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"Great for messaging and for the hip new crowd with lots of features and easy-to-use interface" on by lukeishere
Pros: Obviously the QWERTY keypad is great for texting, along with a 1.3 megapixel camera and beautiful external and internal screens. Interface is easy to use and buttons are easy to press.
Cons: The QWERTY keypad was a learning curve from typing with all fingers to just thumbs, but a day latter I'm better. The camera quality is sketchy, and there are a few bugs with the interface.
Summary: This camera is a masterpiece, and being able to use a full QWERTY keypad is a great tool if you text a lot like I do. The interface is great, while the quality of icons and other items on the screens are condensed to fit the smaller screens, they still show up ok. The camera quality is not very good, 1.3 megapixels may sound like a lot for a phone, but it's not really all that great. The internal keyboard is small and takes a learning curve to get used to, but I got the hang of it in one day and was texting like crazy. The entire interface of the phone is nice and easy to use, but there is no vibration setting for message alerts, which makes you stuck with a short 1/4 second vibration when you get a message, no matter what text ring you have chosen. You may find yourself checking to see if you have texts. But the opening and closing of the phone is snappy and acts just right, and overall this is a great phone, especially for the price Virgin Mobile charges you for at $99.
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"Kinda fun, except for the marketing" on by zydeholic
Pros: Voice dial, email, camera, qwerty board
Cons: Too many options deep into the menus, too many marketing gotchas, being able to play music would be nice
Summary: The phone is kinda neat. Never had one like this. I'm not a text messager, but when I found out I could text to Google and get driving directions, I wanted something with a qwerty keyboard. And I certainly wanted a qwerty to send email.
Also, I'm 55, so I'm probably out of their targeted demographic.
The other one I had was the Party Animal, which was kinda clunky.
I just don't like some of Virgin's marketing scams, though. You cannot create your own ringtone. You must buy one from Virgin. And when you go to their site, 90 percent of the tones cannot be previewed. The links are just broken. Seems like, if they're going to force you to buy through them, the least they can do is let you listen to what they have. But perhaps the scheme is to have you download a bunch of stuff you thought you'd like, and keep downloading until you hit something you do like.
Also, when I want to go online, I have to scroll past probably 10 links trying to sell me something before I get to "Surf the Web". It would be nice if I could customize the menus and remove stuff I don't want, or at least move most used stuff to the top of the list.
I REALLY like the voice dialing feature. Helps immensely when I'm driving and trying to get traffic reports, or call someone, etc.
Voices coming through the speakerphone are mostly understandable, but can sound overly digitized and clipped. However, someone I was talking to said they could hear me better when I was talking into the speakerphone, rather than regular phone style.
It would be nice if there were a one button step to silence the phone to vibrate. Instead you have to step down though a couple of sets of menus, and then scroll the volume all the way to vibrate only.
Supposedly, you can hit the End button, and it will send a call to voicemail, but, still, it will ring until you catch it.
I'm not a big cell phone talker, but with the voice dial thing, and finding out I could text to Google and get driving directions, I jumped all over this thing.
There aren't enough punctuation symbols on the keyboard. Supposedly you can hit one button and scroll through all the symbols that are hidden, but, hey, wouldn't it be nice to put a period where you can hit it in one keystroke?
The scheduler is good to have. The voice recorder is good to have, but haven't used it yet. Alarm clock is good. The flashlight would be great if you could get to it without going to the Tools menu.
I liked Virgin way back when. They seemed like the good guys in the predatory cell phone business, but, they have to make a buck I guess, and they have to make it off of us. They're still the best deal considering they way I use a phone, but it's just a bit annoying being locked into Big British Brother when I want to trick out my phone.
And, since it has 36MB on board, why not let me download some of my own tunes onto it and let me play them. I know, it would only hold 10 songs at the most, but regardless... And don't make me buy them through the online store that is primarily for the under 20 crowd.
So, the product is ok, the marketing sucks. -
"Great easy to use Mesaging Phone" on by bingo4893
Pros: Excellent keyboard, camera, and sound clarity
Cons: Smudges Easily;Charges to check balance
Summary: I just got this phone 1 week ago, and I love it. Great features, great rates, and great service! The coverage has been better than the map predicted. I get full or near full signals in rural areas. I've never found a place where there is no service(and i don't live in a large urban area). The sound clarity is excellent, and the keyboard is extremely useful. The camera takes great pictures, except in the dark. My only complaints are that it smudges so easily even in my pocket, and that there's a charge when i check my balance. Every day that I check my balance over my phone a small fee is charged from my account(ARGH!). Overall an excellent phone, and great service!
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"The first phone from Virgin for "grownups."" on by MsJazzMaven
Pros: Ease of texting with QWERTY, vs. the old keypad, expanded memory, better quality of photos. Bluetooth. Solid keyboard. Stylish, glossy black exterior.
Cons: Internal display still too small. Font too big. Character allotment too limited in Text Messaging mode.
Summary: Unlike the reviewer, I was able to enter e-mail addresses into the "Send To" window by double-clicking the white "sym" key. The keyboard layout was good, however, the toggle was too close to the "space" bar, making it easy to accidentally leave the window. Given the real estate under the hinge, perhaps it could have been moved up. Alternatively, the "space" bar could have run been oriented in a similar fashion to that on my computer. The keys, themselves, had a solid feel, however, with plenty of tactile feedback. They were large enough, even for users with dexterity problems.
The internal display could have been much larger, especially for Mobile Email. An option for text size or a different font would have been a plus. More allowable characters while Text Messaging would have been nice, given the easier mode of entry, as well as for someone with elderly paremts or friends not text-literate. E-mail received as text messages over-ran the sreen. Stereo speakers would have made music-streaming more enjoyable. The ability to fully surf the Web was hampered severely by "network gremlins." This was a big problem, especially when clicking on links or doing business online when out-of-town away from my computer. Don't know if this is an issue across the product line or just from Virgin Mobile. It might be a good idea to evaluate the phone again when it becomes available by other carriers. A model-twin, the Lingo, is also in production, but it uses a slightly different interface,
"Keyguard" is useful for securely carrying the phone when closed, for preventing accidental phone calls or data exchange in transit.
"Bluetooth" permits a wider choice when selecting a headset.
"Contact Vault" is a significantly essential utility for backing up your list in case it's ever lost or stolen. In addition, it was nice for when I upgraded from the Cyclops (which also has it.) A few quick clicks and about 30 seconds later, my information was on my new phone. It's Web-based and very secure. The manufacturer also offers software for synchronizing contacts with your computer's Address Book, as well as storing & exchanging photos & ringtones, along with a data cable. Details are in the manual that came with the phone for ordering.
Will give my opinion after purchase & evaluation. -
"Good Phone, Good Service, Great Price." on by backfire103
Pros: Bluetooth, Price, Full QWERTY Keyboard.
Cons: Small screen size,
Summary: I purchased this phone replacing a t-mobile to go prepay. I use it mainly for texting, and with virgins 9.99 for 1000 texts a month makes it very attractive. The phone has a great design and a small profile, making it smaller then the LG enV. The service is great and has many neat features such as the built in flashlight. My only con is the size of the internal screen, as there was room for a much bigger one. Other then that its a great phone at an even better price.
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