The Razer Phone 2 is not your everyday, regular phone, in much the same way the Razer Blade is not exactly a conventional laptop. On the surface this might sound like a straight-out praise, but in reality, there are many facets to such a device and more than one way to approach it.
One thing is certain, however, just like its predecessor, the Razer Phone 2 is different. With its gaming-centric, yet subdued design, its focus on function over form, and its paradigm-shifting 120Hz IGZO display, the Razer Prone 2 is a unicorn of sorts. That analogy actually works very well. For some, it's going to be the perfect fit - the phone they have been waiting for. Though, the overwhelming majority won't really feel comfortable riding around on a mythical horned horse.
In fact, one of the biggest direct rivals Razer currently has in mobile gaming is itself and the original Razer Phone. Hence, the other way of examining the Razer Phone 2 and probably the most logical one - as an upgrade to the original. Externally, hardly anything has changed between the two when it comes to the overall design and the impressive IGZO display. In this regard, it's actually easier to think of the Razer Phone 2 as a hardware refresh (in PC terms), more than anything else.
In keeping with its premium image, Razer once again opted for lavish packaging, done in thick black cardboard, plenty of padding and a soft-touch finish.The Box is noticeable smaller this time around, but you still get a pair of thick, premium braided cables - one being the Type-C to 3.5mm audio dongle, while the other a Type-C to Type-C charging and data cable. That makes Razer one of the few to actually adopt and ship a cable with the new connector on both ends.
Naturally, that means that the included charger also has a Type-C port. It easily covers the Quick Charge 4+ spec, putting out 18W and even beyond. Razer actually rated it for 12V@2A as well. However, before you get too excited, you can't really charge the phone with that much power and the output is simply there to power Razer's new Qi wireless charger, also rated at 12V@2A for input. Presumably, all that RGB goodness in the charger needs the extra juice.
In many ways, the Razer Phone 2 constitutes a rather unique design offer. That's if you ignore the original Razer Phone. This is really shaping up as a recurring theme in the review, facts are facts. Dimension-wise, practically nothing has changed. The Razer Phone 2 still employs the same industrial "metal slab" design, complete with mostly straight lines and edges and an all-black, muted, stealth-jet-fighter-like appearance.
That is a double-edged sword right there. Just like the design of the gaming PCs isn't up to everyone's taste, the Razer Phone design definitely won't hold a universal appeal on the smartphone market. Now, the PC gaming scene might not be our usual forte, but we kind of know who we are dealing with here and will gladly admit that calling yourself "the world's leading lifestyle brand for gamers" unironically, is kind of off-putting for many, in itself.
If we had to pick one headlining feature on the Razer Phone 2, it would definitely be the RGB Chroma logo! In fact, we would have preferred a second logo on the front of the device instead of a display. Joking aside, the Razer Phone 2 has a truly unique display. Again, unique with a sibling twist, since the original Razer Phone has pretty much identical display tech.
In keeping with "PC master race" traditions, the screen in question has plenty of titles and figures to throw around: ULTRAMOTION, 120Hz, IGZO, Wide Color Gamut. As far as familiar metrics go, it is a 1440 x 2560 pixel panel, with a traditional 16:9 aspect ratio, which works out to a very sharp 513ppi. Razer's justification for sticking with the traditional aspect, instead of going with the trendy 2018 extra-tall display crowd is content consumption. There is something to that, since most video content is, indeed, still delivered in 16:9 aspect ratio and that's unlikely to change anytime soon. Plus, if you really care about your in-game frame rates, then the last thing you would want is rendering extra pixels on the sides of the image.
Just like its predecessor, the Razer Phone 2 is pretty well equipped in the battery department. 4,000 mAh is plenty of juice to go around. However, that stunning, high-refresh rate panel draws quite a bit of power. In fact, so much so that the original Razer Phone ended up being very crippled in terms of overall battery endurance.So, with its new, higher brightness, the Razer Phone 2 must be even more power-hungry, right? Well, Razer shifted some things around and did its best in the optimization department.
The new Razer Phone 2 clearly fairs better in this respect than its predecessor. That being said, however, it doesn't necessarily get more Screen On time out of a full charge. Playing back a 1080p, h264 video still drains the battery in just about seven hours which is subpar. Wi-Fi browsing time has seen some improvement, but that is more than likely due to Qualcomm optimization on the newer Wi-Fi radio, combined with Android and Google Chrome software improvements.
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