A nightmare for your eyes? Here’s how much the Motorola Razr Fold’s display actually flickers

OLED displays are actually a great thing if you want bright screens and vivid color reproduction. But they also often flicker, such as the large foldable display in the Motorola Razr Fold (approximately US$ 1,900 on lenovo.com): It controls its brightness via pulse-width modulation at a frequency of 180 Hz.

This is a slightly higher value than on many other smartphones with OLED panels; nevertheless, the low frequency can cause visible flickering, eye strain, or headaches in sensitive individuals.

Low frequency, noticeable effects

Complaints typically associated with PWM often don’t appear until after prolonged use. People who read or watch videos for several hours at a time are particularly at risk. 

In everyday life, this means that your eyes might tire more quickly when reading on the 8.1-inch display in the evening or when scrolling through social media apps for extended periods. The modulation amplitude is 18 percent—a fairly large swing—which further amplifies the effect.

Comparison to the competition is disappointing

The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold7 operates at 240 Hz, which is 33 percent higher than the Razr Fold. Other competitors reach up to 360 Hz.

While this doesn’t eliminate the flickering, it increases the likelihood that your eyes won’t react to it as strongly.

However, the Razr Fold’s outer display can flicker at an even lower frequency – even more tiring than the inner display.

Strengths in the overall rating

Despite the low PWM frequency, the display achieved a high overall rating in the Notebookcheck test: brightness and color accuracy are excellent—though the drawback of flickering remains. Anyone who has had problems with this in the past should definitely test the phone themselves before buying.

The full review on Notebookcheck documents all display measurements, including the amplitude curve.