{"id":972,"date":"2018-02-01T18:21:56","date_gmt":"2018-02-02T00:21:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/?p=972"},"modified":"2018-02-01T18:21:56","modified_gmt":"2018-02-02T00:21:56","slug":"the-razer-phone-a-monstrous-review-for-a-monstrous-phone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/?p=972","title":{"rendered":"The Razer phone &#8211; A monstrous review for a monstrous phone"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-961\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/razer_phone_standard_edition-254x300.png\" alt=\"razer_phone_standard_edition\" width=\"254\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/razer_phone_standard_edition-254x300.png 254w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/razer_phone_standard_edition-127x150.png 127w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/razer_phone_standard_edition.png 410w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 254px) 100vw, 254px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I have spent several\u00a0months with this phone as my daily driver.\u00a0 And while I normally take more than a few months before I make a review about a product of this magnitude, I can honestly say, that I don&#8217;t need that long of time with this phone to give my comprehensive thoughts on this big, fat slab of metal.<\/p>\n<p>The word monstrous in this context means\u00a0extremely and dauntingly large.\u00a0 And unless you have hands that are freakishly large, this phone is going to be big, clunky and dauntingly large.\u00a0 This isn&#8217;t the largest phone made, but if you are coming from a &#8220;normal&#8221; sized phone, then this will be monstrous as soon as you get it out of the box.<\/p>\n<p>And with those happy words, it&#8217;s time for the review.<\/p>\n<h1>The Specs<\/h1>\n<h3>The Size<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Length &#8211; 158 mm (6.24 in)<\/li>\n<li>Width &#8211; 77.7mm (3.06in)<\/li>\n<li>Depth &#8211; 8mm (0.31in)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">Processor<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Qualcomm\u00ae Snapdragon\u2122 835<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">System Memory<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>8GB dual channel (LPDDR4, 1866 MHz)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">Storage<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Internal: 64GB UFS<\/li>\n<li>External: microSD (class 10, 2TB maximum)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">Display<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>120 Hz UltraMotion\u2122 screen with\u00a0Wide Color Gamut (WCG)<\/li>\n<li>5.7-inch IGZO LCD 1440 x 2560<\/li>\n<li>Corning Gorilla Glass 3<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">Rear Cameras<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>12MP AF \u0192\/1.75 Wide<\/li>\n<li>12MP AF \u0192\/2.6 Zoom<\/li>\n<li>Dual PDAF (Phase Detection Autofocus)<\/li>\n<li>Dual tone, dual LED flash<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Front Cameras<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>8MP FF \u0192\/2.0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Electric Juice<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>4000 mAh lithium-ion battery<\/li>\n<li>Qualcomm\u00ae Quick Charge\u2122 4+<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>The Sound<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Stereo Front-facing speakers<\/li>\n<li>Dual Amplifiers<\/li>\n<li>Audio Adapter with THX certified DAC<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Wireless<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>802.11 a\/b\/g\/n\/ac<\/li>\n<li>Bluetooth 4.2<\/li>\n<li>NFC<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 class=\"text-white text-24 text-thin\">Bands<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>GSM: Quad-band GSM UMTS: B1\/2\/3\/4\/5\/8<\/li>\n<li>LTE: B1\/2\/3\/4\/5\/7\/8\/12\/17\/19\/20\/25\/26\/28\/29\/30\/66<\/li>\n<li>TDD LTE: B38\/39\/40\/41 TD-SCDMA: B34\/39<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h1>Review Time<\/h1>\n<p>As I did in my Initial thoughts article <a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/?p=960\" target=\"_blank\">(here)<\/a>, I&#8217;m going to break this review down into 5 sections. Plus add a miscellaneous part and then a conclusion.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Build quality<\/li>\n<li>Screen<\/li>\n<li>Speakers<\/li>\n<li>Battery life<\/li>\n<li>Camera<\/li>\n<li>Miscellaneous<\/li>\n<li>Conclusion<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>But unlike my Initial thoughts article, this will be a lot more in-depth and have a lot more information.\u00a0 So sit back and grab a drink, because here we go.<\/p>\n<h2>Build Quality<\/h2>\n<p>I have spent a lot of time with a lot of different phones over the years.\u00a0 And build quality is just getting better and better.\u00a0 So much so, now I expect a phone to have good build quality no matter the level.\u00a0 I expect it to have good fit and finish.\u00a0 I expect it to be solid and without blemishes.\u00a0 For the top tier phones, for Flagship phones, being average just isn&#8217;t good enough.<\/p>\n<p>HTC really started this with solid phones, but when the HTC M7 came out, it blew everyone out of the water.\u00a0 And they have continued to make and build solid products.\u00a0 The Razer Phone reminds me of that M7.\u00a0 It is solid, metal, cool to the touch and just a nice product. Looking at the phone and the gaps, I find it hard to find a flaw.\u00a0 Well there is one exception.\u00a0 On the front facing camera and sensor, it looks like there is a \u201cdepression\u201d.\u00a0 And I\u2019m not sure if that is the correct word here.\u00a0 It\u2019s like it bends inward right around that area, then goes back to being the perfectly flat speaker grill.\u00a0 I guess the best analogy is if you slightly pressed your pinky in a cake before you put on the icing.<\/p>\n<p>That one thing is pretty nit-picky. But it is there and noticeable.\u00a0 And if you are going to charge me $700 for a phone, it gets counted against the phone.\u00a0 Sorry, but that is just the way it has to be.<\/p>\n<p>In my Initial thoughts article I scored it with a 9.8.\u00a0 And I still stand by that.\u00a0 Even after all this time of using it, it is still solid, no flex and has held up well to the abuse that I can give a phone in everyday use.\u00a0 So\u00a0great job Razer!<\/p>\n<h2>Screen<\/h2>\n<p>Coming in at 5.7in screen, it really is just about the best size for a screen.\u00a0 With this phone you can&#8217;t say that a screen to body ratio is an important figure.\u00a0 Because it just isn&#8217;t.\u00a0 But the way this phone is designed, the 5.7in is the right size.<\/p>\n<p>It being a\u00a0IGZO LCD 1440 x 2560 (WQHD) with a Wide Color Gamut, means that it is a nice quality screen with great sharpness and is perfect for movies and of course YouTube.\u00a0\u00a0But it also has a little thing that makes it even better.\u00a0 Variable rate.\u00a0 What the hell does the variable rate mean?\u00a0 Well Razer built a phone that lets the user choose from 60Hz, 90Hz or 120Hz refresh rate.\u00a0 This is the very first phone that allows the user to adjust this.\u00a0 Which is awesome!<\/p>\n<p>But before we start talking about all the fancy tech stuff let me tell you a little bit about the screen.\u00a0 For me the color representation was just fine.\u00a0 I didn&#8217;t ever think that there should be more saturation or crispness.\u00a0 I didn&#8217;t have any issues looking at the screen from an offset angle.\u00a0 What I did have a problem with is that the screen just couldn&#8217;t get bright enough.\u00a0 In fact it was such a problem, when I went to use the camera in the day, I had to find a shade tree, just to be able to see the screen to take the picture.\u00a0 Which of course is a super big problem. Especially if you are someone taking pictures in the middle of the day of your family.\u00a0 Razer needs to crank the brightness up to 2 Million!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1039 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Side by Side 1\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1-150x100.jpg 150w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1-300x200.jpg 300w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-1-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-1040 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Side by Side 2\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2-150x100.jpg 150w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2-300x200.jpg 300w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Side-by-Side-2-768x512.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Razer does have all the same options to adjust the brightness level, and Night Light mode, but it has a couple of things that make it that much better.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Display Resolution<\/li>\n<li>Refresh Rate<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>These two choices are awesome.\u00a0 I wish every phone had these options.\u00a0 First I&#8217;ll talk about the display resolution, then I&#8217;ll get into the refresh rate.<\/p>\n<h3>Display Resolution<\/h3>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD.png\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-991 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Screenshot WQHD\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-WQHD.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-989 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Screenshot FHD\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-FHD.png 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-994 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Screenshot HD(1)\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-HD1.png 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>So as you can see by the above screenshots, you can choose the type of resolution you want.\u00a0 If you want WQHD, Full HD or just HD.\u00a0 The good thing about this, is if you are in an area that you might want to make sure you don&#8217;t use a lot of data, you can change the resolution to use less data, and also utilize less battery as well.\u00a0 So that is a double whammy for the win.<\/p>\n<h3>What is WQHD? And how does it compare to FHD and HD?<\/h3>\n<p>Well when we talk about screen resolution, we utilize to different means to communicate the resolution of the screen.\u00a0 We utilize the method of saying what the pixels are.\u00a0 1920 x 1080.\u00a0 These two figures notate the Length (1920) by (x) Width (1080).\u00a0 The figures notate how many pixels are in a given direction. So the more pixels the greater the clarity, sharpness and overall picture will be.<\/p>\n<p>We also use several terms to denote the picture resolution.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>High Definition (HD)<\/li>\n<li>Full High Definition (FHD)<\/li>\n<li>2K<\/li>\n<li>Quad High Definition (QHD) also Wide Quad High Definition (WQHD)<\/li>\n<li>Ultra High Definition (UHD)<\/li>\n<li>4K<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>So those are the terms, but they are all different in the amount of pixels.\u00a0 Note, no matter how big or small the screen is, the item has the same number of pixels.\u00a0 The only difference will be the physical size of the pixels.\u00a0 So a TV with a HD screen will have the same number of pixels as a smartphone that has a HD screen.\u00a0 1280 x 720.\u00a0 The only difference between the two is the TVs pixels are much bigger.<\/p>\n<p>So here&#8217;s the numbers.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>HD &#8211; 1280 x 720<\/li>\n<li>FHD &#8211; 1920 x 1080<\/li>\n<li>2K &#8211; 2048 x 1080<\/li>\n<li>QHD\/WQHD &#8211; 2560 x 1440<\/li>\n<li>UHD &#8211; 3840 x 2160<\/li>\n<li>4K &#8211; 4096 x 2160<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Now, all that is pretty simple.\u00a0 Each term just tells us the amount of pixels involved.\u00a0 But I know that most like to see a figure of how many pixels per inch (PPI).\u00a0 So let&#8217;s calculate that just so everyone is happy.\u00a0 Here&#8217;s the formula required in order to calculate the PPI.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">d1=\u221aw<sup>2<\/sup>+h<sup>2\u00a0\u00a0<\/sup><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Where d<sub>1<\/sub> is the number of pixels that fit on the diagonal. So you take the number of pixels for the width and square that (w<sup>2<\/sup>).\u00a0 Add the number of pixels for the horizontal (h<sup>2<\/sup>) and then square that answer.\u00a0 So for the Razer we have 1440<sup>2<\/sup>+2560<sup>2<\/sup> = 2,073,600+6,553,600 = 8,627,200. Then take the square root of that and you get 2937<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Then to get the actual PPI you use the formula below.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">PPI=d<sub>1<\/sub>\/d<sub>2<\/sub><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">Where d<sub>2<\/sub> is the diagonal screen size in inches.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">So you got 2937\/5.7 = 515.3 or just 515 ppi.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\">So how does that compare to the competition?\u00a0 Well here&#8217;s what you got.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Samsung Galaxy S8 &#8211; 570 ppi<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">HTC U11 &#8211; 534 ppi<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">iPhone X &#8211; 458 ppi<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">LG V30 &#8211; 537 ppi<\/li>\n<li style=\"text-align: left;\">Sony XZ Premium &#8211; 807 ppi<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>So as you can see it&#8217;s not the tops, or the bottom, but smack dab right there in the middle.\u00a0 And this isn&#8217;t necessarily a bad thing. But compared to it&#8217;s competition, the S8, U11 and V30 it isn&#8217;t quite there.\u00a0 But it doesn&#8217;t hold a candle to the Sony XZ Premium.\u00a0 Which has a 4K display (3840 x 2160) and comes in at 5.46 in.\u00a0 So that one is way up there.\u00a0 And to be honest, it&#8217;s a stunning screen.\u00a0 But I digress.<\/p>\n<p>Here&#8217;s what I\u00a0 think Razer is doing with this option.\u00a0I think Razer is adjusting the screen to use more pixels for the same image.\u00a0 So for example when they go from WQHD to FHD then they are using 25% more pixels for x. And for HD they are using 50% more pixels for x.\u00a0 &#8220;x&#8221; being whatever\u00a0image is being displayed on the screen.<\/p>\n<h3>What the Hertz??<\/h3>\n<p>So let&#8217;s get right down to it.\u00a0 Razer made this phone for gamers.\u00a0 Not the average consumer.\u00a0 This means that it does something that no other phone does.\u00a0 And that is refresh itself at 120 Hz.\u00a0 Yes, that is the same speed that most gaming monitors refresh at.<\/p>\n<p>But why does that even matter?\u00a0 Why would Razer make the screen do that?\u00a0 Well that is where &#8220;this is a gaming phone for gamers!&#8221; statement comes from.\u00a0 So let&#8217;s talk about what the refresh rate is, and then we will see why it makes a difference.<\/p>\n<h4>\u00a0What is a Hertz?<\/h4>\n<p>A Hertz is a unit of measurement that defines how many times it takes whatever to complete something in a second.\u00a0 In this case, it&#8217;s how many times the screen actually writes to the screen and then does it all again, and again and again per second.<\/p>\n<p>So what is the screen actually doing?\u00a0 Well there are two different ways that a screen displays images.\u00a0 There is interlace and progressive.\u00a0 So picture this.\u00a0\u00a0a screen is\u00a01080 pixels in height.\u00a0 That means you can say it&#8217;s 1080 rows high.\u00a0 When a screen shows an image, it doesn&#8217;t just put the whole image up at once.\u00a0 It actually fills in each row with information.<\/p>\n<p>So in the case of a screen that is interlacing the image it is filling in every odd number row first, 1, 3, 5..etc. Then going back to the top and filling in rows 2, 4, 6 and so on.\u00a0 Those two actions produce one cycle of the screen.<\/p>\n<p>In the case of progressive, the screen is filling in every row sequentially. So filling in rows 1, 2, 3, 4 and so on.\u00a0 In order and not skipping a row.\u00a0 So the screen goes through all 1080 and then goes back to the top row and starts it all over again.\u00a0 This is how progressive makes one cycle.<\/p>\n<p>Screen makers let the consumers know which type of screen it is by putting a little letter at the end of the resolution.\u00a0 So 1080i is 1080 resolution with\u00a0interlaced scanning.\u00a0 1080p is 1080 resolution with progressive scanning.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/scan.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1006\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/scan.gif\" alt=\"scan\" width=\"366\" height=\"174\" \/><\/a>To my knowledge I don&#8217;t know of a smart phone screen that uses interlacing.\u00a0 They are all progressive scanning. Progressing scanning is better than interlaced when involving fast moving objects.\u00a0 Such as items within mobile games.<\/p>\n<p>So when a screen shows it has a refresh rate of 120 Hz, it is going from 1 to 1080 and then going back to 1 and doing it all aver again.\u00a0 120 times PER SECOND! That is a hella good refresh rate for such a small device. This high refresh rate makes games buttery smooth and a joy to play.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"giphy-embed\" src=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/embed\/Ev8C4h20Bv9ao\" width=\"288\" height=\"480\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/gifs\/Ev8C4h20Bv9ao\">via GIPHY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Almost all phones have a 60 Hz refresh rate.\u00a0 So even though they are smooth, 120 Hz is just that much smoother.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-1010\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices-169x300.png\" alt=\"Screenshot Refresh Rate Choices\" width=\"169\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Screenshot-Refresh-Rate-Choices.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 169px) 100vw, 169px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>One nice thing that Razer does is give you the option to choose what refresh rate you want to be at.\u00a0 Whether it be 60, 90 or 120 Hz.\u00a0 That&#8217;s a nice touch.\u00a0 A lot of people might not be able to handle the 120 Hz.\u00a0 They might get sick, so being able to change it is a very good thing.<\/p>\n<p>For me the phone came out of the box at 90 Hz.\u00a0 But it was easy enough to go into the settings and change that.\u00a0 I have only changed it back to 60Hz when I was first trying to watch a movie using the Plex app.\u00a0 There seemed to be some stuttering of the movie.\u00a0 But for some odd reason, when I went back to Plex after playing a game at 120Hz, I didn&#8217;t have an issue.\u00a0 So might have just been a funny bug or something.\u00a0 Who knows.\u00a0 I haven&#8217;t been back to 60 Hz since then.<\/p>\n<p>With this refresh rate, I have loved playing games and while it wasn&#8217;t bad on previous phones, it is just so much better.\u00a0 The visuals seem smoother.\u00a0 The transitions are so much better.\u00a0 While most people might not get it, those of us who know the difference and can see it, will appreciate it and love it all at the same time.<\/p>\n<h2>Speakers &#8211; Oh the glorious noise!<\/h2>\n<p>One of the main attractions to this phone, besides the RAM and refresh rate, is the speakers.\u00a0 I will not mince words here.\u00a0 These are simply the best speakers on a phone that I have EVER heard.\u00a0 I thought the best speakers were the ones on my Nexus 6.\u00a0 Even the Sony Xperia XZ has some pretty good speakers.\u00a0 But these speakers are just in a different league, playing a different game.\u00a0 Any other phones&#8217; speakers, just can&#8217;t compete.\u00a0 PERIOD THE END!<\/p>\n<p>So what is it that makes these speakers so much better than all the rest.\u00a0 Well, let&#8217;s get into it.<\/p>\n<p>First, each speaker has it&#8217;s own dedicated amplifier.\u00a0 Let&#8217;s put that in perspective.\u00a0 On just about every other phone you get one amplifier to be used by both speakers. So what that means is that the power to drive the speakers is divided.\u00a0 So let&#8217;s just say, for the sake of argument, that you had 10W for the speakers.\u00a0 When the amplifier is driving two speakers, that effectively put 5W to each speaker.\u00a0 So less power means quieter speaker.\u00a0 Conversely, if you had 10W going to each speaker, those speakers have the full monty\u00a0going to them.\u00a0 So much louder and better.<\/p>\n<h3>What is an amplifier?<\/h3>\n<p>So let&#8217;s look at why the amplifier, two of them in fact, is so important.\u00a0 But what is an amplifier and how does it work?<\/p>\n<p>There are two parts to the speaker system.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Amplifier<\/li>\n<li>Speaker<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>The amplifier provides the signal required to make the speaker vibrate at a specific frequency and making the sound we hear.\u00a0 The amplifier is an important part of what makes up the speaker system.\u00a0 If you have a weak amplifier, then the power of the frequency that comes from it is weak and thus you get a quiet sound.\u00a0 Conversely, if the amp is too powerful for the speaker, you will get a lot of crackling, popping and just an overall bad experience.<\/p>\n<p>Now unfortunately, I didn&#8217;t receive any type of specific information from Razer as to which type of amplifier they are using in the phone. I wish I could have found out that little bit of information. Since the type of amplifier really does make a difference.\u00a0 And you can read about the different types <a href=\"http:\/\/www.audioholics.com\/audio-amplifier\/amplifier-classes\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>. I&#8217;m just going to go with a Class D amplifier since it is the best and what is most likely in the Razer. <strong>(This is purely a guess. Nothing more.)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>First let\u2019s talk about what the amplifier does. \u00a0It is the \u201ctool\u201d that helps drive the speaker. \u00a0To \u201cdrive\u201d the speakers means to push and pull the diaphragm. \u00a0Or to move it back and forth. \u00a0Just like you do a car. \u00a0You either it drive it forward or backwards. \u00a0Same thing with the speaker.<\/p>\n<p>There are several classes of amplifiers. Class A, B, A\/B, D, G and H. I\u2019m not going to go into detail about what all the different classes are and do. \u00a0But, if you want to read up on it and learn a lot more, then go\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.audioholics.com\/audio-amplifier\/amplifier-classes\">here<\/a>\u00a0and get some reading on.<\/p>\n<p>The one we care about is the Class D amplifiers. \u00a0This is the best of the Class A, B, and A\/B amplifiers. \u00a0It not only boasts better efficiency, but is also lighter than the others. \u00a0So it requires less heat sinking to keep it cool. \u00a0Which in turns helps whatever device it\u2019s in, be just that little bit lighter.<\/p>\n<p>So let\u2019s look at one and get down to why and how it works. \u00a0So there are really three parts to a Class D amplifier. \u00a0First is the comparator, the transistors and finally a low-pass filter.<\/p>\n<p>The comparator, also known as a Pulse Width Monitor, takes in two signals. The first being that actual sine wave of the sound. \u00a0The second being a triangle type wave. \u00a0So to keep it short, when the incoming sine wave is more positive than the triangle wave, the transistor goes to the maximum state. \u00a0When the incoming since wave is more negative that the triangle wave the transistor goes to the most negative state. \u00a0So you get a series of pulses that match the incoming sine wave, but is amplified.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/comparator.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-429 size-thumbnail\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/comparator-139x150.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 139px) 100vw, 139px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/comparator-139x150.jpg 139w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/comparator.jpg 159w\" alt=\"comparator\" width=\"139\" height=\"150\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Once the amplified signal is passed through the comparator, it then goes to one of two transistors. \u00a0One transistor does the pushing and the other does the pulling.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/class-D-amp.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-428 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/class-D-amp-300x259.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/class-D-amp.jpg 300w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/class-D-amp-150x130.jpg 150w\" alt=\"class D-amp\" width=\"300\" height=\"259\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As you can see in the diagram, the signal goes from the comparator to one of two transistors. \u00a0As stated one transistor does the pushing and the other does the pulling. \u00a0So if the signal is more positive, then it will go to the top transistor. \u00a0Which then pushes the diaphragm out. \u00a0When the signal is more negative, then the signal goes through the bottom transistor and pulls the diaphragm back.<\/p>\n<p>But the signal isn\u2019t actually moving the diaphragm, it affecting the polarity of a magnet directly behind the diaphragm and that in turn does the actual push and pull action.<\/p>\n<p>The final part of this amplifier is the Low-pass filter.\u00a0It is there to mitigate the noise that the Class D amplifier makes during the process of amplification. \u00a0So what you get out, is an amplified signal that is pretty clean of noises. \u00a0That is the down and dirty version.<\/p>\n<p>So by having great digital signal processing, and giving the Class D amplifier solid and stable sine waves in, it is getting high quality, amplified sound out. \u00a0So good in gives good out.<\/p>\n<p>Now the second part of the system is the speaker.\u00a0 The better the speaker itself is, meaning materials it is made from, the better the sound and clarity.\u00a0 I can tell you that for a phone, the Razer phone has some incredible speakers. Are they as good as super high end over the ear models.\u00a0 No, but I&#8217;ll be dammed if I can&#8217;t just use this phone just like I do my <a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/?p=347\" target=\"_blank\">Bowers &amp; Wilkins T7<\/a>.<\/p>\n<h4>Speakers<\/h4>\n<p>So how does a speaker work.\u00a0 Well they are really simple.\u00a0 You put an electrical signal in one end, it creates an electromagnetic field, which moves a magnet, and that in turns pushes and pulls a\u00a0diaphragm in and out at the specific frequency of the input signal.\u00a0 And it&#8217;s this push and pull motion that moves the air and makes the sound we hear.\u00a0 See simple. If you want to delve more into how speakers work, go <a href=\"http:\/\/www.explainthatstuff.com\/loudspeakers.html\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"giphy-embed\" src=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/embed\/pgyXuj2kcgv7i\" width=\"480\" height=\"360\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/giphy.com\/gifs\/speakers-pgyXuj2kcgv7i\">via GIPHY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>So as I stated earlier, the amplifier is what provides the signal to the speaker that allows it to move the diaphragm in and out.\u00a0 So in a digital signal, it is either on or off.\u00a0 No middle ground.\u00a0 With an analogue signal there are a lot of little nuances that can be in the signal that you just don&#8217;t get with digital.<\/p>\n<p>A digital signal, while a bit more efficient, doesn&#8217;t have the nuances that the analog signal does.\u00a0 This is why a lot of phones now, have DACs (Digital-to-Analog Converters).\u00a0 It&#8217;s the subtleties in the sound, music and anything else that you are listening to, that makes it more encompassing to listen to.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Analog-Sine-wave.gif\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-412 size-full aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Analog-Sine-wave.gif\" alt=\"Analog Sine wave\" width=\"600\" height=\"225\" \/><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Digital-Wave.jpg\" target=\"_blank\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-413 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Digital-Wave.jpg\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Digital-Wave.jpg 600w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Digital-Wave-150x116.jpg 150w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/Digital-Wave-300x232.jpg 300w\" alt=\"Bits &amp; Bytes - Digital Music Playback Demystified.indd\" width=\"600\" height=\"463\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>In the top diagram, the signal is fluid.\u00a0 Not blocky.\u00a0 That&#8217;s what an analog signal is.\u00a0 Smooth and has lots of information in it.\u00a0 But the second diagram shows you what a digital signal looks like.\u00a0 Blocky, jagged and very, very precise.<\/p>\n<p>There&#8217;s a reason why digital is much better at transmitting information.\u00a0 It&#8217;s either on or off.\u00a0 Yes or no.\u00a0 1 or 0.\u00a0 Which is perfect for a computer, or a chip to read.\u00a0 But not so good for music. The Razer phone is thankfully equipped with a DAC that is\u00a0THX certified.\u00a0 Which if you have never heard this, then I&#8217;ll just say that I&#8217;m sorry. It&#8217;s\u00a0<strong>GLORIOUS!<\/strong><\/p>\n<h3>DAC<\/h3>\n<p>So why is this DAC\u00a0(Digital-to-Analog Converters) so important.\u00a0 Well let&#8217;s talk about that digital signal.\u00a0 When an artist makes music, it is recorded in an analogue format.\u00a0 The issue with today&#8217;s systems is that they are utilizing digital signals.\u00a0 So even though you are getting quality sound, you are still loosing part of the signal.\u00a0 Just due to the difference in the nature of the different types of signals.<\/p>\n<p>So what a DAC does, is take that digital signal, and convert it to an analog signal.\u00a0 This analog signal is then sent to the amplifier, which in turns sends it to the speaker.\u00a0 This means that you get a much better, and fuller sound coming out of the speakers.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Analog-and-Digital-signals.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" wp-image-1025 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Analog-and-Digital-signals-300x167.png\" alt=\"Analog and Digital signals\" width=\"541\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Analog-and-Digital-signals-300x167.png 300w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Analog-and-Digital-signals-150x83.png 150w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/Analog-and-Digital-signals.png 518w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 541px) 100vw, 541px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A DAC takes that bottom signal and goes through all the finite points and outputs the awesome analog signal.\u00a0 You want smooth and fluid.\u00a0 Not blocky and high-rise looking.\u00a0 And this is a beautiful thing.\u00a0 Because as I stated, analog is so much better.<\/p>\n<p>I wish every phone, better yet, every system that used digital signals and has speakers, used DACs. It just makes listening that much more pleasurable.<\/p>\n<h4>THX<\/h4>\n<p>THX, which was made due to the needs of George Lucas and the Star Wars films.\u00a0\u00a0Here&#8217;s what THX tells us about their <a href=\"http:\/\/www.thx.com\/about\/\" target=\"_blank\">history<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>It is May 21st 1982. You are George Lucas and Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back has just debuted in theaters to great acclaim. It will go on to be considered one of the greatest movies of all time.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Instead of resting and lapping up praise after years of difficult production, you do something extraordinary. You hire audio scientist Tomlinson Holman and brief him to examine and improve film audio throughout the entire production chain from Set to Theater.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>These first steps led to the birth of THX and is a testament to George Lucas\u2019s obsession with quality and artistic vision.<\/em><\/p>\n<h4><em>THE QUALITY \u2018BLACK HOLE\u2019<\/em><\/h4>\n<p><em>Holman was shocked at what he found. Although there had been significant improvements to how sound was recorded and played back on film, there was no control over what happened on set or in the cinema itself.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>It was like discovering a huge black hole in the middle of film production, sucking the artist\u2019s vision away and leaving audiences unsatisfied.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Poor viewing angles and bad light levels in cinemas made a mockery of high production values. Low-quality sound systems and terrible auditorium acoustics made it difficult for audiences to hear dialogue, let alone experience the artist\u2019s original vision.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Holman took all this learning and set up the state-of-the-art audio mixing rooms that eventually became Skywalker Sound. Soon after completion, Hollywood started to take notice and studio executives started calling to incorporate Lucas\u2019s performance standards into their cinema auditoriums and aging mixing rooms.<\/em><\/p>\n<h4><em>DISRUPTING HOLLYWOOD<\/em><\/h4>\n<p><em>Realizing this could positively disrupt a sluggish film industry, George Lucas and team designed a certification program to help every artist realize their truest vision to their audience. Thus THX was born and made available to audiences with the release of Lucas\u2019 next film \u201cStar Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi\u201d in 1983.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>But to be clear THX isn&#8217;t a recording technology.\u00a0 It is really just a standard as to which those who hear something that has been &#8220;THX Certified&#8221; know that the sound is as close to what the artist or entity intended for us to hear.<\/p>\n<p>So what does this mean for us, the users of the Razer phone?\u00a0 It means that movies, games, music and anything else that comes out of the speakers is going to be as near awesome as it can get. In the end, the speakers on this phone are simply the best I&#8217;ve ever heard on a cell phone!\u00a0 Period. The End.<\/p>\n<h2>Battery Life<\/h2>\n<p>I won&#8217;t spend too much time on battery life.\u00a0 For me, if the battery is there when I need it, then it&#8217;s doing it&#8217;s job.\u00a0 I generally charge my phone all day long.\u00a0 If I&#8217;m near a charger, then it is generally plugged in.\u00a0 So I don&#8217;t have the specs to show that the battery lasted 17hr and 36mins with 17% left.\u00a0 That just isn&#8217;t the way I use my phone.<\/p>\n<p>At 4,000 mAh this is a HUGE battery.\u00a0 But don&#8217;t let that keep you away or also, conversely, have you make your choice.\u00a0 This size phone NEEDS that size battery.\u00a0 You look at the Samsung Note 8 and compare some specs.<\/p>\n<p><div class='content-column one_half'><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Razer Phone<\/span><\/div><div class='content-column one_half last_column'><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Samsung Note 8<\/span><\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div><\/p>\n<p><div class='content-column one_half'>Screen &#8211; 5.7in<\/div><div class='content-column one_half last_column'>Screen &#8211; 6.3in<\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div><\/p>\n<p><div class='content-column one_half'>Resolution -1440 x 2560<\/div><div class='content-column one_half last_column'>Resolution -2960 x 1440<\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div><\/p>\n<p><div class='content-column one_half'>RAM &#8211; 8GB<\/div><div class='content-column one_half last_column'>RAM &#8211; 6GB<\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div><\/p>\n<p><div class='content-column one_half'>Battery &#8211; 4,000 mAh<\/div><div class='content-column one_half last_column'>Battery &#8211; 3,300 mAh<\/div><div class='clear_column'><\/div><\/p>\n<p>As you can see, the Note 8 has a much smaller battery compared to the Razer phone.\u00a0 And yet it is powering a much bigger screen with a slightly higher resolution.\u00a0 The Note 8 in general has great battery life.\u00a0 But, it also isn&#8217;t powering a 120 Hz refresh rate.\u00a0 Dual front facing speakers with their own amps.\u00a0 And the SAMOLED screen on the Note 8 will have better power consumption that an LCD display will.<\/p>\n<p>So if you put just those few things there, the Razer phone NEEDS a 4,000 mAh battery just to keep up with itself.\u00a0 And I think Razer did the right thing here by stuffing as much of it in this phone as they could.\u00a0 having that much power, and just using the phone normally, the average user will never need to hit a charger until it&#8217;s time to hit the sack and get some zzzz&#8217;s.\u00a0 And that&#8217;s what we all want from a phone.<\/p>\n<h2>The Camera<\/h2>\n<p>Ugh, this is the worst part about this phone.\u00a0 And I meant <strong>THE WORST!!!!\u00a0<\/strong>Literally for the first few weeks, I couldn&#8217;t even use the freaking thing.\u00a0 When I did use it, it was so slow to respond that I could have chiseled a portrait in stone before it actually took a picture.\u00a0 It was so bad, that I had to carry my HTC U11 with me just to take the pictures of my family.\u00a0 So stupid.<\/p>\n<p>Now having said that, Razer have done a decent job of making a few updates to the camera and it is a little better.\u00a0 But, the truth of the matter is this.\u00a0 It will\u00a0<strong>NEVER<\/strong> compare to what HTC and Samsung put out.\u00a0 Not even close.\u00a0 You can see the videos and pictures I took <a href=\"https:\/\/photos.app.goo.gl\/GGQ5gPAMLHe3ddDm1\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.\u00a0 But be warned, you will be sadly disappointed.<\/p>\n<p>While the pictures are definitely usable.\u00a0 And while they are good if you are doing some social sharing, and they will most definitely help you remember some good times.\u00a0 They just aren&#8217;t stellar.<\/p>\n<p>The camera app is so basic that all you get are the normal stuff. This is one of my biggest bitches, gripes, complaints, or any other word you want to put in there for yourself,\u00a0<strong>THERE ISN&#8217;T A WAY TO SAVE THE PICTURES TO THE SD CARD!\u00a0<\/strong>I mean seriously Razer???????\u00a0 \u00a0Okay here are some shots of the camera app and you will see what I mean. &lt;\/rant over&gt;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1070\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - General screen settings\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-General-screen-settings.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>And just for the record.\u00a0 The very first selection &#8220;Save Location&#8221; is about saving the physical location you are.\u00a0 For example: Bob&#8217; Best Burger Joint\u00a0<strong>IN THE WORLD!!<\/strong> 234 Main St.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1073\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - Volume key action\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Volume-key-action.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Just so you know, those little nubs called &#8220;Volume Keys&#8221; are too freaking small to do anything with.\u00a0 Especially with the case on.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1068\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - Back camera settings\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Back-camera-settings.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1069\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - Front camera settings\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Front-camera-settings.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1071\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - Video - Back camera resolution\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-Video-Back-camera-resolution.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Where Razer is better than my HTC U11, is that there isn&#8217;t a 6 minute record time for UHD 4K.\u00a0 That&#8217;s a good job there Razer!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1072\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Camera - video - front camera resolution\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Camera-video-front-camera-resolution.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>So that is it for the camera settings.\u00a0 Notice how there is no place or choice to let me know that I can save my videos and photos to the SC card.\u00a0 So stupid!!!!!!!\u00a0 The sort of defeats one purpose of the SD card.\u00a0 To help free up space on the internal storage.\u00a0 And we know that 4K video can be big sometimes.<\/p>\n<h3>The Specs<\/h3>\n<p>So let&#8217;s get into the specs of the cameras.\u00a0 And Razer is doing something pretty good here.\u00a0 Coming out of the box with two rear cameras.\u00a0 I think that is a very smart move.\u00a0 So let&#8217;s start off with the rear cameras.<\/p>\n<h4>Rear Camera<\/h4>\n<p>The rear of the phone has two cameras.\u00a0 Specs below.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>12MP AF \u0192\/1.75 Wide<\/li>\n<li>12MP AF \u0192\/2.6 Zoom<\/li>\n<li>Dual PDAF<\/li>\n<li>Dual tone, dual LED flash<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The &#8220;main&#8221; camera, if we can call it that.\u00a0 is a 12MP affair with Auto focus capability. It has an aperture of \u0192\/1.75. and is a wide lens.\u00a0 So 12 MP is pretty standard fare for a smart phone camera.\u00a0 It is also necessary in order to shoot 4K video.\u00a0 I would love to see one of Sony&#8217;s 23MP cameras in here, but that is just straight up wishful thinking.<\/p>\n<p>The \u0192\/1.75 is a pretty good aperture for a smart phone.\u00a0 When a lot of the phones are at \u0192\/2.0 or \u0192\/2.2, this lower rating should, in theory be a better thing.\u00a0 But why does this matter?\u00a0 Well here&#8217;s the reason why.<\/p>\n<p>Aperture:\u00a0In optics, an\u00a0<b>aperture<\/b>\u00a0is a hole or an opening through which light travels. More specifically, the aperture and focal length of an optical system determine the cone angle of a bundle of rays that come to a focus in the image plane. The aperture determines how collimated the admitted rays are, which is of great importance for the appearance at the image plane.\u00a0If an aperture is narrow, then highly collimated rays are admitted, resulting in a sharp focus at the image plane. If an aperture is wide, then uncollimated rays are admitted, resulting in a sharp focus only for rays with a certain focal length. This means that a wide aperture results in an image that is sharp for things at the correct distance. The aperture also determines how many of the incoming rays are actually admitted and thus how much light reaches the image plane (the narrower the aperture, the darker the image for a given exposure time). In the human eye, the pupil is the aperture. \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Source:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Aperture\" target=\"_blank\">Wikipedia<\/a><\/p>\n<p>So now that that is out of the way, let\u2019s talk about both in a more easier to understand way. \u00a0The aperture is just an opening that let\u2019s the light in. \u00a0Nothing more than that. \u00a0So in camera speak, the bigger the hole the smaller the number that represents it.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/462px-Aperture_diagram.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-136\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/462px-Aperture_diagram-300x119.png\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/462px-Aperture_diagram-300x119.png 300w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/462px-Aperture_diagram-150x60.png 150w, https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/04\/462px-Aperture_diagram.png 462w\" alt=\"462px-Aperture_diagram\" width=\"300\" height=\"119\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>As you can see, the larger the \u0192 figure the smaller the hole. \u00a0Now I\u2019ll admit, that is pretty freaking stupid. \u00a0To have the smaller number represent a larger hole. \u00a0But that number is based on a mathematical formula.<\/p>\n<dl>\n<dd><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mwe-math-fallback-image-inline tex\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/math\/5\/4\/0\/54055628046244c1d76d9f7f52e9455a.png\" alt=\"N = \\frac{f}{D} \\ \" \/><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<p>Where\u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mwe-math-fallback-image-inline tex\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/math\/8\/f\/a\/8fa14cdd754f91cc6554c9e71929cce7.png\" alt=\"f\" \/>\u00a0is the focal length, and\u00a0<img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mwe-math-fallback-image-inline tex\" src=\"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/math\/f\/6\/2\/f623e75af30e62bbd73d6df5b50bb7b5.png\" alt=\"D\" \/>\u00a0is the diameter of the entrance pupil (<i>effective aperture<\/i>). It is customary to write f-numbers preceded by f\/, which forms a mathematical expression of the entrance pupil diameter in terms of f and\u00a0<i>N<\/i>.\u00a0For example, if a lens\u2019s focal length is 10\u00a0mm and its entrance pupil diameter is 5\u00a0mm, the f-number is 2, expressed by writing \u201c\u0192\/2.0\u201d, and the aperture diameter is equal to\u00a0\u0192\/2, where\u00a0\u0192 is the focal length.<\/p>\n<p>So in the case of the\u00a0Razer the aperture is at \u0192\/1.75. \u00a0The typical camera on a phone is usually around \u0192\/2 or \u0192\/2.2. \u00a0Which means the camera can let in more light than those other cameras and thus give you sharper and cleaner pictures. \u00a0If you want a more in-depth article to read then go\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/F-number\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>. But be prepared to have to think through that read\u2026 just saying.<\/p>\n<p>Now, that we&#8217;ve gotten through that, the &#8220;main&#8221; camera also has a Wide angle lens.\u00a0 This means that it is showing more of the area.\u00a0 Kind of like a funnel.\u00a0 When you are near the small opening, it is a small width.\u00a0 The farther you get away the wide the opening becomes and thus showing you more of whatever you are looking at.<\/p>\n<p>A shot put field is a good example of the difference between a narrow and a wide angled lens.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Shot-put-Field-Dimensions.gif\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-1077\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Shot-put-Field-Dimensions.gif\" alt=\"Shot-put-Field-Dimensions\" width=\"500\" height=\"319\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s say the High School field is the Wide angle and the College field is the Narrow angle lenses.<\/p>\n<p>As you can see the Wide angled lens shows a lot more field.\u00a0 Or has more material between the lines.\u00a0 While the Narrow lens has a lot less material between the lines.\u00a0 This difference means that you wither have to get farther away from a subject in order to capture the entire scened.\u00a0 Or it means you can be a bit closer and still get it all in.<\/p>\n<p>Also the type of lens has a lot to do with how much light is let in.\u00a0 The wider the lens the more light it lets in and gets to the sensor.\u00a0 Thus giving you better low light performance.<\/p>\n<p>But wait, the second rear camera has a aperture of\u00a0\u0192\/2.6 and has a lens specifically meant for zooming. Why would Razer do this type of configuration?\u00a0 Well.. this allows Razer to actually utilize the zoom specific lens\u00a0<strong>JUST FOR ZOOMING.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>So this means that the main camera can focus on getting the best and widest photo possible and allowing the second camera to do a specific thing.<\/p>\n<p>Razer does something unique here.\u00a0 They call it &#8220;Seamless Zoom (with Image Fusion)&#8221;\u00a0 which is a mouth full.\u00a0 But actually makes sense.\u00a0 What Razer is doing, is instead of taking a switch and going back and forth between cameras, they actually take two pictures simultaneously and when you zoom in, you can&#8217;t see the switching between the main camera and the second one.\u00a0 they &#8220;fuse&#8221; or put both pictures together to make the seamless zooming possible.\u00a0 I will tell you, it does work well.\u00a0 When I did zoom in on a item, it was buttery smooth.\u00a0 Gotta give them props on that one!<\/p>\n<p>The rear cameras have the Dual Tone and Dual LED flash.\u00a0 Nothing fancy there. pretty much standard fare there.<\/p>\n<h3>Pixel Dual Autofocus<\/h3>\n<p>But the biggest thing I see that Razer has in the rear camera system is the Pixel Dual Autofocus.\u00a0 Now, it&#8217;s kind of sketchy as to how this is working on the smart phone.\u00a0 But I imagine it works pretty close to how Cannon&#8217;s Dual Pixel Autofocus works.\u00a0 And since Cannon is know to have pretty much the best autofocus on the planet.<\/p>\n<p>So to simplyfy things, here is the nickel tour of how this should work.<\/p>\n<p><em>Put simply, DPAF takes autofocus to the next level. It provides both smooth and consistent focus for a wide range of photo and video applications. Each pixel on the CMOS imaging sensor has two separate, light-sensitive photodiodes, which convert light into an electronic signal. \u00a0Independently, each half of a pixel detects light through separate micro lenses, atop each pixel. \u00a0During AF detection, the two halves of each pixel &#8212; the two photodiodes &#8212; send separate signals, which are analyzed for focus information. \u00a0Then, an instant later when an actual image or video frame is recorded, the two separate signals from each pixel are combined into one single one, for image capturing purposes. This greatly improves AF speed over the majority of the area on which you\u2019re focusing. The result is phase-detection autofocus, which surveys the scene and recognizes not only whether a subject is in focus or not, but in which direction (near or far), and by how much.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>You can read the full article <a href=\"http:\/\/learn.usa.canon.com\/resources\/articles\/2017\/intro-to-dual-pixel-autofocus.shtml\" target=\"_blank\">here<\/a>.\u00a0 But also know that we still don&#8217;t know what type of sensor is in the Razer phone.\u00a0 So take this part with a grain of salt.<\/p>\n<p>I will say this.\u00a0 Before the first camera update, the camera was slow to focus and also when it did, it was easy to loose focus.\u00a0 But after the first update, it got much better.\u00a0 I really didn&#8217;t have any issues focusing on a particular subject or item.\u00a0 When I tapped on the screen it smoothly transitioned to the item I wanted in focus.\u00a0 So that is a good thing.<\/p>\n<p>This one thing that Razer forgot was Optical Imagine Stabilization.\u00a0 Which totally sucks.\u00a0 Neither the front nor the rear facing cameras have it.\u00a0 I would think if they wanted to put this much effort into this phone, they would just go all the way and get it in there.\u00a0 It really does make a difference in being able to take 3 pics with 1 being blurry.\u00a0 To taking 3 pics and ALL being blurry. It&#8217;s just no bueno!\u00a0 #NoBueno<\/p>\n<h3>4K<\/h3>\n<p>The rear shoots 4K video.\u00a0 Well UHD (Ultra Hi-Def) video.\u00a0 That&#8217;s a pretty good thing.\u00a0 It&#8217;s nice to see the sharpness of the videos.\u00a0 But the videos colors, and just the overall look of it isn&#8217;t very good.\u00a0 This goes back to the camera stills function also not being that awesome. Yes the video will do, but it can be a lot better.\u00a0 You can see some 4K videos here.<\/p>\n<p>The front facing camera only shoots 1080p.\u00a0 But that&#8217;s still good enough for almost every selfie video you wish to shoot.\u00a0 With the exception of OIS, it does a pretty good job.<\/p>\n<h2>Miscellaneous\u00a0Stuff<\/h2>\n<p>I will say this, on the whole this is a pretty good phone.\u00a0 But there are a few miscellaneous things that just make me go. WTF?<\/p>\n<p>First, is when the first update came through it made a lot of changes. But the one other thing it did was break a game that was pre-installed on the phone. How does that happen?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1082\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Update screw up\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Update-screw-up.png 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>A picture just says it all.\u00a0 Now to their credit, I can play the game after this latest update, but that kinda sucked at the time.<\/p>\n<p>The Game Booster setting is probable the coolest thing ever! With three different modes to choose from. It really allows the user to somewhat customize the phones performance to whatever activity you are doing.\u00a0 And with the meter they provide you get a real sense of what is being affected.\u00a0 That&#8217;s a very good thing!<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1087\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Game Booser - Custom\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booser-Custom.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1088\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Game Booster - Power Save\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Power-Save.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1089\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Game Booster Performance\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Game-Booster-Performance.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The Razer Preferences is the most useless thing in the settings. Why not just label it &#8220;Share Data&#8221;\u00a0 Because that is all that you are checking. I mean seriously, this is just a waste of screen real estate.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1091\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Razer Preferences\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1090\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH-576x1024.png\" alt=\"Razer Preferences - WTH\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/Razer-Preferences-WTH.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>See what I mean??<\/p>\n<p>I&#8217;m still confounded as to why Razer and IGZO didn&#8217;t make the screen brighter.\u00a0 We all know that we want a super bright gaming monitor.\u00a0 So if this is a gamers phone, why wouldn&#8217;t they make the screen super bright? That makes no stinking sense.<\/p>\n<p>With the latest update Razer did an awesome thing by really making Netflix a part of the system update. Adding HDR content playback and also enabling Dolby 5.1 audio playback support.\u00a0 That&#8217;s just gonna make those speakers so much better.\u00a0 But I don&#8217;t understand how Netflix is included with Razer Phone!? I mean are they preinstalling the app for those who don&#8217;t have it installed???<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-1093\" src=\"https:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated-576x1024.png\" alt=\"System Updated\" width=\"576\" height=\"1024\" srcset=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated-576x1024.png 576w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated-84x150.png 84w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated-169x300.png 169w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated-768x1365.png 768w, http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/System-Updated.png 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>But, let&#8217;s also give Razer much needed credit.\u00a0 Still improving the camera with every update, making sure that they have the latest security update and also tackling the Meltdown and Spectre vulnerabilities so quickly, is just proof that they seem committed to making this phone the best they can.<\/p>\n<p>Photo links &#8211; You can go to the below links to see all the photos I&#8217;ve take at their original resolutions.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/photos.app.goo.gl\/sqOed9npSlkYOiLD2\" target=\"_blank\">Razer Phone &#8211; Unboxing<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/photos.app.goo.gl\/3IUgHzFQV1yhIpLe2\" target=\"_blank\">HTC U11 and Razer phone comparisons<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/photos.app.goo.gl\/pjkxwsECLHI2spNK2\" target=\"_blank\">HTC U11 and Razer 4K videos<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/photos.app.goo.gl\/nJxFvTGb06pm5nTd2\" target=\"_blank\">HTC Christmas Photos for comparison with Razer<\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Final Conclusion<\/h2>\n<p>I am torn as to whether to say this phone is awesome or just average.\u00a0 It&#8217;s a hard call.\u00a0 If you are an avid mobile gamer, then this phone is the phone for you.\u00a0 If you love big phones with a lot of screen real estate, then this is a good phone for you.\u00a0 If you want the best front facing speakers ever!\u00a0 Then this phone is for you.<\/p>\n<p>But, if you don&#8217;t fall into any of those categories, then this phone is just an average high end phone. It&#8217;s not as good as my HTC U11.\u00a0 Nor is it as good as Samsungs&#8217; products.\u00a0 But, that withstanding, it is still a very good first outing into the very tough and competitive phone market.<\/p>\n<p>I like what Razer has done here.\u00a0 I like the feel, fit and finish.\u00a0 I like the screen.\u00a0 I like just about everything about this phone.\u00a0 But Razer needs to bring more of their spunk to the camera and screen side.\u00a0 It NEEDS brightness and the ability to rival in the camera department.\u00a0 No matter what else they do, they will always be known as a company who got close, but didn&#8217;t quite make it.\u00a0 And the sad thing is, it is just a couple of things needed to take them over the top.<\/p>\n<p><strong>IF<\/strong>, the cameras were awesome.\u00a0 <strong>IF<\/strong> the screen was bright enough to see in daylight, then this would be the phone to beat.\u00a0 Hands down. It would trump everything out there.\u00a0 I would have no problem spending $700 for the phone and also recommending it.\u00a0As it stands, unless I know you are a gamer, or love to watch movies on your phone, I can&#8217;t recommend this phone. I would send a person to HTC or Samsung.\u00a0 And that is the hardest statement to write.\u00a0 For even though I have no love for Samsung, I would still send someone to them before this phone.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I have spent several\u00a0months with this phone as my daily driver.\u00a0 And while I normally take more than a few months before I make a&#8230;<\/p>\n<div class=\"more-link-wrapper\"><a class=\"more-link\" href=\"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/?p=972\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">The Razer phone &#8211; A monstrous review for a monstrous phone<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-phones","category-review","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=972"}],"version-history":[{"count":70,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/972\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1098,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/972\/revisions\/1098"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/byrondoss.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}