New Razer phone with 120 Hz refresh rate- Thoughts?

[thejunglegod]

Why would they want to launch a gaming centric phone? And the focus seems to be on the refresh rate since they're launching one with a 120Hz display. Is that even going to make any difference? What kind of mobile games are going to benefit from such a high refresh rate? AFAIK, there aren't any. Thoughts?

Brief specs (Leaked):
5.7" display
120 Hz refresh rate
Snapdragon 835
4000mAH battery
8GB RAM.

 

[MarkizSchnitzel]

Maybe they want to be "ahead of the curve", and experienced, once/if it DOES become a thing?

 

[XavierMace]

Razer makes really shiny looking products that have a habit of failing far quicker than their competitors and their new stuff is usually flaky. That would make me REALLY hesitant to buy a phone from them.

I could see the refresh rate being a marketing point if they're aiming for VR usage.

 

[Red Storm]

Unless they have some new app/service to show off that let's you play PC games on your phone, I don't think anyone cares about a Razer phone.

 

[Oyeve]

Whats really funny is the THX certification.

 

[thejunglegod]

I could see the refresh rate being a marketing point if they're aiming for VR usage.

Hmm yes. I kinda forgot about VR and how it is supposed to be the new fad amongst smartphones.

Unless they have some new app/service to show off that let's you play PC games on your phone, I don't think anyone cares about a Razer phone.

Exactly. I don't even understand the point of calling it a "gaming phone". Nobody really games on their phones unless it's some silly stuff to "pass time". Nobody plays FPSs on their phones.

Whats really funny is the THX certification.

For the laptop right? Please don't tell me that their phone speakers are going to be THX certified.

 

[shortylickens]

Razer makes really shiny looking products that have a habit of failing far quicker than their competitors and their new stuff is usually flaky. That would make me REALLY hesitant to buy a phone from them.

I could see the refresh rate being a marketing point if they're aiming for VR usage.

My current two razer mice are both well over 10 years old.
Are you sure about your data or are you just repeating something you saw on the interwebs?

 

[XavierMace]

My current two razer mice are both well over 10 years old.
Are you sure about your data or are you just repeating something you saw on the interwebs?

I've had, I don't know, 6 Razer keyboards, 3 mice, 2 game pads. Maybe more. Mostly ones at the higher end of their product lines.

 

[tsupersonic]

My current two razer mice are both well over 10 years old.
Are you sure about your data or are you just repeating something you saw on the interwebs?

I have a Deathadder that I bought three years ago is still going strong with daily use. I have doubts on smartphones (especially Razer) as they typically have a shorter lifespan than computer hardware (for me anyways). It'll be interesting to see this device

 

[Rifter]

My current two razer mice are both well over 10 years old.
Are you sure about your data or are you just repeating something you saw on the interwebs?

Agreed, i also have 2 razer mice that have been in service for over 10 years.

 

[thilanliyan]

I have a Death Adder and one of the xbox gamepads...still work fine after years of use. I've also heard of their stuff falling apart but can't say I've had that experience.

 

[Commodus]

So the Razer Phone is official.

To summarize, the rumors were basically right: 5.7-inch 120Hz screen, 8GB of RAM, Snapdragon 835, 4,000mAh battery and some big honking front-facing speakers. It's shipping mid-November for $699, which isn't spectacular but is certainly a solid price for a phone with a novel display.

My main beef: outside of the 120Hz screen and speakers, it's not too much to write home about. If you don't care for either of those, you could get a better deal out of the Essential Phone or OnePlus 5 (or rather, the OnePlus 5T). It's for avid mobile gamers and the sort of people who buy Razer-branded everything.

 

[Sable]

they at least have the right idea with PUTTING THE BIGGEST DAMN POSSIBLE BATTERY IN YOUR PHONE THAT YOU CAN!!!!

 

[JustMe21]

If it had a removable battery I would seriously consider it and if it had a regular headphone jack, I would definitely get it, but since it has neither, it's a pass. The speakers on the front are nice as is the inclusion of an SD card slot since so many companies skip these nowadays. I also like the large battery as well. At least they aren't doing curved screens or glass backs.

 

[Yakk]

I could see the refresh rate being a marketing point if they're aiming for VR usage.

Phone VR is generally ok, but phones get really warm rendering at full speed, I could only imagine that little 835 trying to feed 120 fps in VR...

You be sweating cause it's going to get hot... And plugged in cause the battery won't last long.

 

[Insomniator]

I like the battery and speakers, and i'm kind of sick of everyones' iphones and galaxies.

We'll see, maybe it'll bomb and I can get a good deal on one!

 

[XavierMace]

Agreed, i also have 2 razer mice that have been in service for over 10 years.

Deathadders?

I have a Deathadder that I bought three years ago is still going strong with daily use. I have doubts on smartphones (especially Razer) as they typically have a shorter lifespan than computer hardware (for me anyways). It'll be interesting to see this device

I have a Death Adder and one of the xbox gamepads...still work fine after years of use. I've also heard of their stuff falling apart but can't say I've had that experience.

Yeah, the Deathadder was considered to be one of the best mice they ever made. It was also one of the simplest (which isn't necessarily a complaint). No wireless, no multicolor lights, limited button count. In other words, not much to fall apart. The Xbox game pads were hit or miss. I had one last about 3 months, the other still works. The non-slip finish on both my Lycosa's wore off much faster than comparable Logitech keyboards. My Deathstalker Ultimate was a never ending stream of software/firmware frustration. The original Naga was decent, but the buttons still failed faster than on either of my G700s's.

Phone VR is generally ok, but phones get really warm rendering at full speed, I could only imagine that little 835 trying to feed 120 fps in VR...

You be sweating cause it's going to get hot... And plugged in cause the battery won't last long.

I haven't done any sort of extended sessions with my S8 but I can't say I've felt it get uncomfortable.

 

[thejunglegod]

Why did these guys have to remove the headphone jack as well? I mean, just because Apple did it, everyone else has to too? This fad HAS to stop.
Honors to Samsung and LG for still keeping that headphone jack. Personally, I would never buy a headphone with no jack since I know the difference between the audio qualities. Even with high end Jabra wireless headphones, the quality is nowhere near comparatively cheaper wired headphones.

 

[Yakk]

I haven't done any sort of extended sessions with my S8 but I can't say I've felt it get uncomfortable.

Depends on the app for my S7. Watching a movie doesn't tax it much and won't heat it up, but a badly coded game can bring it to thermal throttling about 45-60 minutes in even with Samsung's really nice backless headset.

 

[Rifter]

Deathadders?

One deathadder and one Lachesis.

 

[mnewsham]

Whats really funny is the THX certification.

Didn't they purchase THX?

Yea just checked, they bought THX last year.

 

[dawheat]

I like that it's differentiated compared to most other Android flagships and the price IMO is reasonable. Trying to take on Samsung or Google at their own game would be very hard (e.g. Essential) nor do you want to try to compete with Chinese budget phones. Finding a niche is a good move and clearly they feel it's large enough to be successful.

High refresh screen, massively better speakers, huge battery, tons of RAM - if they can get game makers to take advantage of these, I can see this being reasonable successful though it'll never challenge the giants for pure volume.

 

[Yakk]

High refresh screen, massively better speakers, huge battery, tons of RAM - if they can get game makers to take advantage of these, I can see this being reasonable successful though it'll never challenge the giants for pure volume.

Take advantage of what and how? Years ago Nvidia tried their gameworks exclusivity lock-in with Android and failed. Plus most apps are initially designed for iOS then ported to Android anyways.

 

[quikah]

Are there any good games that I would even want to play to justify this device? Good games to me means PC/Console level quality, games on my phone are things I do to kill time, none of them require much horsepower.

 

[Ravynmagi]

More people trying to make interesting new smart phones sounds like a good thing to me. I'm getting bored of the Samsung Apple duopoly on phones (in the US anyway).

I remember Razer trying to make wearable "gaming" fitness trackers a few years back. I still have my Nabu X in a drawer some where.

I think the 120Hz display is interesting. Some of the hands-on have mentioned it does make the phone feel smoother even outside of games. I have an iPad 10.5 Pro with 120Hz display and it does help even outside of gaming. I imagine games will benefit from it too. Yes, Android does have plenty of fun action, FPS, fighting style games that would look good with a nice display.

I like good front facing speakers. Not sure about that speaker grill, seen comments that it's a dirt/lint/sand trap.

The heatsink is built into the aluminum body of the phone, so the whole device is a heatsink for the phone. That should help alot with gaming and VR. Though I wonder if cooling the SOC will come at the expense of burning your hands?