LG VX9400
(Credit: LG)Just last week, Crave was in a bit of fix over the launch of V Cast TV from Verizon Wireless. Though we were excited to see the service take off, we couldn't help but bemoan the fact that only the Samsung SCH-U620 was supported at launch. It's not that the SCH-U20 was particularly bad, but rather that the other V Cast TV phone, the LG VX9400, was especially good. Not only did the quality look better on the VX9400, but we also loved the nifty swivel design of the ample display. Now, thanks to an anonymous tipster, Engadget Mobile is reporting that the VX9400 will launch March 23. Pricing seems quite fair: From $200 with a two-year contract to up to $450 if you pay full price. Verizon is mum on the subject, but we'd welcome any news on the phone, even if it isn't verified. Of course, there is the problem that the San Francisco Bay Area isn't a V Cast TV launch market, but stop trying to kill our buzz.
Sure, everyone knew this was coming but Verizon Wireless formally switched on its new V Cast TV network today in 20 markets. As we told you earlier this week, the lucky locales for the Media Flo-powered service are concentrated mostly in the Midwest and West with Jacksonville, Fla., and Norfolk/Richmond, Va., being the sole outposts on the East Coast. The full list includes Tucson, Ariz.; Palm Springs, Calif.; Denver/Boulder and Colorado Springs, Colo.; Chicago, Ill.; Wichita, Kan.; New Orleans, La.; Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minn.; St. Louis and Kansas City, Mo.; Omaha/Lincoln Neb.; Albuquerque/Santa Fe, N.M.; Portland, Ore.; Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas; Salt Lake City, Utah; Seattle/Tacoma and Spokane, Wash. Las Vegas also is on the list, which is not surprising, considering V Cast made its formal debut there earlier this year at CES.
Samsung SCH-U620
(Credit: Samsung)According to Engadget, coverage is planned for New York City, Atlanta, and Los Angeles, but Verizon isn't confirming when those cities will get it. And, as was the case with Verizon's initial 3G V Cast rollout, the San Francisco Bay Area is nowhere on the list. We're not thrilled about waiting again, but as Verizon spokesman Jeffrey Nelson told Wireless Week the carrier needs to clear more 700MHz spectrum, which V Cast TV uses.
LG VX9400
(Credit: LG)Though Verizon showed two supported devices at CES--the Samsung SCH-U620 Mobi and the LG VX9400--only the Samsung model will be available for now. That's a bit disappointing as we liked the VX4900 better. What's more, we have no clear idea when the VX9400 will launch. As for programming, the eight launch channels include MTV, Nickelodeon, Fox Mobile, Comedy Central, NBC, ESPN, CBS Mobile, and NBC News.
Pricing plans include three options at start and they're more varied than we expected originally. The $25 per month Select plan gives you all eight V Cast TV Channels and the V Cast Pack service, which includes unlimited streamed video clips from the V Cast service, access to the carrier's mobile Web 2.0 application, and unlimited data and e-mail. The Basic $15 per month includes only the eight V cast TV channels (V Cast content is extra), while the $13 per month limited package gives you just four channels: Fox Mobile NBC, NBC News, and CBS Mobile.
The Samsung SCH-u620 will support V Cast TV.
(Credit: Samsung)Here at Crave, we've been patiently awaiting the launch of Verizon's Wireless V Cast Mobile TV. And after we reported last week that all signs were pointing to a March 1 launch, we now have official (in a roundabout sort of way) confirmation that the game is on for Thursday. A sharp-eyed Crave reader pointed us to the coverage map section of the Verizon Testman Web site where V Cast Mobile TV is noted as launching on March 1. (To see the map, pick your city and then click the "V Cast TV" box on the bottom of the page.) Though the coverage map doesn't indicate coverage cities, we've heard that the initial launch will have a mostly Midwestern focus with such locales as Chicago, Minneapolis, and Kansas City. We've been bugging Verizon for a few days to give us a full list of launch cities as well as the monthly rate, but so far we've heard nothing. Stay tuned, we'll keep you posted.
Thanks Austin.
Samsung SCH-U620
(Credit: Samsung)Though the iPhone announcement at Macworld completely trumped any cell phone news at CES, we did mange to find a few gems in Las Vegas. In fact, we liked Verizon's V Cast TV so much that we chose it as our pick for CNET's Best of CES in the cell phones category. The sharpness of the picture quality did wow us, and the supported handsets--the LG VX9400 and the Samsung SCH-U620--were pretty cool in their own right.
LG VX9400
(Credit: LG)Now, of course, we have to wait until March for the service to launch. But even when it arrives, there's no telling whether San Francisco will be on the first list. Engadget is reporting that Minneapolis, Chicago, and Kansas City will be launch cities but that's all we know at this time. That, and it will cost $15 a month--and Verizon will have an exclusive on the service through October.
(Credit:
Mobiledia)
Verizon Wireless has been on quite a roll lately with a series of new phone launches putting its competitors to shame. Though it just came off the launch of its fancy LG VX8600 and enV models, America's second-largest carrier announced today the launch of the Motorola W315. Already out for Alltel, the W315 is a lower-end flip phone with basic features. It offers a speakerphone, voice-activated dialing, basic PIM applications, text messaging, and a wireless Web browser. Designwise, we like the vertical orientation of the external display and the blue color. The W315 is $29 with service.
(Credit:
Mobiledia)
Though we were expecting Verizon to launch the Samsung SCH-U620 today as well, we haven't seen anything on its site yet. As we told you two weeks ago, the SCH-U620 is a slider phone with a respectable feature set. It's expected to offer a 1.3-megapixel camera, a speakerphone, Bluetooth, an expandable memory slot, and support for VZ Navigator. And as a 3G handset, the U620 will be compatible with Verizon's EV-DO services such as V Cast and V Cast Music. But wait...there's more. The SCH-U620 also should support V Cast Mobile TV (Verizon's take on MediaFlo), and the display can rotate horizontally for watching videos on a landscape orientation.
(Credit:
Mobiledia)
Mobiledia says Verizon Wireless will introduce a new slider EV-DO phone by the end of the year. According to the Web site, the Samsung SCH-U620 will offer access to Verizon's V Cast streaming video service and V Cast Music for downloads. Other expected features include support for VZ Navigator, a MicroSD card slot, a 1.3-megapixel camera, and Bluetooth with a stereo profile. From our perspective the phone looks very sexy; we hope to get our hands on it soon.
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