by the days as it is now happening several times a day, which forced me to order a pocophone f1.
i won't deny that this phone is great- the 120Hz refresh rate is amazing. really, i compared it with the asus rog phone that has 90Hz refresh rate and the games and scrolling on the razer phone is way smoother. i am not a gamer, so i had my friend who owns the asus rog i compared it with to test gaming on this, and he confirmed it is better than the rog phone. likewise, the front-firing speakers on this beast is the best sounding i have heard on a smartphone. however, this screen issue is a big letdown. i am still hoping this could be repaired locally here in the philippines, but several repair shops i have consulted refused to even open the phone. i was looking foward into buying the razer phone 2 by may or june this year, but i'm thinking twice now.
poco is my love for the meantime.
- ?
- Anonymous
- jaG
- 20 Sep 2018
I love this phone, since having this phone i was only able to update once and only update the apps (which i love). The performance on the phone is awesome!!!
- R
- Richard Moo
- PF5
- 14 Jul 2018
After 8 months of usage, my opinion and suggestion is to avoid this phone if you are unwilling to deal with the minor issues as this phone ages. First issue would be the fingerprint sensor, it works only 70% of the time, it is better off typing in the pass instead of waiting for it to read. 2nd issue would be battery life and temperature, 1/3 times this phone drains battery when idle very quickly and overheats very quickly when playing high resolution games. 3rd issue would be the 120Hz display. The display often have glitches where the bottom half turns blue for a second during Night Time mode, bad mark for Razer there. The 4th and most annoying issue would be the "gaming" processors. Even with 8GB of RAM and Snapdragon 835 under its shell, games with particularly 2D and basic graphics tend to lag, especially when the phone is warm. Overall opinion is there is some power to the device, but as it gets older, it starts to become human and turn weak.
- A
- Atazoth
- xj5
- 25 Jun 2018
As a Razer user Im very satisfied. I own and have nearly all brands from galaxies, 1+, xperias,htc, to acer, google, lumigon, nokia, apple ecc.., when talking gaming Razer is always Razer camera not bad its a matter of software, firmware gr8. screen is gr8, why you play in direct sunlight all phone s looks shitty in strong sunlight and when that happens it gets hotter to all phones thats goes crazy in sunlight, they get very hot so before you spit words try it then talk
- M
- Max
- vgM
- 03 Jun 2018
Rock, 15 Apr 2018Hi guys, I want to buy Razer Phone seriously but I want to ... moreEvery works accept outdoor brightness cuz its not amoled its ips lcd
- T
- Tiggerlator
- StU
- 25 Apr 2018
Overhyped, overpriced tat
- R
- Rock
- fjT
- 15 Apr 2018
Hi guys, I want to buy Razer Phone seriously but I want to know is that phone work as daily drive , battery life , out door screen brightness and camera and speed . All theses works perfectly???
- D
- AnonD-694451
- tx4
- 01 Mar 2018
Great JOB Razer!!
You really make a Modern Future Proof Phone by removing Jack 3.5mm
Less User Friendly is the future just like Apple vision of future
- D
- AnonD-740989
- tue
- 28 Feb 2018
wow
- ?
- Anonymous
- ibp
- 29 Jan 2018
I hope the next one retains the product design cues,maybe just fix the back lens' look and a bigger battery. Along with a same sized "junior" on a midrange SoC say a Snapdragon 660 class.
- ?
- Anonymous
- bxd
- 02 Jan 2018
AnonD-709343, 30 Nov 2017that 120Hz screen, great speakers and battery life! I`d st... moreSorry sir...this phone made for people who love gaming...not for people who love photography ok..chill :)
- D
- AnonD-333292
- M{A
- 21 Dec 2017
it says 4000mah, as in other places of the review.
- D
- AnonD-721991
- Ibx
- 12 Dec 2017
AnonD-709343, 30 Nov 2017that 120Hz screen, great speakers and battery life!
I`d st... moreFor God's sake raZer never announce the phone to be a DSLR replacement, its a gaming phone not a photographer phone. Its really smooth when i tried to play mobile legends or AOV. so why so haters thats what the phone supposed to do, for gaming
- A
- Any25
- KSi
- 03 Dec 2017
I need a quick favour, can the reviewer tell me if the USB DAC provided for the phone be used with a USB-C Port for other phone like Xperia XZ?
- D
- AnonD-709343
- f}x
- 30 Nov 2017
that 120Hz screen, great speakers and battery life!
I`d still choose U11+ for better camera& exceptional earbuds though.
- C
- Ching
- tZj
- 25 Nov 2017
Does it have Wireless Charging capability?
- D
- AnonD-625430
- gNR
- 23 Nov 2017
The Razer phone is a pretty good phone but has its own flaws. Gaming phone idea revived. I, very much like to play graphics intensive games on portable devices like smartphones. A phone meant for gaming, should've retained the 3.5mm jack. There are times when you don't want to use the loudspeakers when gaming or consuming multimedia. Bluetooth earphones require maintenance (charging and pairing with Bluetooth) which ain't the case with wired earphones. There's enough room considering the thickness. The dust collecting speakers are pain to keep clean and tidy. The bigger flaw is the battery life despite packing a huge battery. That's a trade off for the power hungry 120Hz Refresh Rate display. 120fps stuff is rare as well. Maybe dedicating the task to a dedicated power efficient chip to handle the display refresh rate, would have reduced the burden on the GPU and significantly improved the battery life. As far as gaming phone is concerned, any phone without hardware keys (like the Xperia Play) wouldn't qualify to be called as a gaming phone. There's a different feeling when gaming with haptic feedback from physical buttons. It's far superior to moving your fingers on the glass touchscreen during gaming sessions. Nevertheless, a good first attempt from Razer, despite all the shortcomings, especially for trying out the 120Hz Refresh Rate display. Hope the next iteration will come with better integration (power efficient) of the 120Hz refresh rate display, redesigned to be like the Xperia Play, and retain the 3.5mm Jack..
- T
- Trump Fan 1980
- qNg
- 22 Nov 2017
Trump Fan 1980, 13 Nov 2017 Is it just me, or did GSM Arena miss an opportunity to inc... moreI stand corrected.
- ?
- Anonymous
- RIG
- 20 Nov 2017
It's not an altogether bad outing here for Razer. The bulk of complains here can be solved via software updates, not so much on certain hardware bits obviously but still doable.
They're new and this was already planned as the earliest best possible 1st seed strategy after their Nextbit buyout. They can't just leave the part idling but such a relatively short time span we can't expect them to be able to completely catch up to the more entrenched OEMs.
Could have done a lot worst for a 1st product imho.