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Motorola appears to have hinted at the return of the popular Razr name. Speaking at MWC 2018, Motorola’s CEO Yang Yuanqing hinted at the name’s use in future foldable phones, suggesting that more innovation will come to Motorola hardware while also referencing foldable smartphone designs. Furthermore, Yuanqing expressed hopefulness that a Razr lineup would be “developed or realized very soon.” This doesn’t confirm that Motorola has plans to launch a new phone with the Razr label attached to it, but it does tease that it could be a possibility.
These comments come after the CEO previously told CNBC last year that the Chicago-based company shouldn’t rule out the return of the phone and also follow a pretty successful run by HMD Global’s Nokia brand. After all, the Finish brand has seen considerable success with resurrecting iconic names, with the original Nokia 3110 being relaunched last year, and this year’s MWC also seeing the debut of a new generation of the Nokia 8110, or “banana phone” as it has often been nicknamed. Taking this into account, alongside the popularity of the Motorola brand, it would make sense for Lenovo to take a page out of HMD Global’s book to further grow the brand’s popularity. Nonetheless, if the comments by Motorola’s CEO are anything to go by, the company is likely taking the potential launch with extreme caution. After all, the company will need to be sure that its new product lives up to the original’s name, hence the focus on foldable phones. The Motorola Razr name is associated with the company’s iconic flip phone that debuted back in 2004 and considering the Lenovo-owned brand is working on new foldable phones, these could potentially act as spiritual successors to the traditional flip phone format, allowing them to capitalize on both the name and its associated heritage without tarnishing the brand.
Motorola is yet to confirm any official Razr products, with its current focus being on its upcoming Moto lineup. More specifically the launch of the Moto G6 series, which will see the announcement of a regular variant alongside the cheaper Moto G6 Play and the more expensive Moto G6 Plus, all of which will debut new glass designs and taller 18:9 displays, which means bezels will be reduced to a minimum.