Cellphone How To

First and foremost...the call quality on the v3i is way above average compared to other mobile cell phones, with slightly digitized sounding but otherwise clean calls. We had full signal strength and excellent reception. But a poor menu structure makes advanced calling features like bluetooth and conference a bit difficult to use. They worked well once we got them down though. The phone also features speaker-independent voice dialing.

Messaging features aren't bad. The inclusion of AIM, Yahoo, and ICQ instant messaging protocols is an improvement over previous RAZRs . The omission of MSN messenger is also unusual, but maybe you can only get that on Windows mobile based phones. SMS and MMS capabilities are exactly the same as previous versions - which is to say, dated -- but the inclusion of an e-mail client preloaded with settings for Hotmail, Yahoo, and AOL is a nice addition, even if it creeps along thanks to slow Java and a lack of high-speed (or even EDGE) networking.

Now let's get into the Music part of the phone. As a multimedia phone, the Motorola RAZR V3i is better than most, though it may disappoint users looking for a full iPod replacement. The iTunes interface is head and shoulders above any proprietary offering from other phone manufacturers, such as Samsung or Nokia. The phone syncs in iTunes as easily as any iPod, though not nearly as quickly, as it lacks a USB 2.0 connection. The much-maligned 100-song limit didn't bother us much, as they tend towards podcasts and longer selections, and we managed to fill the included 512MB microSD card (which sits behind the battery cover) in less than 90 tracks. Navigating playlists and tracks on your phone is very clear and very easy, and the phone displays album art and plays tracks purchased from the iTunes store just like the iPod. Stereo Bluetooth headset support is lacking, but otherwise music quality sounded fine to our ears, and the included adapter let us attach our own ear buds - much better than listening to the stiff phones Motorola provides.

If you're looking to purchase a RAZR v3i - eBay is a great place to start. You may want to bookmark this page, I weeded out the garbage and put a feed for the latest 25 v3i auctions (phones only - no accessores or crap) starting with the ones ending first: