Customer Reviews

Motorola RAZR V3 Black (AT&T)

5 star:		(102)
4 star:		(71)
3 star:		(34)
2 star:		(56)
1 star:		(68)

 

 

First and foremost what I look for in a cell phone is functionality. In that I mean its abilities to make and recieve calls.
I've read that this Razr recieved the most sophisticated antenna ever put into a Moto phone. I believe that hands down. I rarely lose a signal and calls sound near perfect most of the time.
The camera is good, not great, but good. Much, much better than my old Sanyo SCP-8100 (Sprint). The digital zoom works flawlessly and leaves no pixelation when zoomed (a common problem with dig. zooms) very clear. A friends Sanyo SCH-a670 leaves great pixelation when zoomed. Better software in the Moto I assume.
Speaking of software I highly recommend the Moto Phone Tools 3.0! I bought this with my Razr because I knew I wanted to pimp my phone to the max. It works awesome! All those MP3 ringtones I use to Download for $3 a pop - gone. I make my own wallpapers and MP3 ringtones now. For free. Plus when you plug the phone to your USB port on your PC it also acts as a charger! Charging the battery as you load media onto your cell.
The bluetooth works flawlessly as well. I bought the Motorola HS850 headset. The calls are crystal clear. You could answer and make calls while never opening your phone. The voice dialing works superbly on the Razr.
This is a quad (4) band GSM world phone. You could go to Japan and use this thing.
This Razr could also be used as a modem to connect you laptop or desktop to the internet. Anywhere theres a GSM signal. A nice feature I thought. Especially for gadget freaks.
The internal color screen is the best I've ever seen on a phone to this date. No kidding. Bright and vibrant. Some of my wallpapers seem to be 3-D.
The phone is very thin and light. When opened it fits naturally to your face. Just the right size. Earpiece to ear, mouthpiece to mouth.

Pro's
Clear calls, great antenna.
Good camera
World phone
Can store 1000+ phone numbers
Can be used as a PC modem
Awesome internal color screen
Battery life
Blutooth
Very thin and light
Voice dialing
Many customizable features

Cons
No expandable media slot
No video capability (Cingular) without hacking the phone
No dedicated media buttons.

All in all I'm thrilled with the phone. Next year Motorola is releasing a Razr V3x. 2 MP camera (external), video calls (with a seperate inner-hinge video cam, expandable media slot, List price @ $900. You should probably expect deals for $400 - $500 in the stores.

I am a Cingular Blue customer, i.e. former AT&T customer rolled into Cingular billing, but with my old AT&T sim card.

I bought this phone a couple weeks ago. The phone did not work out of the box with my AT&T sim card, it kept booting to a screen that asked for a password. That was a bummer, as I really wanted to keep my great AT&T calling plan. So, after a little research, I found a non-branded cell phone store (privately owned, not T-Mobile, Cingular, etc.) where they did instant unlocking for a very reasonable fee (around twenty bucks).

That did it! After 5 minutes and pocket change, my phone was unlocked and worked with my AT&T sim card. And, now I can put *any* sim card in the phone, not just Cingular/AT&T. So, for example, any European or American pay-as-you-go sim will work. Very cool.

As for the phone itself - I love it. I have been using cell phones since the early 90's, when minutes were measured in dollars, and this phone is the *best* phone I've had. Great size, great features, great reception. Bluetooth. Speakerphone. Highly customizable interface. MP3 ringtones. Compact. Huge, bright color screen inside, and nice color screen outside.

One of the easiest to open foldable phones. For example, the seam between the two halves lets you slip a finger in to flip the phone open quite easily. I loved my old V60 years ago, but my main complaint about that was you *had* to use two hands to open it. When it was closed it was too smooth to flip open with one hand. The Razr allows one handed flip - very cool.

Don't worry about the battery life warnings. My phone easily goes a couple days with regular use, and many days with just a little use. I mean, I suppose charging once every two weeks would be fun, but practically speaking just plugging it in every couple days without thinking about it works fine for me.

My only real complaint is there is no headphone jack! The *only* port is a little mini-USB type B port, which is for charging, data transfer, and headphone plug. But no standard 2.5 mm plug. Of course, it has bluetooth, so any bluetooth headset will work. In fact, I use the Jabra 250v and love it. It works really well. But sometimes I like the simplicity of a *wired* headset, without having to worry about batteries, and that's the only area where the Razr stumbles. I have yet to find any way to adapt a standard 2.5 mm plug to the mini USB plug on the phone. And the only headset available with a mini USB plug built in is Motorola's, and they only offer one, which is the little dangley earpiece kind with a dongle on the wire for the mic. I really don't like those.

CONCLUSION: Love the phone. Love the features. Love the reception. Would like a headphone plug.

The phone looks good and has a great design. Here are the negatives. It falls short on features that other cheaper phones has to offer. Navigating the software is slow. I don't understand why a company like Motorola didn't include numbering the selection features so navigating is faster and easier. You always have to scroll for the selection features you want. This is very annoying. The Razor has a big screen, but all the feature selections text is small. Only when you dial a phone number is the text easy to read. The wallpaper is in both the exterior and the interior. You can't have two separate wallpaper. The wallpaper is tinted when you make feature selections in the background making it very hard to view the text. This is the most annoying. Only when you select no wallpaper on both the exterior and the interior can you view the text and the external clock better. The camera phone could be better. My other cheaper phone took better pictures. And when you are talking on the phone and you need to give someone a phone number from your cell phone book, you can't.

Here are the positives: The ring tones are loud and not distorted. The speaker phone sounds good. The calendar works great. You can reorder the feature selections. I like the key pad. The alarm clock feature is excellent as you can set more than one with different ring tones. The alarm and calendar also work when you turn off the phone. I discovered this one afternoon at a movie theatre. I tuned off my cell phone out of respect for my fellow movies goers and, RING! RING! RING! The alarm came on right in the middle of the movie.

Despite its short comings, I'll live with it until a better phone comes along.

I was skeptical of buying the RAZR because of the reviews here. I bought it anyway, and I am very satisfied so far. It's thin and doesn't have an antenna sticking up which makes it perfect for people who keep their phone in their front pocket. It's also a good phone for people with big hands. It's actually pretty wide and when folded open it's long enough that you're taking into the receiver instead of talking into the air.

The phone feels very sturdy. The outside is aluminum and the keypad is copper. One guy said it was not metal, which is a lie. It does have some plastic, but most of the outer surfaces are metal (obviously there is plastic covering the screen). Some people said Cingular wouldn't replace the phone and wouldn't give people the insurance option with this phone, which isn't true.

One reviewer says you can't go from "Loud" to "Vibrate" without making a lot of noise. This is not true. The volume rocker on the left is a shortcut to change sound profiles, and will demonstrate the ring volume when you hit it, but you can just change the profile through the menu instead.

A few reviewers ranted about the camera. I'm actually pretty impressed with how well it adjusts to various lighting conditions. Why complain about a 640x480 camera when the screen is 176x220? Even if it was a 5MP camera it would still be a phone without good optics or a flash, so why bother? Get a real camera if you want good pictures.

Some reviewers complained about reception. I have good coverage in my area and the RAZR is slightly better than my last Nokia. Voices sound a little more natural and I have 5 bars of signal at least as often.

Some people complained about call volume. If you have hearing problems this could be a legitimate complaint since the max volume seems pretty regular to me. It's loud enough for me to hear with the window down in my car, though, and you can always switch to speakerphone. The speakerphone can get extremely loud.

One guy complained that it wouldn't charge via USB. The phone comes with a piece of paper that specifically says that if you run the battery down completely it can't recharge via USB.

One guy complained that it takes forever to scroll through contacts. The address book fits 7 contacts on the screen at a time, and when you scroll past the bottom it does get slow (it only scrolls 2 lines per second), but you can go directly to any letter with the keypad, and you can make all kinds of caller groups, so if you're manually scrolling through pages and pages of contacts you're too lazy to figure out the phone.

I've had my RAZR V3 phone for nearly a year now, and during that time I've seen prices fall through the floor and exclusivity of this phone erode to almost nothing. But what is left is a pretty darn good phone: good looking, functional, durable. And at current prices, it's a steal.

Long after its release, the RAZR V3 is still the best looking phone on the market, without a doubt. For a while, cellular phone makers were racing to see which company could produce the smallest handset and I wondered more than once whether I would one day end up holding a thimble-sized phone up to me ear and then maybe losing it through a small hole in my jeans' pocket. But Motorola took the miniaturized component technology other companies used to make the same phones on increasingly smaller scales and they used to it make something that feels good in the hand, slips easily into a shirt pocket, and is great to look at.

I'm not a technical expert, so you'd be better off looking at other reviews for the highly technical aspects of this phone. But if you want the views of a guy who is pretty tough on his phone and who has an appreciation for aesthetics and utility, then read on.

Some pros and cons of the phone:

Good:

* The design speaks for itself, but there is more to it than meets the eye at first. The keyboard intuitively knows when it should light up to help you dial or write a text message, and its laser-cut design strikes the right balance between being as slim as possible while also offering tactile feedback. The quality of the screen is very good, except in bright light.

* The quality of the connection is great. I've rarely had any dropped calls and I never experience any static. I live in a 16th century building with stone and marble walls more than four-feet thick, and yet the signal strength good enough that I can use the phone inside the apartment most of the time -- at least on par with friends who visit with their bulkier phones.

* The Bluetooth signal connects without much trouble. I can connect to my computer without even trying (giving me slowish and fairly expensive Internet access on the road -- not enough to make me surrender my Wi-Fi area, but good enough to help out in a bind). I don't use an earpiece much (it makes me feel like a crazy man having animated conversations with an invisible friend), but when I do use it it works seamlessly.

* Durability is surprisingly good for such a stylish and thin phone. I travel A LOT (I flew nearly 100,000 miles over the last year -- I just calculated my poor phone has been to 14 countries) and I put this phone through the battles, and with one speaker problem Motorola quickly fixed under guarantee, this has held up admirably.

* It's got a good amount of memory. Store phone numbers to the phone rather than to the SIM (you can store important numbers to both, as a backup) and you will have what seems like a limitless number of phone numbers at your disposal. And with contacts stored to the phone, more than one number can be kept in a single file.

* Switching between bands while traveling between the U.S., Europe, The Middle East, Oceana, and Asia happens automatically, unlike older Motorola phones that required you to make the switch manually. It also locates the cellular service provider with the strongest signal automatically, though it's easy to list a preference in any market if that provider offers better roaming rates.

Bad:

* Some kind of filter to make the screen clearer in bright light would have been an easy and welcome addition.

* The battery life isn't great, especially if you use the phone a lot. I have two batteries and I keep both charged up so I can switch while traveling. That gives me a full 24 hours of intense use. I dealer I spoke to in Paris told me that better Li-Polymer batteries to fit the RAZR V3 are on the way, but that was several months ago and I haven't seen them yet. That would be a nice upgrade from the retro Li-Ion batteries the phone uses.

* I've been a Motorola user for about eight years (a period in which I've had five phones that I can recall), so the menu is no mystery to me. But I've heard from enough friends familiar with various platforms that the Motorola's menu is weak, and they can back up their claims. I'd like to see Motorola upgrade its menu as dramatically as it has phone design.

Summary:

* The RAZR V3 is an unexpected design triumph from a company that was on the verge of becoming an also-ran in the handset wars. With one bold and skilled move, the company is a major player again. Rivals have had plenty of time to respond to Motorola's RAZR V3 salvo in the cellular phone design wars and up until now they're about as successful as those emulating the iPod -- another design triumph that inspired a parade of soulless copies from the competition. My advice: get the real thing.

In case you were wondering, the ONLY differences between the black and silver RAZRs are:
1. The Color
2. The Price Tag (at some stores)

There are NO new features in the black RAZR. It has all the same specs (and bugs) as the silver model.

In choosing a RAZR you should consider which color you like best, and whether or not you're willing to pay the price premium some stores are charging on the black one.

You should also read the reviews for the silver model, since both phones are the same inside.

A couple of other notes:
-The keyboard on the black RAZR is silver. Some people do not like this.
-The RAZR (probably the silver one only) is rumored to be coming to another US carrier very soon (Hint: starts with "T", ends with "obile")
-There will be a lot of new sharp looking phones with features superior to the RAZR coming out this fall.

I've had this phone for a little over 4 months now, dropped it twice and am still happy with it. The good, the bad, the ugly:

- Common sense will allow you to navigate menus and use every inch of the phone. Like anything else, if you lack common sense, it may be a learning curve for you to figure out.
- Durability: I dropped it twice (albeit, while in the leather case). No cracks. That's the benefit of aluminum. It landed on the hinge corner, scraping it, and exposing metal after taking the paint off. It's not rounded and has a shiny tidbit, but it didn't crack! And the paint is so well done, it doesn't chip or peel or flake around the area.
-Signal: I had a Siemens and Ericson phone prior to this one. I now get signal where I couldn't even think about it. Even if it's two bars...I'd get nothing with my other phones. Excellent pickup on this one.
-On top of all that, the clarity is perfect, the ringtones are perfect (I have the back in black mp3...sounds great). I don't use the camera, so that's something I won't comment on. As a phone as a package, it does everything as advertised and then some.

Cons:
I have oily skin and doesn't help on top of anyone with "normal" skin, but this requires the thing to be cleaned often. Even oils from fingers will transfer to the screen when closed. No worries, though. Take care of your things and they'll take care of you.

Bluetooth: Bluetooth works so amazingly well, I've convinced 4 others to buy phones with bluetooth with their next phone. I have the Jabra 250 and the clarity is amazing. If you had problems with a wired earpiece before, or never used them since they sucked...this will blow your mind. However, my problem with the Razr is the ringtone. Once bluetooth is connected, you cannot change the ringtone. It is a set default ring. I was dissapointed by that one. Also, with the bluetooth connected, you cannot listen to other ringtones. It almost shuts down all audio on the phone, unless you are using the headset. I wish there was a quick disconnect on the phone without having to go through menus either. There's been many a time that I left my headset on in the other room, but have my phone with me, it rings, I answer but can't hear or say anything, because everythign is being pumped to the earpiece in the other room. :) Common sense, right? BTW: yes, it works two rooms apart.

Lastly, digit dial. I know it wasn't advertised and I shouldn't expect it. My old Sprint PCS phone did it though. Digit dial: you speak the digit (one-two-three) and it will dial 1, 2, 3. So if you don't have a phone number associated with a name, you just speak the phone number and it will dial it. This phone doesn't have it. It does however allow you to program the address book with voice, so all you have to do is hit the button on the headset, say the name, and it dials.

But, that's my quick take on it. Hope it helps.

***NEW INFO***

I certainly don't expect the average phone user to go through all this, but for the "geeks" out there, the RAZR is one of the most heavily "modified" (meaning hacked) phones out there.

Hacked in the good way. I've only had it a week but I've discovered (and succesfully been able to) how to:

Increase the speaker volume past the "max". You can actually make it so loud it might break the speaker!

Enable the video camera. That's right, this phone can shoot video. It isn't spectacular quality or anything, but it's a lot better than none.

Put on amazing graphic skins that will make everyone green with envy.

Boost reception significantly.

Change the cingular logo in the outer screen to anything you want.

Change the startup and shut down (helomoto) animations to anything you want.

Install a zillion free java games and apps. You never need pay for one again.

Make contacts searchable by more than one letter.

Remove as much of the stock junk (pics, videos) that comes withthe phone, DRAMATICALLY increasing memory.

Oh yeah, you can now get a battery with TWICE the capacity as the stock unit.

And about 50 other things I can't even remember. All you need is to have the phone unlocked (about $25 at your local 'hole in the wall' cellular shop) a usb cable and a little time to learn how.

Several of my friends have the stock RAZR which everyone else thought was cool enough. But now mine is the one to beat. Lol.

For the interested, just start a google search and follow the links.

***END NEW INFO***

I just got this phone a couple of days ago after switching from cricket. Cricket was ok at first, it was cheap no contract etc. But for some reason, suddenly reception at my house (and I work from home with my cell as my only line) went from good to horrible. Cricket was 3 or 4 bars in my house when I got it, but the last month I have been lucky to get 1.

So, I decided to switch plans. After some review it looked like cingular was the best option in terms of features. I signed up and got the razr for $100.

You people complaining of easily understood features must be morons. Like this Mensa student:

****************
On the bottom right corner of the main screen you have AIM (AOL Instant messenger), I dont use AIM and i dont need it there. It doesnt make any sense, not everybody who buys this phone use AIM. It should have been more like a Address Book or something. If you want to store more than 1 phone number for the same person(e.g. home, mobile) it shows up as 1 entry for each in the address book making the phone list complicated.
***************

Uh yeah, the AIM button is a HOTKEY!! YOU CAN EASILY CHANGE IT TO ANYTHING!!

Also, try opening the manual and read all about how to make multiple address book entries for the same person sort by PRIMARY CONTACT (thus displaying only one per person). I mean, seriously...

As to the phone itself and service....

Well after cricket everything seems hyper cool. I can now get email on the go, go on the web if needed (unlikely) and so forth.

The cingular + razr reception and clarity seems very good to me, but I do live in a major market city. Time will tell how it is when I travel to smaller areas. However, cricket only worked in my home area anyway (one of the reasons it was so cheap).

Maybe it's just my ears but my old phone and many others I have used alwyas sounded like a tin can. I often had a hard time hearing people until I plugged in a headset who's speaker had more of a low end. The razr sounds really good as is which is a plus.

I would have liked the option for a standard 2.5mm wired headset, since the proprietary one motorola makes is one of those sucky, fall out of your ear kind with mike on the wire. Guess I'll get a bluetooth.

So to sum up:

Slick phone
Nice screen
Sounds Good
Good reception
Some people are too stupid for modern technology

This is a very good cell phone and Amazon.com gives the best deal. But, you can't transfer your old phone number from different provider to Cingular through Amazon.com. If you transfer your old phone number, you won't get your mail-in rebate. Please read amazon.com mail-in rebate rules carefully!!!
You can read about how to transfer your number through this link : http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/feature/-/508597/102-6686881-6992121

Geez, all this angst about what the razr does and doesn't do. I've owned several phones and this one excels in most of the "real world" applications, such as: 1. I hardly ever get a dropped call, 2. It is thin enough to rest in my front pants pocket without feeling like I've got a hummer in there. 3. The body is tough and seems like it will last a good long time. 4. no antenna sticking out, need I say more? 5. I can see the screen-all the time. 6. menu is easy to navigate. 7. The camera works great in a pinch. If I wanted to take "real" pictures, I would have a "real" camera with me. So, all in all, it does what it should without any major annoyances. Could they improve it? Yep, and they will, but for now, I'm happy to have a small, light, easy to use phone that does most things pretty well.