The Challenge
The Droid Bionic was the first 4G LTE phone on Verizon. It sports a 1GHz dual core processor coupled with 1GB of RAM and runs on Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. The Droid RAZR, touted as the world’s “thinnest 4G LTE smarphone” by Motorola, is a major leap forward. It has got all the goodies that the Bionic has in a thinner form factor. Coupled that with an industrial design, a stainless steel core and Kevlar backplate and its an evolution altogether. But is it worth spending that extra 100$? Or for current Bionic owners, is it worth exchanging? Read on to find out:
1. Screen size
Both the Droids sport a 4.3 inch qHD display. The difference lies in the technology being used. While the Bionic sports an LCD panel, its elder brother sports a Super AMOLED Advanced display. AMOLED’s are known to consume lesser power and produce truer blacks. Both the displays sport a pentile matrix. The RAZR would probably have a better edge here due to its AMOLED display type. The RAZR puts the Bionic’s display to shame. To put it simply, its brilliant.
Winner: Droid RAZR
2. Software
The Droid Bionic hums along a 1GHz processor. The RAZR on the other hand has got a 1.2GHz processor. Both the phones sport a dual-core processor, just that the clock speed is different. The Droid brothers run on Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. Motorola has promised an upgrade to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich for both the devices. Gingerbread itself runs on a not-so-Blur UI. The Droid RAZR meanwhile, has got fancy animations and 3D effects to take advantage of the PowerVR SGX540 GPU sitting inside it. Considering that the RAZR will be the first to get an upgrade to Ice Cream Sandwich, it is one step ahead.
Winner: Droid RAZR
3. Price
The Droid Bionic retails for 200$ on contract and 590$ without it. The Droid RAZR goes for 300$ and 649$ off contract. The RAZR’s thinner (7.1 mm thin) and lighter as compared to its older brother. The RAZR’s got HD video recording (720p) on its front camera. The RAZR has a stainless steel core, a splash guard coating and a Kevlar backplate. So is it worth spending the extra 100$ on the RAZR? YES! Also the RAZR will be one of the first devices to receive the update to Ice Cream Sandwich, when Motorola releases it.
Winner: Droid Bionoc
4. Camera
The Droid brothers sport the same rear camera. It’s an 8 megapixel shooter with 1080p full HD video recording capability along with an LED flash. The camera takes decent shots outdoors with nice color reproduction. The pictures do look over-saturated in the RAZR’s AMOLED display though. The Droid Bionic and the Droid RAZR sport a front facing camera as well. The Droid RAZR goes one step ahead and the front facing camera is a 1.3 megapixel one as opposed to a VGA on the Bionic. Apart from this, there is really no difference between the camera of the Droid Bionic and Droid RAZR.
Winner: Droid RAZR
5. Target audiences
The RAZR is an evolution over the Bionic. Its got the same SoC ( OMAP 4430) and the same radios even. The real story of course is the incredibily slim (7.1mm) profile and the new industrial design that Motorola is trying its hands on. The Bionic feels extremely thick (11mm) after holding the RAZR. Motorola is touting the Droid RAZR as the world’s “thinnest 4G LTE phone” and they’re damn well right about it. The Bionic, when it was launched, was deemed to be incredibly thin for an LTE phone and now the RAZR defeats it by a huge margin.
Winner: Droid RAZR
The verdict: Winner
Its probably clear by now who the winner is. The Bionic would’ve been a great phone had Moto NOT released the RAZR so early. And now the Droid RAZR (and its international sibling the RAZR XT910) is taking the 4G LTE world by storm. The Droid RAZR is a fitting revival to the iconic RAZR brand. Its incredibly thin and loaded too. With a OMAP 4430 1.2GHz processor and a PowerVR SGX540 GPU along with 1GB of LPDDR2 RAM, its a beast! For people on the lookout for a new phone, its very well worth the upgrade. For current Bionic owners, its probably not justified getting this RAZR but its definitely worth it.