Design
Lots of Motorola's devices feature a prominent hump on the rear top of the phone, and the V is no different. It feels like you are meant to put your fingers just under the hump so that you get even more grip, but the more I use the phone, the more I realize that it's just a way to keep the design great, and sticking ports, cameras and everything in one spot, out of the way. I like that.
The Razr is edgy - looking at it from the top you can see the 4 angled sides, and from there the top and bottom curve into another edgy looking back. The sides are more flat, which is nice because you can actually grip the thing. It isn't ridiculously thin like the original Razr - it has enough weight and thickness to it that it feels good.
The back cover isn't removable, and it has an interesting design pattern on the back with squares that make a V shape. Now I can understand why it's called the V.
On the left edge near the bottom is a hinge door that houses the SIM card and microSD card slots. To the right you find a very nice looking and feeling volume rocker, and everything else is up top. On the top part of the hump you get a power button on the right, headphone jack in the middle, and on the left is the microUSB port. On the rear of the bulge is the camera, LED flash, and speaker.
Overall it's a very nice looking phone, the sides are made of a soft-touch-ish plastic, but the back feels almost waxy. About the back - there were some imperfections when I first took it out of the box (a scratch, and there are some air bubbles forming under the waxy coating that are obvious manufacturer flaws).
Interface
I really like Motorola's UI (is it still MotoBlur or not?!), as it it mostly stock + more features (Motorola even went for the on-screen buttons). The lock screen is one addition Moto made over Google's own code - you have a volume/silent mode toggle in the top right, and 4 unlock options (phone, camera, texts, and unlock). I really do dislike always having my carrier name in the left notification area taking up precious room though.
Despite it's decent hardware, there is lag - sometimes major studdering. On the similarly specced Galaxy S 2, I didn't notice any major slowdowns. The V every once in a wile will cut down to frame every 10 seconds while typing on it (if you have multiple apps open in the background)...it is the first phone I've used that requires you to close apps. I thought android has come further than that :(
Usability
Battery life was quite good, here are my findings (3 random days I decided to take screenshots):
Day 1: 15h38m discharging time, 3h48m screen on time, 10% battery remaining
Day 2: 14h33m discharging time, 3h17m screen on time, 15% battery remaining
Day 3: 12h2m discharging time, 1h34m screen on time, 60% battery remaining
This is really good. I'd consider that pretty heavy usage, and it never died on me.
Day 1: 15h38m discharging time, 3h48m screen on time, 10% battery remaining
Day 2: 14h33m discharging time, 3h17m screen on time, 15% battery remaining
Day 3: 12h2m discharging time, 1h34m screen on time, 60% battery remaining
This is really good. I'd consider that pretty heavy usage, and it never died on me.
The gaming experience is good, COD Zombies ran acceptably smooth - frames were dropped, but I'd expect nothing less from a phone that cost $350. Shadow Gun Deathzone ran a little laggier, and I blame my poor K/D on the dropped frames. Especially in online multiplayer games, a hint of lag means you could die. This isn't the phone for advanced mobile gaming.
Other
The V is chugging along with android 4.0.4, with a "future plan coming soon", whatever that means...As far as ICS goes though, it is generally pretty smooth. Jelly Bean would be amazing though.
The vibrate on this feels much nicer than either the Galaxy S 2 or HTC One X - this is the first phone I've opted to leave haptic feedback on while typing.
Final Thoughts
The Motorola V is a decent phone, but I'd have a hard time recommending it. For an extra $50, you could get the Samsung Galaxy S 2. Or, if you can wait a month, the Nexus 4 is basically twice as awesome for the same price (though it's currently out of stock and has been for the last 2.5 months).
I'll give the Motorola Razr V an overall 7/10 (+battery life, screen, design. -frequent lag, slowdowns, occasional delay when interacting with the screen)
As always, fan-mail should be sent to qandandroid@gmail.com, and stop by either Twitter or Reddit to ask questions, get answers, and learn more about good 'ol Androidland (with the occasional other mobile OS).
As always, fan-mail should be sent to qandandroid@gmail.com, and stop by either Twitter or Reddit to ask questions, get answers, and learn more about good 'ol Androidland (with the occasional other mobile OS).
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