Cell Phone Thoughts

2005-12-09T12:10:00.000-08:00

Razor

Verizon now has the razor phone. Verizon customers have been waiting for this phone ever since other companies released the first razor phone. Customers have always wanted to know why Verizon has not carried it. Well let me give you a little background. When companies first introduced the phone, there have always been complaints about it being to easy to break. Since Verizon phones have to meet a higher standard, the razor phone has never proved to be durable enough to be carried by them. Therefore, as new generations of the razor phone have been manufactured, verizon finally has adopted one. The new Verizon Wireless razor was released on today.
Here are the specs. The razor comes as an all-digital phone. It gives the user the option of the Bluetooth technology. The customers can access the EVDO/VCAST network. It has a 1.3 mega pixel camera built in, and takes videos. The one thing that this phone does not support is the mp3 player. Because of its small design, they had no place in which to put the slot that would hold the card. However, even with out this feature, the phone looks like it will be a hot seller for the company. If you have any question about the phone, fill free to post comments.

2005-11-28T09:37:00.000-08:00

Christmas Sales

For Christmas, Verizon is going to be doing LG days. What this means, is that they are going to be reducing all of LG phones, and doing buy one get one free promotions. The sale will go as follows. Starting on the Monday following thanksgiving, they will be reducing the cost on the LG 9800, 8100, and 5200. They will be reducing the 9800 to $199, after a $50 mail in rebate. The 8100 will be going back to $99 after the $50 mail in rebate, and the 5200 will drop back to $49 after the $50 mail in rebate. These deals aren’t the best that I have seen, but the big thing that they are doing is there buy one get one free. With the purchase of any camera phone, you can get the LG 3300 free. With the purchase of a 5200, 6100, 8100, or 9800, you can get a LG 5200 camera phone free.
What this means for customers is that if you have two upgrades available, or if you have an upgrade and want to add a line, now is the time. As you can read from previous posts, the 5200 is an all around great basic camera phone. It does everything a phone should, and at a cost of free, it is a great way to go.

2005-11-25T14:18:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Weekend Sale

For thanksgiving, Verizon Wireless will be doing a great promotion. At the Circuit City locations, Verizon Wireless will be selling a Motorola V710 for $30 after instant rebate. They will also be throwing in a free Bluetooth earpiece. This price will be for the first four hours that they are open, after that, they will be selling it for $50 and still will be including a free blue tooth earpiece. This is a great deal, considering that they were previously going for $100 after a $50 mail in rebate.
At all other locations, they will be selling a Samsung a950 for $50 after $100 mail in rebate. They will also be giving a way a free Bluetooth headset. This is an amazing deal, the phones were previously selling for $250 before rebate, and the earpiece that they are giving away with it is made by jabra, and retails at $70. This is definitely a power buy, if you have an upgrade available I would highly recommend picking this phone up.

2005-11-21T20:37:00.000-08:00

The LGVX-1000 (MIGO)

The New LGVX-1000 was released this week, and is being called the MIGO. The phone’s intended market is the younger kids that are not able to have full functioning cell phone, as well as to parents that want to be able to track there kids. The phone’s kid friendly design is attractive to a younger market. It is given a green shell, with two little antennas that make it look almost like a Shrek Phone.
When you are looking at the phone, you will notice that it only has five buttons. There are four programmable phone numbers, and an emergency number. The parents are the ones that will program in the four numbers, so kids can only call the numbers that they want them to. There is also an emergency number. The number come preprogrammed to 911, but can be changed to whatever number the parents want it to call.
A new feature that this phone will allow is geo-fencing. This feature allows that parents to get online and set up a designated geographical area that the kids are not supposed to travel outside. If the kid goes outside of that area, it notifies the parent through a text message. Allowing the parent to call their child, and find out where they are. This is a great idea on this phone, especially with all of the problems going on in the world. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments.

2005-11-16T06:16:00.000-08:00

The Samsung 630

This is the last phase of the revamped Samsung phones. This is the last phone that Samsung will be releasing this year. Samsung has released this phone to replace the out dated 650. This phone is a little smaller than the 650, and was given a more square design. The one thing that they did on this phone, as well as the 670, is they strengthened the hinges of the phone. The 650 ran into similar problems in later models where the phone had a bad hinge that would crack. Samsung has now revamped all of there phones with better hinges. The 630 is still lacking an outside display, just like the old 650. This phone did however get a new speakerphone feature that it didn’t have previous. The one down side of the speakerphone is that you have to initialize it once you are in a conversation, instead of being able to start it prior to the call. Something that surprised a lot of people was that they released this phone with the same user interface as the 650 and did not give it the new LG interface. This phone, just like the 950, has an internal antenna built in. As for reception, there was no increase in signal strength over the prior model. Some reviews that I have seen have complained of the speaker cutting in and out. I do not know if Samsung is aware of it yet, but it has been a problem on multiple phones. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments.

2005-11-14T17:54:00.000-08:00

Samsung 850

The Samsung 850 is finally here. This phone is the replacement phone for the Samsung 670. The Samsung 670 made a long production run, and was a very high seller for Verizon. After multiple problems with the hinges on the latter 670’s Samsung released a new version of the phone.
The 850 has a lot of the same feature as the old phone. It still has the ability to take pictures, and still carries the same resolution as the older model. It will still take video, and has a similar size. The difference in the 850 over the 950 is that it allows the user a speakerphone option that the older one did not have. Samsung has made the hinge on this new one a little stronger, and more durable. They have given the new Samsung the same user interface as the new LG’s. The one thing that they have done away with is the color outside display. The phone has a black and white display, and does not have the capability of display picture id on the outside.

The phone still boasts the same reception as the old version. It is still an all-digital phone, and does not have the capability of Vcast. It will be interesting to see how this phone will stack up against it predecessor. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments

2005-11-10T15:40:00.000-08:00

The New Samsung 950

The new Samsung 950 has combined a sleek design, with a power pack of potential. The 950 is very similar to the LG-VX8100, it is a camera phone that has the ability to do MP3’s, it is Vcast compatible, it is Bluetooth ready, and boast comparable reception to the Motorola E815.
The phone came out early in the week, and is available to all Verizon wireless customers. This phone is both stylish and user friendly. The phone was given a hot red color, surrounded by silver. The first thing that you notice when you look at the phone is the scroll wheel on the outside. The scroll wheel is used for MP3’s, giving it a more Ipod feel. The outside also boasts a skip, play, and stop button to compliment the scroll wheel. The camera on the outside is a 1.3 megapixle camera, capable of both pictures and 15 sec. videos. The one thing that you will also notice is that the phone is missing an antenna. The phone uses an internal antenna, which to the surprise of users, gives the phone better reception.
The inside is also different from traditional Samsung phones. The Samsung phone has adopted the new user interface that Verizon will be adopting for all phones. This same user interface is on the new 8100. The phone has settings that will allow a user to connect to a blue tooth headset (These phones still do not have the ability to communicate to any other Bluetooth devices). The phone also supports Vcast, allowing users to download 3D games, and watch videos on there phone.
In order to use the MP3’s a user will have to purchase a memory card. The phone uses a transflash card, and mp3’s can be downloaded either through a computer, or over the Vcast network.
Overall, this phone looks like it will be a great addition to the Verizon phone family, and will also be a big seller. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments

2005-10-25T13:13:00.000-07:00

Software update for the LG8100

There was a realize of new software for the 8100. The LG had a problem with the manner mode. When the phone was set to manner mode, there would be random times that it would still ring. The software update also fixes the problem with the mp3 player. Prior to the mp3 update, the phone would not play the mp3's that it was supposed to play. The other thing that it fixed was the problem with pictures that you take, showing up with an X through it. In order to get the software update, you need to go to a direct Verizon store in order to get it fixed. There is a possible chance of loss of data, but a representative will tell you that. Make sure that you back everything up prior to going in just so that you have no problem. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments

2005-10-16T00:37:00.000-07:00

Buying a New Cell Phone

When going into a store to purchase a cell phone, your choices can be overwhelming. There are so many different kinds, and there are so many different prices. The key things to remember when buying a new cell phone is: where you will be using it, what features you want, and what you are willing to spend. The first thing to keep in mind when buying a new cell phone is where you will be using it. There are two types of phones, a tri-mode and an all digital. The difference between the two is one will allow for analog and both forms of digital, and the other one will allow the two forms of digital. A tri-mode phone will benefit those that are in areas where signal strength is not that good, and also those that like to go into the mountains. For those that are just mainly city dwellers a digital phone will do them just fine. Also with the push of everything going digital, digital phones are just as good. The second thing to figure out, is what types of features you want your phone to be capable of doing. Do you want you phone to have a camera, to take video, to have Bluetooth, or even be able to watch movie trailers on it. Every phone has its different capabilities, and knowing what is more important to you, and what isn’t, will help you narrow down your choices. The last thing that you need to figure out is your budget. Phone range in price from very cheap to very expensive. What you need to consider is that the phone is an investment, and depending on the cell phone carrier, it might be a while until you are able to get a new one. If this is the case you might want to spend some more money in order to get one that you will like, and not just settle for the cheapest one. What I recommend is looking at what types of phones that everyone that works for the store is using. Make sure you look at what the customer service reps are using because they tend to know which phones are more durable then those that just sell.

2005-10-11T14:40:00.000-07:00

New LG Cell Phone

The anticipation of the new LG-VX9800 has been huge. This is Verizon’s first attempt at competing with the T-Mobile sidekick. The 9800, like the sidekick, has the ability to be used as just a standard phone, but also flips open to expose a complete letter pad. It comes with the capability of communication with blue tooth headsets. It allows for the use of the EVDO/VCAST network. It shares the same high quality camera as the 8100 with a 1.3 mega pixel capacity. This camera like other phones offers the ability to take video, but is limited to 15 seconds. The newest features that the phone supports are the business card reader, and speak to text capability. The reviews on the phone so far have been good. Most users agree that it is better then the 8100, the biggest complaint is that you just need to get used to it because it is different. The phone is very comparable to the sidekick, and has stepped up to the plate and hit a home run. Let me know what you think about it. If you have any questions about the phone, post some comments

2005-10-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

New Cell Phone Review

There have been a lot of new cell phones that have been released by Verizon. One of the newer cell phones is the LG-VX5200, and the LG-VX8100. Both of these phones have been receiving good reviews from there users. The LG-VX5200 was released as a more affordable camera phone that solves basic user functions, and takes pictures. The phone was not meant to be too fancy. It does however come with the tri-mode feature. It uses the new LG interface, and is smaller then the 6100. The 5200 has become direct competition with the 6100 with each doing the same basic functions. The biggest difference between the two phones is the resolution on the screens. The 5200 seems to have a darker screen, and is not as clear as the 6100. If I were to take a guess, LG will be phasing out the 6100 fairly soon, and will release an upgraded model. On the other had, there is the LG-VX8100. This phone has received great reviews from its users. This phone combines all of the newest technologies out on the market. It has the built in mp3 feature. This feature was limited at first, but with the software upgrade allows for full function of the MP3 capability. It has blue tooth capability, as well as speakerphone. This is also the first LG phone capable of accessing the VCAST/EVDO network. With all of these new enhancements, it is one of the best phones out on the market. These two phones are the first step of many that LG is taking in making better, more reliable phones, and imputing the style and features that customers are looking for.

2005-10-04T17:01:00.000-07:00

New Verizon Wireless Cell Phone

Verizon has introduced a lot of new cell phones lately, but one of there newest phones that they will be introducing, is the new Samsung 950. The Samsung 950 has a lot of the same look and feel as the LG-VX8100. This new Verizon wireless cell phone, will give the customer the ability to once again use the mp3 feature as previous models have allowed. The phone comes with the ability to use memory cards in which to store the mp3's on. This camera also comes standard with the ability to access Verizon Wireless's EVDO network. The VCAST feature like prior phones will give the new phone the ability to be used for sports casts, 3d games, and music videos. This will be Samsungs first attempt at a blue tooth capable phone, it will be interesting to see how well it actually works, and if there will be any flaws to the programming. The thing that I found extremely interesting about this phone is that it will be running the same type of LG user interface just like its brother the 970. The biggest new feature that was added to the phone was a touch scroll system like the ipod. It will be interesting to see if the scroll feature will be used for just the mp3 feature, or will allow for easier scrolling through the contact list.

2005-09-13T15:17:00.000-07:00

For all those that are wishing to help in the Katrina relief effort. There is a new site that is getting a lot of news coverage that is finding housing for those that are in without homes. Visit http://katrinahousing.org/

2005-09-13T12:54:00.000-07:00

There has been a lot of talk lately about the need to require all cell phone drivers to be using a hands free device. The question that I propose is, will this really help? I personally believe that the problem is not that there is a phone in their hand, but that they are to in-depth in the conversation. I agree that a driver should have both hands free and available to concentrate on driving. I do agree that a hands free device would help in allowing a person to react better if a situation were to arise. The problem that I do not understand is how a hands free device will help them focus more on the road, and not on there conversation. The biggest problem that I have seen, and read, is the fact that drivers tend to get more involved in there conversation, rather than paying attention to what is going on around them. If they are trying to help people from looking at there phone while driving, the only real solution is to get a blue tooth headset in which you can name dial from your earpiece. Otherwise, you would still have to look at your phone in order to dial. I do not understand how everything will be better with the use of hands free devices. Feel free to respond, all views are welcome.