Motorola RAZR V3

By Don Ellis

esigned to appeal to urban customer who is always on the move, Motorola’s RAZR V3 styling is slick yet efficient, and certainly employs Motorola’s belief that a mobile phone can be both quick-and-easy functional and jaw-dropping sexy.

Very much an example of restrained extravagance, the RAZR V3 is a tiny bundle of technology and superlative design. With a girth of merely 13.9mm by 53 mm wide (the width of a credit card), it is one of the slimmest phones on shelves, yet still rich in features and design. Slip this unit into your pocket and you'll never notice the bulge.

Amidst its radiance, the V3 packs in enough technology to lure the gadget-addicted jetsetter and its intended demographical-target, the social hipster. Noteworthy is the V3's chemically etched keypad. Amplified by a blue luminescent backlight, the V3 resembles a prop out of a Bond movie. The spun metal finish of the keypad is designed to reflect the light, while the electro blue panel defines characters and keys, creating an unmistakable RAZR V3 signature.

With its compactness, Motorola takes the crown for being the thinnest clamshell design to date. The V3 alloy keypad alone is of the smallest keypad on the market, and yet – with a little training – is as functional as a home phone. The entire keypad of the phone is made as a touch panel, so all keys are tight. The keypad buttons aren't elevated, however, and they need a bit of training. Fortunately, the contact areas under the keys are wide and allows for a greater tolerance for error.

Within hours, we were messaging at spec speed (slowness here was no fault of the defenceless phone). Hearing, however, can be difficult for some reason, and forces the user to press the phone hard to the ear to gain a better sound. And as beautiful as the display is, that beautiful blue luminescent screen is death in the direct sun – so, seek shade, fellow hipsters, in order to see who’s calling in.

The V3 is a technological bonanza. Packing a VGA camera, 176 x 220 pixel 2.2” color display and 3D graphics engine to life with your favourite digital imagery, video playback, full Bluetooth™ wireless connectivity, polyphonic ringtones (including MP3 ringtones), Java games, a speakerphone and quad-band capability for global roaming.

The phone has been designed to be practical as well as beautiful, and is easy to use with illuminated menus. The aluminium alloy case is not only a lightweight showcase, but strong too, and we pray that is survives everyday bumps and scratches. - D.E.