While Motorola's RAZR V3 was tearing up the marketplace world-wide, people on Verizon's network were left asking "What about us?". Then we saw a CDMA RAZR show up in Korea, and Verizon users felt hope, and eventually were offered the RAZR V3c. But then the magenta colored "pink" RAZR V3 hit the shelves in T-Mobile stores, and once again Verizon customers were left wanting for more.
And now they have it, in the form of the pink Motorola RAZR V3c. Functionally the same as the gray V3c, the new version has a pink color that is, well, more "pink" than the model offered by T-Mobile. In fact, it is really quite attractive, even to my decidedly male brain.
Learn more about the pink RAZR V3c from Verizon Wireless. |
The V3c has 30MB of internal storage and a run-of-the-mill 1.3 megapixel camera that takes photos that are just "ok", but not great. That megapixel camera, different from the one in the new V3i, is the reason for the small bulge in the shape of the RAZR V3c near the hinge. This brings the total handset thickness to 5/8ths of an inch (about 16mm). The weight still comes in at 3.4oz (97g), or about the same as the original V3.
The V3c's internal antenna does a good job of finding and holding onto a signal - at least as well as Motorola's own V710 did with its extendable whip antenna. Audio quality is pretty good for a Verizon phone, and the battery life was about average for an EV-DO 3G handset, at 3.25 hours of continuous talk time. That EV-DO capability means that the V3c is compatible with Verizon's V CAST video service, which offers video clips from the likes of CNN and MTV, as well as a host of others. Bluetooth support is also on board, but only for headset use. You can not use it to send and receive photos, for example, though photos can be sent via email or uploaded to the Verizon PixPlace website. Verizon has promised that it will start to allow its EV-DO handset subscribers to use their phones as EV-DO modems, but you will need an extended data plan (not just V CAST) in order to do so.
Like most all new Verizon phones, the RAZR V3c uses Verizon's standard user interface. This means that the menu system on the V3c is almost the exact same as the one found on LG's VX8000 and VX8100 phones, or Samsung's SCH-a950. While I'm not a fan of the system, it is reasonable to use and will make the V3c an easy upgrade for most people already using a Verizon handset.
Other points of interest include a nice speakerphone and a very good speaker independent voice command system. The system allows you to call a particular phone number for one of your contacts just by speaking a single command to the phone. For example, you just press the voice dial button and say "call john doe home" or "call john doe mobile" to start the call. You can also use the same system to start a text message, digit dial (eg. 215-555-1212), or lookup a contact record ("lookup john doe"). The system works over the speakerphone or with a Bluetooth headset, as well.
Click the image to see the V3c's keyboard up close. |
Pros:
Thin and sexy EV-DO data, V CAST support Bluetooth Cons:
Keypad not great for fast texting Mediocre camera Could use more battery life Overall, the pink RAZR V3c from Motorola is a very capable and easy to love phone. It has striking good looks and design, and a rock solid feature set that includes 3G data, Bluetooth, and a large 262k color display. While you might want more battery life and a better quality camera, the RAZR V3c is still likely to make you happy - and get you noticed.
--Reviewed by Michael Oryl, editor in chief of www.MobileBurn.com
