The phone everyone’s been waiting for is finally here. The LG Voyager, which is also known as the LG VX10000, is an upgrade to the popular LG enV (VX9900), which we reviewed around this time last year. Skatter Tech was lucky enough to get a hold of this unit, courtesy of Verizon Wireless, and I’ve been putting it to the test since I got it last week. Just for a quick overview, the Voyager features a touch-screen display plus an internal wide-screen, a full HTML browser, a QWERTY keyboard, Mobile TV, and a ton of other new features. Although LG seems to be taking their communicator series in a whole new direction, I would still say that Voyager is definitely a worthy upgrade to the enV.
LG VX10000 Specifications:
- Provider: Verizon Wireless (1.9GHz / 800MHz CMDA)
- Form Factor: Laptop-like w/ QWERTY keyboard
- Dimensions: 4.64H x 2.12W x 0.71D (inches)
- Battery Life: 240 mins talk time & 480 hours standby
- Screens: 480 x 240 pixel TFT external & internal
- Digital Camera: 2 megapixel camera and camcorder
- Storage: ~185MB internal + microSD (8GB max)
- Special: external touch screen and mobile tv
- Others: Bluetooth 1.2 + Stereo Speakerphone
- Price: $299 with a new 2-year contract
LG Voyager Body: – 5/5 stars
The VX10000 is a bit larger than your average phone, but no one should be complaining once they see what it has to offer. The phone stands 4.64-inches tall, is .71-inches thick, and 2.12-inches wide. The Voyager retains the same height as it’s processor, the enV, but is slightly wider and thinner as well. The phone should fit into most pockets, but might be a bit of a stretch for tight jeans. On the front of the phone, you’ll find the large touch screen display followed by the SEND, CLR, and END hard-keys lined up at the bottom. On the left of the phone, there’s a camera button, a spring-loaded hold key, and a toggle volume control. The microSD card expansion and the 2.5mm headset jack are the left side, while the charging port, which doubles as the USB connector, is on the bottom. You can charge your phone via USB as well! Other than that, there’s a two mega pixel Camera centered at the top on the back and a battery pack right below it. One the inside of the phone, there’s another display located between two speakers on the top portion and the illuminated QWERTY keyboard on the bottom. The keys are well spaced out are are large enough to type quickly, making it possibly the best keyboard I have seen on a phone to date. Also, unlike the enV, the Voyager actually sits flat on a surface, so no wobbling!
The Two Screens: – 5/5 stars
The biggest disappointment in the LG enV was the extremely small external display. All that has now changed since the LG Voyager’s 2.81-inch touch screen display takes over the entirety of the front and even replaces the numeric keypad. The phone’s internal display is also 2.81-inches diagonal, but isn’t a touch screen. Both the screens have a resolution of 400 by 240 pixels and a color depth of 262K. The quality of both displays were excellent. They were bright and clear enough to view in direct sunlight. The accuracy and responsiveness of the touch screen display was great, but some buttons and items were too small and hard to reach, so interface could use a bit of work.
Music Player: – 4/5 stars
I had a great experience with the Music Player on the enV and was hoping for a big upgrade, but it seems as though there hasn’t been any chances. The main complain would be that the interface for the player is completely different on the external and internal displays. The interface for the outside portion has been designed for use with the touch screen and works fairly well. It actually looks quite neat and allows browsing by Songs, Albums, Artists, or Genres. You’ll have the ability to purchase music from the mobile store, shuffle your music, and search your library. Unfortunately the same can’t be said for the internal interface. The music player on the internal display is still using the standard theme found on the enV and a plenty of other Verizon Wireless phones. In addition the developers have managed to make such as simple program actually look worse and just for starters it doesn’t even utilize the full display. Instead the program has been cropped to a 320 by 240 pixel frame with black borders. Despite this, the playback functions work quite smoothly and the player didn’t have any other major flaws. For supported formats, the Voyager can playback unprotected MP3, WMA, and AAC files in addition to songs purchased through the phone. (Will work with Amazon MP3 & iTunes Plus!) Overall the player is functional and even displays Album Artwork for a nice touch, but it could have been better.
Speakers & Headphones: – 3.5/5 stars
One reason I liked the enV and its predecessor the LG VX9800 (aka “The V”) was the fact that they all had built-in stereo speakers. The LG Voyager carries on that tradition, but there’s a problem. The speakers in the LG Voyager sounded quite horrible and began to crack terribly even before we got close to reaching full volume. (No bass as well.) I would have expected for an even better experience, but these speakers prove otherwise. Since the LG Voyager is also a music phone, I would have also expected them to implement a standard 3.5mm headset connector. Instead, the Voyager maintains a 2.5mm headset jack meaning that you’ll need to purchase an adapter for use with your regular headphones. As Bluetooth headsets are becoming so cheap and barely anyone uses wired headsets anymore, I wonder how long it will take for manufacturers to phase out 2.5mm jacks and replace them with 3.5mm ones. Fortunately, listening to music with headphones on the VX10000 was a much better experience than with the speakers, but quality was still no where as good as on the VX9900.
Digital Camera & Camcorder: – 3.5/5 stars
The LG Voyager features a 2.0 megapixel camera, which also functions as a camcorder. Photos can be taken at a maximum resolution of 1600 by 1200 pixels, while videos can be recorded at a max of 320 by 240 pixels. No improvement for either of those functions have been made since, as those were also the maximums on the enV. The camera and camcorder allow setting the white balance and choosing color effects for captured content. The external display can be used to take self portraits when the phone is flipped open. The camcorder can record up to 1-hour videos, however only clips under 30-seconds can be emailed. On the other hand, images of any size can be emailed. The camera also has an auto focus function, which drastically improves the quality of your photos. The part that was quite disappointing was the fact that LG has removed the retractable cover, which protected the lens, and the built in flash, which was quite handy in low-lighted situations. Overall, the image quality seems to have actually degraded.
microSD + Syncing: – 4.5/5 stars
LG has taken a big jump with microSD technology, now supporting 8GB cards. That’s a fairly good increase considering that the enV was limited to 2GB microSD cards. Although 8GB cards might be a bit pricey at this point, you should be able to purchase a 4GB microSD card online for under $40. As for syncing music, it was as simple as it could get. Your computer will recognize the Voyager as portable media player (mass storage device), so no additional drivers were required. You will, however, need to pop in the CD and install the drivers if you do wish to use your phone as a data modem. Once the device was recognized I was able to use Windows Media Player to transfer the music onto the Voyager. If you prefer to directly copy files onto the phone using the file explorer, that works smoothly as well. Mac OS X users, unfortunately, will have to use an SD card adapter to copy their music onto the microSD card since USB drivers are not yet available. Even Windows users will also end up having use a SD card reader/write occasionally, since it isn’t possible to access your photos and videos when using USB.
Bluetooth: – 4/5 stars
There hasn’t been exactly too much improvement with Bluetooth technology either. The LG Voyager continues to use Bluetooth v1.2, which the enV already had. Most new phones including the LG Muziq, which we reviewed a few months ago, and the Apple iPhone now boast a Bluetooth v2.0 platform with Enhanced Data Rate. Despite this, the LG Voyager was still able to work perfectly with my Samsung WEP200 headset, which uses Bluetooth v2.0. The VX10000 also supports using Bluetooth for use as a dial-up modem, with wireless stereo headsets, for transfering phonebook/calendar entries, and sending images to your computer. So it should still be able to do just about everything important.
HTML Browser: – 5/5 stars
First off, let me say that this is in no way comparable to the Safari browser on the iPhone and iPod Touch, which is amazing. This is, however, a HUGE improvement over the standard BREW browser found on most Verizon Wireless phones, which could only handle WAP pages. The browser is simple, easy-to-use, and works with both the external touch screen and the internal display. Even large web pages (ex. digg.com) loaded eventually, but using it was not practical since it took too long to load or navigate. The browser doesn’t support flash or ajax, but was sufficient enough for viewing text, images, and links. Most of the websites we tested it with worked surprisingly well. When using the external display you’ll be able to drag the page around with a finger, otherwise you’ll have to use the four-way navigation pad. Additional “screen optimized” and “text only” views are available along with the zoom function. The Voyager also delivers the web content over a 3G network which is faster than the iPhone’s 2G.
The Interface: 4.5/5 stars
The LG Voyager external interface is probably the most attractive interface I’ve seen on a phone from Verizon. To use the screen, you’ll have unlock it first by either clicking on the un-lock key on the screen or by pressing the hold key on the left spine. At the bottom there are four quick access buttons: Messages, Dial Pad, Menu, and Phone book. Clicking anywhere else on the screen will bring up a shortcut menu with even more icons to different apps. Just about all the phone’s features including the music player, navigator, web browser, V Cast Videos, camera, and text messaging is use able through the external screen. There are some applications including Mobile Email and Get It Now programs that can’t be used through the external display, so you’ll have flip open the phone. Another neat hardware feature implemented into the Voyager is tactile feedback. When something on the touch screen is clicked, the phone emits a vibrating impulse indicating that an action has been detected. The internal interface has received a clean makeover, but will remain very familiar to enV owners. The enV’s “Email Key” has now been replaced another shortcut menu, offering easy access to plenty of functions. Although the interface wasn’t perfect, it looks good, was usable, and was quite impressive.
GPS Navigator: – 5/5 stars
One feature I did truly did enjoy was the built-in GPS Navigator. The program, which costs $9.99 per month, gives subscribers access to maps, turn-by-turn directions, and local searches. The part that I like the most was that the voice narration actually read out street and highway names instead of simply stating “Turn left ahead” or “Make a right turn”. For example, actually reads out “Turn left onto Saratoga-Sunnyvale Road,” “Exit freeway on the right for San Francisco,” and “Keep right on Mission Blvd.” Most navigators I’ve used including those built into Lexus/BMW cars and portable Garmin/Magellan, couldn’t do this. The one’s I’m talking about were over an year old, so I’m sure new ones can read out names and do much more. Purchasing a decent navigator can cost a few hundred dollars, so spending $120 for a year of subscription isn’t too bad. In addition, if you don’t want subscribe and don’t use your navigator that often, you can pay a one-time fee of $2.99 for 24-hour access. Overall navigation tool was well polished, worked on both screens, and will come in handy if you’re ever lost.
Messaging: – 5/5 stars
In addition to text, picture, and video messaging, the VX10000 also has an easy-to-use email client which will work instantly with your Yahoo! Mail, Live Mail, AOL/AIM, or Verizon accounts. If you do happen to have your own server or use another mail service such as Gmail, you can even enter in your own POP3/IMAP and SMTP servers. The only downside was that the functionality was quite basic and didn’t even allow opening links in messages. Despite this, it remains a good way of getting a sneak peak of your inbox, replying to messages, and composing new ones when you’re away from your computer. The phone also has a built in Instant Messaging client which will work with AOL, Windows Live, and Yahoo! protocols. The program runs smoothly on both screens, allows viewing your buddy lists, and participating in multiple conversations at once. Both the Mobile Email and Mobile IM clients have the ability to run in the background and display notifications when new content reaches your phone.
Other Goodies: – 5/5 stars
The LG VX1000 comes with a bunch of extra tools including a calculator, calendar/date-book, alarm clocks (3), stopwatch, world clock, notepad, tip calculator, and a voice recorder (1 hour max). The address book can hold one thousand entries with five numbers and two emails per contact. Unique ringtones and photos can be set for each contact as well. The voice dialing feature allows making calls by reading out names in your address book or dictating numbers to dial. The final extra feature we’d like to touch on is Mobile TV. We would have reviewed this feature, but there was one problem. What’s the problem? There was no coverage in our area. The service only works in three cities in California and a total of 25 cities through the entire United States.
Despite my minute complains over speaker/headphones quality, the music player, and camera, the LG VX10000 is still probably the best phone offered by Verizon Wireless. In my opinion this will be a big seller for the holiday season and will probably be difficult to get a hold of. I strongly recommend this phone if you plan to actually use the features it offers, otherwise going with a more compact phone will suffice. Verizon Wireless has even been kind enough to throw in a USB cable so you don’t have to purchase a Music Essentials Kit to sync your music. If you plan to purchase this phone it will be available online and in stores on November 21st, 2007. You should also be able to pre-order the phone by calling Verizon Wireless or visiting their website. The LG Voyager will run you nearly $299 after signing a new 2-year contract and submitting a $50 mail-in-rebate. If you are eligible for upgrade, you should be able to get another $50 or $100 kicked off price based on your current calling plan. Overall the phone will take a bit getting used and even though it’s a bit on the pricey end, you are bound to enjoy what it has to offer.
Deal Alert: LG Voyager for $199! (with new 2-year contract)
Links: Verizon Wireless | Voyager Data Sheet (.pdf)
Related: LG enV VX9900 Review | Voyager Video Walkthrough
Does anyone know exactly how to setup bitpim to the voyager. I am having problems with the phone detection and which comm port to use. I have a Mac computer. Thanks
[Comment ID #38365 Will Be Quoted Here]
“Tried following directions after installing VCast Music manger but got better results doing it my way.” So, wha IS your way. I’m getting frustrated following the directions — would like to find a way that works.
Need to get me a voyager, If Anyone knows where to get a cheap one let me know, i have the service but no the phone and my upgrade is not for another year…thanks highly appriciated.
ok, so i got the voyager and i was trying to set it up w/ bluetooth on my apple computer, it says its paired and everything except for connected, how do i connect it! its very frustrating!!!
The latest beta (test as they call it) of bitpim recognizes the voyager. I use audacity to shrink my ringtones from mp3’s stored on my PC, once I have that selection I save as an MP3 then add that ring tone to Bitpim, I use 128 for the bitrate, works the best the other settings I just leave as default and it works great, I have an 8 gig card so I’m not worried about memory some of the ringtones can be a little bigger but mostly they are around the 200kb size, I’m still looking for something that can compress them and not have them come out sounding garbled. As far as Movies (If anyone was interested) I use the same software as my I-pod, it’s called Handbrake, it let’s you compress DVD’s into a variety of formats, for the Voyager you want to use MP4 that works the best ( it might be the only one that works not sure) with the 8 gig card I have about 3 movies right now 100 mp3’s tons of pics and 10 or so ringtones and still have like 5 1/2 gigs left. Sidenote: Movies aren’t displayed as good as the I-pod touch, but it beats carrying around 50 different gadgets to entertain yourself.
I also found an emulator that I’m trying to play with now to work on the voyager if anyone is interested in that I will post on that later. Cheers Mates.
The Voyager is a COOL device that does a lot of COOL things…but it is just too expensive to justify getting when you have a perfectly capable PHONE already (Razr v3m). After all, you use a phone to make phone calls. Anything else is superfluous, really. These carriers do a great job advertising how COOL you will be once you have these things in your possession. But just stick with the old adage, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Come on, I know you can think of a lot better things to spend $350 on…
Does anyone know how to delete ALL of the incoming E-mail or do it quickly as the guy in store said it had to be done each individually & I maust have an easy 1000, as I never ck in on the phone. thx
I have the LG EnV ..I used to have the LG chocolate (first model) i intruruped my plan for 2 years with my chocolate and after 7 months bought the env in the middle of the plan. So i had to pay 350$ for the retail price! So that means that i have a year a two months left with the EnV. After that i am either buying the Voyager or Iphone. From what my family members say (they have it), it is a very good phone. I cant wait until i get my new phone voyager or iphone. Some one please write a comment and tell which i should get!
@ steven
Some new phones are rolling out from Verizon Wireless within the next 3 months such as the Samsung Glyde and LG VX9700 (prada-like). Both have touch screens which seems to be your interest. The Glyde has a keyboard that slides down instead of a Voyager-format with 2 screens.
I am asking again, does anyone know how to delete the E-mail in one fell swoop instead of one at a time? I called Verizon & asked & was told only one at a time is possible. Are you kidding me?? Thx
haro!
im thinking bout getting the voager but just wondering if u can txt with the keypad on the open creen?????????
thanx
I love my LG Voyager phone except for the web browser. It reminds me of trying to surf modern websites using Windows IE version 3.0. Like it’s missing a ton of plug-ins. Instead of viewing graphics I get allot of “object”. Also websites that require Microsoft programs like .asx files won’t work. Video and internet radio stations. In other words most streaming media sites are out of the question unless it’s YouTube mobile. And when looking at really long pages instead of being able to scroll to the actual bottom of the page I have to hit “next” at the bottom of the page to get to the real bottom. What’s that all about?
Otherwise the phone is great. But it really needs a software upgrade for the web browser.
I got this phone yesterday and it’s great! However, I’ve got a problem or two about my phone:
1) When I accessed the BT (Bluetooth) menu (internal screen), it either reboots or “crashes” my phone. (Keep in mind that my phone is BRAND-NEW and not bought on e-bay or any other medium; I mean that I bought it at a Verizon Wireless store). Anyway, how do I remedy this?
2) I downloaded the screensavers for my phone, but it comes in two “versions”: Internal Screensaver (240×400 pixels) and External Screensaver (400×240 pixels). With that in mind, how do I install it using either the MicroSD card and/or using the software program called BitPim?
Help? Thank you so much!
William
I got this phone about 2 weeks ago and have been in love with but for one thing (which may end up making me return it). The voice command on it is terrible! Has anyone else had similar problems? Previosly, I used a Jabra bluetooth with my razr and NEVER had a real significant problem with voice dialing and voice commands, but with the Voyager, I’ve been having HUGE issues. I’ll say someone’s name and it will try and dial a random set of numbers. I’ve tried to get around this by “training” the phone and everything, but I haven’t been able to. I spend a lot of time on the road, but I need a phone with reliable voice commands. Has anyone had similar problems and/or solutions?
Thank you to everyone. I haven’t figured out how to bluetooth my calendar or notepad from pc to phone on my Verizon Voyager. However I did download bitpim after reading your comments and it seems to be working . THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH..
Before getting this phone, i had the Nokia E70. I was utterly crushed once i received my Voyager. Its an expensive and shitty touch phone. Granted, the tactical response is nice and i enjoy the keyboard. However, you can barely customize settings, it doest connect to macs, and its the standard Verizon firmware bullshit. When i buy an expensive phone, i want something that i can play with. The voyager is a sad excuse for a “top of the line” phone. All in all, Verizon should be ashamed, and needs to get real.
Its so sexy. Size does not matter when it comes to the voyager. I’m like obsessed with it.
Is Microsoft Word/Excel and all able to be downloaded onto the LG Voyager? Just curious…
Love my Voyager. To clarify a few things for everyone, BitPim is not strictly a “ringtone” tool. It’s more generally a general data interface program that allows you to manipulate your phone book, call logs, and, most importantly saved images and videos. While many enjoy its ability to manipulate ringtones, perhaps more will be interested in the fact that you can take pictures and video with your Voyager and transfer them to your PC without using air time to send them instead. For me, that’s the major point of BitPim.
BitPim is also a very wide open product which addresses dozens and dozens of mobile telephone models, so not every feature you see available in the program works with the Voyager, or works entirely. There are some distortions in using the program, too. For example, to get your saved images from the Voyager, you have to select “get wallpaper” – which, by whatever means, grabs your images for transfer in the process. You wouldn’t know that by looking at the available options for data transfer.
-D
I have been told a few times by Verizon that the oly way to delete mt E-mails is individually. Does anyone know how to delete all at once. I got the phone hoping to use for my biz E-mail, but my company (security?) won’t allow use on Treo, etc, never use for my personal E-mail, as on phone all day for work, so pulled the plug this month on using E-mail (saving $)
you guys should go to http://www.voyager-lg.com
this website had everything!
a lot of you guys questions have already been answered here
you welcome =)
I just got the Voyager this month and I really love the phone… However, I have one Major problem.. The phone shuts down for no reason… I’ve returned the phone.. they gave me a brand new one and it happened again this morning.. shuts down for now reason.. anybody else have this problem.. thanks..
I had the same issue and it was the battery, bought another from Amazon and issue is gone. Yes my battery checked out as okay but it was not. I have a feeling that at the store they gave you a new phone and used your old battery.
HOW DO I TRANSFER THE PICTURES OUT OF MY VOYAGER INTO MY COMPUTER