Released for Verizon Wireless, the LG VX8100 incorporates all the breakthrough technologies of the VX8000 including high-speed EV-DO, megapixel camera, and video and music on-demand, but goes further with integrated Bluetooth capability for wireless connectivity, and a miniSD slot for external memory. MP3 audio player, dual speakers for stereo sound, and a 3D graphics engine make this a formidable handset in 2005... [Continue reading LG VX8100 Review]
LG VX8100 Features
Dual high-resolution color LCDs
1.3-megapixel CMOS camera with flash and up to 8x digital zoom
Save up to 100 Photos (4MB) and up to 100 15-second video clips (15 frames / second)
VCAST service to stream and download video clips with high-speed EV-DO connection
Bluetooth compatible with devices that support the headset and hands-free profiles
Dual speakers for MP3 stereo sound and full-duplex speakerphone functionality
Speaker-independent voice recognition
MiniSD external memory port to store pictures, videos, sounds and music
Personal organizer with Calendar, Scheduler, Alarm Clock, and Notepad
LG VX8100 User Reviews
1. Posted by crystalfire
Fri Feb 09, 2007 4:10 pm
I have had this phone now for over 6 months and I still LOVE IT!! It has a lot of great features and it's pretty simple so it would also be perfect for those people who are not good with techie stuff. I read all of these reviews before I bought this phone and a lot of the cons they say it has I don't have because i'm not with Verizon, i'm with Telus. So for any Canadians reading this don't hesitate to buy this phone! As for having to enable mp3 support everyone seems to be talking about, don't worry about that, its just Verizon, it was already enabled when i got it so i had no problems. The only problem i've had with this phone is that i can't put my own ringtones on it like i would put one on through my miniSD card and it would go to sounds and it doesn't have an option to put as ringtone which is annoying but besides that its a great phone. The 1.3 megapixel camera is looks great, the video camera is not as good though but decent. The mp3 is simple and really good!! sound quality is GREAT! the songs sounds better on the phone than it did on my stereo, i noticed more details in the song when i heard it on my phone then when i played it on my stereo. Maybe its the plan im with but I have never dropped a call with this phoneWhenever i start to get bored with this phone i find a new feature on it, just today i found out theres an option where i can set a video clip as my main wallpaper (although you cant hear the sound when its set as wallpaper).
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2. Posted by zcarmanron
Fri May 05, 2006 1:27 am
The VX8100 is everything that phone techies will love. It features an MP3 player - which is disabled initially by Verizon due to the 'V-Cast' music download service, but it easily activiated by going into the service menu on the phone.
Overall Impressions
Not much bigger than the VX7000, the 8100 features a brighter front display and they have moved the clock to a very small corner size rather than the 'overlay' on the previous model. Nice change, but can be difficult to read the time at a glance. If the clock feature is really important, you might want to take a black photo - put your hand over the lense and snap a photo - and set the clock to full size. The amazing color on the front display is far superior to the 7000 series' display. The play buttons on the front of the phone also make it very easy to get the display to light, unlike the 'side only' buttons on the 7000.
The MP3 player functions very well and doesn't kill the battery extremely quickly. This was rather shocking to me since I thought that kind of drain would just destroy the battery life. I am currently getting about 2 hours of music a day, 150 min of talk time and 30-50 clock checks throughout the day. That is quite amazing for such a small battery.
The camera on the phone does a wonderful job of capturing still images. A far upgrade from the 640x480 washed photos on the 7000 series. The 7k didn't have a bad camera, but it was far from great, especially when shooting outdoors or low light. The higher res 1.3 cam on the 8100 takes very decent shots and works well in most lighting. The night mode makes shooting indoors very easy, but be warned, the shutter opens longer and closes slower so if the object is moving, it will be VERY hard to shoot. The backlight when using the flash mode is also nice, but still gives the bluish tint to the photos that is common with LED flash units.
Phone Services
I was very weary of all the new 'services' that I would have access to with this phone. I had Mobile Web on my 7k, but Verizon said that it would be included on the Vcast service and it was all I can use - no per minute charge... So I figured, what the heck.
The Vcast music service is AMAZING to say the least. Select, preview and download thousands of tracks by all sorts of artists. Now doing this from your phone will cost you $1.99 per song, but you can also do it from your PC and send it via the music pack for $0.99. Awesome to say the least. Just don't run up the bill too much.
The Vcast video service is also stellar. Although I was disappointed to find that my city isn't on the list of available weather forcasts on the weather updates.
Finally, the MMS/EMS messaging service. Verizon has crippled how this phone sends MMS messages to where the items must be placed in the My Sounds or My Pix folder to send. No more sending Ringtones and no transferring songs via MMS. The songs I understand due to licensing, but the ringers used to be fun to share - keep in mind that on the 7k most of the ringers I had were freebies or homemade ones.
Overall Pros
Great MP3 player - although with the VCast music pack it's easier to encode WMA formats than it is to work with MP3 files.
Decent camera, great for snapshots on the go.
Good memory allocation. Not too much for ringtones, but come on, how many tones do we REALLY need?
Menu formats have not changed and continue to be very easy to use.
Brilliant front display. Crystal clear photo-caller-id settings.
The Data Cable that is included with the VCast Music Kit includes a place to plug the charger into the cable so you can charge/power your phone while you are syncing music or sending data through the phone to the computer. A wonderful feature that was not on my 7k cable!
Overall Opportunities
The disabling of the MP3 functions right off the bat are annoying, but an easy fix is available by engaging these in the service menu. Press "0" at the main menu and then "000000" to access the service menu. Scroll down to Music Setting and Enable MP3's.
The separation of "Sound Files" from "Music Files" from "My Ringtones" is most annoying. In my mind Verizon should have left a single folder like the 7000 series so you can receive your MP3 tone and message it to friends and family. The 8100 makes you save them in a separate folder before you can send them.
Overall with Verizon clearing out these phones for nothing, you can't miss on this deal. The 8300 should have a few upgrades, but the price tag will be premium for the next few months so get an 8100 while the getting is good!
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3. Posted by Hardcase
Thu Jan 19, 2006 1:55 pm
The LG VX8100 is an awesome little machine. I'm impressed, after initially having some minor disappointments that have for the most part been addressed as I've learned the phone's capabilities.
My former phone was an LG TM510, a gem of a phone that I liked so much that I bought three consecutively rather than "upgrade" to another phone that I didn't like as much. Because of my experience with the TM510, I decided to probably stick with LG for my next phone.
I did look at other brands and also at carriers other than Verizon, but I ended up sticking with LG and Verizon. I was not particularly sensitive to price, so the relatively high cost of the VX8100 was not a factor. I was looking in particular for a flip phone with calendar and reminder function, a speaker phone, Bluetooth and a front screen with caller ID. I actually didn't want a camera on the phone, since some places (some datacenters, locker rooms, etc.) don't allow you in with a camera phone. But all the phones with high-end features like Bluetooth have cameras these days, so I decided a camera would be OK. I also had liked the TM510's ability to place analog calls, since I travel through rural Kentucky regularly, but I gave up on that, too, since analog is falling by the wayside anyway.
Pros:
* MP3 capability - The MP3 player works great, and it works in stereo if you get a headset with a four-lead jack. My phone came with a Jabra C120s Special Model 100-36640000-00 headset that includes two earbuds and a microphone that plays MP3s in stereo just fine, with nice fidelity. The equalization function on the MP3 player works well. While an MP3 is playing, you can cycle through pre-set EQ options (flat, concert hall, rock, jazz, etc.) by pressing the mic button on the left side of the phone, under the volume up-down keys. (You wouldn't know any of this from reading the VX8100's manual, which is an all-around disappointment, especially compared to my old TM510's excellent manual.) The external controls allow you to pause, advance and return songs quite nicely. When you receive a call while listening to MP3s, the external buttons allow you to take the call or ignore it. If you take the call, your MP3 listening session ends.
* Expandability - The miniSD card (I bought a 512MB one) allows great advanced functions. You can load MP3s onto it from your computer by using any capable card reader (my card reader supports only SD cards, so I just insert the miniSD card into the full-size SD-card adapter that came with the miniSD purchase). Using this card-reader method, you also can take pictures and up to 15-second videos with the phone and download them off the card and onto your computer's hard drive. The videos have a ".3g2" file extension. I found them to be viewable using QuickTime but not with Windows MediaPlayer 10. I don't know yet how to convert a .3g2 video to another format that others can easily open. I assume that's possible with some sort of video-editing program.
* Bluetooth - My Bluetooth headset (a Motorola) seems to work fine, although sometimes people on the other end complain about echo. I'd like to try a Bluetooth over-the-head headset with two-ear stereo MP3 capability and a microphone, but they cost almost $200, and I'm not sure if they're compatible with the LG VX8100. I've read that Verizon has disabled some Bluetooth features (file transfer, I hear), but I don't know if that's accurate.
* Battery – The talk time with the standard-size battery that came with the phone has been impressive. I’ve only run out of juice once, and that was on the road when I was talking up a storm. I bought an extended-life over-size battery that I really haven’t had to use at all yet.
* Usability – The menu system, button feel and overall usability are all well-done and easy to understand. The engineers seem to have done their work well. If only the documentation people had followed up with a decent manual, LG would have another unqualified usability triumph. I continue to be impressed with the T9 text recognition.
Cons:
* Front screen - The color front screen 's clock and caller-ID functions display information only when you have an incoming call or when you press one of the side buttons. This is a minor irritation that surely is due to power consumption limitations, but it's a decline in functionality compared to my old TM510's black-and-white LCD front screen, which always showed the time when I pulled it out of my pocket.
* Front screen #2 - Another annoying thing about the front screen is that it overlays the time of day and other information in white text over a background picture, resulting in type that is hard to read. I overcame this by going into Photoshop and creating a small file called "black.jpg", loading it onto my miniSD card and setting that as the background. Another option is to use the phone's camera to take a picture of a something dark (you could just cover it with your hand) and using that as the background.
* Lame documentation - The user manual and other documentation are just awful. Much of the language seems to have been auto-translated from another language, and many features (MP3s, how to use the miniSD card, etc.) simply aren't described at all.
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4. Posted by bentelz
Sun Jan 29, 2006 8:29 pm
We've had a Samsung for the past 5 years, and it was great! I would call across the US to family and they thought I was standing right next door. We recently decided to upgrate our phones. I did extensive research on the internet and it came down to two; the LG VX8100 and the Samsung SCH-a950. Even when we went into Verizon no one could really tell us which way to buy, so we bought one of each on the family share plan (2 lines).
Tried out both of their features and menus ---they are identical, both were great. We called our family across the US, and called some friends that were local. The LG VX8100 won both tests. The Samsung sounded like we were on a walkie-talkie, I couldn't hear the background noise at the various locations I was calling, so it wasn't like a true phone, plus after either myself or the other person would finish talking you could hear a slight echo. I believe the downfall of the Samsung is the integrated antenna.
I honestly wanted the Samsung to win, as I have many of their other brands of electronics and have found them A+++++, but not in this case. The LG VX8100 is the way to go when deciding on a cell phone, the quality is most like the Samsung I've had for years.
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5. Posted by shadow1
Wed Feb 15, 2006 12:17 pm
I'm a tech guy and push everything to the limit. Here's what this phone can do.
1 - It does play stereo MP3s through headsets - you have to get the right 2.5 mm 4 jack set with microphone.
2 - I run with mine and lift weights with it and it works great.
3 - The earpiece is a little fickle. If you get it just right, you can hear fine. I keep it up to full volume.
4 - I live in a weak service area and this phone is no better or worse than any other phone I have had. My last one was an 8000. There are so many things that can interfere with cell phone signals.
5 - You must have the newest software to play MP3s
6 - The voice prompt works but you have to get use to the computer voice. It's not like older phones. You don't record your voice for contacts, you just speak the contact and it reads the text you entered on the contact. This is different than older phones.
7 - Bluetooth - I just got a stereo bluetooth headset and although i can use it on the phone side I'm guessing the phone does not broadcast bluetooth through for the MP3 player. I need to talk with Verizon about that. Just got off the phone, it will NOT do MP3 bluetooth. Bummer but that's okay. I can deal with that for two more years until those phones likely will.
8 - If you are in a non-coverage area like an airplane or basement or gym and listening to MP3s, turn ON the Standalone mode. This will turn off the cell side and save a TON of battery life. Plus, it will skip the MP3 if the signal is not strong enoughand is phasing in and out of service and the phone will keep polling to find the signal causing hickups in the playback of MP3s. It's in the Tools menu.
9 - Yes, the manual does not cover everything. But if you going to get a high tech phone, you have to be willing to play around. Most of the computer stuff I deal with is try and play and break and fix and try again. Or read lots of tech stuff and then go at it.
10 - I'm still hunting for things like how to play the MP3s through my car speakers, etc. You have to get just the right type of jack and headset for this, or FM broadcaster, etc. Ok, just got off the phone with LG and they don't know what is different about their jack verses others. Lovely. That ticked me off frankly. But I still like the phone. I'll have to experiment on my own I guess. Which is just like everything else in the tech world.
Bottom line, I bought this phone as a cell and MP3 so I can carry one device. I put a 1 Gig card and I'm not unhappy. It does what it was suppose to do. As with any combo device it's not the best MP3 player but I do think it's a high end phone.
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6. Posted by blazer
Wed Oct 05, 2005 9:24 pm
Okay... I've read alot of reviews & i've waited about 2 months to write my own review about my VX8100. My first impression of the phone is great.
It is compact, dual lcd displays that are large & easy to read.
You can push the camera button on the outside & take 15 seconds of video or pictures of yourself while watching what is being recorded.
While the phone is closed & the camera is activated you can push the light on & use it as a flashlight. I've used it several times while working on my car in the middle of the night. Lifesaver in certain situations. When you take a picture with the light on another LED turns on for extra light while taking picture. There is also a night mode which adjusts for darkness. I haven't really taken any great pictures in dark situations so don't expect great results but it's better than other phones available. I had the vx6100 for about an hour and a half before I realized the camera was horrible & was very happy with the different resolutions & other settings on the VX8100. Video is actually very good. It's not top quality like some perfectist prefer but I get oohhs & ahhhs when people watch my video clips.
The volume on this phone is excellent. Besides the adjustable volume on the outside of the phone. You can push & hold down the CLR button & activate the speaker phone which makes it really loud. The dual stereo speakers work very well.
With the phone open you can push & hold down the microphone button on the outside & it will activate the voice memo.
I purchased a 1GB mini SD card & switched my phone to store all my pics & video & voice memos on my card.
When you make a call or when you receive a call the LED on the out side turns all different colors. Really cool.
To access the mp3 player you need to goto a verizon authorized store & have them flash your phone with version 4 software. It takes awhile but is well worth it.
You can set video or pictures to your main screen or front screen. Another really cool feature. I'm constantly changing that.
Vcast is really great if you can afford it. I've watched clips from comedy central, fox sports news, etc. Great while bored at work or sitting in the John.
Check your battery when you first get your phone. The original battery I got with the phone had a pink indicator & the extended battery with cover also had a pink indicator so I'm not sure it means water damage. Batteries work fine. The extended battery cover that comes with the battery will work with the standard 1000mAh battery.
This phone is the best out there. The people that rag on this phone are people that dont really have it or have were probably pissed at Verizon for there own stupidity such as breaking their phone & not paying for insurance $4.99/12 months or 5.99/extended warranty. Insurance covers manufactures defects. If you break, lose or your phone is stolen you must pay a $50 deductable. I called LG when my vx8100 outside LCD display cracked while I was working on a car & they said $79-$99 to repair the damage so I'm going to do the $50 deductable. Oh well.
With customer service on decline I must say that Verizon Wireless has the best customer service out there. Don't expect it from any other service. I called sprint & i'm not even going into the details, not worth my time.
Summary... BUY THIS PHONE IF YOU DONT WANT TO BE DISAPOINTED. BLUE TOOTH is basicly for geeks so most people will be happy with this phone. Thanks & God Bless.
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7. Posted by sbus01
Mon Oct 09, 2006 3:47 pm
The VX8100 most certainly does have an MP3 player.
If you have the (old) V04 virmware, it plays MP3s. Firmwares prior to V04 did not.
The latest firmware for the (Verizon) VX8100 is V07 (aka T81VZV07-MOD). IT PLAYS WMP FILES BY DEFAULT and supports VCAST.
=====================================
THE FOLLOWING PERTAINS ONLY TO V07 FIRMWARE!!!!
=====================================
HERES HOW TO ENABLE MP3 SUPPORT (WHICH IS DISABLED BY DEFAULT):
1. Hit MENU, 0 (the MENU key is the 'OK' key) to enter the sevice menu
2. Enter six zeroes (0 0 0 0 0 0) as the service code.
<this gets you into the service meny>
3. Enter 11 (or scroll down to "11. Music Setting"
4. Select "MP3 Enable".
5. END to get out of service mode.
Now your VX8100 is an MP3 player.
IF YOU WANT TO USE THE FRONT CONTROLS FOR THE MP3 PLAYER:
You must enable the front control keys (Play/Pause, Fwd, Rev) to play MP3s, do the following:
1, Go to the "Settings and Tools" menu.
2. Select '1' (Tools)
3. Select '3' (Shortcut Key)
4. Select '2' (Play Key)
5. Select "My MP3s"
To use the front keys, hold the center (Play/Pause key) down for 3 seconds and it will let you choose an MP3 from the "My MP3s" folder.
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8. Posted by LG VX8100 guy
Mon Jan 09, 2006 7:08 pm
I'm one of the most techie guys when it comes to electronics, especially cell phones. I'm with Verizon Wireless and VERY satisfied with them. The service they offer and extra services are phenomenal. I bought the Samsung Sch-a650 in 2004 and VERY QUICKLY regretted it. I was anxious for an upgrade, so I had my plan renewed this December and got the LG VX8100. After months of searching the internet for reviews, opinions, and general knowledge, I concluded that this phone topped the competition. With a fair price, outstanding features, and the unsurpassed LG name, this phone appeared to be better than the Samsung SCH-a950 (also didn't want to go back with Samsung), the Motorola E815, and the Motorola RAZR V3c. Yes, even the RAZR. I was considering the RAZR until I tried it out in the store. The phone is just like any other Motorola, despite what Verizon tried to do to speed it up, the menu is just slow! The phone itself is slow, because u have to wait a couple seconds for the sounds to load. The RAZR also lacks an expansion card for the ability to play MP3's and transfer videos and pictures. The LG VX8100 was nothing like that and it made my decision more sure than ever. This phone is absolutely amazing and an amazing improvement over the Samsung. The MP3 and sound player is fairly loud with the dual speakers, and the color screens are AMAZING. With the miniSD card, I've also loaded .3gp video clips, and I've gotten Free WAP internet on it. I could not love the phone anymore. My only cons are that there is virtually no easy way to get around verizon's software for free ringtones, especially because the bluetooth is locked (con #2) But that's it. Otherwise, this is a spectacular phone and I would recommend it to anyone.
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9. Posted by jdgalore
Mon Dec 26, 2005 10:15 pm
I love this phone, im sorta a geekey guy so this phone gives me all I need. the mp3 player is great! I have to say if you get this phone get the sd card 512 mb is a little small for my taste but it will work for me. I love the movie player I used the nokia media player to rip my .mpg movies to the format the phone reads its a free app on nokia.com, great for the long trips have the whole star wars 3 and its only about 100mb so lots of room for my 100 mp3s that I also have on the phone. when ever I run a would carry my phone and my mp3 player now just the phone and using the hands free headset is great for work cause I look busy on the phone when I am really listing to tunes, If you are not sure, get it! the cams great the pictures look wonderful and its an all around great phone wish it would use a larger card besides that its great!
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10. Posted by joeh75
Sun Aug 07, 2005 2:16 pm
If you go to LG's website, you can search on "VX8100" to see the features they list. They are not one-for-one what you get from Verizon. I am not a phone weeney and certainly could have researched more carefully, but I still like the phone.
The Good
- Easy picture manipulation.
- Relatively easy user interface (better than the Motorola 815E, I think).
- Speakerphone is very useful.
These are the reasons, along with Bluetooth, that I bought the phone.
The Bad
- Verizon's Bluetooth would be better advertised as Gaptooth for the VX8100. Its missing the functions that let you transfer files and do synchronization. So its either buy a cable or get Verizon's service (which is obviously thier motive for not enabling these features).
- Voice memos are missing or I can't figure out how to get at it.
Absence of the Bluetooth features is my main complaint. I am pretty happy with the phone, but am very annoyed with Veriozon.
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11. Posted by amati99
Thu Dec 22, 2005 4:32 pm
I’ve read many reviews of this phone and I am a little confused. I don’t think that I have ever dropped a call that I would not have dropped on another phone (going through the Pocono Mountains). The picture resolution is fantastic and the video feature has been extremely useful. The features are fairly intuitive and numerous. The voice recognition is a bit clunkier than past models. LG attempted to advance to the next technology by having true voice recognition but in my opinion it was easier recording your voice command once per person than having to go through three steps to call someone using the voice command that this phone offers. Still not a huge drawback though. My only true complaint is in regards to the MP3 player. I am not computer illiterate, but not a tech. geek either. After two hours on the phone with both Verizon and LG I have decided just not to use this feature. It was not a factor in my buying this phone so I don’t feel as though I have lost much; it is however annoying that no one has been able to explain to me how to save songs to the card in a format that the phone recognizes. This is an indication of the decline in costumer service in general IMO. I had a problem with the phone shutting off randomly in the beginning and after several attempts to fix this problem Verizon just gave me a new one and there haven’t been any further problems. Customer service isn’t great anymore but there are worse customer service departments than Verizon. Bottom line…..With the rebate, the phone is well worth the cost, a lot of bang for the buck!!!
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12. Posted by barhnt
Sat Oct 22, 2005 7:32 pm
This is a great phone. I get wonderful reception and the phone is fairly easy to use. The MP3 player is easy to work and a fun toy to have. The screen is very crisp and clear. The voice commands work great with little mistakes if any. I had a samsung x427 and this is a very impressive upgrade. I am glad i made this purchase.
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13. Posted by chevygirl
Sat Feb 10, 2007 3:18 am
Im sorry but this phone is just ridiculous! Im on my 3rd lg 8100 now. I just got it back from repair and it's starting to do the exact same thing!
- The phone re-boots itself constantly
-Speakerphone is unclear
-Volume constantly changes, no matter what you do
-reception is staticy
- it will eventually freeze at the telus startup and die.
All these things and more started happening to all 3 phones. Sent for repairs, updated. Still the same!
DONT BUY THIS PHONE. WASTE OF MONEY. I love this phone, i really do. But it has soooo many bugs and soooo many problems, its just junk.
My first phone had all these problems till it finally froze at the telus screen, and basically died, you couldnt take out the battery, and put it back in and it would work. it was just dead so i took it in, they replaced it with a new one. The new one seemed to work great, until the same bugs started happening once again.this time, I noticed it deleted my wallpaper and then turned itself off and froze at the telus screen AGAIN. So this time , it got sent to repair, they said it was un-repairable and replaced it with a new motherboard,.so basically a new phone! this one is starting to do the exact same thing!
Thankfully, I had a nice lady when i called telus and they offered me a chance to get a new phone with a new 3 yr contract. WELL WORTH THE NEW CONTRACT.
this phone is terrible.
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14. Posted by whateg01
Wed Feb 22, 2006 4:53 pm
Just got this phone last weekend. Didn't want a new phone, but my LG VX4500 met an untimely demise. (Cracked the main LCD, so the lower 2/3 is un-usable. Very bad.) I originally wanted a non-camera phone because of security issues in some companies that I visit, but as has been mentioned in other reviews, if you want features, you get a camera, unless you get something like a Blackberry.
My wife has the Samsung A950. She likes it, but I don't care for some things about it. So I looked at the M-rola E815, and this one. The first thing I noticed about the 815 was that the keypad on the store display seemed very cheesy. The rubbery buttons were all crooked and moved around alot. So, I stopped looking at it. I did do a side-by-side comparison of the A950 and the VX8100, as they were positioned side-by-side in the display area. The display on the LG was brighter and I liked the feel of the keypad better. Also, my previous LG phone was very good, so I was comfortable with it. After listening to the two and playing with them, I decided on the LG.
Now that I have it, there are a few things that I have noted. Such as...
1. When the phone is opened and the camera is not active, the outside display only says Verizon Wireless, instead of displaying the time or something useful. My old phone would display the time, so when the phone was on my belt, I could partially open it and read the time. The 8100 I have to tilt the whole phone up to read the time.
2. The outside display shuts off after a specified amount of time, so you have to press a button to turn it back on.
3. The menus and softkeys on all of Verizon's phones seem to have changed.
4. Somebody mentioned that the voice memo feature didn't work. If you press the voice memo button with the phone closed, it tells you it is unavailable. You have to have the phone open and not on silent or vibrate only.
5. The bluetooth file transfer, as has been mentioned, is disabled, but that is something that I probably wouldn't use for awhile anyway.
Other than those things, I have had good sound quality on both ends, none of the issues other people have mentioned with the earpiece. Most of the time I use a headset anyway, but when I have used the earpiece, it worked fine. The camera is okay, I guess. Of course the only thing I have to compare it to is my wife's phone and my actual camera. I suppose that the thing to remember is that this is a phone; the camera is just a bonus.
Next for me is a bluetooth headset, so we'll see how that works. I need to read some reviews on those before I go buy one.
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15. Posted by rav_ugotit
Sat Apr 01, 2006 1:28 am
i think this is a cool little phone from LG. I have had three LG starting with the LG vx3100 to the 3300 and now the 8100. All cool phones but this is a major upgrade for me. of course this is my first camera phone so i really cant say that it is bad because to me it seems state of the art. i feel that its hard to make a celly with a better camera while downsizing it as much as it is. I dont have the vcast package but it is still a luxury phone and i know luxury. i really havent had any cons about this phone. i also have a bluetooth earpieve and it is so cool to use both at the same time. i can move throught the house while talking to people on the celly without holding it. in fact i left the phone in one part of the house and walked about 30ft. while holding a conversation on the phone and i had little static. i know this was mostly the bluetooth device (its not LG so i dont know if i can mention the name) but i suggest buying one anyway. I also love the internet which i believe but dont qoute me was Mobile Web 2.0. It is very useful espacially for me a young man who travels on the metro in D.C. not only is it entertaning but it is very useful. the only limit was that i couldnt look at the bus schedule because i needed to have adobe. but that is about it. and i love to download things so definetly visit Get it now. u can buy whatever you want from weather in your town to games to ringtones. It is very cool. If u are looking in the market for a phone in this class which is VCast with or without music i promise u that if u live in D.C. or any area near it u will love this phone. i was going to get the Samsung but this phone was not only cheaper but it looked so much better in person than on the internet. And it really does have cool features. for example the status light blinks five to seven different colors on start up and when u are connecting to the satelite when making a call. it is a cool phone i think that everyone should at least examine it if u are in the market for a Verizon Wireless phone. if u have any questions about the phone itself u can always post it on this. Again a cool phone. Just look at it.
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13 out of 17 people found this review helpful.
16. Posted by pmcmickin
Sun Feb 26, 2006 7:17 pm
It was time for my "New every two" and my old phone had a crack--so I really needed a new phone.
I should say upfront that I am a basic phone user--I don't care about watching videos and playing music on my phone. My iPod Nano is much more flexible and I wouldn't be able to get the sound quality from the phone headphone that my Shure earbuds deliver.
I did want Bluetooth.
I travel a lot, both for business and in an RV, so I didn't even consider switching carriers. Verizon is still the best choice service provider when you don't know where you will be next.
For my life style there were three capabilities that I really depended on--signal strength in marginal areas, external antenna connection and dial the internet.
This brings me to the most frustrating part of choosing the new phone--I talked to at least 3 technical customer support people and no one could tell me which phone and under what conditions I could connect the phone to my pc and dial the internet.
In the past I could dial into the Verizon network to collect email and pay bills when I didn't have any other internet connectivity. The non-technical customer support people questioned why I would want to do that when I could get email on the phone--they obviously don't do much with email.
Finally, one of the tech support people told me which bluetooth phones had an available mobile office kit--I chose The LG VX8100.
I now can dial an ISP, but not Verizon and not high speed unless I am willing to pay $60/month whether I use it or not. I'm pretty unhappy about losing this functionality just so I can "upgrade". If we decide to pay that much, we will get satellite internet--more expensive, but works everywhere!
I do like the phone--the screen is beautiful and very visible in bright light. The call quality is fine and I don't have any problems with the volume.
The connectivity is pretty good--not as good as the Samsung 950 I tried for a day under very marginal conditions--but good enough. Also, the Samsung had an easier voice dial environment. Press the button and say Call "contact_name". The LG doesn't work that way and I haven't spent enough time trying to see how cumbersome it might be.
I did take a few pictures and without fussing with settings they turned out pretty good. I lost them when moving them between the card memory and phone memory and back to the card memory--so I need to figure that out!
I have put some favorite pictures on the mini-SD card to use as backgrounds and I enjoy seeing my pictures instead of the cartoons included with the phone.
I am annoyed with the "Groups" in Contacts. With the capability to have 500 contacts, limiting the group membership to 10 seems pointless. Which brings me to the other "group" irritation--You can send TXT or PIX to the group, but you can't select one entry and "CALL".
I can't say I love this phone, but given my criteria I'm pretty happy with the phone, if not with Verizon for removing some loved capability.
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16 out of 21 people found this review helpful.
17. Posted by apl175
Sat Feb 18, 2006 11:28 pm
I've been using my VX8100 for about 2 months now, and I don't have very many complaints. This phone replaced a VX4400 that had survived for more than 3 years, so I had good feeling about buying another LG.
The 8100 is a very attractive phone that has higher build quality and fit-and finish than my old VX4400. All of the displays are easy to read, brightly illuminated, and the keys and buttons have a high quality feel to them.
Audio quality is pretty good when using the speakerphone, thanks to the dual stereo speakers. I haven't had any complaints from callers about audio quality when using the speakerphone either. The earpiece itself is a bit tricky to get positioned at first, but once you know how to hold it against your ear, it works quite well. There is a very small amount of high-pitched electronic interference noise when using the earpiece.
Camera quality is relatively good - but only for static, brightly illuminated objects.
Although it doesn't support Bluetooth object exchange, to directly transfer files, I can get MP3s, and picture files to and from the phone using Bluetooth and Bitpim, by connecting to the phone using the Bluetooth serial port profile.
Hopefully the VX8100 will uphold the longevity of my previous VX4400.
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22 out of 29 people found this review helpful.
18. Posted by jmberhold
Thu Dec 08, 2005 3:58 pm
I must admit the first impression of the LG-8100 was the greatest. How cool is it to have the newest phone in the store. The media player is great, that is after you buy the headphones sold by verizon that fit in the little jack. then you buy a mini SD card to hold all your mp3s. but make sure you realize that you will not be able to use you bluetooth to download anything to this phone yes that is right LG has so graciously disabled that feature on this phone, so if you are like me and like to have personalized ringtones from your ringtone software you can forget it!! because it not possible through bluetooth. The next discouraging feature of the LG-8100 is its lack of internet accessability with the laptops. unlike other Verizon phones that have the 3g network available to use at dialup speeds by plugging your phone into the computer with the moble office kit, the LG-8100 does not support this feature either. so if you like to capitalize on the features of the phone, you cannot, because they are disabled. This phone appears to be the best phone in the store, and it is a great phone for those who don't go into depth with the verizon service, but if you plan to get more from your phone, consider another model, and you might get more for your money and spend less on the phone.
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50 out of 67 people found this review helpful.
19. Posted by hen92
Wed Sep 07, 2005 8:38 pm
Yes there is mp3 in it. It does not show you the option for your mp3. Ive recently was told by the customer service there was a software update for the phone. After I updated you can now see the mp3 option. Nice feel on the phone. Camera is pretty good also. I'm coming from sprint and the camera has alot more features. This phone is a pretty good reasonable size for this many features. Well thats my opinion, there may be better phones.
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66 out of 95 people found this review helpful.
20. Posted by nama
Sat Sep 24, 2005 9:34 am
I like it a lot so far. Of course, I had a really old style phone before, so I guess I'm used to a low level cell phone. I bought a bluetooth wireless headset and that works well. The only headache is that if the Bluetooth wireless connection for some reason gets severed, say because you put it in your pocket too long or whatever reason, then you have to reset the connection manually, it won't automatically search and reconnect. This is a big hassle if you're digging in your pocket to get your cell because it's ringing and you throw on your wireless headset and there's no sound and if you're driving you can't exactly take the time to manually reconnect the wireless headset.
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40 out of 58 people found this review helpful.
21. Posted by Feather Haven
Tue Sep 20, 2005 4:46 pm
Had a lg 8000, lost it and when I went to replace it verizon no longer carried them, but offered the 8100. I can't express how disappointed I was. The earpieced speaker was so weak I had to keep it up on high all the time and then there was still alot of fading in and out. I am in a weak reception area, the 8000 did great the 8100 terrible. Never more than on bar and constantly dropping calls. I must say the camera had great resolution, and I liked the bluetooth headset (which was the only way I could hear to talk to anyone most of the time). I never used many of the other features, maybe it was great as a toy, but as a cellphone, which is what I thought I was buying, it is the worst phone I have owned out the 6 models I have had over the years.
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106 out of 154 people found this review helpful.
22. Posted by ADSisson
Sun Feb 12, 2006 11:34 am
I am a long time LG user, but the VX8100 has really been a bad experience so far. The phone in general is pretty impressive but there is a volume issue with the earpiece. When you are talking to someone the volume will go up and down . I have gone back to Verizon 3 times and they have replaced the phone all three times but it still does the same thing. I am going back to verizon and I want a different phone. I was told to make adjustments on the phone, a software upgrade was needed, all of that still didn't work....I just think it is a problem with this model phone...
Go to a VZW Corp store and have Ver 7 put on the phone. It solves the volume problem., slight reduction in the camera delay and adds VCast MOD
Barring that, use auto volume to correct the fluctuation
BTW, how long ago did you get your FIRST 8100?
HTH
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17 out of 25 people found this review helpful.
23. Posted by TheAZAngel
Thu Aug 10, 2006 12:44 pm
I have the 8100 and the volume issue sucks. I lose signals ALL the time. I can be standing in a room with my friend who has the LG7000. I'll lose the signal AND call at least 3 times and my friend won't lose signal or call AT ALL. I know it sounds crazy, but I do think that the LG and my body chemistry just don't mix. This 8100 was "purchased" to replace the 6000 I had which had just as bad, actually worse reception. I can ONLY use my phone in my car WHILE driving or sometimes in the middle of the street. I cannot use it in my house, my backyard or front yard.
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7 out of 11 people found this review helpful.
24. Posted by DizzYGuY
Mon Jan 23, 2006 11:52 am
If you live in a good reception area and still cannot appreciate this phone, then yur just a spolied little brat. I went to the store thinking I was going to walk out with the Motorola v325, but turns out it's not available in stores til Feb 2006. So I started browsing around the store and noticed that verizon finally has a Razr 3 but only in silver. I've always wanted the black razr 3 until I saw this LG VX-8100. I've compared the specs side by side and both the lg vx-8100 and the razr 3 have a 128X128 size exterior screen and both also have 65,000 colors. As goes for the interior screen size AGAIN! both have a 176X220 screen size with 262,144 colors. The LG-VX8100 and Razr 3 both have the same quality camera which is the 1.3 Mega Pixel with flash, v-cast, u name it and until I learned all about the LG-VX8100 I'vea lways wanted the black razr 3 which verizon only has the silver BUT even if verizon suddenly did get the black razr 3, mark my words! I'd still buy this awesome unique feature packed phone over the black razr! I'd highly recommend this phone for anyone that just wants a stable and crystal clear sharp sound or someone looking to personalize and play games ringtones wallpapers, etc ( by the way the internal screen colors are magnificent!) this phone will adapt to anyone
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17 out of 27 people found this review helpful.
25. Posted by afrothunder
Sun Feb 12, 2006 11:45 am
I just got my VX8100 the other day, and I have no real complaints. It's a fun little toy. I havent experienced any sound fluctuation like I've read in some of these reviews, which was a relief. This phone is quite complex though. The menus are a little tough to get used to, but are also somewhat flexible; in some instances, you can assign a button to access your most used function for extreme personalization. It took me 2 days to figure out how to use the speakerphone, and I still have yet to find the mini-USB port that I've been hearing about. I didn't see it in the instructions manuals, and I can't find it on the phone.
So if you're more tech-literate than I am, then this phone is a great buy. I got it for free from some website, and I'm glad I chose this one.
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11 out of 18 people found this review helpful.
26. Posted by FerrariRed
Wed Oct 19, 2005 9:06 pm
This phone has cool features and thats real nice. But the functionality is terrible, reception is no good, and the earpiece is weak. Tons of dropped calls when there was full service. I dropped the phone once three feet to the ground and screen cracked and there is a gaping black hole now. Wow, do not buy this if you do not want the hassle of dealing with a bad phone.
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53 out of 89 people found this review helpful.
27. Posted by ween060
Tue Oct 25, 2005 3:23 pm
I bought this phone about 2 weeks ago. At first it was great. I'm one of those people that has to buy a phone with all the latest features. The phone in itself is pretty cool. The camera and video are great. Unfortunatley the other features bring that down. There have been more than a few times already where i have no service in a completely serviced area. That's a huge problem. Also, like someone said a few posts ago, the volume is horrible. It's always on high whether speaker or not, and yet i can't seem to hear very well. The phone has a good camera, and it's a good looking phone in general, but that's all it has going. I'm extremely dissapointed and i'm buying a new one tonight. I should've listened to the people who had already posted, they were right.
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45 out of 84 people found this review helpful.
28. Posted by ront16
Sat Feb 11, 2006 6:02 pm
I am a long time LG user, but the VX8100 has really been a bad experience so far. The phone in general is pretty impressive but there is a volume issue with the earpiece. When you are talking to someone the volume will go up and down . I have gone back to Verizon 3 times and they have replaced the phone all three times but it still does the same thing. I am going back to verizon and I want a different phone. I was told to make adjustments on the phone, a software upgrade was needed, all of that still didn't work....I just think it is a problem with this model phone...
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10 out of 21 people found this review helpful.
29. Posted by davecave
Tue Jan 10, 2006 12:55 pm
My new VX8100 is fine, multi-featured beyond what I want or need at present.
What I want, what I got it FOR, was a combo phone/MP3 player. You know, mp3s like iPod? With STEREO HEADPHONES???
LG doesn't seem to be able to do that. They're putting mp3 into their newest phones, all right, but the reason they give you those twinky little stereo speakers is that they CAN'T DELIVER STEREO THRU EARPHONES.
It's because phone headsets need one of the channels to be for the microphone, an input line, leaving only one for output to the ear. I'm glad they didn't do the next least-costly thing, rig another earbud to the mono signal, but who wants to listen to fine new music through one channel? It would be an industry breakthrough, but why the heck can't they have a THREE-wire headset, mike plus left-and-right?
I don't know about you but I get tired holding the phone up to the bridge of my nose to get a stereo effect out of those little, bitty, eentsy, weentsy speakers ...
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24 out of 56 people found this review helpful.
30. Posted by kingoats
Mon Mar 27, 2006 3:27 am
I have had this phone for some odd weeks. I have upgraded from the LG7100. I think some things are better and some things are worse. On the 7100 I could use my voice memos as ringtones. And on here you cant use the MP3's as ringtones. If Vcast is not in your area, you have to get all the accessories to get the use out of the MP3 player. Also the camera has a delay. So when you are trying to get a picture fast you cant. The cursor on the text message is a bit chunky too. Over all the rest of the phone is neat with the Bluetooth capabilites (not like you can do much with that, only with a headset), MP3'S, and Pics and Flix!!!! I think if it were the 7100 with the Mp3 player. Id buy back that phone! Holler!!!! If you can find other backdoors please help.
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9 out of 21 people found this review helpful.
31. Posted by youngbill
Mon Mar 05, 2007 2:26 am
The only reason I bought another LG phone after my poorly designed 6000 fell apart is because I couldn't transfer my contact info from my 6000 (in two pieces) to any other make of phone without losing large amounts of my info. The phone is fairly sturdy, though, I drop it a lot.
I'm mad now because I don't need to check stock prices, watch ESPN, or listen to music on my phone. All I want to do is enter some stupid contact info like addresses and other details. I can have one Gig of memory, but I can't save simple text like a few addresses.
My battery gives less than 2 hours standby time. rediculous. The phone is completely underpowered. I suppose I'll reward LG for selling me a lousy battery by buying another one so they can make a little more money off of me.
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1 out of 4 people found this review helpful.
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