Motorola RAZR V3
Phone Scoop Review
Jul 11, 2005 by Eric Lin
In-depth review of Motorola's iconic RAZR V3 high-end clamshell GSM phone for Cingular and T-Mobile. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
Georgeous
This is an awesome phone. The top of the design chain by far. Two things I wish is did better. The filing system is flawed. Seperate numbers for the same contact should be in one file. My pal has 4 numbers and they all show up scrolling through the Phone Book. Crazy! It also displays the same number twice if you have saved them all to the sim card, and the phone as I have.
Granted that I have a 7.2 MP camera the VGA one here is inadequate. I however only use it to take photos of contacts so that they display when they call. The screen resolution should also be a bit better.
As well when I synced it up to Outlook with Mobile Phone tools it enters in their email address. Useless and it clutters my phonebook. Simply georgeous and I love it. These are my only critical points.
The phone that everyone wants and don't know why
This is a fashion phone bar none. Coming from the Nokia 6260, and 6600 this is just something nice for me. I don't have to deal with the bulge in the pants when I go out and every one just loves it. But for me its a throw away phone, its sole purpose is to be with me when I don't want my office phone to run the risk of getting damaged or anything of that nature.
Pro's
Looks great
Fits my hand just right
reception is nice
the size of it can't be beat
Nice alloy cover
battery life
over all not a bad phone if you are not too spoiled with having Word and Excel on your phones like I do with my other ones.
Con's
5MB of memory
Phone book
where is the infared?
Flimsy short cut keys
the stupid software that you have to buy
Price ( I had to pay $50 for mine so I'm not complaining but I wouldn't pay more than $100 for this phone)
If you are a cingular person the cingular branding..debrending the phone is a pain(that goes with any provider)
TXTing putting in symbols
ambiance feature doesn't always work
As I said its a fashion phone, if you get it remember its just for that so don't complain if it doesn't do great things like the Mx220 or anything else like that. If you want a phone that allows you to have multiple functions, again not the right phone. But if you can have two phones one for business and one for fun, go ahead get one.
Decent...but with a catch
Pros: excellent transmission/reception just about anywhere (I have Cingular service).
Excellent, bright display. Decent sound playback. Easy to learn and navigate.
Cons: CENSORSHIP ON TEXT MESSAGES! Try sending some "obscene" or "racially tense" (whatever THAT means) words to your friend via text messaging. Make a note of what gets through and what doesn't. Sound level not high enough for crowded environments (did Motorola think they were selling the Razr to elitists?), and distorts easily.
The censorship thing really irks me. What's even worse is that it's only one particular word that I've found and not other words that are similar in nature. But, one look at the USA will tell you they're probably just jumping on the bandwagon.
Go figure...
Everything I expected
St. Paul MN
Currently: T-Mobile, Silver V3
Formerly: Cingular, Motorola V505.
First off, I enjoyed the V505 although I admit, I don't use my phone for internet, messaging or email...my laptop takes care of that for me.
I do sync the phone with outlook for appointments and editing the phonebook and that works phenomenally well. I also have a bluetooth headset (tekkeon) that is wonderful to have with either of these phones.
The reason I switched was because Cingular cannot get in-building reception consistently in the Twin Cities, T-Mobile is stellar to this extent.
Pros for both:
RF (as long as you have reliable carrier)
Bluetooth (never had any call quality issues)
Ease of use for driving professional
Good battery life for all day talking
Addtl for Razr: Is it wider? yes. Is it longer, no (if you include the antenna the v505 is about 1/3 inch longer when shut). I was surprisingly impressed with how solid this phone feels being as thin as it is, the wider phone actually benefits the phone by giving you a bigger keypad that both my wife feel is a benefit when using singlehandedly (she has small hands, mine are large). The looks of this phone are sleek and simple, I find this refreshing and have yet to see it draw attention to myself (I don't buy phones for others, simply to make myself happy). The weight of this phone is also a major benefit compared to the bulkier v505.
Cons: the keypad does get fingerprinted very easily, I am also not fond of the outer screen (can be annoying to read in direct sun), I prefer the simple blue light of the V505 which is much easier to read the time on anytime of day.
I find motorolas menus and phonebook easy to use and much safer on the road than the nokias I have used in the past, this is simply a preference, all phone software has its ups and downs.
After getting this phone (free from wirefly w/rebate)I simply would not go back to anything else, this phone is a trooper for talk time & call clarity & fits everywhere. A+
One gripe so far
I've had the 600,505, 60..
Have enjoyed them all..My only complaint about motorola phones is that they all seem a little flimsy..like I could break them..not like a major flaw..I did drop all of those phones with no problem..but they all seem to wear down VERY quickly..
The RAZR seems VERY Sturdy..My ONE gripe would be the outer screen..VERY DIM! I don't get this? Why is the main screen so bright and full and the external screen so dim and little? This would be a perfect phone so far..except for the little screen!
It was between this and the new Nokia Flip..this won based on my loyalty to moto for the past two years.
The Best USA Cellular Today
Pros: Svelte,Durable,Incredible Display, Portable, Good Speaker Microphone,Fits well in hand,Quadband
Cons: Suboptimal Earpiece volume,Mildly slow OS
1-2 months now of cell phone research convinces me that the Razr/V3 is overall the best cellular on the US market today. The LG8000 was bulky, with poor battery life. The Moto V551 had good battery life and non-slip cover and decent display, but the call sounds were often distorted and dropped calls occurred. The S-E s710a had an annoying swivel design,the OS was Very slow,and the keypad was too small. I liked the Palm Treo 650, but the stub antenna and poor reception and frequent re-boot requirements were undesirable.Audiovox SMT5600 keys were too small,the screen was just Okay, and battery life was poor.
There is no perfect mobile out there now, but the V3 comes closest. If you will be using your phone day in and day out, why not have an attractive/vivid display,razor-thin size and metallic composition?, all of which the Razr has head-and-shoulders above the others. I carry the phone in my front pants/shorts pocket without need for a protective cover. The vivid screen shows fingerprints,but no big deal, unless you're very finicky. The earpiece mic is a little low in volume, but the speakerphone and voice microphone are loud, with no dropped calls to date. Battery life has been 2.5-3.5 days with normal use for me, but the phone can be charged from empty to full charge within 1.5 hours. The camera picture quality is better than the V551 and LG8000. Bluetooth and email are useful, and I don't need an MP3 player/video games. The mildly slow OS is manageable but suboptimal. Try to get the V3 through Bestbuy (a Cingular rep), with a 2-year warranty for $40, unlike the Cingular folks who offer no warranty. (note: I own no stock in Bestbuy). Yes, the phone book is cumbersome, but a small price to pay for the many plusses.Finally, the Razr durability has been good-the phone in the "closed" mode seems indestructible!
This is by far the WORST PHONE I've ever had.
Considering the price of this phone, the features and performance lacked way too much. Before this phone I had an LG VX4500, and I couldn't help but constantly compare the two, although I've purchased the LG at a MUCH lower [$40] price. In the description of the phone on some websites, it was said that the sound quality was "CRYSTAL CLEAR". No. That is not the case. I had so much trouble being able to hear that after about a week of using this phone, I'm getting ready to sell it and get rid of cingular for good. If possibly in the future this phone sells for about $50, I may consider. That is, if I hadn't bought it just recently. But I do NOT recommend this phone.
i wonder
i wonder why all the good reviews come first when making one on this site, who's pockets is phonescoop in? not a good phone, not at all, where is the insurance? had it for about 36 days and the faceplate is wearing off, my bluetooth is messed up and the software sucks, so i ask, why pay hundreds for it when you could go get the v710 for better working software and better features and spend 1/5th of the price, also get better service with verizon wireless
One week with the Razr
I replaced my Verison V710 with a Razr V3 from Cingular a week ago. Here's my impression so far.
All of my previous experience with Verizon lead me to believe that the reception was better. I have found the signal strength at Cingular to be about the same. I areas that i had trouble with Verizon, I have trouble with Cingular. The customer service is better so far.
The construction of the phone is excellent. It feels solid and is easy to operate. The phone can be difficult to get open with one hand.
The inside display is good, but the outside display is disappointing. On first glance you would think it was large but it is only about half the area of the dark section on the outside. In fact it's too small to read easily.
The audio quality was better on 710. People have reported not being able to hear me speaking at a normal level.
Bluetooth still doesn't sync with my Mac via iSync, but the USB connection works. My biggest disappointment with the 710 was that Verizon crippled the bluetooth. It was my main reason for switching carriers after over 15 years with them.
The address book in the phone is a different format. I think the 710's format was better. The Razr stores an entry for each number making duplicate names. The 710 stored all numbers by name with multiple numbers attached to it.
The voice dialing in the Razr is useless. This is by far the one reason not to buy this phone. The voice dialing on the 710 used voice recognition and you could say any name in the address book. It would even verbally prompt you for which number for the entry you named. This could be done without ever looking at the phone. The voice dials for the Razr have to be recorded AND recorded for each entry. Even after recording them they fail more often than the 710 did. Also there is no audible feedback for pushing the voice dial button, you have to look at the display. Because of the small front display, if the phone is closed when you do this you are domed.
No way
This phone is one of the worst things ive ever seen or played with. Its not strong, Signal is horrible. You cant even throw it against the wall, j/k of course. But i want too if the phone was so expensive it could have put me in debt. I do not reccommend it unless you have the money to spend just out of bordom. Unless there enough other reason otherwise I do not ever want to see this wide to thing to notice signal sucking phones ever again for $599.
Pros:
Hahahahaha. Dont ask.
....Well its fun to throw.
Cons: All of the above.
