Camera

The Motorola V710's 1.2-megapixel camera is able to capture images at up to 1280 x 960 px in resolution. Other resolutions include 640 x 480 px, 320 x 240 px, and 160 x 120 px. Regardless of the high resolution, photos taken with the V710 were lackluster, with blurring, graininess, and color problems.

When taking pictures, the internal screen becomes the viewfinder; with the lower portion displaying useful information such as available memory. The directional keypad controls the 4x Digital Zoom (Up / Down) and Brightness Level (Left / Right). And should users want to be included in the shot, closing the V710 activates the external monitor viewfinder.

Additional camera features and controls include image correction (Brightness and Contrast, image style (Color, Black and White, Antique, and Negative), and self-timer.

Encoded in 3GPP codec (H.263 and AMR) format, video clips up to 15 seconds can be recorded; taking advantage of MPEG-4 for delivery of video and audio. Video adjustment settings include Auto Repeat, Timer, Video Quality, Video Length, Lighting Conditions, Exposure, Recording Sound, and Status Icons.

Basic Features

Released for Verizon Wireless, the Motorola V710 is built on a tri-band AMPS 800 / CDMA 800 / 1900 network. Motorola rated the V710's 700 mAh Li-Ion battery at 165 hours of standby and 3.0 hours of talk time. However, those are under optimal conditions.

When handset manufacturers and mobile phone carriers list talk-time and standby-time ratings, they usually include disclaimers about variable performance and often refer to the times they publish as maximum times. Some quote expected battery life ranges, and in this case you're probably safe to assume you'll experience at least the minimum rated range. Actual talk and standby times are lower.

Screen

The Motorola V710's 1.3-inch external screen displays up to 4K colors. At 98 x 67 px, the CSTN (Color Super Twist Nematic) LCD displays date, time, battery level, signal strength, and caller ID. The internal 2.2-inch TFT (Thin Film Transistor) monitor is capable of showing a state-of-the-art 262K colors at 176 x 220 px. Wonderfully bright and vibrant, the V710's screen is phenomenal.

TFT active display matrices can achieve more vibrant colors and faster refresh rates over CSTN due to circuit transistors being placed directly on the glass at the pixel location; refresh rates needed for using the V710's screen as a viewfinder during camera mode.

CSTN, on the other hand, is slower and requires the scanning of pixel locations. However it consume considerably less power than TFT screens, which is why manufacturers make external monitors from CSTN; used for quick access to static data while prolonging battery life.

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