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Motorola V3 Review by JiggyJaggy:
Many people have sat up and taken notice of this exclusive handset. But what is all the hype about? Its just another Motorola after all isn’t it? Many like myself fell in love with this phone purely for it’s looks. I have often bought a phone for this reason…but there is more to this phone in terms of everyday usability, and for many people this longetivity appeal is the determining factor.
The “RAZR” as it is knick-named boasts Quad band global usage, a 262,000-colour screen, Bluetooth, VGA Camera, and Stereo speakers, along a host of other that are explored further. The first true “all-metal” phone on the market. It is constructed from Aluminium, keeping the weight low, and coated in fighter plane grade Magnesium (titanium colour).
Price:
This is an exclusive handset. It cost me Ł419 from Carphone Warehouse, but before you go saying that this was a bargain when bought in mid-October, they have put the price UP…yes UP to Ł499.99 im guessing due to it’s popularity. Sneaky of them in my opinion! I predict that it will hold its value far more than other handsets due to its metallic body and exclusive design.
Box and Contents:
The box speaks for itself. Not the usual cardboard made by manufacturers…but an aluminium box, which is pretty heavy! The glass hole shows the phone held within.
Accessories boxed with the phone are as follows:
§ Mains charger
§ Handsfree Kit
§ Leather Case
§ Belt clip
§ USB Data Cable
§ Mini USB tip
§ Motorola screen cleaner
§ CD Software (for synchronisation)
§ Manuals
Initial Impressions:
Initially this phone is very impressive. The sleek lines and cold metal feel match the clarity of the screen to the eye. The screen is RAZR sharp to use a pun! 262,000 colours show well on the phone, and compliment the phone’s body extremely well. The body it self is really a metaphor for the phone. It does feel razor sharp in the hand, and I think that’s what attracts people that old the phone.
Features:
The phone has a plentiful supply of features. It is equipped with a feather touch keypad, which is reminiscent to the V70 keypad in an electric clue colour. It even has subtle rubber piping on the keyboard to distinguish the keys. On first glance this actually looks like metal etching into the keypad. A very elusive and classy look in my opinion!
The internal aerial suits this phone to a tee. It is what essentially spoilt the V600, V500 and previous Vxxx phones. This doesn’t detract from excellent RF quality. I found FULL signal on the phone everywhere I went.
The loudspeaker on the phone is as good as on any phone I have used to date. It is clear and concise and extremely loud. It reminds me of the loudspeaker on the Nokia 6100. This may partly be due to the fact that the loudspeaker is actually on the FRONT of the phone rather than on the back like most phones. The stereo speaker feature may also play a part in this. It should be noted that unlike the K700i the loudspeaker is one touch, which is how It should be in my opinion.
Mp3 ringtones are available on the phone. The 5MB memory is used to hold MP3 tunes or clips. (I found that using a free software tool such as MP3 Audio Converter was useful as it clipped the mp3 files to produce a snip of the full tune, perfect for ringtone use as it take sup less memory.) The ringtones are clear if, slightly on the quiet side. But most IT literate users will be able to manipulate the amplitude of the sound files using software to provide louder ringtones.
For the business user there is a smart j key on the front right of the phone, which is used as a Dictaphone. Excellent for recording conversations when paper is not handy. This is the first fault I found on the phone. You actually have to keep the smart key pressed down while recording. If you let go the recording stops. A downfall in design as the phone is difficult to hold in that position for long periods of time due to its thinness!!! How ironic!
One feature I really liked on the phone was the profile key in the side of the phone when the flip is closed. You simply press the middle key on the right hand side. Then you press the bottom key. Continuously pressing this toggles the phone’s profiles: loud, soft, vibrate, vibrate and ring, silent etc. This was one excellent feature which was ever present in Nokia phones which is now incorporated into the “RAZR”
There is a dedicated message centre key, which takes you instantly to your SMS, Emails, MMS and outboxes is a new addition to the keypad/interface. An excellent feature as people are using Email and MMS as much as SMS slowly. The only down side is that MMS messages are shown in the same folder as SMS, which some users may not appreciate.
The customisable menu is always a plus point for most users. You can choose what functions you can dedicate to which keys. For example you can set “down” on the round navi-key in the middle of the keypad to go straight to phonebook etc. I set one button to “Bluetooth” immediately meaning I could near instantly turn on or off Bluetooth to conserve battery.
Battery:
Battery life was sound for the size of the phone. I never go by hours and days standby…it varies so much how you use your phone. I got two FULL days use using the BT, camera, messing with themes non-stop, 2 hours of calls and the phone was on day and night. Not bad at all seeing as the battery is tiny!
Connectivity:
Email: pop3/imap4 email is available. My orange.net and Hotmail worked perfectly although the email download is MUCH slower than say the P900/P910. It took nearly 2 mins to down load a few emails, where as the P900 took 30 seconds max
Bluetooth: Worked a charm, both for picture and MP3 transfer but also with audio BT. I used a hbh-600, Orange G2 and HS810. Al worked well and never dropped connection.
WAP: This worked equivalent to the V600 although I do not use WAP heavily so could not test thoroughly.
PC/MAC: Mini USB and a data cable is included for synchronisation with PC/MAC. I managed to synch the phone with Outlook fir contacts, these appeared fine the in the phone, but when I had several numbers under one name in Outlook, they appeared separately in the phones contacts list.
Camera:
A VGA camera is a feature on the phone. Several modes are available:
§ Large: 640 x 480
§ Medium: 320 x 240
§ Small (MMS): 160 x 120
Example pictures are as follows…from Large down to small…
These photos really dont do the camera phone justice as I tiook them late a night. Check the "Photos taken with a V3" thread in "Other Manufacturers" forum for better photos from the V3.
I found it strange that there is no “send as” function for the photos; it is set as “copy” which allows you to send a copy of the file to another BT device. Confusing slightly.
The final camera function is like the E700 Samsung; by pressing the bottom side key with the phone flip closed you can take a picture of yourself. This doubles up to assign pictures to contacts and their picture shows on the outside of the phone. Here is a good example:
Games:
Various games are available on the phone including Billiards (pool) and an addictive Golf game, which provides hours of fun. Java games are also downloadable on the 5MB memory.
Size/Weight:
The size of this phone is excellent. It can fit perfectly in the trouser pocket or even shirt pocket without being noticed. A rarety for modern day phones with so many incorporated features.
Value for Money:
This is a phone that will definitely hold its value. Most metal phones of this quality tend to. The Nokia 8850 and 8910 are still holding their financial value because of the design and robust design, even if they do not have the latest of features. It is a very exclusive phone, which I believe would be placed between the Nokia 8850 and the Vertue in terms of its value and appeal.
There is a large gulf between regurgitated
and Nokia phones which are all so similar in shape and size. This Motorola is one of the best phones in terms of form and function and really does turn heads. At the same time it is not a rich mans phone, it hold functions for everyday use with reliability and battery to match. There is a substanical gap in the mobile market for high-design, lifestyle phones. Who needs 3G, UMTS when phones look this good and use toady’s technology properly rather than tomorrow’s hopeful technology and let us down.
The Motorola V3 “RAZR” review by JiggyJaggy – Nov 2004-11-05
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A-Z of Trusted Sellers[ This Message was edited by: JiggyJaggy on 2004-11-06 00:47 ]
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Posted: 2004-11-06 01:42:55
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WoW!!!
Cool Review!
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Posted: 2004-11-06 01:59:02
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i played around with the phone as well and my comment is, it's a great body with crap insides.
edit @ 50, if it was directed to me, i hated the UI. As for the price tag, I OWNED the phone and the 'gave' it away to a friend as a gift.
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Oxygen Inc[ This Message was edited by: amnesia on 2005-05-03 09:41 ]
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Posted: 2004-11-06 18:30:38
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why is that?
EDIT: sounds like bitterness due to the price tag
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Wow 1550+ posts....
[url=http://www.traders-guild.co.uk" TARGET="_blank]>>*Trader's Guild*[ This Message was edited by: 50Cent on 2004-11-06 17:53 ]
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Posted: 2004-11-06 18:53:11
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DickySnapples Posts: > 500
has anyone else noticed that the keys press up against teh screen, leaving an imprint on the screen.so i have to keep cleaning it. also because the keys are metal,could they scratch the screen?time will tell
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Posted: 2004-11-06 20:21:29
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Can anyone tell me what the branding is like on t-mobile for the v3, as i can get it for 70 on upgrade? I want to know both software and hardware wise.... Is there any t-mobile logos on the front of the flip, or on the back? Thanks in advance to anyone that can help, pictures would be best, but if you cant, its ok still
EDIT: cant decide between the v3 or p910i.... i've got an 20gb ipod already, so dont really see the + point of bigger memory on the p910i.... may pick up a cheap p9 as well as the v3 so that all my needs are satisfied (vids, apps, touch screen etc)
....
[ This Message was edited by: T68iKING on 2004-11-06 21:11 ]
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Posted: 2004-11-06 22:03:54
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is far is i know there is now T-mobile sigh if u get it from CPW, how much do u usually spend per month?
im just askin cos im due an upfrade soon and am thinking about miving to 02
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Posted: 2004-11-06 22:09:14
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@p9 lover: its a really cheap tariff (freetime 750), but average bills are 100-150 p/m.... offered 200 discount... but you can ask them to extend the contract to 18 months, or go onto a higher tariff (29 p/m +)
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Posted: 2004-11-06 22:15:01
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oh ok, im on the every one 100 and my bills come to about Ł50 pm, last tiem u upgraded i git Ł100 off,
i am actually very tempted to move to o2, purly for the larger fone range.
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Posted: 2004-11-06 23:47:22
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Any feedback on my reviews guys? I know Masseur was doe to post one also.
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Posted: 2004-11-08 12:19:38
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