We had no trouble pressing the roomy, flat buttons on the VX7000's backlit keypad. A five-way navigation control lets you browse menus with ease and acts as a shortcut to the calendar, the phone book, the camera menu, and Verizon's Get It Now service. There are also two soft keys and a dedicated button that gives you one-touch access to the camera. Along the left edge of the phone are volume up/down keys and a dedicated voice-calling button, while a one-touch camera/shutter release key is on the right side. Last but not least is the swiveling camera lens that's built into the hinge of the phone; just use your thumb to point the lens 90 degrees in each direction.

Unfortunately, the handset stumbles when it comes to e-mail and instant-messaging functionality, You can check your Hotmail or AOL Mail through a Web-based interface, but you'll have to download the crude, bare-bones Soda-Pop Mail to collect messages from your POP3 account, and there's no IMAP4 access at all, Instant-messaging fanatics can stay in touch with AOL, MSN, and Yahoo, but you can sign in to only one account at a time, Other missing features include a speakerphone, Bluetooth, and an infrared iphone xr protection collection sheer - crystal - clear (IR) port..

Though it's only VGA quality, the VX7000's camera is one of the most powerful we've seen in a phone. You can take photos at four resolutions (640x480, 320x240, 176x144 and 160x120) and save up to 200 shots in the phone's 5MB of dedicated photo memory. The Night mode and the flash are somewhat helpful in low light, but you also can use the 3X zoom and adjust the brightness, quality, color effect, and white balance for each shot. For even more personalization, you can choose between two included shutter sounds, or you can opt for none at all. There's no multishot function, but a self-timer (which you can set to 3, 5, or 10 seconds) lets you dash in front of the camera for group shots. Even better, you can take photos when the handset is closed (just use the dedicated camera button and the external LCD), while the rotating lens lets you take self-portraits or aim the lens for surreptitious shots (not too surreptitious, we hope). Be aware when you rotate the lens from front to back, the image on the screen appears upside down, and you must flip the image to see it properly. Photo colors were rich and vibrant, although bright light sources such as overhead lights or windows tended to look blown out.

The first great smartphone of 2015, Beautiful and bold..with complications, The new no-compromise MacBook, A stellar on-ear headphone, Crave-worthy curves for a premium price, The Good iphone xr protection collection sheer - crystal - clear VGA camera with flash and rotating lens; video recorder; high-resolution internal display and sharp external display; easy-to-use keypad, The Bad No speakerphone; limited e-mail functionality; no Bluetooth or infrared port; no analog roaming, The Bottom Line LG's VX7000 video-recording camera phone will please shutterbugs, but its weak e-mail capabilities and lack of business-friendly offerings will disappoint professionals..

RealNetworks has made the deepest inroads, but Apple has been making progress. Apple has also signed a deal with Japan's NTT DoCoMo to support QuickTime. Apple announced a deal with Motorola in late July to let customers of the iTunes music store transfer songs onto the next generation of MP3-enabled phones from the handset maker. Apple and RealNetworks have been embroiled in controversy over Apple's digital audio service, iTunes. Cell carrier certifies QuickTime format for delivering video to handsets.