-
CNET editors' rating:
stars
Very good
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 97 reviews
- See all user reviews
Product summary
The good: Compact, user-friendly design; analog roaming; speakerphone.
The bad: No external display or Web browser.
The bottom line: Functional and easy to use, the LG VX3200 puts on no airs and does exactly what a cell phone should.
Specifications: Carrier: Verizon Wireless ; Band / mode: CDMA 800/1900 / AMPS 800 ; Talk time: Up to 200 min ; See full specs
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 07/26/2004
The earpiece and the microphone match the blue hue of the front flap, while a mirrored frame surrounds the phone's display. The 1.5-inch (diagonal) screen displays a solid 65,000 colors; it is crisp and clear and can be seen in dim settings. In natural light, however, the screen appears faint even on a cloudy day, though you can adjust both the brightness and the contrast.
The navigation buttons and menus--there's a choice of two styles--couldn't be easier to use. A four-way toggle provides one-touch access to messages, sounds, the speakerphone, voice memo, and voice dialing. An OK button in its center allows you to select options in the text-based menus, while two soft keys open the phone book and the main menu page. The controls are well spaced and are lit by a bright blue backlight. Keypad buttons are nicely sized, and they are raised above the phone's surface, so it is easy to dial by feel.As said before, the LG VX3200 has a mostly basic feature set. You get a 300-name phone book with room for five phone numbers and three e-mail addresses for each contact. You can organize contacts into groups and assign them one of 32 polyphonic ring tones (there's also a vibrate option) for caller ID purposes--particularly useful since there's no external screen. You also can pair names with a message tone and a picture, and there's room for 99 speed-dial entries.
Other features include a scheduler, a calculator, an alarm clock, a voice memo recorder, a notepad, a tip calculator, text and enhanced messaging, and a world clock. Gamers are out of luck, though, and there's no Internet browser. But there were some features we were surprised to see, especially the speakerphone and USB for data/fax and PC connections.
For such a basic phone, the VX3200 included a variety of customizable options. You can choose from a series of wallpapers, clock styles, sounds, and theme colors, and you can compose a personalized banner message. Other nice touches: you can adjust font sizes and colors, and you can set the phone to "say" the numbers as you dial them in either English or Spanish. Finally, when roaming outside the service area, you can program the phone to enter power-saver mode after a specified period of time.We tested the triband (CDMA 800/1900; AMPS 800) LG VX3200 in San Francisco; Seattle; Portland, Oregon; and southern Oregon. Audio quality was clear, and callers had no trouble hearing us or vice versa. They could tell we were using a cell phone, but we suffered from few dropped calls. Also, audio quality and signal strength suffered in more rural areas.
Battery time was mixed. We got 3.5 hours of talk time, slightly beating the rated time of 3.3 hours. But for standby time, we managed only 4.5 days, well short of what LG claims. While that's not great, it's not terrible either.
- See more CNET content tagged:
- LG Electronics Inc.
User reviews
- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 97 reviews
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
-
Showing 3 of 97 user reviewsSee all 97 user reviews
-
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
-
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
-
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
"good phone easy to use.I have had for about 2 months like very much."
- See all 97 user reviews Write review
%20Cell%20Phone%20reviews%20-%20CNET%20Reviews&srcUrl=http://reviews.cnet.com/cell-phones/lg-vx3200-verizon-wireless/4505-6454_7-30907904.html){kind=small}