| Motorola's RAZR V3i: Improving the Family Tradition | Today's Top Stories | ||||||||||||
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Page 2 of 9 Exterior Analysis:
Straight off, we run into a small problem. The V3i looks much the same as the old RAZR. The only difference is the gun metal grey color and a somewhat brushed top half that would let you identify the new from the old. We have a problem with this simply because, if we were upgrade to the V3i, we don’t want people to think we’re carrying the same phone. I would rather have them say, "Oh, you have the new RAZR. Can I see it?"The external display now gets Motorola’s "M" logo, which lights up with a blue light for calls, missed calls and so on. Also, the camera on the flap gets a subdued "megapixel" test just below it. This could count as another distinguishing feature, but we’ve tested it and most people aren’t able to tell the difference really. Also, we were hoping Motorola would move to 2.0 megapixel with the new RAZR V3 range, but sadly, that hasn’t happened. Representatives from Nokia told us that starting 2006, all Nokia camera phones will support a 2.0 megapixel camera minimum. While we are yet to certify that claim, Motorola could’ve taken a cue and bundled a decent camera, since what Nokia currently gives on the N series is mostly useless. The rear of the phone is the same as the RAZR. It has the same M moniker on the battery flap and that’s about it. Inside the flap is where you put in the SIM card and the memory card. Yes, the RAZR V3i has expandable memory - thankfully this gripe has been taken care of. The card used is Transflash, which will let you upgrade the memory from 256MB to 1GB maximum. Finally, someone is listening to the consumers and is getting rid of the paltry 32MB that’s generally stocked on average phones. The buttons retain their positions with volume control and smart key to the left and voice dial to the right. For some amazing reason, Motorola has used despicable material for these buttons and quite honestly, it doesn’t help Motorola’s case. The buttons feel flimsy and sort of unsure about their functionality. If you press them often (read: text messaging), you will surely feel like sooner or later, they will break. We tried them for a month, but they lasted just fine. Then again, not very many people change their cell phones every month, so who knows? The buttons carry shiningly steel-silverish color scheme, which seems a bit out of place when the phone is closed. The color combination doesn’t gel, but that’s a subjective comment. However, we do recommend you check out the phone before purchasing it. |
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