[Chewy]

Hi guys....

After having given up on the Nokia 6280 being out any time soon, I've ordered a v3x today....

Has anyone actually got one?

[joffa81]

yea i got mine yesterday just having a play around with it and will let u know more later but first impressions are wot a cool looking phone

[joffa81]

one thing i did notice is that u dont get a full user guide only the three quick leaflet which seems to be whats happening to everyone

[Chewy]

Is the one you can download off the 3 website any better?

http://www.three.co.uk/handsets/handsetuserguides.omp

[joffa81]

no thats the same one u get in the box.

i have finished playing with the phone and can say im impressed the phone is one of the best that motorola have made.
the picture quality is exellent for a flat lens camera phone and really clear but when using 8x zoom can be grainy and u need a very steady hand wen using nightmode but people are saying that its just not quite upto the quality of the n70 (but not far away and remember the n70 has a barrel lens on its 2mp camera) but after using a v975 for the last year its like having a proper camera.
the v3x also has 65mb of embedded memory so has lots of space to store videos ,pics and tones with a decent sized transflash card (256mb-512mb) can also make a decent mp3 player as it comes bundled with a java digital audio player (no more i-pods needed lol).
the screen is large ,bright and displays items clearly .the feel of the keypad is a bit of a letdown as i was expecting the nice engraved metal keypad like on the razr v3 but insted u get a copy made from a plastic that has a rubbery feel to it but saying that the numbers are nicely spaced out and very bright when backlit.
the outer screen is the same as the one used on the v3 but doesnt look out of place on the handset.
the outer casing is made of plastic (not aluminium like the razr v3) but the one i recieved on three had a cool black rubberised finish.
overall the v3x is a stylish goodlooking handset which has all the fetures of the v3 but with the joys of 3g video calling and support and should be up there with the best of all the 3g handsets.



one annoying thing is it has a blue strip at the bottom of the keypad which flashes when u recieve calls and messages but motorola decided to make it a charging indicator as well which is anoying if u charge your phone during the night and sleep in the same room but apart from that im really happy with my v3x.

[Ben]

Thanks joffa81! Sounds like Motorola fans will love this, and quite possibly many more people besides.

Sounds very odd with regard to the materials used... though to be honest I could have sworn the original V3 was plastic anyway! It's not like Moto used Nokia-8800 grade materials.

Good luck with it, let us know how things go from here!

[joffa81]

the origanal v3 had a metal keypad and also had an aluminium faceplate and battery cover which would have given the v3x a better feel but the phone as it is is just fine

[Chewy]

Do you think the rubbery finish will make it less susceptible to scratches and chips if it's dropped?

Mine's being delivered tomorrow....:)

[joffa81]

the rubberised finish look cool but also will protect it a little better than the voda version is with just the plastic housing

[Chewy]

Oh I assumed they'd all be rubberised just in different colours for the different networks. Glad I went with Three now! (I think!!! lol)

So have you managed to download any cool wallpapers and screensavers yet?

I've been looking around for some but all my usual sources only have them for the v3 and i guess they'll only be 176 x 220 rather than 240 x 320.....

[joffa81]

sorry i havent yet i just got a pic of my son as my wallpaper but i put some mp3`s and ringtones on it

[Chewy]

Mine arrived this morning...1st impressions, "me like it a lot"....

Gonna take a while to get used to using a Moto tho...never had one b4...lol

[Ben]

Ah, well in that case, let us know how that works out! I've only had brief encounters with Moto's but it wasn't happening for me. I'd be interested to hear how you adapt to their OS.

Grats on the arrival!

[Chewy]

I normally adapt ok....i'd be happy if my s700i would actually send my contacts to it by bluetooth tho. Doesn't want to for some reason! GRRR!!!!

The idea of inputting every contact into the v3x is annoying!!! lol

[Ben]

Sync your S700i with a Windows address book to get all the contacts off, then sync back to your new Moto. S'what I normally do when moving between phones.

[Chewy]

Well DUH!!!!!

Went into muppet mode....job done now! lol

[Ben]

It's a shame there isn't a standard that just copies contacts seamlessly between bluetooth devices regardless of manufacturer. Oh well!

[Hands0n]

Yea there is - its called Microsoft Outlook/Outlook Express :-)

So Chewy, lets hear all abaht it then, the anticipation, the excitement, the reality. :)

Don't worry about the Moto OS, its not that hard to get to grips with. Things got so much better at the advent of the E1000 and if the V3x has built on that then you're in for a fairly easy ride. Previous Moto OSses were not that great (a euphamism for "fairly dire"). :D

[Chewy]

So far I'm very happy with it.
-It does look fairly big but sits nicely in the hand and as it's only 20mm thick it sits nicely in the pocket as well.
-I'd read some negative comments about the camera, but from the pics i've taken so far it looks pretty good....I'll take some more pics this week and post some up here.
-I've not got to grips with how the bluetooth works on it yet...so far i've not managed to do a lot with it which is V. annoying...but I'm sure this is just cos i haven't totally found my way round the UI yet. It doesn't help that you don't get a comprehensive manual with 3 it seems. And there's symbols on the screen that aren't shown in the manual, so no idea what they mean!!!

more to follow in the coming week once i've got used to it!!

[joffa81]

with the bluetooth wen sending pics or sounds use the manage option not the bluetooth option then copy then bluetooth and then the v3x will search and pick up all bluetooth handsets otherwise it wont find any devices.
the lack of a proper manual is a pain but motorola ui is pretty straght foreward once u get used to it (i thought my v975 was difficult at first but is is very similer on the v3x so im ok with my new phone).

[Chewy]

AHHHHHH.....Excellent. thanks. I remember someone (probably you joffa!) saying that somewhere on here!!!

See how are people suppsoed to know that without a manual!? I guess playing around with all the functions on the phone...

Well that's cheered me up a bit now. Even tho I was pretty happy with it anyway! :):):)

[Hands0n]

@Chewy - Not sure if useful but have you look at the hellomoto.co.uk website - they have a section onthe V3x http://direct.motorola.com/ENG/Web_ProductHome.asp?Country=GBR&language=ENG&productid=30341

There is a manuals page here http://direct.motorola.com/ENG/manuals.asp?country=GBR&language=ENG&web_page_name=SUPPORT&productid=29236&cat=3 where you can get one for the V3 (but not the V3x yet). But I'd have thought they were one and the same bar the 3G differences.

That may hold some more info for you. It is strange that there is no typical manufacturers manual. Alternatively, is there not a PDF manual on the software CD that normally comes with the handset these days?

Edit: It is in the Manufacturers manual where you find out which features 3 have had crippled. It was so with the E1000 :(

[joffa81]

the v3x manual is now available on motos web site for those having trouble with the v3x

[Chewy]

joffa....how good are the pics you've managed to take?

I'm still experimenting with the cam on mine, but it doesn't look like it takes good pics in poor light....

[joffa81]

the pics are poor in low light and when using the zoom function the night mode helps but makes the shutter very laggy but under normal light conditions the pictures are fine (people say not as good as the nokia n70 or sony ericsson k750) but this slight lack of quality is down to the v3x using a flatter mounted camera lens where the nokia n70 uses a barrel mounted camera lens which takes up more space.
if u want some sample pics send me an e-mail address and ill send u some for u to judge

[Hands0n]

How about popping one or two up on here for us to see too. Use some good quality and some not-so-good also.

I found the cameras on the Motorola E1000 and A1000 were pretty good in ordinary light, weaker resolution in incandescent and flourescent light and anything less than a 100W lightbulb seemed to cause increased graininess with the built-in flash being useless at anything more than 1Metre distance.

I'd presume that Motorola would be using similar camera technology in the V3 and V3x

[joffa81]

i would pop some up but there is not enough space to upload them but if anyone asks i am more than willing to send some pics taken with the phone.
the cameras are the same company that supplied the cameras for the v3 so the do suffer from similer problems but compared to the last phone i had (v975) the camera is 100 times better

[Ben]

Hey joffa81,

There should be plenty of space to upload them on here. What does it tell you when you try? If the dimensions of the image are slightly out then you can change them in Paint under the Image menu. If you let me know the dimensions and approximate sizes of the photos the V3x produces I'll make sure we expand our limits to accomodate.

[joffa81]

cheers ben ill have a go 2morro to see if i can get some uploaded

[Chewy]

Here's one i did earlier.....

It was cloudy at the time, photo taken thru a window, starting to snow as well

[Chewy]

And another, indoors, average lighting conditions, close up of a bottle of Stella ;)

I've found the close up's in medium or better lighting conditions produce some pretty good pics....

[Chewy]

talk3g seems to have gone very quiet lately....

What does anyone think to the pics then?

[Ben]

Not bad! The Stella looks a bit pixelated and noisey, but hey, on a phone as compact as the V3 line it's unreasonable to ask for digital camera replacement quality.

How's it going with the handset? Performing well? Don't forget to snap a pic for the December photo competition!

[Hands0n]

We're all down the pub getting thorougly pi55ed :) But so's you don't feel all lonesome ...........

I quite like the content of your second pic, although I am quite partial to other brews as well :D The Moto always seem to be slightly soft focus and I wonder if this is attributable to their flat lens system rather than the imaging chip itself. But that said, the quality is not bad at all, considering that it is in a mobile phone handset and not a purpose built digital camera.

The colour rendition in the photo of the bottle looks very faithful and that is always a nice trait, even if the focus is soft or perhaps grainy I always appreciate the correct colours.

I dont think we can expect much more from Motorola who dont exactly lead the pack when it comes to the imaging side of their handsets. But these are very respectable images indeed.

All in all, pretty good pictures produced by the V3x, well in keeping with the technology.

[Chewy]

To be honest, I'm not too sure why the Stella close up is so big compared to the other one. I didn't change any settings apart from the "close up" switch, which makes a hell of a lot of difference with the sharpness. If you look at the Stella bottle and adjust the zoom (I don't know which Internet Explorer you use, but I use Opera) to 50% it looks to be a very good image.

I shall take some more pics when I get chance (or look thru the ones I've taken already) and put some on.

So far I'm very happy with the V3x. Although it looks quite big it fits nicely in my hand and in my pocket. Slightly fiddly to use, esp when texting, but as I've said previously, I've never had a Moto b4, so it's just a case of getting used to it. Slightly disappointed with battery life, but I've not had a 3G phone before, and I knew they drink a bit more juice than a 2/2.5G phone. Plus I use my phone quite a bit, whether it's texting, browsing etc. So I suppose 1.5days is reasonable enough. Only problem is, when it runs out is normally when I'm nowhere near a charger!! (Phone charges quickly!). I've been trying to get a spare battery, but I've not managed to get one yet. I ordered one, which I was told is compatible with V3 & V3x, but they're not....!!!

And although I've heard some bad things about 3, I'm (so far) very impressed with the service. The "Planet 3" (equivalent to Voda Live! I assume) is great, with loads of free stuff on there. Good quality downloads etc. I've not had any probs with the signal.

So all in all it gets the thumbs up!! :):):):)

[joffa81]

give it a couple of weeks to condition the battery and u will end up getting 2-3 day with moderate useage.
make sure within the first 2 weeks u dont charge the battery until completly flat as this extends the life of the battery and three always suggest u do this as they know 3g phones use quite abit of juice and people dont condition the battry correctly.
my v3x was dieing within 1 day but now i get 3 days out of it which is pretty good for a 3g handset.
wot does everyone think of that flashing blue strip it looks cool but it is very annoying wen charging on a night (has anyone found out how to disable it wen charging or is this just a stupid moto mistake which no one thought about wen making the phone ???) as this is the only thing that slightly annoys me !!!

[Ben]

Li-Ion batteries are a bit of a mystery... they don't need to be 'conditioned' as such as they're not Ni-Cad and so don't suffer the memory effect, but a certain amount of 'caliberation' seems to be necessary.

Here are some guidelines from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Li-ion

"Guidelines for prolonging Li-ion battery life
Unlike NiCad batteries or NiMH batteries, lithium-ion batteries should be charged early and often. However, if they are not used for a longer time, they should be brought to a charge level of around 40%. Never use the battery care functions some cellular phones provide for nickel based batteries. (This will deep cycle the batteries.)
Li-ion batteries should be kept cool. Ideally they are stored in a refrigerator. However, they should not be subjected to freezing temperatures. Aging will take its toll much faster at high temperatures. Keeping them in burning hot cars can kill lithium-ion batteries.
Buy Li-ion batteries only when needed. Look at the manufacturing date. That is when the aging process commenced.
When using a notebook computer running from fixed line power over extended periods, it is advisable to remove the battery and store it in a cool place.
However, many laptop manufacturers recommend against removing the battery from a laptop while it is plugged in, as this can damage a laptop designed to operate with the battery installed. Some manufacturers are also concerned about dust accumulation with the battery removed. Therefore, check the manufacturer's instructions before removing the battery."

It is recommended that 'deep cycling', ie full recharges and discharges, are avoided. However, I have read that without the occasional deep cycle certain circuits within the battery or handset will become misconfigured as to the actual charge in the battery. Therefore it can be beneficial to deep cycle the battery once in a while.

[Chewy]

I've heard about this "early and often" charging with Li-ion batteries before, tho to be honest it didn't work with the last mobile phone I had. Sticking it on charge when there was still 1/3 - 1/2 left just resulted in me having to put it on charge everyday...!

[Hands0n]

Li-Ion can suffer from not having that initial charge put into them properly (normally eager fingers want to play with the handset!!). This can result in a battery that never really achieves its optimum capacity.

My use of Li-Ion batteries in Laptops, PDAs and Mobile phones is to keep the device on charge until required (or in the case of mobile phone I charge it each night for a full charge the next working day). All of the devices give me their anticipated full amount of power, whatever it is for that particular devices. I always make sure that the Li-Ion is kept topped up when not being used or carried around.

Occasionally, very seldom, if there is a sign that the capacity is becoming eroded I will deep cycle the battery. But never as a matter of routine.

I left a Li-Ion in an MD Walkman once, for quite a few months, where it went flat. When I came back to use it the thing would not accept a charge at all - an expensive exercise that cost me £25 for a new battery! I keep it on charge all the time the battery is in it, or remove the battery if it is not going to be used for a while.

[Elliebabes]

Hurrah! My Motorola V3X arrived special delivery this morning and it looks great! I'm not able to play with it yet though as I'm still waiting for Vodafone to send me the unlocking code so I can get in. It's currently locked to Vodafone and I am on O2. Does anyone know just how long it takes to get this code through via email? Has anyone had any experiences? The whole process cost me £20 so it'd better work or I will be seriously cheesed off!!

Elliebabes

[Hands0n]

Hello Elliebabes - Welcome to Talk3G, hope you enjoy your stay with us :)

Congrats on the V3x - it certainly looks the part, and with 3G making it even more than its 2G counterpart you should be in for a treat.

As you've paid for the unlock code you should receive it fairly pronto from Vodafone, there is no reason for any kind of practical delay other than the sheer legwork of doing the calculation and emailing you the code.

A word of caution - while the codes do work, you must take care to enter them in carefully and exactly as written. You'll only have a limited number of attempts (normally 5), after which the only solution is to use an unlock clip or cable (can be done on many market stalls or boot fairs for usually a tenner).

[jlamb21]

hey guys I just recieved my three company v3x and put my sim card in and it shows that I have no service or network. I was wondering what the problem was. I can access my phone book but I dont have service. Somebody said that three company v3x phones cant be unlocked but I dont know if they knew what they were talking about. The company that I bought it from did say its a unlocked phone. I'm with cingular but that shouldn't be the problem. If anyone can help me that would be awesome.

[Ben]

Hey jlamb21, welcome to Talk3G :)

We're a UK forum, so excuse my lack of knowledge about the US ways of doing things.

So you've purchased a Three UK branded handset and are trying to use it on Cingular in the USA? The V3x supports UMTS / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900... are you definitely in an area that uses those frequencies? I believe the USA has different GSM frequencies like 850MHz and if this is the case your handset probably wont work on Cingular.

It's also possible that if it's a Three branded handset it is still locked.

If you can give us more details then that'd be great.

[jlamb21]

well i did call cingular and they said we were on a 1900MHz frequency so that shouldn't be the problem. Someone told me that it might be the phone itself. I did call the people that I bought the phone from and they did say it was unlocked so i'm taking there word for it. I dont know if there is a definite way of seeing if it was unlocked.

[Hands0n]

If the V3x is SIMlocked you should be getting a prompt to enter a "Subsidy Code" when you power the handset up with the SIM installed.

It does sound like you have got beyond that point in the handset's start up. If that is indeed the case and you are at the handset's main screen then it is likely to be a setting in the Network menu - where you can select Automatic or Manual network selection, and what frequency bands the handset will operate on - unless these have been branded out of the handset's firmware.

If the the menu options are stilted or missing then the only option is to have the handset de-branded by one of your local phone shops or perhaps on eBay. Here in the UK we can get debranding done for around £25 - I'd anticipate that you could have it done locally for a similar amount in USD's (say $25). But before you go to that expense just verify the below.

Some background info - The full spec for the V3x is here (http://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_v3x-1120.php) and it can be seen that it is indeed a handset capable of working on networks comprising"UMTS / GSM 900 / GSM 1800 / GSM 1900"

A quick check on Motorola's website here (http://motorola.digitalriver.com/DRHM/servlet/ControllerServlet?Action=DisplayProductDetailsPage&SiteID=motostor&Locale=en_US&Env=BASE&productID=36194900) shows that a Cingular-compliant V3 is capable of working on networks comprising "GSM 850/900/1800/1900"

The key difference being that the V3x does nt work on GSM 850 networks. Do you know what Cingular uses - 'cos if it is 850 then you're out of luck. The V3x in that case will be useless to you.

Edit: My posting crossed your reply to Ben - Another place to check on the Motorola website is the manufacturer's standard manual for the V3x (http://direct.motorola.com/eng/manuals.asp?country=GBR&language=ENG&productid=30341&cat=3&web_page_name=SUPPORT)- you'll see if any menus have been tampered with by branding, as it'll be in the manual but not on the phone!