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"Great basic little phone" on by mrsraider
Pros: Long battery life and great reception
Cons: No good ringtones available
Summary: I originally had the LG VX8700 and returned it to Verizon after 6 days. Although the LG VX8700 is a beautiful phone with all the bells and whistles, the battery life was terrible. I turned the phone on with 3 bars of life in the morning and by the evening with minimal usage the battery died. I didn't want to be constantly charging the phone as I had done so with the Motorola Razor. Also the LG VX8700 seemed like a very fragile phone and that I would constantly be worrying about scratching or denting it.
I decided to try the Motorola W385. I like it very much. It has a great grip to it. Nice color screen and color keypad. It is a very basic phone. There is no changing the colors on the screen and I was very disappointed with the ringtones the phone came with as well as not being able to access the Verizon Tones. The only tones you are able to purchase are the SONY Tones, which I didn't find much to my liking. With this phone you are able to picture i.d. contacts as well as assign individual ringtones.
I was able to leave the phone on for 5 full days, not turning the phone off once and also with usage before having to recharge the battery. The battery life is great. The reception on this phone is very good as well as the call quality. Speakerphone is okay and bluetooth usage is fine. -
"Perfect Cell Phone!!!!!" on by Neozander
Pros: Speaker & earpiece volume & Clarity, battery & signal strength, Solid Sleek Phone!
Cons: NONE - no jack of all trades master of none useless bells & whistles!
Summary: Hello all,
This phone to me is simply perfect! It's first and foremost an excellent Cell Phone. I have a digi camera and mp3 player and have no need for all of the ancillary rubbish that bog down many of today's phones. Now mind you if you do desire such extras simply stay away from this model as it will not be the right phone for you.
I just sent my multi function Nokia back in yet again for service. It does everything but slice bread and does all of it poorly. Earpiece and speaker phone volume is horrific. I could go on....essentially it has made me realize I want a bullet proof soilid basic phone.
Want the best no bells&whistles phone then by all means get one you won't be sorry!
Cheers,
Neozander -
"Terrific phone, no regrets" on by penguinan
Pros: Sound quality, ring volume, comfort
Cons: Alarm Clock, exterior speakerphone button
Summary: After being with TMobile for the past 7 years, we switched to Verizon without any remorse. This phone is terrific. Comfortable feel, decent battery life. We had a Motorola Razr and a Motorola V360; this device is much better than both units, especially the soft keypad and "rubberized" exterior.
Battery does get "warm" but I think that is a provider issue. Our Motorola's with TMobile never heated up.
Exterior caller ID is not in color nor does it have the ability to have it's own wallpaper (like the Razr) which is a very minor detail (to us) but thought we'd mention it. The caller id being length wise and not width is fine with us.
One small negative is the alarm clock. In all of the previous Motorola devices we have had over the years, the alarm clock worked whether device was on or off. Unfortonately, the alarm clock does NOT work in the off mode.
The exterior speakerphone button is located where it's easy to accidentally activate. Not a big deal, we just need to adjust the way we hold our phones and all is well.
Camera takes decent pictures. If you want better pictures, then you should be using a digital camera.
Fits easily into pant pocket...so comfortably that it's easy to forget it's there so be careful not to toss your pants into the washer too quickly! We were considering smartphone and glad we chose this device; Dell Axim X50v (pocket pc) still works for us and we still have a device that can fit in the pocket.
Verizon not so bad either. We were so comfortable with TMobile but let's face it, in NM, they can't compare with Verizon's coverage.
Hope the above helps. -
"CNET reviews missing biggest point on Cell Phones" on by GMDEN
Pros: Great Phone. Best send/receive I have owned yet.
Cons: Only Price Meets all my needs, but could be cheaper
Summary: My comment here is generally a criticism of CNET. While reviews of features are important, most important with any communication device be it a Cell Phone, 2-way radio, shortwave radio, etc is it's transmit and receive performance.
Many phone CNET rates high for features, are lousy communication devices. I find Motorola to rate about the best when it comes to communication performance. Other makes may have a "cooler" look or feel, but if a phone crackles and and can't stay in touch with a distant cell tower, then it's useless.
If CNET doens't have the gear to test send/receive signals on the phone, then reviews are only as good as saying: "Look at this pretty phone, isn't it cool?". That is a useless review.
Please CNET get a technical editor with the gear to test these devices on staff, and then these reviews will be helpful. -
"A Cell Phone for Cell Phones" on by platoon13r
Pros: rubberized coating, solid feel, mirror front, always on clock, battery life, call quality; charge via USB
Cons: lacks ability to play mp3s
Summary: I've owned a bunch of phones over the last 10 yrs and most recently the LG 6000. I had the 6000 for close to 4 yrs and found it solid with exception to durability ... the phone, like most today, easily scratched. The battery in the 6000 gave way and it was time to purchase a newer phone.
I was on the hunt for a good solid phone ... not a camera, not a video player, not a mp3 player ... just a good solid phone. I first purchased the LG 8350 and found it be feature rich but didn't think it would last a month let alone a year due to the light weight full plastic body. I returned the 8350 and spotted the W385. As soon as I felt the phone, I knew it was worth a shot.
I took a close look at the GZ ... I liked the water proof body, but the phone was thick/big. Nonetheless, I purchased the W385 and have really enjoyed it. The rubberized coating protects the phone and prevents it from sliding around. In addition, the phone has a solid look and feel.
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