Motorola V3i reviewed

MobileBurn just posted an extensive review of the RAZR V3i -- the quad-band GSM variant of the mad-popular RAZR V3 original which also features a 1.2 megapixel shooter, microSD, and gunmetal finish. Their version of the V3i did feature iTunes (with 100 song cap) which managed to pump-out "pretty good" audio over the included headphones although "a lot of people will wish for more volume." Otherwise, the list of included applications, while functionally fine, were found to be "a bit paltry" compared to "most other phones these days." Overall though, they lay down a "highly recommended" rating calling it a "great device" for both practical and aesthetic reasons.

[Nick @ Feb 10th 2006 9:38AM]

its still a motorola tho, and still carries one of the worst UIs in current devices.

[Jordan @ Feb 10th 2006 9:56AM]

When is this thing coming out? I'd rather use it than a SLVR.

[Sandy @ Feb 10th 2006 10:03AM]

2 things. One, they are reviewing the wrong phone. I have the black (my husband has the silver) Razr V3i - it does not have itunes or a port for earphones...thats the SLVR. Two, I love this phone and have no problems with it. You say the interface is bad?? Try not upgrading your phone in 4 years and comparing it to a Samsung A600...The interface is greatly improved from that.

[treepwood @ Feb 10th 2006 10:06AM]

V3 RAZR is a big success.
V3i is yet another.

Bad thing still about it is its camera.

[Jason McCabe @ Feb 10th 2006 10:22AM]

I've had this phone now for about a month and it's so much better than any U.S. Razr. They really did a number on this phone...I just hope it doesn't come to the states for awhile..I'd like to enjoy the phone. Take yr Pink,Blue,Black and Silver Razrs and go eat it!

[Chris L. @ Feb 10th 2006 10:50AM]

I e-mailed Cingular about this and the official release date is May 1. But many suspect late march or early April

[raulr @ Feb 10th 2006 11:45AM]

@Sandy

1. You probably have a V3 not V3i. There are not black or silver V3i's, just gun metal grey.

2. The port for earphones is via the mini-USB port. You can use the included USB stereo headset or a mini-USB to 3.5mm headset adaptor that Motorola makes.

3. Not all V3i's have iTunes. Motorola makes a version with and without it, depending on what the carriers want.

[Christian @ Feb 10th 2006 12:08PM]

This phone has been delayed for US release until April/May. That really sucks, however, because of the delay it has been speculated that the Cingular release will come with the new Motorola interface, itunes, and working edge chips inside.

Now that would make a sweet phone even sweeter.

[TJ @ Feb 10th 2006 1:02PM]

they reviewed the wrong phone? oh sandy thats too funny....

[Nick @ Feb 10th 2006 6:35PM]

Jason: its essentially the same as the V3, I can't see much difference in it myself. You say they did 'a number' on this phone, but really they only added a MicroSD card slot and upped the camera to 1.3mp -- the UI and design is exactly the same as its predecessor.

This is a minor upgrade to the V3, infact, this is what the V3 should have started life as, they're just correcting their mistake.

[Rozan @ Feb 11th 2006 2:29AM]

@Raulr

There is a silver version of V3i. I have one but i dont know if there's a US version. And it does not have itunes, only SD and a 1.3 mp camera.

[Matt @ Feb 11th 2006 12:19PM]

When you have the Bluetooth headset connected do you still hear the ringtones you've set in your phone book for each person, or is it like the other Motorola phones with the same one ring tone for everyone which stinks! Does anyone know?

[Jon @ Feb 11th 2006 1:41PM]

the v3i has been out for a while now, at least at some places like Wireless Toys. Ive never seen any in california only in las vegas. I think they were priced at 325 for unlocked ones

[MaXxed @ Feb 12th 2006 12:16AM]

Umm, do you also edit the Zagat guide? The writing style is SO Zagat Like!

[zoom @ Feb 12th 2006 4:37AM]

its kinda sleek

[Michael @ Feb 13th 2006 12:29PM]

Verison already has this phone available at Best Buy here in the states. I'd like an all black t-mobile version though.

I'm interested in knowing more about the itunes/moto player issue for the mp3 player. Can you store Mp3's on the removable SD card? Is there a whole heck of a lot of difference between the motorola player and the itunes player? I'd assume that because of the 100 song cap the moto player would probably be better right?
Can you hook up regular headphones to this phone via an adapter. I've got some Grado's I'd like to use with it.

Seriously I'd like to know these things because if it can do these things well I'll skip buying an ipod shuffle.

[wise @ Feb 15th 2006 1:47AM]

Forget the Motorola V3i and get the Motorola V3x. You may ask what the hell is V3x and it is a fair question. Lets have a quick look at the Motorola V3x. Some of the main features of V3x are real-time 2-way video calling,still and moving image capture and editing, and large color display,2 megapixel camera with 8x zoom,SCREEN3 which gives you zero-click access to news, sports, entertainment, and other premium content directly from your mobile device home screen,Bluetooth� wireless technology* and removable memory,2 camera,progressive downloading and much more. The best part of is that it is not that much more expansive that V3i considering all those features. As of Feb.14,06 it is available and on sale at Romeohifi.com for US and Canadian customers. Since Motorola added so many features to this phone it makes one wonder what will the replacement model of V3x will include and when would it be available?

[Prashantha Bose @ Feb 16th 2006 6:23AM]

I would like to know as to whether Motorola Razr is already available in India or not.If so,then in which cities will it be available and for how much?

[Prashantha Bose @ Feb 16th 2006 6:25AM]

Thank you.

[Prashantha Bose @ Feb 16th 2006 11:42PM]

Sorry. I meant Motorola Razr V3i.When is it going to be on sale in India? Thanking you. I am very much interested in buying this handset.

[wise @ Feb 17th 2006 3:53PM]

Motorola V3i is available in India but it is locked to the carrier in India and you will not be able to use other company SIM. What that means is that you will be at their mercy and you will pay any rate that they wish to charge you. On other hand if you purchase an unlocked cell phone here in US from companies like Romeohifi or 1worldgift and when you go overseas, you use any GSM carrier SIM.

[wise @ Feb 18th 2006 2:04AM]

Motorola V3i and V3x are available for sale in US at romeohifi.com.

[wise @ Feb 18th 2006 2:04AM]

Motorola V3i and V3x are available for sale in US at romeohifi.com.

[wise @ Feb 18th 2006 2:04AM]

Motorola V3i and V3x are available for sale in US at romeohifi.com.

[Tim @ Feb 18th 2006 2:14AM]

There is a black version of the v3i for t-mobile.uk
I hope they add edge to the american version, even at that it will still be behind the times with umts phones for cingular (suppossed ) to be released last month LOL.At least edge will make it a little better, I wont buy one if they dont add it.Id also like to see at least a 1.3 camera instead of 1.2 . I have to wonder though if cingular is the problem. there phone choices are so behind the times. moto gave verizon a 1.3 camera with ev-do (there umts eq.)So at the very least I would hope to see edge in the cingular-t-mobile u.s. versions .Im trying to be loyal to cingular, but they dont seem to want to give customers quality phone choices.

[Domingo Orozco @ Feb 18th 2006 10:34PM]

I fell in love with the V3i at first sight, and purchased it on January 4, 2006. Upon receiving it I was very impressed with all its features from the length of video time to the beautiful colors on the display, to the stainless steel exterior. Unfortunately, after a little over on month, I find myself mailing it back to Motorola for repairs due to crackling sounds in the audio and the ringtones. Hope that Motorola makes the necessary repairs and sends it back as good as new!

[rob @ Feb 25th 2006 10:03PM]

i was about to buy an unlocked razr v3i at an independent wireless shop in new york but then i read about the v3x phone. which phone will be the next generation (version 2) razr -- v3i or v3x? or both/neither? i obviously wouldnt want to buy the v3i if it is only an interim phone and will soon be replaced/discontinued in favor of the v3x. can anyone please help me out with this?

i cant get a straight answer from cingular on when they will offer the v3i phone and dont want to wait until may if thats when it will be. does anyone know how much the v3i will cost when it becomes available thru cingular if you sign up for a new service contract? i was going to pay $250 for the unlocked razr v3i phone given that i sign a 2 year contract with cingular ($39.99/month plan) from this shop here in nyc. is this a good deal or does anyone know where i can find it cheaper or get a better deal?

and finally, what is this "edge" stuff i read in some of the above posts?

[kyler @ Feb 27th 2006 4:42AM]

the v3x will not be the replacement for any razr...as far as i know....i did a shit ton of research on both the v3i and v3x before i decided to buy the v3i... the v3x if you look at all the pictures available is clearly not as slim as the razr and is in fact-like the v3i, a remodled version of an older phone. i must say im less than pleased that after spending 500 bucks on this phone, its interface and limited accessability to bluetooth devices (computers) and multimedia messaging is pathetic for how expensive it is......however, its a phone... not a multimedia center so i cant set the bar too high. but if im like anyone else, i want to get a quality product if im going to dump money on a phone.

[Steph @ Mar 6th 2006 8:24AM]

How much are you selling the D&G phones for or have they already gone?

[Aaron @ Mar 22nd 2006 1:41PM]

The V3i has a lot of other improvements not mentioned above. I purchased the v3i installed a 1gb microsd, it's fregg'n loaded. Pne feature above all others strangely is that when switching from one ring style to another the phone doesn't chirp, so when going from loud to vibrate and you don't realize it until you are in your meeting you can do it silently. Also when searching for a number its nice to have a true search instead of just tapping a letter. The 100 song limit stinks but it now doubles as a portable flash drive. The v3x is much larger and simply not a what one would expect to carry the name razr. Have had no problems and would recommed to anyone. Only draw back is with motorola's software. Only allows you to install the ignorant tools and only option to not install is outlook. In a business enviornment that limits websites it would be nice to install only the outlook information and sync with contacts. But oh well.

[Wally @ Mar 30th 2006 10:26PM]

I called Cingular today to ask when the Razr v3i will be available. The 1st salesperson didn't know and her supervisors didn't know. I called again and was told July 28th! I can't wait this long! If anyone knows of a different date, please post.

[scott @ Mar 31st 2006 12:18AM]

how much 4 a D&G??

[Cheryl Davidson @ Apr 4th 2006 11:17PM]

I am looking for legitemate suppliers selling Ipods,
Xbox 360 premiums and motorola v3's all models.Contact
me at [e-mail]

[shah @ Apr 14th 2006 12:03AM]

the v3x will NOT be the replacement, guaranteed, its currently a tri band only phone [phone]) and even the FIRST V3 was quad band, (all that plus 850) now here in the states, we primarily switch seemlessly between 850 and 1900, which means the v3x only offers one of the two possible frequencies, meaning:less reception, mor droppped calls etc etc. ALSO, the v3x is weak compared to its predecesors with regard to looks and size, its not metal, its huge compared to a razr v3(i) and i dont think it accepts AAC formatting, so all those nice itunes AAC formatted songs you pirated through MyTunes? nah, those wont work. the v3i is still probably that best bet, although it doesnt make much sense that the only one that has itunes isnt A2DP outfitted, and the only one thats A2DP enabled doesnt have itunes. Oh yeah, and who cares about video calling? you have to call someone else with video calling, unless youre a ceo, or you roll with a crew of people all rich enough to purchase their own: video calling=useless.
[/end rant]