Summary

There's nothing necessarily wrong with the new good looking Motorola KRZR K1m which is available from Verizon for $199.99 w/ contract or $299.99 if you're simply upgrading. The problem is that there's nothing new about the K1m either. Motorola's iconic RAZR V3m offers similar technology and features as the KRZR and despite first-glance evidence to the contrary, is actually smaller and more convenient ergonomically for half the price.

Ed. note: Cingular is due to make available its version of the KRZR, the K1c, at any moment. Pricing for the Cingular version was not available at press time.

Full Review

Features and Design

Like the RAZR, the KRZR's most distinctive feature is its aesthetics, specifically its mirror-like glass front panel and its compact 1.73-inch width, compared to RAZR's 2.08 inches. Other than this obvious difference, the KRZR is actually larger than the RAZR. The KRZR is .67 inches thick vs. RAZR's .57-inch depth, and the KRZR is 4.05 inches long vs. the RAZR’s 3.86. With the hadnsets open, the RAZR is about a quarter inch shorter than the KRZR which isn't really much a difference; the microphone on both phones are comfortingly close to your mouth. The KRZR is also .11 ounces heavier.

KRZR's thinness is not necessarily an advantage. In a pants pocket, especially tight jeans, the KRZR's extra 10th of an inch thickness does create a bit more bulge. In a shirt or front sports jacket pocket, the KRZR tips over and lies horizontal at the bottom, making it tough to reach in a hurry. Because RAZR is wider, it stays straight up.

But the draw of the KRZR is its two-way mirror-like surface, made of the same shatter-resistant glass sheathing RAZR's LCD screens. Beneath the glass is a bright 1.1-inch, 65k-color LCD screen. Near the bottom of the top flap are three dots that become three Safire blue touch sensor music transport keys when the music player is on. Simply passing your hand or finger over the surface wakes up the sleeping music controls and display.

While undeniably cool, function does not follow form. The smooth glass surface shows off smudges and fingerprints, and the touch sensors are extra sensitive. With no way to lock these external controls, you won't be able to keep the phone in your pocket while music is playing.

Inside, one of the necessary compromises to the KRZR's heroin chic width is a small screen; 1.9 inches vs. RAZR's 2.2-inch LCD. Obviously a 1.9 inch screen isn't small, it's just smaller than the RAZR's at twice the price. On the positive side, the smaller screen doesn't draw as much power.

One of KRZR's improvements over the RAZR is its keypad. On the RAZR, etched lines snake around the numeric keys that can confuse you if you're dialing in a hurry. KRZR's slightly squeezed keypad is arraigned in less stylized, easier to manipulate checkerboard arrangement.

Like the RAZR V3m, the KRZR is equipped with a microSD memory card slot located behind the battery cover. But KRZR's slot is located below the battery rather than the ridiculous behind-the-battery location on the RAZR.

To hear stereo music, the KRZR has twin speakers rimming the phone's chin piece that pump out a fair amount of volume. Like the RAZR, KRZR has a mini USB jack, but Verizon doesn't include any headset jack, mono or stereo. An adapter is included for a mono earset, but you'll need a separate adapter to use your own stereo headphones. KRZR does include Bluetooth, but not stereo Bluetooth.

As with the RAZR and most phones, the KRZR is equipped with a calendar, alarm clock, world clock, notepad and calculator.

Image Courtesy of Verizon

Performance

KZRZ operates almost as good as it looks. Voice quality is near land-like with Verizon's usual network reliability. With plenty of volume -- you and your co-conversationalist will hardly know you're on a cell phone.

As noted, the stereo speakerphone on the phone's chin provides plenty of volume for both music, video sound and voice. Cupping your hand behind the speakers provides even better sound.

KRZR's smaller screen is an issue only when compared with RAZR's larger screen. V CAST video can be viewed in landscape mode, which compensates for any size deficiencies, and KRZR's screen, like the RAZR's, is amongst the best and brightest available.

Unfortunately, KRZR's data side isn't as proficient. Video clips and music tracks took more than a minute to download, twice as long as with the RAZR, which means you're paying for twice as many data minutes as you would with the RAZR. WAP Web pages -- news, sports and other text-based information -- appear just as quickly as on other broadband phones.

KRZR's 1.3 megapixel cell phone isn't any great shakes. Pictures taken in bright sunlight result in adequate small souvenirs, but any other indoor conditions result in fuzzy and dark images -- not unlike any other 1.3 MP camera phone. For the price, however, we would have expected a 2.0-plus imager.

KRZR's best feature may be its battery life. We got more than 4.5 hours of "usage" time (in this age of multimedia cell phones, "usage" has replaced "talk" as a description of battery life measurement), slightly more than KRZR's rated battery life and 20 percent more than the RAZR. KRZR's 18-day standby time is nearly 30 percent more than RAZR's as well.

Image Courtesy of motorola

Specs

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