LG enV Review

At first glance the enV looks like a standard candy-bar style phone, with an external display and numeric keypad, but it opens up revealing a larger internal display, QWERTY keypad and navigational keys.
The enV is comprised of out silver, dark gray, and black plastic. The parts have a sturdy feel to them and should withstand normal every-day use. When opening the phone, the hinge will stop at two positions, with a small “click” sound. When the phone is closed, it measures 4.64”H x 2.08”W x 0.78”D, and has a weight of 4.60oz; which is better than the VX9800’s weight of 5.19oz. The enV feels very comfortable in the hand when using it during a phone conversation, but when you place it in your pants pocket, you will defiantly notice that it is more bulky than the RAZR or VX8600.

The external front of the phone has a 128x160 pixel 65K color TFT Display. Colored wallpaper looks good and the display is large enough to view dialed numbers, phonebook entries, and text messages. Below the external display is a 5 way navigational keypad that will access MP3 music, calendar, and limited phone settings (you must open the phone to get to the full menu settings). Surrounding it are the left & right soft keys, voice command, Send, and End keys. Below them is the silver numeric keypad, with blue backlighting, that is used for dialing phone numbers. The buttons are smaller than average, but still easier to use than on the Chocolate. Located on the left side of the phone is the Camera and Volume Up/Down buttons. The right side has the 2.5mm headset output, and MicroSD slot, and located on the back is the 2MP camera with auto focus and flash. The Charger/Data Port is on the bottom, and has the same connection used on the Chocolate and VX8600.

Left side	Right side

Opening up the enV will show off its two main features, QWERTY keypad and landscape display. The Internal Display is 240x320 pixel 262K Color TFT, which shows images and text with wonderful detail and clarity. The display also has a much wider viewing angle than on the V, as well as being brighter. On either side of the display are two (stereo) speakers. When the phone is open, they play MP3 music, ringtones, and speakerphone very well. However, once the phone is closed, the sound is muffled and lacks good quality. Because of this, we recommend keeping the phone open when playing MP3 music.

Keyboard comparison: Top-VX9800, Bottom-enV

The QWERTY keypad has a simple layout and is easy to use. The buttons are square, instead of being round, and have blue backlighting. We found that composing an E-Mail or Text Message to be easier with the newer key design on the enV, and there are now two Space keys located on either side. There is a dedicated orange E-Mail button that will allow you to use the Verizon Wireless Sync program. It will provide synchronization of E-Mail, Calendar, and Contacts from your PC to your phone. However, at $20 a month, we find this cost pretty steep. Another change to the keypad is that the Clear and Speakerphone buttons are now separate. This is a welcome change, since we disliked that the V had them both on the same button. There is also another 5-way navigational control, similar to the one on the external of the phone.