LG VI-125 (Sprint)

Summary: Summary: After a few weeks of use, my feeling is that this is a great phone that is underrated on here solely because it doesn't have other crazy features. It performs all of its basic functions very well and in a compact and lightweight frame no less. It has some quirks - like all electronic devices frankly - but in my opinion, these are all extremely minor.

Pros: This phone performs as a phone extremely well. After considering many fancier (and vastly more expensive) phones, like the treo 650, I decided that carrying around such a bulky monster was not worth the extra features, and picked this model based largely on two things: 1) positive reviews of its call quality and 2) the fact that it is one of the two or three smallest phones in the sprint lineup. I have not been disappointed. The size is wonderful, and the internal antenna only adds to the joy of being able to carry this phone around in my pocket. Navigating the phones menus is a rather straightforward process.

As far as performance goes, the call quality is a HUGE improvement over my previous phone. Shortly after buying the LG I called my mother who actually asked where I was calling from because the quality was so clear she thought it was a land line (I have no land line, just my cell). Admittedly I had excellent reception at the time, but since I live in Manhattan, I have excellent reception a lot of the time and she still remarked on the difference over my old phone. As far as signal strength goes, I have noticed that this phone is also vastly improved at finding a signal than my previous phone. Certain elevators, subway stations and other enclosed areas where I have never had reception before, I now am able to get some signal. Obviously this isn't a systematic test, but it is my anecdotal evidence.

Lastly, I have to say that I have found the battery life of this phone to be pretty remarkable. My only personal phone is my cell and I am on it quite a bit for work. Despite the intense use, I can go four days before having to charge the phone. I don't usually have to go that long, but it is nice to know that a full charge is good for a heck of a lot of talking (the CNET review makes the point that in their test the phone actually lasted longer than the manufacturer claimed).


Cons: The main "problem" with this phone with this phone is that it is pretty much just a phone. It has no camera, can't email, has no organizer and to most techno geeks would probably be just plain boring (although it does have a couple extras like a small calendar and tip calculator). I suspect this is the main reason it only receives a six from CNET.

I do have to address a criticism from another reviewer about the phone not properly identifying incoming calls or text messages. I have not had a single problem like this, so I must say I’m not really sure what he/she is talking about. I didn’t enter any numbers with a one preceding the area code, and everything has just been fine and dandy.

Other user reviews mention other flaws: the display backlight stays on while charging, you must open the phone to adjust ringer volume (there IS an external silencer though), and so on. I would add my own pet peeve to the mix and say that the phone loses its clock whenever it loses reception. For someone who is in the subway all the time and who hates wearing a watch, this is annoying. For most normal people, I doubt it would be a problem. The point is that these criticisms are all accurate, but quite frankly, they all strike me as the sort of things that would only bother the kind of people who spend all their time writing online product reviews for things they've bought. They are far outweighed by the quality with which the phone performs its primary functions. I wouldn't let these little things discourage you from the phone unless you know for sure that they will bother you too.