\n\tIn November 2011, Motorola attempted to recapture some of the original Razr flip phone’s success and launched the first Razr-branded smartphone–the Droid Razr. Just three months later, the company released a follow-up Droid Razr with a significantly beefed-up battery. I cracked open the first Droid Razr and wanted to see what the new model had inside. Follow along as I crack open the Motorola Droid Razr Maxx.
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\n\tFor a detailed analysis of the teardown, check out my article and video, Droid Razr Maxx Teardown: Impressive battery life in a sleek package.
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
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\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Pricing
The Motorola Droid Razr Maxx is available from Verizon for $299.99 (US) with a two-year contract. Verizon dropped the price of the original Droid Razr to $199.99.
Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
Caption by: Bill Detwiler
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Box contents
Inside the Droid Razr Maxx’s box, you’ll find the device itself, a 16GB microSD card, a USB cable, a power adapter, and the product documentation.
Photo by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic Caption by: Bill Detwiler
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Hardware specs
\n\tLike the first Droid Razr, our Razr Maxx test unit has a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 16GB of storage, 8MP rear-facing camera, 1.3MP front-facing camera, and 4.3″ Super AMOLED display (960×540 pixels).
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\n\tIt’s essentially the same phone with a larger battery, which makes the phone slightly thicker and heavier. The Droid Razr Maxx measures 5.15″ (H) x 2.71″ (W) x 0.35″ (D). It weighs 5.11 ounces.
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\n\tPhoto by: Bill Detwiler / TechRepublic
\n\tCaption by: Bill Detwiler
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Back
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: 3.5mm headphone jack, Micro USB connector, Micro HDMI connector
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Power and volume buttons
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: SIM card and microSD card slots
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Side-by-side with the Droid Razr
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Compared to the Droid Razr - Back
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Thicker and heavier than Droid Razr
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the exterior screw cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Exterior screw cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the back cover's external screw
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Popping loose the back cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the back cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Back cover removed
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the internal screws
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Popping loose the outer cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Outer cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Internal hardware
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the battery connector cover
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the battery connector screws
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Prying loose the battery
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the battery
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: 3.8V 3,200 / 3,300 mAh battery (SNN5910A))
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Battery removed
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the battery frame screws
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the battery frame
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Battery frame
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Battery frame removed
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Disconnecting the cameras and upper speaker/mic connections
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the front-facing camera
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: 1.3MP front-facing camera
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Removing the camera/headphone/mic bracket
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Camera/headphone/mic bracket
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: 8MP rear-facing camera
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Upper speaker/mic board
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Motherboard with EMI/RFI shields
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Toshiba Y9A0A111308LA Memory Stack
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Elpida B8164B3PF-8D-F DDR2 mobile SDRAM
Cracking Open Droid Razr Maxx: Atmel MXT224E touchscreen controller
Bill Detwiler is the Editor for Technical Content and Ecosystem at Celonis. He is the former Editor in Chief of TechRepublic and previous host of TechRepublic's Dynamic Developer podcast and Cracking Open, CNET and TechRepublic's popular online show. Previously, Bill was an IT manager in the social research and energy industries. He has bachelor's and master's degrees from the University of Louisville, where he has also lectured on computer crime and crime prevention.