Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Before I review the phone itself, a few words about Verizon. Their new plans count peak time till 9PM, not 8PM as it used to be. Even if you get more minutes, you're effectively loosing 20 hrs or so a month, and virtually eliminate night-time savings when calling East Coast M-F from the West Coast. This information is well hidden from prospective subscribers. Calling voicemail costs air-time minutes - make sure you program the phone to dial it automatically for speed. Their customer service has been easy to contact and pleasant to deal with, but there were numerous problems and mistakes that needed to be addressed when activating the phones and when reviewing the bills. Read your bill carefully.
This stylish phone is quite well designed when it comes to integrating the variety of features it offers. There is, however, one glaring (no pun intended) flaw: the color screen is completely useless in daylight. I don't mean that it is difficult to read. It is impossible to read at all. No matter how you shield it with your hand, or try to find some shade; if there is more light than what you normally find indoors, the display simply looks as if it were turned off. There is no brightness adjustment, so it's not a question of setting the phone correctly. The only thing to be done is to find direct strong sunlight and then manipulate the phone just so, and maybe you will get a reading from this display as the sun rays reflect from the display's surface. Once indoors, or at night, there is no problem. The display then looks quite impressive and is functional.
If outdoor viewing is rather handicapped, you do get compensated with a choice of wallpapers and screen savers for the display!
Don't get excited about taking pictures with this phone. They are extremely poor quality. And yet, this is a gimmick pushed by both Motorola (the manual explains picture taking before anything else!) and Verizon, which wants you to pay some eight bucks a month to send up to 20 of these to other people. Someone is apparently joking around here.
I have two of these phones. One of them has a somewhat brighter screen than the other, which makes manufacturing tolerances questionable. Again, brightness is not adjustable - only the duration of backlighting is. One of the phones initially had a problem with the display, but after wiggling the cover several times, the contacts apparently mated and now it works fine. However, the button backlighting turns itself off when you hit a key now and then, on either phone - someone working on power management has opted for reversed logic.
The speaker phone cannot be turned on if the headset is plugged in. This makes it inconvenient if you want someone else to hear the conversation while you are using the headset. If you have the headset plugged in, folding the phone does not drop the connection - the phone disconnects only when it detects the other end of the line terminate the call. Be carefull and use the END key.
Entering text can get complicated, even though Motorola tried to make it easy with their we-will-guess-as-you-type smarts - more confusing than useful. But once you get used to the basics of text entering, it's not too bad (except for that disapearing key backlighting I mentioned).
Voice dialing works poorly - the phone usually does not recognize what one is saying. My old Samsung did much better than this unit (to put it simply, Samsung was useable, while this one is not). Also, it takes longer to dial with voice: you have to state a function first, than a name, each time having a little "conversation" with the phone's synthetic ego. A nice demo-level functionality, but quite useless in the field. The exercise gets even rediculous if you enter a person's name that's not common in English: the phone will insist that you pronounce it the way the voice synthesizer chooses to pronounce it, which means you either have to intentionally misspel it or else intentioanally mispronounce it. My old Samsung simply asked you to record your own pronounciation of an entry and then tried (quite reliably) to match it when you spoke it again while voice dialing.
The selection of ring sounds offers a bunch of MIDI tunes that sound absolutely horrendous. Try using some of the more basic choices or else risk being taken for a moron by the public around you. Again, the corporate types want to steer you towards downloading more sounds and tunes for additional money.
On the more positive note, the phone is stylish and convenient to use in other ways. The keypad and navigation buttons work very well. I like the single key speed dialing - but you have to dig deep into the manual to discover this feature. I also like that you can browse contacts, etc. while talking on line. In the dark the unit looks impressive and menus are thought out well. The speaker phone mode actually works. The contacts database is well designed, and you get a calendar and a calculator for good measure. The interface is quite customizable.
But keep in mind that the plethora of functions can be overwhelming. This is not a gadget for technically challenged people.
The reception quality is fine. Typically, you can hear people better (actually very well) than they can hear you. The headset that comes with the "Essentials Pack" works well and is easy to wear, but keeping the plug close to the ear canal can be a bit problematic. The leather cover looks nice and fits well, but has a tendency to quickly collect moisture between the display's surface and the transparent plastic that goes over it.
I am giving it only 3 stars for taking a giant step backward in display usability and substandard voice dialing capability, both of which were implemented better three years ago on other phones using less advanced technologies. Cheap thrills driven by greed are unbecoming and embarrasing. If you can live with these limitations, go for it, you may actually end up enjoying it a lot for other reasons.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Motorola V265 Phone (Verizon Wireless)
This stylish flip phone delivers urban chic good looks and a healthy dose of powerful features, including a VGA (640 x 480) camera and support for multimedia messaging. The phone also supports Verizon's mobile Internet features so you can harness all that the wireless revolution has to offer.
DesignThe V265, which follows the traditional clamshell form factor, sports a 128 x 128, 65,000-color internal screen. A supplementary, 96 x 32 monochrome screen on the outside of the cover displays incoming call information, signal strength, battery life, current time and more. The VGA camera lens and self-portait mirror is housed above this display. Up/down buttons are placed on the left side for volume control. A five-way selection button above the phone's dial pad is designed to control most of the phone's menus and functions. The phone's extending antenna is placed on the top right side of the unit. A 2.5mm headset jack is provided, as are ports for AC charging and USB data connectivity. The phone ships in a standard black and silver configuration, but optional faceplates are available to dress up the phone's front outer cover and battery cover to suit your fancy.
Calling Features The V265's speakerphone makes it easy to converse without touching the handset-- a big plus for car users. Enhanced voice dialing supports voice-to-digit dialing and name recognition for speedy dialing of contacts. The V265's voice recognition software supports voice commands from any user, not just a pre-programmed user's voice.
The V265's internal memory can be used to hold up to 500 contacts for quick access to email addresses and phone numbers. In addition to a five vibrating alerts, the phone supports 64-instrument polyphonic ringtones. The phone also allows you to assign ringtones to specific callers so you can know who's calling without having to look at the screen. A number of ringtones come preloaded on the phone and more ringtones can be downloaded from Verizon's Mobile Web service. Perhaps most importantly for users in rural areas, the V265 is a tri-mode phone, meaning it can operate on Verizon's digital network, as well as analog networks that serve many outlying areas. Lastly, the phone's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.
Messaging, Internet and Tools The V265's support for multimedia messaging means that text and photos can be sent with ease (Verizon messaging charges apply). When used in combination with the phone's built-in camera, MMS opens up a whole new world of messaging fun. There's also a built-in web browser for Verizon Mobile Web downloads and mobile web browsing. Verizon's optional Mobile Web package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. You can check your e-mail, trade stocks online, compare prices while shopping, access flight information, get movie listings and find directions to the theater. iTap text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.
Verizon's Get It Now wireless download service is also fully compatible with the V265. This pay-per-download service features application downloads, games and productivity tools. You can also personalize your handset with ringtone downloads and digital photo-sharing tools using the Get It Now service.
A number of handy software tools are bundled with the V265 including a voice memo recorder with up to two minutes of recording time, a calculator, a calendar and an alarm clock.
Imaging and Entertainment Plenty of good times are built right into the V265. The phone's VGA camera supports resolution adjustment so you can choose the level of detail and memory space you want to use. Images can also be sent to your friends via MMS messaging, use them as a custom wallpaper, or use the phone's USB connection to transfer them to your PC. Embedded screensavers and full screen wallpapers are built-in so you can set up the V265 to suit your tastes. More graphics are available from Verizon's Get It Now service.
The V265 is BREW enabled, meaning it supports games written on the BREW platform. Games are also available via the Get It Now service.
Vital Statistics The Motorola V265 weighs 3.77 ounces and measures 3.60 x 1.80 x .90 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 3.33 hours of digital talk time, and up to 150 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the AMPS 800/CDMA 800/CDMA 1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.
What's in the Box Motorola V265 handset, travel charger, lithium-ion battery, user's manual, quick reference guide, welcome CD-ROM.
Click here for more information about Motorola V265 Phone (Verizon Wireless)
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