Motorola has launched what we think is one of the most exciting foldable phones so far in the Razr 40 Ultra (also known as Razr+). With it, you get great, clean software but with plenty of Moto tweaks to keep you entertained if you’re happy to dig around the software.
If you’re keen to find all the ins and outs, read on. We’ve listed sixteen of our favorite little tips and tricks that we’ve found super useful, or just plain delightful. Some of these will apply to both the Razr 2023 and Razr+, while others are specific to the Razr+ (40 Ultra), due to them using the external cover display.
1. Retro Razr Mode
For some people, the Razr is a nostalgic reminder of the original Razr flip phone from the early 2000s. And – because Motorola knows that – it added a bit of an easter egg to the software. You can get the interface to look exactly like the original Razr.
Drop your quick settings from the top and tap the pencil to edit your panels. Now scroll all the way down until you find one that says ‘Retro Razr’. Drag and drop it into your quick settings toggles and go back to your home screen.
Now drop the quick settings and find the Retro Razr toggle when you placed it. Tap it, and it’ll launch into software that looks like the old Razr. You can use it too, getting access to messaging, contacts, phone calls, settings, the internet and Bluetooth. You can even use the keypad to manually dial a number.
2. Double twist to launch the camera
Motorola has a number of gestures and shortcuts enabled by default, and one of those is the ability to launch the camera with a quick double twist of the phone. All you have to do is to quickly turn the phone twice, and the camera will load. It’s really handy when you want to use the exterior screen to take a selfie with the main cameras.
If it isn’t enabled on your phone, just open Settings and find ‘Gestures’. Under ‘Kinetic Gestures’ you should find one that says ‘Quick capture’. Tap it and then toggle on quick capture.
If you want to change which camera launches, because you’d rather use the internal selfie camera, tap ‘Settings’ at the bottom and on the next screen choose ‘Front’, or choose ‘Auto’ and it’ll select the selfie camera when the phone’s held in portrait, and the rear cameras when in landscape.
Motorola Razr 40 Ultra
The Razr 40 Ultra (Razr+) is Motorola’s latest foldable phone, and has a huge external display, clean software and great battery life.
3. Tap the back to screenshot, or launch any app you like
Like a lot of modern phones you can enable a shortcut that activates when you tap on the back of the phone twice. By default, it launches the voice recorder, and it works whether you’re using the phone open or when it’s closed.
If you want to change it so that it takes a screenshot, plays/pauses music, or launches Google Pay (or any other app) you can. Just head to Settings> Gestures again and find ‘Quick launch’, select it and make sure it’s toggled on in the next screen.
Tap ‘Settings’ at the bottom and choose which action you want. For screenshots, select ‘take a screenshot’. For Google Pay just choose ‘Open app’ at the bottom and choose ‘Google Wallet’. Now when you double-tap the phone it’ll launch that shortcut or app.
4. Change your cover screen panels
Moto’s external display can be customised quite a lot, and one way to change it is to choose which panels appear when you swipe through the full-screen panels. You can toggle off the ones you don’t want, and even change the order in which they appear.
Open Settings> External display and now choose ‘Panels’. Toggle the ones you want, and then long press and drag the panels at the top to change the order around.
5. Full-screen apps on the cover screen
You can launch most apps on the cover screen, and you can have them either only fill the portion of screen above the cameras, or stretch to fill the entire screen. Not all apps are compatible with full-screen mode, but to switch between views you can just tap and hold the little bar at the bottom of the app view on the cover screen. Or, you can launch the recent apps view by swiping up and then tapping ‘full screen’ under the app you want to fill the screen.
6. Switch the phone off from the cover screen
If you haven’t got your power button enabled, you can switch the phone off from the external display by swiping down to show the quick settings sheet and then tapping the power button in the top corner. Now select power off or restart.
7. Three-finger screenshot
Another gesture in the Moto’s arsenal is the ability to take a screenshot simply by touching the screen with three fingers at once. It should be enabled by default, so just touch the screen with three fingers simultaneously, hold for a second and it should work. If not, check in the settings to make sure it’s enabled.
Head to Settings> Gestures again and find ‘Three-finger screenshot’. Switch it on. If you want to disable it, switch it off.
If you find yourself accidentally taking screenshots in some apps, you can add them to an exceptions list by tapping ‘Settings’ at the bottom of the three-finger screenshot screen. Now tap the pencil button on the next screen and select any apps that you don’t want the three-finger screenshot to work in.
8. Bring back the power button
Like so many modern phones, what used to be the power button by default is now an assistant button. To bring back the power button, go to the Gestures settings again and find the ‘press and hold power button’ option. Toggle off the ‘Hold for assistant’ option and now when you press and hold the side button it’ll launch the power menu instead and you can shut down or restart your phone.
9. Use volume buttons to skip music tracks
One more interesting feature in the Gestures list is the ability to use the volume buttons to skip tracks in your playlist or album. If you go to Settings> Gestures and then ‘Media Controls’ and toggle on the switch, the volume buttons become track-skipping buttons when the phone is in standby.
To use them press and hold the volume up button to go to the next track, or press and hold the down button to go to the previous track.
10. Scramble your PIN pad
This is an unusual – but useful one – Motorola lets you scramble the numbers on the PIN pad that appears when you unlock the phone, so they’re not in the standard order and switch around each time. The idea is that if someone sees you keying in your number and sees the position of the buttons, they won’t be able to get it correct if they try to copy it.
To enable it go to Settings> Security and Privacy and then tap the cog next to ‘Screen lock’. Toggle on the option that says ‘PIN pad scramble’.
11. Add a calculator shortcut to your quick settings
One feature we find super useful isn’t all that exciting, but it does give you quick, easy access to the calculator. And that’s adding it to the quick settings toggles in the drop-down shade. To do it, drop your quick settings and tap the pencil to edit your controls. Find the calculator one and drag and drop it into the sheet. Now you have a quick toggle that takes you straight to the calculator.
12. Use live preview in any app
When you open the camera app – by default – it launches the Live Preview feature which uses the exterior cover screen as your monitor. If you want to, you can also enable it to work in any other app that uses the camera. That means if you want to take a picture using the front screen while using WhatsApp, Messenger or any other chat app – as an example – you can.
To enable the feature just open Settings> External Display and then find ‘Live Preview’. Make sure it’s toggled on at the top and select ‘Manage apps’ at the bottom of the screen.
Choose the apps you want to allow access to the feature. Now when you open that app and launch the camera to take a picture in the app you can tap on ‘Live Preview’ on the screen and then it’ll activate the screen on the phone’s cover.
13. Hands-free selfies
There are two ways to take hands-free selfies on the Razr: you can either hold your palm up to the camera, watch the countdown and then pose – or you can enable smile detection.
With either method, you can place the phone down at an angle, point it at yourself and then snap a photo without having to touch the screen or any buttons.
To enable it, go into the camera app and open settings by tapping the little cog in the corner. Now choose ‘AI Settings’ – make sure the ‘Gesture Selfie’ is enabled for the showing your palm method. If you want to use the smile detection, toggle on the option that says ‘Auto Smile Capture’.
14. Show a cartoon to prepare your subject for a photo
One unusual feature is a cartoon that animates on the exterior screen to indicate to your subject that you’re about to take a photo. To enable it, open the camera app and fold the screen to push the viewfinder up to the top of the screen.
You’ll now see additional toggles appear below the preview. Tap the one that looks like a rectangle with four right-angled lines (one on each corner). This launches the live preview, tap it again, and you’ll see a smiley face appear in the icon. This means the cartoon animation is enabled.
15. Take a selfie and a photo at the same time
Motorola’s phone has a dual capture mode that lets you take a photo from the selfie camera and main camera at the same time. Just open up the camera app, find ‘more’ and choose ‘dual capture’ from the grid. Now you’ll see the view from both sides of the phone.
Once appears in the small rectangle window, the other takes up the screen. If you want to change which is which, tap the arrows in the circle icon on the bottom corner of the thumbnail. You can also move this thumbnail just by dragging it anywhere on the display. You can also change it so that it’s a 50-50 split by tapping the little icon in the bottom corner that looks like a tiny rectangle inside another rectangle.
16. Use Photo Booth mode
One last camera tip: Photo Booth. This lets you take four photos at three-second intervals, just like a photo booth. Open the camera, tap ‘more’ and choose ‘Photo Booth’ from the sheet. Now hit the shutter button, wait for the countdown, pose, and then repeat three more times.
So there you have it.. 16 tips to try on your new futuristic flip phone.