Ronn's Cellular Obsession

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December 13, 2007 6:34 AM PST

LG Voyager and I part ways, but amicably.

by Ronn Owens
  • 30 comments

So I'm back from vacation where I tested the Voyager for twelve days. You know I love to take phones into the wild and really live with them. It was very revealing in this case.

The Voyager is the closest thing yet to an iPhone from the outside.

The Voyager is the closest thing yet to an iPhone from the outside.

(Credit: LG)

Being on vacation I used the camera a lot. The pictures were acceptable, not great. I expected better phone quality. Isn't that quaint? But it's very important to me and the Voyager didn't have the greatest. Along those lines, I found you can't use the speakerphone unless the Voyager is in its rather ungainly open clamshell mode. Overall the Voyager is a hefty handful. And I really hated not being able to sync to my Mac; for me, that's a deal breaker. (See Tom Krazit's piece on Mac user passion!)

Now the good: I'm not a huge touch-screen fan, but this one works really well. I may be in the minority, but I like the haptic feedback feature that makes screen buttons feel a little bit like real ones. Cool and helpful.

Now THAT's a keyboard.

Now THAT's a keyboard.

(Credit: LG)

You always have the option of opening the Voyager and essentially having a mini-desktop. Its physical keyboard is far better than the iPhone's touch version, reason enough to choose this cell if you plan on doing a lot of input. The GPS technology is fast and reliable. Music sounds great. And if you find the well-hidden antenna, it's a very usable TV under Verizon's VCast service.

Bottom line: Do I like it? Yes. Would I buy it? No, not even under the current promotional price that brings it in $100 less than an iPhone. Outstanding voice quality matters to me, and if you cross my Mac we're off to a bad start, regardless!

June 9, 2007 11:02 AM PDT

Whoa! Verizon may have itself a winner with the VX8700.

by Ronn Owens
  • 2 comments
The VX8700 is stylish and usable. Nice.

The VX8700 is stylish and usable. Nice.

(Credit: Verizon Wirless)

If you're looking to make a style statement, this one is up there with the Prada.

Where the VX8700 exceeds, though, is in usability and price. The RAZR-like pad makes dialing easy; the VCast videos (including snippets of each night's Letterman, Stewart and Leno) are crisp, clear - and with a tap on one button can be viewed horizontally.

The feel is perfect: solid, heavy enough but not overly so. It comes off class. Yeah, it's not THE most comfortable fit with your ear and it heats up a bit. But at $180 with a Verizon contract, I'll live with it. Happily.

If it's time for you to upgrade, make time to check this one out. You'll be down with it.

Originally posted at Crave
Ronn Owens is the host of a popular morning talk show on KGO-AM in Northern California. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and is not an employee of CNET.
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About Ronn's Cellular Obsession

For more than 30 years, Ronn Owens has been a personality on KGO-AM, San Francisco's No. 1 radio station. When he's not on the air, he turns to his favorite hobby: keeping up on the latest cell phones. Owens offers his unique take on what's new in mobile tech. For a full bio, check out www.ronn.com.

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