Motorola V710 user reviews (Alltel Wireless)

Pros Call quality, great reception; Motorola reliability

Cons Limited bluetooth connectivity

Summary This is an excellent all-around phone with great reception and reliability. I never miss a call with Verizon and Motorola combo. Calls are always loud and clear. I'm a frequent business traveler and this phone never let me down, even in remote locations. I tried different carriers and phones and by far, Verizon and Moto is marriage made in heaven.

Some reviewers were understandably disappointed with camera quality but it's a cell phone first and foremost. Get your high quality digital camera out if you want quality picts for keeps.

As for Bluetooth functionality, yes, Verizon should be ashamed of themselves, but it works for what most people would use bluetooth on cell phones for - wireless headset. Honestly, how many people would contantly connect to their computers using bluetooth to transfer bad quality picts and mp3s back and forth. This phone works perfectly with my bluetooth enabled Acura TL and Moto headset.

If you want quality phone to receive and make calls, this phone is highly recommended. If gimmicks and toys on cell phones are more important to you than talking, look elsewhere.

Pros Looks cool, great name behind it, but ...

Cons Poor voice transmission quality. Bluetooth? Barely.

Summary I got roped into buying this phone by name and feature set. Who would have known it was not worth the money -- even half of the money for that matter.

On a positive side, the clamshell design and keyboard are good.

Beyond that, it goes downhill. Most annoying to me is the voice quality. For a several hundred dollar phone, I expect at least *some* of the folks on the other end of the line to say "hey, are you in your office. that phone sounds good." I used to get that all of the time with my Kyocera. Not so with the Moto V710. It's painfully clear to all of us that I'm on a cell phone.

Beyond that, the other big annoyance was the belt clip. Over the course of four months, it got looser and looser -- to the point where the phone seemed to jump out of the holster on its own. (You had to wonder whether you were better off just dropping the phone on the ground yourself, first, so at least you wouldn't be surprised when it clattered to the ground after you thought you had secured it in the holster).

Oh, and don't get me started on Bluetooth. For months, I waited for the update from Verizon that would allow me to use that feature to transfer my phone numbers from my laptop. I finally got a notice from Verizon saying that they had discontinued support of the V710 (this was only 3 mos. after they had introduced the darn thing) and that I should stop holding me breath waiting for the update.

All in all, this dog of a phone just "don't hunt."

Pros Bluetooth technology. Good call quality. Bright screen.

Cons Lack of Bluetooth support. Battery life is terrible. Quality of phone is subpar.

Summary When I first purchased this phone, it was the most advanced in Verizon's line-up (save the PDA/Smart phones). I was excited about the Bluetooth. I was excited about having a camera of megapixel quality. I thought I had made a wonderful purchase. I was wrong.

Quality:
The biggest disappointment was how quickly this phone started having issues on me. Granted, I am extremely hard on my phones, however, the V-710 did not last me a full year. The camera and antenna both broke on me near the end of its usable life. The screen also developed 'scratch areas' where it seems like it was vunerable to any kind of abrasion. This resulted in eight or so discs of scratched areas on the screen. Never had that happen with a phone before. Lastly, the hinge was designed in such a way that part of it rubs against the casing, thus there is an area on the hinge that is nothing but scraped plastic. Simply not a well built phone.

Call Quality:
Good enough in the beginning. As time wore on, I began to have much more difficultly having folks understand what I was saying and connecting in general.

Camera:
This phone's camera is a joke. Unless you are in the brightest of light, you get a grainy, dark, fuzzy image. My girlfriend's mobile sports a camera not even rated at 1 megapixel and it takes vastly superior pictures. I guess that is one argument for megapixels not meaning much in terms of quality.

Bluetooth:
Why Motorola decide to include this feature (beyond suckering saps like myself into buying it and in order to sell the paltry set of add on equipment) is a mystery. First off, Verizon's data network, outside of with PDA/Smart phones, is relatively infintile. Thus, if you expect to use it to connect a PDA or laptop to the Net, don't. And forget about syncing it in order to update your contacts list too. It doesn't do it. All you can really do with it is use a wireless hands-free headset. It works well with this, but hardly becomes worth it due to the poor battery life. Speaking of...

Battery Life:
Sucks. Plain and simple, this beast draws much too much power in standby mode, meaning that you have to charge it almost every night with moderate usage. Towards the end, the bloody thing wouldn't last from morning till early evening. Not that its battery should last forever, but weak usage time couple with how quickly it lost the ability to sustain a full charge is unacceptable in such an expensive phone.

Interface:
If all Motorolas share this type of menu design, you won't find me using one ever again. To say it is confusing is to be much too kind. Simple tasks, like setting the backlight timer, are buried in non-intuitive areas. Contacts take up a speed-dial number whether you want them to or not. So if you have a number you rarely call, you still have to give it a number between 02 and 99. Oh, and each number for the same person constitutes a separate number complete with its own speed-dial. Needless to say, the contacts area becomes a bit unwieldy. Text messaging was a bit off too, with the predictive text function often putting exactly the wrong word in. Somehow, it seemed less intelligent than similar systems I've used in the past.

Other Apps:
5 alarms. That is the only significant add-on application that I found useful. The rest is stuff I use my PDA for and have little use for a mobile phone's truncated offerings.

Included Accesories:
Nothing to speak of. Wall charger and belt clip. That's all you get for what was originally a $400 phone.

Overall:
This is possible the worst mobile I've ever owned. It is a classic example of Verizon supporting sub-standard units on their network, the prime reason I decided to dump them. I hadn't owned a Motorola since the days of the original flip phone and, based on this experience, doubt I will anytime in the foreseeable future. Your money would be better spent on a different phone (and different service provider). You have been warned...

Pros Speakerphone, internal large screen, external color screen, bluetooth, memory card

Cons A little "plastic" feeling

Summary I'll have to admit that I ordered the V710 in October '04 and when I got it, returned it mainly because of all the reviews I read on CNET.
I wound up getting an LG6100, but didn't like the non color external screen and no Bluetooth, plus the 6100's inability to store pix and sound on an external card.
When I really compared the V710 in a local store (the salesman just left me alone for almost an hour to compare all the models of Verizon phones), I couldn't help but go with the V710...and I'm glad I did!
Although I had been on a "kick" of wanting the smallest phones available, I soon found out that doing this was keeping me from enjoying some really great features that come in phones seemingly trending a little larger again. Hey, my first cell phone was one of those "bricks" back in the 80's...we're not going anywhere near that!
I love the look of the phone, and the size doesn't bother me. I even installed the extended battery, which is awesome...I get 3 days of service out of it with a lot of usage!
The speakerphone is the best out there! VERY loud and clear, and those on the other end of my conversation are very impressed that I actually am on a speakerphone...they really can't tell the difference.
I'm not all that perturbed with Verizon's handicapping of the Bluetooth technology...my Motorola Bluetooth headset works great (the one with the boom mic). Since it allows you to have a removable memory card, I can put pictures, sound (yes, my own ringtones) on the card and transfer them to the phone - very simple.
The "normal" phone operation is awesome!! The reception is fantastic - Verizon's strength, especially in Tennessee.
The camera is fine. I take "real" photos with my Sony 5 megapixel camera...the phone's camera is only for "fun", or if I'm ever in that sitation where I need to grab a snapshot, I can use the phone's camera. The PHONE was never meant to be a fine, high quality CAMERA.
The MP3 player is also good. For dedicated listening to MP3's I have an IPOD.
So, I've pretty much debunked most all of the negative remarks by using/researching the V710 myself. I'm loving it!
I will admit, Samsung phones are my favorite "feeling" phones...they just feel sturdy. The V710 has a little plastic "creaking" from time to time, but nothing I can't overlook!
Need a GREAT phone? Get the Motorola V710!!!