Reviews icon LG Venus Review

LG Venus Review

Published on: 26 November, 2007 by PhoneArena Team

Performance

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For all of its shortcomings, the Venus performed admirably in the respect that matters most: being a phone. Reception was good and we were able to hold calls in areas that are known to be spotty for Verizon. Even in those low signal areas voices still sounded clear, and users said the same of us. The battery is rated at a more than respectable 240 minutes, but we were able to achieve a positively astounding 293 minutes of continuous talk time, almost an hour above the rating. Standby time is equally as impressive; the Venus is rated for 20 days.


Conclusion

The Venus is a good phone, but unfortunately it misses the loftier marks it sets out to hit. The design is a mashup, the touch screen lackluster in both function and performance and the Venus doesn’t offer any compelling reason to upgrade from the 8550. There are some minor upgrades of note, such as the camera and better keypad. We had no issues with the phone performance, which is arguably the most important feature, but if the customer is going to spend good money for a multimedia device we would have a hard time recommending the Venus.


Pros

  • Good reception and call quality
  • Excellent battery life
  • Good camera performance

Cons

  • Styling is promising, but in the end leaves a lot to be desired
  • Chintzy fake leather back
  • Touch pad can be unresponsive and provides no advanced functionality
  • Bluetooth transfer issues

PAppeal

Christian Dior:
3 of 10
Low

Any self-respecting fashion plate would never mix black with blue, but we suspect there will be plenty of wannabes who are drawn to the shiny chrome and “leather”.

Average Joe:
7 of 10
High

The Venus will fare best with these users who most likely won’t notice the advanced shortcomings.

Corporate US:
1 of 10
Very low

The battery life and RF will draw some users looking simply for a good phone, but lack of email or real PIM functionalities will keep most away.

High-Tech junkie
3 of 10
Low

Definitely an intended market with the touch interface, but LG completely misses the mark.

expand ratings

PA phone rating

  • Design 5.5
    • Build Quality 7
    • Look 4
  • Display 7.75
    • Quality 9
    • Resolution 9
    • Size 8
  • Camera 7
    • Resolution 6
    • Quality 8
    • Features, Comfort 7
  • Sound Quality 7.75
    • Incoming 7
    • Outgoing 7
    • Ringing 9
    • Signal Reception 8
  • Battery 10
    • Talk time 10
    • Stand-by time 10
  • Connectivity 5
    • Local 5
    • Internet 4.0
    • Data 7
  • Multimedia 6.25
    • Interface Comfort, Options 6
    • Quality 6
    • Supported formats 5
    • Connectors (3.5/A2DP) 8
  • Organizer 5.25
    • PIM 4
    • Phonebook 5
    • Messaging 7
Average
6
out of 10
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Check prices

Check prices

Model Carrier Price Today Price after rebate
LG Venus VX8800 Black
 Free Free Buy
LG Venus VX8800 Pink
 Free Free Buy
 
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Comments icon User comments

User comments

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0
1.
I got the venus, and I have a few comments to make about this review.

First of all, I was able to change the sensitivity of the touch screen buttons, this review states there is no way to do that. Also, I did not find the touch screen slow.

Second, I was also able to create my own group in the contacts list. The group could only hold 10 contacts, however, it was my own group.

Third, while the blue color is a weird choice, I am assuming the blue parts are where the pink will be for the pink phone. It is a dark blue and is hardly noticable. I did notice the overhang of the slide, and that is rather annoying.

Overall, I am really enjoying my new Venus phone.
Reply to this comment
0
2.
??
so.. you have a pink venus?? a phone that doesnt even launch till december? Thats amazing. Like to explain where you got this?

Anyways, I can think of one reason to chose a venus over a chocolate. the 8500/8550's are prone with problems. Id rather convince people of a new unknown phone than give them a phone that I know they will be mad at sooner or later.
Personally, I dont think its an awe enspiring phone, but anything is better than the current chocolate line.
Reply to this comment
0
3.
Urgh
I agree with the review completely. The phone is ugly (cheap faux leather, mismatched colors with gaudy amounts of chrome), they should have just used one large touch screen, so that you're not constantly trying to touch the non-touch screen, it's slow, and it's not at all revolutionary.

I disagree with #3, I'd rather sell an 8550, because the 8500 was the device with the most common problems, the 8550 has been much more problem free, and it has a much more reasonable interface than the 8800 and 8500, which are touch sensitive, but do not gain any actual benefit from that capability.

Finally, why buy a Venus when you can get a Voyager? $100 more and you get a HTML browser, a full keyboard, a full touch screen, and a much better, more attractive device.
Reply to this comment
0
4.
Freckles...there are settings for the touch display, but none of them deal with the sensitivity. The only options are Feedback Sounds, Vibration Type, Vibration Level and Call/End Button. If I am missing something please point me in the right direction, but nowhere in the menus is there an actual touch sensitivity levels like you find on the Chocolate.
Reply to this comment
0
5.
Versus The RIZR?
Any comments on how this phone stacks up against the Z6tv (RIZR)? It seems to do the exact same thing but with a fancy touch screen on the front and without the TV support. Am I missing anything?
Reply to this comment
0
6.
He never said he had a pink one... Re-read his post and you shall see.

I used to dislike the Chocolate look but personally I think this one is a step back, personal tastes of course.
Reply to this comment
0
7.
Hmm
I have to disagree and actually I like the look of it. I have to say that there are far better options for your money, though. EnV at 100 less, 8550 for 100 less, Voyager for 100 more, RAZR 2 for 50 more, flipshot for the same price...the list goes on and on...
Reply to this comment
0
8.
Undecided
First, a comment on the review. I think too much time and effort was spent on aesthetics. That's purely a subjective thing.

I don't think the phone looks bad at all and didn't notice or pay attention to the different coloring. Yes, they don't match exactly, but I think the phone looks pretty good. As for the fake pleather on the back, it's an interesting design choice but I like the feel of it.

I haven't had the problems you mentioned with the response of the touch pad. Mine works close to flawlessly. I haven't had it respond and then not run the chosen function. I have found myself wanting to touch the top screen to directly access functions.

You don't show the scrolling function that you can do on the bottom screen, but I don't know how useful it will be.

The phone seems pretty good, but I may prefer the LG 7000 I've been using for the last 4 years with great satisfaction.

Here are my gripes:

I'm having difficulty getting used to the slider format. I find it a pain to have to hit the music key all the time to unlock the controls.

The voice command function is a great idea, but much of the time it does not recognize the stated command and choses the wrong one or it does not understand the name. My 7000 recorded my own voice and matched it and it work 95% of the time. I'm getting frustrated with this system. I'll have to read up on whether I can record my own voice for contact entries.

People I talk to on the phone tell me the sound is extremely clear, though when using bluetooth in the car at highway speeds they hear background noise. I might go back to my noise canceling wired earpiece to see if that's better. Not a fault of the phone though. I use a Motorola H500.

BUT, when I have the speaker (not speaker phone) volume all the way up on the phone, the other person's voice is distorted in such a way that it sounds like the speaker can't handle the signal (it doesn't sound like amplifier distortion to me). The speaker in the handset (the one at your ear) can't be set to full volume because of this.

I haven't tried the music function but I will.

I bought this phone because I wanted something to use primarily as a voice phone with some texting, the occasional photo and maybe for music if I don't have my iPod. I don't want VCast, TV, GPS, web surfing or any of the other things that would make the Voyager a good choice. I'd rather have the smaller phone. If I could sync my outlook on the Voyager without paying Verizon, I might go that route. As it is, I have an Audiovox 6700 PDA on another Verizon account (business) for outlook, web surfing etc...

Frankly, most of the phones available are boring. My son has had terrible problems with Motorola phones and I'll never buy one. But I do plan to go to the Verizon store before my 30 days are up to see if there's anything I might like better, but this might do.
Reply to this comment
0
9.
I really like the Venus. A Voyager it's not but I like it a lot more than the Chocolate. I've found the lower touch screen to be easier to use and more responsive if you turn off the vibration.

As far as the looks, I get nothing but compliments on the phone. Don't find it gaudy at all. And while I thought the pleather was a bit odd at first, it's actually very practical. The phone never slides out of my hand and stays sturdy on a surface.

The memory issue with the music is a major glitch. Why market the extra storage space if you can't use it? I have about 10 songs right now and that's all it will fit. Then again, I never intended to use this as an IPOD. So, that's not such a big deal to me.

I agree with the post that the auto lock is an annoyance. They really should have included a setting so that you could at least change the time on it. It locks after a few seconds so you are constantly either sliding the phone open or hitting the music button. Like any new phone though, I'm sure the next generation will address these design issues.

Oh and it does have navigation.
Reply to this comment
0
10.
Touch Screen
I just bought the venus recently and love the phone. I had been researching it for some time before it was out. I've been seeing above how you can & can't change screen sensitivity. We I first got it I remembered seeing something to where I could but thought, I'll get back to it later. Well now I have no clue where to find it.

I know about the vibration levels and all but I saw something that had 3 options"...less, normal, more..." something to that effect.

Can anyone guide me as to where that screen sensivity adjustment is...?

Thanks
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