Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: two clamshell giants compared

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is all about strong performance and great software. It's neither as pretty nor as bright as the Razr Plus 2024, but it's an undoubtedly future-proof handset.

For

• Durable design and more refined build
• Powerful performance and productive features
• Galaxy AI is pretty good, and getting better

Against

• Lacks innovative cover-display capabilities
• Battery life is below average and charging is slow
• IP48 protection does not mean it’s dust resistant

The Motorola Razr Plus 2024 lacks the sheer performance of its main competitor, but it boasts a superior design and much better displays. As such, it's arguably the better foldable, but not necessarily the better phone.

For

• Cool colors and a more durable design with vegan leather
• Larger cover display is brighter and more immersive
• Easy interface with useful gestures, not overloaded with features

Against

• New Moto AI features offer the same bigotry as other AI image generators
• Cameras are better, but still can’t match the best camera phones
• Performance lags behind competitors, especially the new Galaxy

Samsung used to have the compact foldable market all to itself, but after a strong showing in 2023, Motorola has become a problem. The Motorola Razr Plus 2024 (aka the Motorola Razr 50 Ultra) is definitely gunning for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 on features and quality, if perhaps not market share just yet.

So, how do these two stylish clamshell handsets compare? Which one would we recommend over the other? We’ve now had the chance to put both devices through their paces – check out our Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 review and Motorola Razr Plus 2024 review for the full verdicts – but if you just want to know which one to buy, and why, we’ve put together the following comparison piece.

After a brief run-through of the core specs, we’ll dive into each major area of comparison to see which of these foldable phones comes out on top. A word of warning: this is one versus where simply glancing at the final review scores for both phones doesn’t quite tell the whole story, so we urge you to read on for a detailed breakdown.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: specs comparison

Before we get to an in-depth breakdown of how these two phones compare, here’s a brief overview of their key specs.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: price and availability

Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 6 foldable landed on July 24, 2024 in the US and UK, and a week later on July 31 in Australia. Motorola’s Razr Plus 2024 arrived a little earlier on July 17 in the US and Australia, and on July 25 in the UK.

The latter two regions got the phone under the Motorola Edge 50 Ultra moniker, which is what it’s called everywhere but the US. We have no idea why this is the case. Can you imagine Apple, Google, or indeed Samsung calling its devices by different names in different regions?

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 starts at $1,099.99 / £1,049 / AU$1,799 for the entry-level model with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, while the top 12GB/512GB variant costs $1,219 / £1,149/ AU$1,999.

The Razr Plus 2024 only comes in a single 12GB/256GB variant, and it costs $999.99 / £999.99 / AU $1,699.

Motorola’s phone wins on pricing, then, with a $100 / £50 / AU$100 difference in its favor. However, Samsung gives you an extra storage option.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: design

These two phones conform to the same clamshell form factor. They’re two full-sized yet slim phones that can fold over at the halfway point, making them into a more compact yet obviously much thicker bundle.

At 165.1 x 71.9 x 6.9mm when open, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 is the smaller of the two in every way. There isn’t an awful lot in it though, with the Motorola Razr Plus 2024 measuring 171.4 x 74 x 7.1mm. Samsung’s phone is 0.4mm thicker when closed, though it’s also 2g lighter at 187g.

It’s in the fit and finish where these phones set out their differences. At a basic level, the Galaxy Z flip 6 is harder and more industrial-looking, with a flat, sharp-edged aluminum rim and a matte finish. There’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2 covering the whole of the external area.

The Motorola Razr Plus 2024 has a much warmer design, with a gently curved aluminum frame that flows into the cover screen and the back cover. The latter is made from vegan leather rather than glass, which makes it feel softer and grippier in the hand.

“Everything about the design is thoughtful and slick”, we noted in our Motorola Razr Plus 2024 review . This includes a more expansive cover screen (albeit covered in slightly weaker Gorilla Glass Victus) that encompasses the two cameras, rather than awkwardly cutting them off at an asymmetrical angle like the Galaxy Z Flip 6.

The Flip 6 undoubtedly feels sturdy, though, with a reinforced hinge design and a bolstered IP48 rating. That makes it more resistant to small physical items like hair and lint than the Razr, which has to make do with IPX8 certification.

All in all, though, the Razr Plus 2024 boasts a nicer, more inviting design than its rival.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: displays

Both of these foldable phones give you a pair of screens: one full-sized internal one, and one smaller external display for heads-up notifications.

In keeping with its slightly larger body, the Motorola Razr Plus 2024 goes bigger in both departments. Its inner screen is a 6.9-inch FHD+ OLED, while the Galaxy Z Flip 6’s equivalent is a 6.7-inch FHD+ OLED.

There isn’t all that much in it, but the Motorola also gives you an elevated 165Hz refresh rate to the Flip 6’s 120Hz. It feels a little like overkill if we’re being honest, especially with a need to conserve energy on such space-constrained devices. Still, an advantage is an advantage.

Motorola’s main screen also boasts a 3,000-nit peak brightness, which quite literally outshines the Flip 6’s 2,600-nit panel. The crease across the middle of the screen is way less pronounced on the Razr, too.

There’s an even bigger step-up with the cover screens. While Samsung’s phone gives you a 3.4-inch 720 x 748 OLED, Motorola goes with a 4-inch 1272 x 1080 unit. It’s both bigger and sharper, and together with a more uniform square shape and a faster 165Hz refresh rate (the Flip 6 is stuck on 60Hz), it’s simply a much nicer and more useful display.

“Once you’ve used it, with its dominating cover display, you’ll see that no other flip phone comes close,” our Razr Plus 2024 reviewer noted.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: cameras

Comparing any two compact foldable phone cameras is a bit of a joyless exercise, because the fact is none of them are particularly great. It’s simple physics: these flip phones need to cut down on internal components to fit everything into such a slim and awkward form factor.

That’s a problem, because space is precisely what good cameras require. It’s why flagship phones tend to have whopping great camera modules sticking out of the back.

The above is a crucial bit of context when comparing the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Razr Plus 2024 cameras. It’s not quite a case of ‘whichever one wins, we all lose’, but neither one is tearing up (or taking particularly good pictures of) trees.

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 makes one particularly meaningful improvement on its predecessor, adding a new 50MP main sensor to the package. We say ‘new’, but it’s actually the same sensor that the Galaxy S24 has, which wasn’t even a new component at its launch in January.

Don’t get us wrong, though, the Flip 6 can take good photos. It’s capable of grabbing vibrant, detailed snaps, especially in good lighting.

The Razr Plus 2024 also features a 50MP main camera, and the sensor is a tad smaller than its rival’s. It too captures good shots in decent lighting, though it does tend to punch colors up a little – just as the Flip 6 does.

It’s with the secondary cameras that the real contrast arises. The Galaxy Z Flip 6 goes for a traditional (and quite unremarkable) 12MP ultra-wide, while the Razr Plus 2024 makes the unusual decision to supply a 50MP 2x telephoto camera.

Your mileage may vary, but for our money, the Motorola path is the more interesting one, and also serves to bolster close-up portrait photos into the bargain.

We also reckon that Motorola does more interesting things on the camera UI front. From the twist-to-boot-up hand motion to the ability to set a shot timer (when it’s sat on a flat surface in a semi-folded position) by holding your hand up, Motorola has been very thoughtful here.

Motorola’s clever thinking is also evident when shooting video. The camera app automatically detects when you’re holding it folded and on its side, and implements a camcorder recording mode. Both phones top out at 4K/60fps video recording.

On the other hand, the Flip 6 does some interesting things with AI. For instance, it gives you the ability to sketch elements into a photo you’ve taken and have them turned into modified elements by AI – think birds in the sky or horns growing out of your buddy’s head.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: performance and software

The Galaxy Z Flip 6 has a clear advantage in the performance category. It uses a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipset, while the Razr Plus 2024 is powered by the objectively weaker Snapdragon 8s Gen 3.

Some explanation is required here. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 for Galaxy chipset is the regular Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, but with a higher clock speed to its CPU and GPU. Meanwhile, the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 is a cut-down version of the same chipset, with a lower clock speed for its fast core, a downgraded configuration for the slower cores, and an inferior GPU.

To boil it down to a sentence: the Flip 6 runs on a slightly faster version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, while the Razr Plus 2024 runs on a significantly slower version of the same chipset.

That said, we didn’t encounter any performance problems with either of these phones. They’re both fast and fluid, and both can run advanced games at full whack.

The only time we noticed a performance shortfall in the Razr was when executing AI tasks, at which point things became rather laggy.

Sealing the win for the Flip 6 is its additional storage capacity. While both phones give you 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage as standard, only the Flip 6 offers a 512GB storage option.

The software situation is… complicated. We’re generally bigger fans of Motorola’s clean and hands-off approach to Android than Samsung’s somewhat fussy tinkering. Sure enough, the baseline UI experience is still more pleasant on the Razr, with crisp icons, uncluttered menus, and clever gesture-based shortcuts.

Moreover, the Razr does way more with its cover display than the Flip 6. You can run more apps on it, including Google Gemini.

With that said, it’s the Razr’s implementation of AI that gives us pause. Samsung has gone big on AI with the Flip 6, as it has with the rest of its flagship phones, and it’s all pretty well integrated. Think real-time audio transcriptions, fluid translations that play on both screens to mirror a conversation, and a neat Sketch to Image system that brings your doodles to life; they’re all solid efforts.

The Razr Plus 2024, by contrast, has an AI wallpaper generator that spews out results that vary from monstrous to flat-out problematic. Check out our review for the full story.

One clear and unambiguous software win for the Flip 6 is the offer of seven years of major OS updates to the Razr’s three.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: battery

Both of these compact foldables give you a 4,000mAh battery, which is pretty darned measly by modern flagship phone standards.

Despite this shared spec, the Razr impressed us more with its stamina, lasting several hours more in our Future Labs tests. In practical terms, the Galaxy Z Flip 6 had trouble lasting through an intense day of usage for our reviewer.

Motorola’s phone also wins when it comes to recharging, with support for up to 45W wired charging versus the Samsung phone’s 25W. With that said, neither phone gives you a charger in the box.

Both of these flip phones support 15W wireless charging, so it’s all square on that front.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 vs Motorola Razr Plus 2024: verdict

We don’t think you’ll be disappointed with either the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 or the Motorola Razr Plus 2024. These are the two classiest compact foldable phones on the global market right now.

Their basic designs are much the same, though small details matter here. The cheaper Razr Plus 2024 is warmer and comfier to hold, while the Flip 6 is sharper, tougher, and slightly more compact. Motorola’s phone has the more impressive dual-screen provision, too, with a larger and more fluid main screen and a way more useful cover display.

It’s tricky to pick a winner in the camera department. Neither phone is amazing at photography, and it could come down to whether you prefer taking ultra-wide shots (in which case the Flip 6 is better) or zoomed-in shots and portraits (Razr for the win).

Samsung’s phone is clearly the better performer, and while its UI is busier, its AI provision is stronger. Some of the Razr Plus 2024’s AI implementation is baffling, to say the least.

At the end of the day, you’ll need to figure out which of these areas are priorities for you before deciding on which foldable phone to buy. There are several compromises with both the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Razr Plus 2024, as there are with every foldable right now, but both devices have the potential to delight the right person.

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