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| LG VX8550 Chocolate Black Phone (Verizon Wireless) | 
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| Brand: LG
Category: Wireless
List Price: $499.99
Buy New: $58.32
You Save: $441.67 (88%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  23 reviews
Sales Rank: 4128
Color: Black
Media: Wireless Phone
Battery Type: Lithium Ion
Display Size: 3
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0
Dimensions (in): 0 x 0 x 0
Model: SCHU740ZAV
UPC: 652810813402
ASIN: B000TK21MQ
Release Date: July 12, 2007
Shipping: Eligible for Super Saver Shipping
Promotion: Data not available Terms and Conditions
Promotion: Save $10.00 when you spend $50.00 or more on Qualifying Items offered by Amazon.com. Enter code BMLSAVES at checkout. Terms and Conditions
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 It's ok.... September 9, 2007
4 out of 5 found this review helpful
I was very glad to see that verizon had released a new and improved chocolate phone. So I decided to use my credit. I haven't used one full day yet but I absolutely HATE these sensitive keys and the vibrating! UGH!!! I am so going to be returning this....the reception doesn't seem to be as good as my previous lg vx model either. I know I don't have a whole of choices far as phones go with vzw but I need to decide on something else. I'm not ready to have to get used to all these bells and whistles. The phone LOOKS great - but I'm just not so sure about how it works.
 such an annoying phone August 31, 2007
12 out of 17 found this review helpful
With such high reviews, I was expecting a spectacular phone... but was let down after only a few days. Like many reviewers have said, there are many good features -- good camera, user-friendly user interface, coolness factor of a sliding phone with a navigation wheel. However, upon using it only a couple of times, I noticed how extremely *easy* it is for your face to accidentally nudge the touch-sensitive buttons when talking. It's also annoying because every time you do so, the phone vibrates to remind you of your mistake. This stifles usability when you're talking on the phone (or listening to voicemail) because you can't access the phone's menu system (eg. to look into your contact list) or hit buttons to get around voicemail ("1" for new messages). Once you accidentally nudge one of the buttons with your face, then it's all over, as it sends you into some confusing menu options which make it hard to find exactly what you need. Even with the sensitivity turned all the way down, all it takes is the slightest nudge of your face. While this may be seen as a mere annoyance, I sure don't want to be dealing with this for the next two years.
Call quality is often not the best quality, especially when turning up the volume. I apparently sound very muffled at times as well. Sound can sometimes be tinny or piercing, even at a medium volume level.
It's hard to adjust the volume, as the volume buttons are tiny, flat, and hard to find when you're in the middle of a call.
I found it hard to hit numbers on the keypad, as the buttons are quite small. When open, the phone is top-heavy, so when I'm trying to hit buttons at the bottom of the keypad, I feel like the phone is going to fall out of my hands.
Overall, the hardware is decent. But since the main reason for having a phone is to talk, I find the above-mentioned limitations to detract from its usefulness to me. And who knows, maybe you will also return this phone after waking up from all the Chocolate's hype.
The Chocolate is not so tasty after all!!! August 31, 2007
8 out of 13 found this review helpful
I was really excited about this phone when I first purchased it. It looked beautiful, was attractive in every way, had a lot of cool features, including a good camera. However, the superficial features of this phone faded very quickly as reality set in. I had 3 major, exasperating problems with this phone:
1. The snazzy wheel that is so highly promoted was unwieldy. Every time I would use my finger to turn the navigation wheel, it would accidentally touch the touch-sensitive controls -- usually, it would be that I accidentally touched the "clear" command, and I would have to start all over again with what I was doing.
2. The touch-sensitive controls are too sensitive! Even when I turned it down to 'low', I still had problems with it. This is a terrible design!!! Any time I talk on the phone, my cheek would inevitably touch one of those 'controls' and I would get buzzed at (it vibrates to let you know that you pushed something). Suddenly, I would be in a menu that I didn't want to be in. This is the worse when I am using my voicemail or calling some place (i.e. verizon), where they put me through a phone tree (you know, "press 1 if..., press 2 if..."), because the controls light up (to show that it's active) and suddenly, my cheek is causing me to run through different menus. Horrible, horrible! I hate this feature!!! It caused me so much trouble. Great idea in theory but really stupid in practice.
3. The call quality was HORRIBLE!! I live in southern california where Verizon coverage is AWESOME. However, while using this phone, the other person was always distorted and unclear. I had to repeatedly ask, "What was that? Can you repeat that?" There was a terrible echo, and turning the volume up meant that I was hearing the distortion at a LOUDER volume. It did not help me understand the other person better.
The reason why I purchase a phone is in order to make phone calls. I expect to get good reception and great call quality. I expect to be able to hear the other person. This phone is attractive, "sleek and sexy", but it does not do what it's supposed to do. Seriously, the only thing I want sleek and sexy is my husband, because at least HE can communicate.
Bottom line? I am returning my phone tomorrow and I highly discourage you from making the purchase of an LG Chocolate Disaster.
 No flaws... August 21, 2007
14 out of 15 found this review helpful
As a vx8000 owner, it was hard to switch phones. The 8000 perhaps being the best phone Verizon had offered in the last 5 years, prompted me to not upgrade immediately at my contract expiration. Finally the 8550 was introduced and the reviews were stellar, so I decided to take the leap. So far, I am extremely impressed. The most important things to me are call quality, speaker phone, signal strength and battery life. The "new" chocolate definitely scores with these categories. They could have made mp3 use a bit easier, however if you follow these directions, you don't need their software/kit. **The best way to transfer music is to use a microSD card. Insert a blank microSD card in VX8550, turn on the phone. It should format the microSD card for you, if not choose format. Then take the card out from the phone and insert in PC/flash reader. Copy all your music to my_music directory. Put the microSD card back in the VX8550.**
The only improvement I'd like to see is to be able to access speed dial with the glider closed. You have to scroll through contacts if you want to initiate a call from the closed position.
 One for the long run..? August 20, 2007
12 out of 14 found this review helpful
I got the VX8550 to replace an aging VX4400(had to fall back on it as a backup when my V276 died). Its the first "trendy" phone I've gotten, but of the phones available, it was by far the most appealing. It is trim and very 007'ish (Bond, James Bond). The first one I got had a problem resetting if the phone was used. Because of that, and the fact that I'm unsure about sliders anyway, I'm a bit worried about reliability, long term. It seems to be made pretty well.
The Good:
It looks _very_ sharp in any color. The reception seems to be a bit better than my previous phones. It has a very good, loud speaker for a cell phone. It sounds great through headphones and plays music very well. I love using a microSD in it to bump it up to a gig or two. Everything seems to work well, after replacing the one with a bum camera. Pictures are good enough for a cell phone (seriously, buy a ____ camera if you want a good camera). I like the interface pretty well.. it has grown on me.
The Bad:
It takes sliding the phone open, or pressing okay many times to accomplish things. The spin wheel can slip when you try to use it if your fingers are two dry. It attracts fingerprints very badly. The "buttons", which are touch sensitive, are _very_ easy to accidently press. I constantly have to train myself to avoid them.
The Ugly:
Its very new and trendy... something will go wrong because of this. I had a dud first try. The springs for the slide look pretty flimsy and worry me. Carry insurance.
While there are some pitfalls and things I don't like, I just can't imagine being happier with a different phone, based on what Verizon has. It has a lot of nice features, and I really do like the interface overall. I think, if it is at least pretty reliable, it will be one of the best cell phones I've used. Like I said, it is very slick.
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