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The LG Lotus Elite does not necessarily live up to its predecessors in all shapes and forms; however, if you are a messaging addict then this phone is probably ideal for you. The LG Lotus Elite boasts Sprint’s one click interface that allows the end user to get to the tools that are needed quickly and easily. It also boasts a brand-new touch screen that allows easy access to photos, messages, and other important features of any mobile phone – best of all, the phone doesn’t even have to be opened in order to do this.
The Elite is a relatively slim and smooth flip phone, which means that it is not too large, but it isn’t too small either and fits perfect in your pocket. At first look, apart from its slick look, it looks a bit peculiar due to its square like shape in addition to it being wide than most available phones on the market. When speaking on the LG Lotus Elite, it is a bit uncomfortable because of its wideness, but it is something that you could get used to.
The messaging board on this Lotus Elite is similar, but not necessarily better, than previous Lotus’s; however, it is unique. The Elite possesses a wide QWERTY keyboard that is easy to use. On the outside of this flip phone, when it is shut, there is a touch screen for ease of access to your videos, photos, and messages without even having to flip open your cell phone. The screen measures 2.4 inches with the same being true of the inside screen.
Upon purchase of the LG Lotus Elite, you’ll receive a stylish hand strap, a 1GB microSD card, AC adapter, and the user manual and getting started guides. This phone boasts 2.4-inch screens as previously mentioned while weighting in at about 4.76 oz, which means it is relatively lightweight. The entire phone measures approximately 3.42 inches x 2.44 inches x .72 inches, which is the height, width, and thickness respectively. Although it’s not apparent, compared to its predecessor of the Lotus that the Elite is a tad bit heavier as well as wider.
The Elite also features a 2.5mm headphone jack on the left side of the phone in addition to the up and down volume buttons, microUSB ports that allow for charging and data transmission. On the right side of the Elite, you’ll find the unlock and lock button for the screen, button for the camera, as well as the slot for the microSD card.
The LG Lotus Elite boasts only a 2-megapixel camera that is capable of taking pictures as well as videos. The battery life of this Elite is significantly higher than others. It can last several days if it is used little to none or a couple days if you use it on a regular or heavier basis. As for the call quality when speaking on the phone, it is relatively good – for both ends, the caller and the listener.
The phone features Bluetooth connectivity on the Sprint 3G network. Social networking sites are easily accessible and work well as well as the YouTube client. Watching YouTube videos on the LG Lotus Elite was simple, easy to manage, and the quality was exceptionally above standard.
As previously stated, if you are an avid messenger with your cell phone, then this would be a good phone for you. However, if you aren’t into text messaging, video messaging, and the like then you won’t find this phone of much use, as the phone simply wasn’t meant for that specific market. For this sleekly designed messaging phone, you can expect to find it at your local Sprint store or online for $299.99 without a two-year contract.
LG Lotus Elite LX 610 Review4.0555555555556stacy2010-03-12 14:34:09
Phone ReviewsLG Lotus Elite LX 610 Review
It is finally official, or at least, somewhat official. Verizon Wireless has given a somewhat official date, or timeline, of their first 4G LTE mobile phone. It appears that Verizon will be releasing their first LTE 4G phone around the middle of next year.
Verizon first expected to have their handset on the market in the last few months of 2011 or the first few months of 2012, but they’ve been able to bring that time scale down quite a bit. Some regions will be able to latch onto these new 4G phones from Verizon at the end of this year.
Competitor and rival, Sprint Nextel Corporation has successfully launched data cards already with 4G capabilities and are in preparation of launching their first 4G cell phone summer of 2010.
Verizon is expecting to launch a mobile phone that uses Long Term Evolution technology, which is wireless high-speed technology, for their 4G phones. They are hoping to use this integration of LTE within about six months after the launch of the 4G wireless service. The phones that use the Long Term Evolution technology will more than likely come with dual-chip sets instead of single chip sets as the dual-chips are needed for the Verizon network and the 4G LTE phones to be compatible with each others in its fullest form.
You can expect to see broadband data cards in 4G before anything else and you can also expect that complete full coverage won’t be likely in the immediate future of the 4G mobile phone and plan launch, says Verizon. Furthermore, Anthony Melone, a chief technology officer of Verizon, thinks that they will need to eliminate the unlimited data packages in order to fully integrate the Long Term Evolution technology and 4G handsets and plans. Frankly, it’s not going to be cheap for this technology and 4G, and unlimited data plans simply take away a lot of their revenue, which could ultimately be used towards this new 4G service.
If Verizon decides to eliminate their unlimited phone and data plans, will they be able to survive in this heavy competitive market between cell phone carriers? In my personal opinion, if they do this and the competitors, such as Sprint and AT&T decide to allow their unlimited plans to stay intact, then there may just be a problem for Verizon Wireless. On the other hand, who will be on top if all mobile carriers remove their unlimited plans?
First announced back in November of last year, the Casio G'zOne Brigade has finally gone on sale over at Verizon's website. Sporting ultra-rugged features paired with a slew of multimedia and messaging capabilities, it's one of the most unique handsets to make its way to the market.
As expected, the handset can withstand some serious stress, certified to 810F military standards for resistance to shock, water, dust and a whole host of extreme conditions. If you're used to rugged phones being short on features, you'll appreciate the talents that this outdoor-ready clamshell brings forward. Designed for serious messaging, it boasts a full QWERTY keyboard, visual voice mail, IM and corporate email. Not to be outdone, it's heavy on the multimedia prowess too, providing support for the range of VCast services (including streaming music and videos).
The Brigade comes with two screens - a 1.2-inch external display (paired with a T9-style keypad so you can use it like a candybar phone) and a 2.9-inch horizontal panel with 400 x 240 resolution. Details include a 3.2 megapixel camera module, aGPS (with VZ Navigator), Rev. A push-to-talk, a full HTML browser, microSD card expansion (up to 16GB) and six hours of talk time. It measures 4.4 x 2.2 x 0.9 inches and weighs 6oz.
Sure, Casio G'zOne looks a tad bulky and industrial. However, this kind of feature set rarely comes posted right next to a rugged device, that also especially a cell phone . One possible barrier? The price. Available for $249.99 with a two-year agreement (after a $50 rebate), it's more expensive than the current crop of high-profile smartphones. Still, if you need a heavy-duty cell phone that can do more than the basic stuff, it's hard to beat.
[Verizon via Softpedia]
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Most people are likely to dismiss the Motorola Cliq XT as nothing but a slightly updated version of the original Cliq from last year. While that may be true to an extent, this device actually deserves better recognition as it improves upon its predecessor in many ways. Heck, they could have named it something else and it wouldn't have been such an issue.
Physically, the most noticeable change from the Cliq is the omission of a physical keyboard. While the general look is similar, the new phone is taller and wider, while reclaiming more portability by being lighter and slimmer. It comes with a 3.1-inch capacitive touchscreen (320 x 480 resolution) that manages excellent colors, but is noticeably less vibrant than higher-end smartphones like the Motorola Droid. The touchscreen comes with both multi-touch (which works on most apps, but not on Google Maps) and Swype (for text input). While it also offers a traditional onscreen keyboard, we did find Swype a much better mode of input once you get used to it.
As a phone, the Cliq XT manages excellent call quality. Everything went through loud and clear on both ends, with rich sound and plenty of volume. The speakerphone performed similarly, with nothing but an occasional, ignorable buzz to break up the near-perfect sound. Battery is rated at 6.5 hours of talk time, which should last for a good two days or more.
The phone pairs both 3G and WiFi, allowing you to have access to fast broadband internet in most situations. Onboard Webkit-based browser performed admirably, loading pages fast and accurately. With pinch-to-zoom and Flash Lite, it allows for a great browsing experience. While the phone uses the same 526Mhz processor as its predecessor, it performed faster in almost every way. It's a sufficiently speedy phone, exhibiting none of the frustrating sluggishness we found on other Motorola phones like the aforementioned Cliq and the Backflip.
Feature set is similar to the Cliq, coming with both Android 1.5 and Motoblur out of the box. As expected, it's got all the usual stuff you can expect from such a combination - Motoblur's social-friendly functions, Google's suite of apps and terrific messaging capabilities, among others. One pleasant surprise is the changes Motorola did to Android's music player, turning out one that not only looks better, but comes with more features too. My favorite additions: running streams from Shoutcast, YouTube and GoTV, as well as the integration with TuneWiki.
The 5.0 megapixel camera module comes with LED flash and autofocus. It only allows for standard editing options, but manages excellent photos. There is a bit of shutter lag, though, so it's not perfect. Other features include quad-band roaming and Bluetooth 2.0.
Overall, the Motorola Cliq XT is easily one of the better mid-range Android phones right now. It's not yet on sale, but is expected to go for around $149.99 with a contract from T-Mobile. At that price, it's easily a better buy than either the Cliq, Backflip or any of the even cheaper Android handsets around.
Motorola Cliq XT Is Fast And Brings A Better Music Player To Android4.125noel2010-03-11 16:25:56
Phone ReviewsMotorola Cliq XT Is Fast And Brings A Better Music Player To Android
The new Acer beTouch smart phone is a slim, sleek and slim-line device that is targeting those users looking for a shiny smartphone device that combines user-friendliness along with decent connectivity to mobile Internet and social networking. In fact, Acer's stated aim for the beTouch E400 is to 'open our users' world to the endless possibilities of real mobile Internet', and the device aims to please as it packs both Wi-Fi and 3G connectivity allowing for rapid wireless online access and web browsing for fast and easy updating of information and user status on a range of social networking sites.
As for its speed, it certainly helps that the operating system fueling the E400 is Google's latest OS the Android 2.1 Eclair. This is usefully coupled with the Qualcomm 7227 processor running at 600 mega hertz allowing for instant access to web pages with fast loading and also rapid access to media streaming as well as a wide range of web-based applications. The power of the device's processing gives it an excellent battery life as it enhances energy efficiency with its fast running and easy access to information.
The image conscious individual should be more than satisfied with the dimensions of the E400 as well with its slender girth of just 12 millimeters. There is also a full-size 3.2 inch HD HGVA resistive touch screen, displaying color brightly and vividly.
The integral camera isn't of the highest specs at 3.2 megapixels, but it is decent enough and does pack some useful additional features such as integral flash, a digital zoom, white balance and geotagging. This gives you the option of immediately tagging your images with information such as the exact location of where they were snapped, which is great when you link to your social sites and post your pics to keep your friends and family updated. The camera will also record video and you have the ability to instantly post your recordings onto YouTube thanks to the E400's pre-installed YouTube app by touching its icon.
The E400 is also well suited to the business user, coming pre-installed with Native Microsoft Exchange Server Support giving the user immediate navigation to work and business e-mails from any location. The device also comes with the excellent Documents to Go function, another excellent feature for mobile business customers as it allows the easy creating and editing of a range of different file formats including Excel, Word and PowerPoint. In addition, there is a built-in PDF Reader on the E400, making it simple to read any PDF file from wherever the user happens to be.
Other useful functions of the E400 include the GPS-enabled Google Maps, which will help you find your way around cities and/or towns and includes both Street View and Latitude. The excellent media player will play a full range of file formats and there is a built-in 3-millimeter audio input jack allowing you to plug in your choice of headphones. There is even the very useful Acer Synch feature, allowing the user to wirelessly synchronize with their desktop or notebook so they can easily maintain and keep files and contacts up to date, which is great for when you are ultra-busy and need to save time. The E400 goes on sale in April, though prices have yet to be announced.
