The RAZR Upgraded: LG Makes A Winner

Author's Rating:

Pros: Sleek and stylish, along with very durable for its size

Cons: Average features, average battery life, and average service with a possibly high price tag

The Bottom Line: 
This phone is durable for it's size, and has a very stylish appearance. The rest of the features are very average, and it may be a bit pricey.

Author's Review
I ended up with the LG VX-8700 after going through a horrific experience with several Motorola RAZR phones. After going through three of them with little support from Verizon, I was a little hesitant to buy another slim flip phone. This LG, however, blew me away.

Display and Hardware

The first thing you will notice is the LG VX-8700 is a very attractive phone. It is a shiny silver, very smooth and very small. There is a small display window matching the long, skinny look of the phone that shows the time. It flips open to a flat number pad and directional arrows. (No full keyboard on this little guy!)

The number keys are not raised at all, and the thing line cut between them does not help much. It took me some time to get used to texting, but now I find it easier than a regular phone.

The camera is on the front, and can be used both with the phone open and closed. It is 2.0 megapixels, and the pictures come out pretty clear, albeit they don't look like actual digital camera pictures.

Phone Features

Obviously, like any modern phone, the LG VX-8700 supports both regular phone calls and text messaging. In addition, it has a calculator, a calendar, an alarm clock, and a notepad. A function of the calculator is the EZ tip calculator. While it does not come with any games, it allows you access to VCAST to buy games and ring tones. I don't recommend buying any games, as this phone is not well set up for playing and they take a toll on your battery life.

This phone affords limited cell internet access for an additional fee. You can go on some limited stock "sites" included, which will provide stock information, sports scores, and horoscopes. Beyond that, most of the content you must pay for. It is not really worth the subscription fee (often $5 unlimited monthly, but depends on your plan) but I use it for stock quotes. It is easy to use, but very slow and strains the battery.

The LG VX-8700 is compatible with Bluetooth products. I have not actually tested this, but I have heard that it has excellent Bluetooth capabilities.

Durability and Service

This phone earns its high marks in durability. For a very small, very light flip phone, it is surprisingly resilient. I have dropped my phone several times, including from extremely high heights and have not had any problems whatsoever. It actually fell out of my pocket on the Great Bear roller coaster at Hersheypark and lived to tell that tale. This is even more astonishing to me, as I broke a Motorola RAZR phone by dropping it on to a table. Light phones often don’t hold up, but the LG VX-8700 is certainly an exception. It is extremely durable.

This LG does not do anything wonderful for the Verizon network, but it picks up service where other Verizon phones do. The phone is very loud, which I like, and speech generally comes through clear. Note that if you leave the phone on the high setting, people within a few feet of you can easily hear what the person on the phone is saying. On the high or medium high settings it sounds louder than your average cell phone’s Speaker phone.

The battery life on the LG VX-8700 is very average. While it lasted a full 7 days on initial use, this quickly dropped to two or three days. This is with heavy usage, but all my calls are not in roaming range. I send approximately 80-100 text messages per day, and after two and a half years of use, I still get between 2-3 days on a full charge. I do have one note of caution – using the camera or the internet functions take a severe toll on the battery life. Taking even just six or seven pictures can cost me a full day’s worth of battery life.

Pricing

It is hard to judge cell phone’s on price, as most people pay very varying prices. I will note that this was at the higher end of the price range when I purchased it nearly two years ago. It is very likely the price has fallen considerably, and if your contract is up, it is probably relatively cheap. The price of the phone was not factored in to my overall score or “bottom line” comments, as it can vary so much from person to person.

The Bottom Line

The Verizon LG VX-8700 is an extremely durable, functional, and stylish phone. It earns it’s 4 stars by being slim, lightweight and pretty while retaining average service and functionality. It is not, however, full of additional features and it does not get extremely good service. Its battery life is very average. If you are looking for a reliable, stylish cell phone, than the LG VX-8700 comes highly recommended. If you are looking for the latest features, superior battery life, or unbelievable service, this might not be your best bet.