Razer Phone 2 Review

It would be a big claim to say that smartphones have killed the handheld gaming console, but they've certainly caused a decline. There's not as much need for a Game Boy or a DS or a PS Vita when everyone has a veritable super-computer in their pocket.

While any smartphone can play games, it's not entirely surprising to see psychedelic gaming peripheral manufacturer Razer try to break their way into the smartphone world. After all, if people are playing games on their smartphones, surely some want the "best" way to play games on their smartphones.

It's clear that Razer has put a lot of thought into making a phone that could appeal to "serious" gamers; the Razer Phone 2 is a more than respectable gaming device with oodles of customisation options and performance settings to tweak. It's just not a great phone.

That's not to say the Razer Phone 2 is a bad phone, it's fine. Good, even. But it's a case of trying to have your cake and eat it to. What makes a good smartphone doesn't necessarily make for a good gaming device, and what makes for a good gaming device doesn't make for a good smartphone. The Razer Phone 2 isn't fraught with compromise, but it fails to genuinely make a case as to why you'd buy it over any other flagship smartphone.

Sure, the Razer Phone 2 is great when it comes to playing games. Top tier hardware and high refresh rate display means games are just that little bit smoother on the Razer Phone 2 when compared to other 2018 Android flagship devices. It's not a day and night difference, but if you're gaming on your phone regularly, this alone could be enough.

At the same time, these gains are marginal. The Pixel 3, the Samsung Galaxy S9, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, and the iPhone XS and iPhone XR are still excellent gaming devices. While going from a non-gaming PC to a gaming PC can result in serious performance gains, this isn't the case when it comes to high-end smartphones.

If you're into it, there's plenty of nitty-gritty settings you can play with to optimise your favourite games. You can dial up performance to the max to ensure any title runs as smooth as possible, or tone it down to help conserve battery life when gaming. Options include changing what resolution and frame rate games run at, a performance slider, and anti-aliasing for 3D graphics.

On the subject of battery, the Razer Phone 2's 4,000mAh battery is as robust as it sounds - normal usage will see you through a full day with charge to spare. Gaming will, of course, melt it a lot faster, but the onboard fast charging can help mitigate this.

Razer being Razer, the Razer Phone 2 features a "Chroma lighting" LED logo on the back that you can light up in any colour you want - there's literally 16.8 million options to choose from. It's clearly here for a gaming aesthetic, but the light-up logo is also somewhat practical - there's an option that lets you use it as a rear-facing notification light, which is great if you're the kind of person who likes to keep their phone face down.

As aforementioned, the Razer Phone 2 has a high refresh rate display running at 120Hz. In layperson's terms, this makes all motion of the phone look smother; even scrolling through web pages in Chrome is gloriously silky. Where the display lets you down is brightness. Razer has improved on the first generation Razer Phone, but the Razer Phone 2 display is dimmer and duller than the competition. Outdoor visibility is still fine for the most part, but bright sunlight can obscure the display.

Camera quality is another weakness. The photos are alright - even in lowlight - but there's plenty of room for improvement. Most photos look quite flat, and lack contrast and dynamic range. Blowout is also a common occurrence, and the camera app can be a little slow to shoot. To be fair, very few shots were bad; they just don’t live up to what's possible on similarly priced phones. Rivals like the Pixel 3 and iPhone XR are simply much better when it comes to taking photos.

My biggest issue with the Razer Phone 2 is its sheer bulk. It's slightly larger than the iPhone XS Max - which is imposing enough already - but with less screen estate, squarer edges, and more weight. Razer has made a veritable brick of a phone. Your mileage may vary, but as someone who wears reasonably slim fitting jeans, I found it to be a bit too much.

Oddly, the Razer Phone 2 doesn't have a headphone jack, which is a bit of a weird omission on a gaming phone. Sure, the front-facing speakers are some of the best you'll get on a smartphone, but they're not always appropriate - especially when you're on the go. A portable gaming device needs a true headphone jack. At least there's a dongle in the box.

Who's the Razer Phone 2 for?

The Razer Phone 2 is clearly made for an audience that prioritises gaming above all else. If that's you, then it's a decent phone that will make your favourite Android games perform marginally better. It's not a day and night difference, but it might be enough to sway you.

However, at $1,249 outright, it's hard to argue that the gaming experience makes up for its shortcomings as a phone.

The Razer Phone 2 might have a silky smooth display and high-quality speakers, but every phone in its price bracket will also do an excellent job of playing mobile games. Unless you really love the Razer brand, you're almost certainly better off with a phone that won't sacrifice camera quality, screen brightness, or have to deal with a whole lot of bulk.

Razer Phone 2 camera samples

I don't want a Razer Phone 2, what else can I buy?

Google Pixel 3

The Pixel 3 is pretty much the Android flagship, pairing an incredible software driven camera with high-end hardware. The battery life isn't quite as robust as what you'd get on the Razer Phone 2, but the Pixel 3 is a better all-rounder. 

Huawei Mate 20 Pro

The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is an Android smartphone that pretty much does it all. It has a high-end CPU, a two-day battery life, and one of the very best cameras on the market. It's a little pricier than the Razer Phone 2 outright, but cheaper on a plan. 

iPhone XR

An iPhone could be the most obvious alternative to a "gaming phone", as many smartphone games tend to launch on iOS first. In addition, the iPhone XR is one of the fastest performing phones around, and has the best battery life of any iPhone to date. 

Alex Choros

Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor | X | Instagram | Threads | LinkedIn

Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

Read full bio