The long anticipated release of the Droid RAZR has finally come… and I’ve been one of the lucky few to have one for the past few days. I’ve been running it as my daily driver (eschewing my HTC Sensation) and I’m extremely impressed.

Let me start by saying that I am not a fan of Motorola hardware. It’s been no secret that I’ve been an HTC fanboy for years, back to the WinMo 5 days. That being said… I really like the hardware on this device. Let’s run down the specs before we get into the meat of things:

• Form Factor: Touch Screen
• Software Platform: Android 2.3.5 (Gingerbread)
• Size/Dimensions: 130.70mm (x) 68.90mm (y) 7.1mm (z)
• Display: 4.3” 540×960 Super AMOLED Advanced
• Weight: 127g
• Processor: Dual-core 1.2GHz processor
• Battery: 1780 mAh
• Talk and Standby Time:  Up to 12.5 Hours Talk Time and Up to 8.5 days Standby Time
• Bands/Modes: CDMA800,CDMA1900,LTE B13 700
• Connectivity: 3.5mm, BOTA, Corporate Sync, DLNA, MML, Phone Portal, HDMI, USB 2.0HS
• Bluetooth: Stereo Bluetooth Class 2, Version 4.0 LE+EDR
• Messaging/Web/Apps:  MMS, SMS, Email (Corporate Sync, Google Mail, Push Email, Yahoo, GTalk), WebKit w/ Flash
• Camera:  8 MP, 1.3 MP P2P Video, LED
• Audio:  AAC, AAC+, AAC+ Enhanced, AMR NB, AMR WB, MIDI, MP3, WAV
• v10, WMA v9
• Video: Capture/Playback/Streaming, HD Video, H.263, H.264, MPEG4, WMV
• Storage & Memory: 1GB RAM x 16GB ROM, 11.5GB user available internal memory, 16 GB microSD card preinstalled
• WLAN  802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n
• Location Services:  aGPS (assisted), eCompass, sGPS (simultaneous), GLONASS
• Pre-loaded Applications:  MotoCast™, Google Mobile Services, Google Talk™

Verizon and Motorola have definitely created a stir with this device… and their pending lineup of Android devices.

The Form

This phone is big. And by big, I mean huge. It’s a bit wider and taller than the (already big) Droid X2 and Bionic. Despite that, this thing feels great in my hand. I’ll attribute that to this device living up to it’s name by being ridiculously thin. The “hump” near the top of the device where the camera is found doesn’t detract at all from the form.
For the majority of the device, it is 7.1mm thin… the top inch of the device doubles that.

Getting a device to the same size as Kate Moss isn’t easy, and a few concessions had to be made. First off (and likely the deal killer for a lot of people) the device is sealed. This means that there is no way to remove the battery and access the interior compartment. For myself, I don’t think this is that big of a deal as the only reason I would need in there would be to add an expanded capacity battery (which I’ve never done). I’ve done quite well with this device by simply managing battery usage manually.  SIM and Micro SD are placed into the phone via a tiny door on the side of the device.

The screen on the RAZR is a 4.3” 540×960 Super AMOLED Advanced PenTile display. PenTile has received a bad rap by a bunch of the reviewers, but honestly I’m digging it.

This screen has some amazing colors to it including some very deep black levels. Other colors are represented vibrantly and clearly as well… whites are very white, reds are very red. I don’t notice a bleed from color to color either… they are very distinguished. Physically, the screen is a large 4.3″ display… the same size as the Samsung Galaxy S II. Some people have mentioned that a screen this size is too large to navigate with one hand. Being “larger handed”, I haven’t experienced this… BUT I find the RAZR to be easier to hold in the hand and navigate with my thumb than the SGSII. I attribute this to the device being so gosh darn thin.

The front of the device is rounded out with capacitive navigation buttons along the bottom (Menu, Home, Back, Search), a 1.3mp front facing camera, proximity sensor, and LED notification light (YAY!!!).

On the right side of the device you’ll find the power and volume up/down keys located within easy reach of your thumb on your right hand or your index fingers of your left. Across the top of the device you’ll find the 3.5mm audio jack, micro USB, and micro HDMI ports. Personally I like them along the top as it allows the device to be easily operated while charging or being plugged into a display. On the left side of the device near the bottom you’ll find the itty bitty little door for the micro SD card and SIM.

I’ve saved the rear of the device for last as I think that this is where the RAZR’s hardware really shines. Holding on to such a thin device is aided by a rubberish carbon fiber looking panel on the back. Some may find the pad a bit unattractive, but I think it adds to the aesthetics of the device. Included in the “hump” near the top is a decent 8MP camera, LED flash, and external speaker. The camera seems to be very middle of the road (not good, but not terrible either)… look for an image gallery of pics taken with the RAZR soon. The external speaker is large and sounds decent when looking at the front of the device (say, when watching Netflix).

The Function

The Droid RAZR includes Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread at launch with Motorola’s “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Blur!” UI overlay. I’ve had a reputation for hating 3rd party UI’s… and that reputation is well deserved. However, Motorola’s UI has thinned out quite a bit since Gingerbread was released, and it really isn’t THAT intrusive. It is still miles better than the hell that is known as TouchWiz. My biggest complaint about it is the launcher, but that was quickly remedied by installing ADW EX by AnderWebbs.

The camera app that comes loaded is your standard Motorola camera… with the exception of allowing 1080p video recording. Again, look for a gallery in the near future showing off all of the camera features of the Droid RAZR.

The device navigates around the OS quickly and easily with no lag to speak of. Opening and closing the app drawer is smooth and launching apps is instant. The device behaves as a flag ship dual core device should, and definitely takes full advantage of the hardware contained inside. Having 1GB of RAM certainly shows while playing graphic intensive games.

However, the Droid RAZR isn’t perfect. Glaringly missing from this device is an NFC radio. I find the omission of this key feature to be very obvious given that Google has championed NFC and Google Wallet thus far, and there is still the pending purchase of Motorola Mobilty out there. This may not be that big of a deal, as NFC technology is still a year or two off before hitting the main stream (I think).

The Verdict

I like this device… a lot. It feels good in my hand, it is fast, and I love the screen. It is by far my favorite Motorola device thus far. While the device itself may be a bit large for those with smaller hands, I think that it being ridiculously thin may work for those stubby fingers. With proper battery management the sealed case is a non issue. Overall, I would give this device an 8 out of 10. It could do better by coming stock without Motorola’s UI, having a removable battery (this may become an issue when a hard-reboot is needed), and including NFC.

The real question though is if this is the device to purchase with the Rezound and Galaxy Nexus being released so soon. That’s going to be a matter of personal choice… but if you aren’t interested in a Samsung device, and if Ice Cream Sandwich doesn’t interest you yet… then this is a great device.

Stay tuned next week for my first impression review of the HTC Rezound!

PS: if you are looking to pick a RAZR up and are looking for a good deal, Amazon Wireless has it on sale for $111.11 (with 2 year contract).