Casio G'zOne Type-V

I read this on Gizmodo.com, a reply to review there:

"This phone was smoking hot last year in Japan. More than a year later they bring to America and what fell out in transit?
- Web Browser
- Email
- GPS
- Compass
- Only comes in Nondescript Gray. (No black, red, green, orange...)

Oh, and it costs about $200 more for some reason...

I'm glad to see phones make a quicker transition from Japan and Korea, but this one has way too much lost in translation."

And it made me wonder. Why on earth is this phone $299? Plastic, even the shock-resistant kind, doesn't cost much. Seems like some gouging by Verizon.

And also, I am not going to get into the debate about Verizon absolutely crippling their phones, but why would they get rid of something useful like a compass?

I am reluctant to buy this phone now. I thought my Audiovox 9900 was big; this is a behemoth. But it is the most comparable in construction to my 9900, so I might have to bite the bullet unless Verizon releases something better soon.