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During the review of the Family Locator and Usage Controls offered by Verizon, Raymond, the youngest of the children who helped with testing, used a LG enV3 phone. In this review, we took Ray’s observations and our own to place the enV3 though its paces.
The Tech Herald reviews Verizon’s LG enV 3. (IMG: LG/S.Ragan)
Ray, who was delighted to take part in the testing, used his handset more as a gaming and entertainment device than a phone. At 9-years-old, he has a positive overall opinion of the phone. “Now if I could have kept it, I’d be pretty happy. It has good Internet, and really good pictures, and its good for video and music.”
The enV3 is a slick little phone that doubles as a full featured entertainment center. It takes great photographs, and the sound quality you get when playing music is honestly surprising for such a small device. On the outside, you have 1.56-inch LCD screen, with quick access to the phone feature. Once opened, you have a full QWERTY keyboard, and a 2.60-inch LCD screen.
Ray had no issues blasting off text messages or typing in search terms online when testing the QWERTY keyboard. When we tested it, we found the keyboard roomy enough, but the smooth buttons didn’t really offer something to tell them apart by touch. This isn’t a big deal for the most part, but we found touch typing when using email or text messages to be a little tricky.
Since Ray commented on the images and Internet we focused on those first.
Starting with the images, examples below, we were blown away by the quality. The enV3 comes with a 3.0-megapixel camera, and the color and detail were simply stunning. The first example below was either a stroke of luck or pure power on the part of the enV3, as it was taken while the ride was in motion. The second image shows some great color for a 3.0-megapixel image. In both images, the Intelligent Shot option was enabled.
Using VCast for either video or music on the enV3 was as expected. With bands like +44, Linkin Park, and Green Day, each a favorite of Ray’s, available from the VCast service, he had most of their songs playing round the clock when he wasn’t sleeping or playing games.
The sound quality and volume were great, and even when set on the table, the sound from the enV3 would fill a room. Granted, this isn’t a Bose system, so while the enV3 will earn top marks for sound, you’d be better off listening to it with a good set of headphones. The headphones we used (Sony ear-buds) offered rich sound when powered by the enV3.
Watching videos from VCast, such as clips from CNN and ESPN, gave us no problems at all. The clarity of the video was great considering the small 2.60-inch screen. At the same time, a site like animefreak.tv, which Ray tried to access, wouldn’t play. This had more to do with the site and video format than it did with the phone.
When it came to games, Ray found the game controls easy to master when playing Angels & Daemons, Far Cry 2, or Rollercoaster Rush: 99 Tracks. In our testing, we played the classic Pac-Man and discovered that the QWERTY keyboard works well as a mini-controller.
The VCast format, including the games, required Internet usage. When tested, both music and video downloaded quickly. The games would download just as fast, but not as fast as the music or CNN clips. At the same time, we never experienced any coverage or speed issues when accessing the Web on the enV3.
Since the enV3 is a multimedia phone, storage is a consideration. The MicroSD slot offers a max capacity of 16GB, and while most of its usage went for images, the card ensured plenty of room, and after all we downloaded and saved, we never came close to maxing out the space.
Call quality was clear and offered no static or issues. Likewise, the call quality of the speakerphone was the same.
Battery life was great as well, considering the heavy usage for VCast and games. Talk time, and overall usage time (to play games or music) lasted just at about 4-hours. Stand-by time lasted almost a week before needing charging.
Ray loved this phone, whether this was because it was a toy to him or something else, he didn’t want to hand it back after testing. We loved it as well. It’s a great multimedia device and it has some solid sound to back it up.
If you’re going to upgrade, and you are using any of the previous enV phones, the enV3 is a natural step forward. If this would be a new phone, and you are looking for something that actually takes advantage of VCast, for $129.99 USD ($179.99 without the rebate.), this is a good way to go.
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