October feels like yesterday, but it was actually seven months ago. That’s when Verizon announced the Motorola Droid RAZR. Three months later, they showed off a variant called the RAZR Maxx. What’s the difference? One can’t last a full day and is rather difficult to hold comfortably since it’s way too thin, the other can last several days off the charger and fits comfortably in the hand while still managing to be just 9 mm thick. Now the RAZR has been selling for $199 while the Maxx has been going for $299, assuming you sign a two year contract, but things have changed. Both the original RAZR and the Maxx are now just $199. The RAZR was on sale for $99 earlier this month, and according to TechCrunch, Verizon is thinking of making that the new permanent price since they say that low price tag helped push a ton of units.
Should you buy the Maxx at $199? That’s a tough one to answer. It’s great if you want the battery life, but it’s going to take a while for it to be upgraded to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Verizon is also selling the Galaxy Nexus, which runs ICS, has a better screen, and will get updates as fast as Google can push them out. But again, nothing can touch the Maxx when it comes to battery life. There’s a 3,300 mAh brick of energy inside that thing that we can’t wait to see in a future device.
And that’s another thing, rumor has it that there’s going to be another RAZR coming out called the Droid Fighter. It’ll have the same massive battery inside the Maxx, except the screen will be updated to an HD display, and the OS will be updated to ICS. As always, it’s hard to say whether you should wait or not because everyone’s situation is different.