Digital Trends

LG VX9400 April 1st, 2007 | by Stewart Wolpin

Features and Design

Before we get to the VX9400, here is a brief explanation about V CAST Mobile TV. As noted, this is broadcast TV -- you have to pull up a small antenna to ensure decent service. At this writing, V CAST Mobile TV service is available in the following cities:

Albuquerque, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Colorado Springs, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Kansas City (MO), Las Vegas, Lincoln (NE), Minneapolis/St. Paul, Nashville, New Orleans, Norfolk, Omaha, Orlando, Palm Springs, Portland (OR), Richmond, Seattle, Spokane, Topeka, Tucson, Wichita. It's also unofficially available in New York City; service will be official when wiring on Long Island is finished sometime in the next few weeks.

V CAST Mobile TV offers eight channels: CBS, Comedy Central, ESPN, Fox, MTV, NBC, NBC News and Nickelodeon. These are mostly special channels of content from these networks; CBS, Fox and NBC offer soap opera and prime time programming simultaneous with the real thing, but fill what would be local time with repeats of national shows. For instance, you can catch David Letterman or CSI during the hours when your local CBS station is showing syndicated or local programming such as the news. Other channels offer a combination of simultaneous programming and special "mobile TV" programming.

Verizon is offering three V CAST Mobile TV plans: Simple ($13/month) includes Fox, NBC, NBC News and CBS. Basic ($15/month) includes all eight channels. Select ($25/month) bundles the TV channels with the V CAST V Pack which includes basic video clip downloads, mobile Web access, unlimited airtime and unlimited email.

While Verizon is currently offering eight channels, the system can handle up to 20. It's a matter of MediaFLO building out the technology. Also, FLO TV will be coming to AT&T (nee Cingular), probably sometime in the fall. And no, it won't be available on Apple's iPhone, at least not in the initial go-round.

As for the phone itself, the VX9400 is the first T-bar phone in the U.S. Popular in Asia where they've had live TV (both terrestrial and satellite) for years, the 262K color TFT, 320 x 240-pixel screen swivels around from portrait to a more TV appropriate landscape mode for TV viewing. It's also more comfortable and natural to hold while watching TV. While the image always remains widescreen, the program guide adjusts depending on the screen alignment.

There also are phone and Verizon Wireless features available only when the screen is swung out. Holding the phone in either hand, you can flip the spring-loaded screen up with your thumb (it's slightly easier in the right hand since the screen swings up to the left), but you'll need your other hand to bring it down.

Other than TV, the swung out screen gives you a more appropriate viewfinder for the integrated 1.3 MP camera.

The T-bar screen also presents some ergonomic idiosyncrasies, mostly for actual phone calls. You have to swing the screen out to dial a call which leaves the earpiece at an odd angle to the microphone. This is not a bad thing necessarily, it just feels weird. You can swing the screen back into portrait mode to continue the call; it's just that the extra back steps the process which makes using the VX9400 as a phone awkward. And like other candybar and slider phones, the exposed screen is vulnerable to the elements and whatever you've got in your pocket or bag that can leave scratches or smudges.

With screen in portrait mode, the rectangular 4.04 x 1.93 x 0.73-inch, 4.06 ounce VX9400 looks like your standard slide-up phone. Underneath the screen are two soft menu keys; below these are a "clear" or back button on the left and a dedicated TV button on the right. Underneath these are the Send and End keys. In the center is the navigation array. On the left spine is the volume toggle and microphone key; on the right spine is the camera and speakerphone buttons including the microSD memory card slot. All of the front buttons are large and well-spaced. The side buttons are a bit small and the function icons a bit hard to make out. On the rear is the 1.3 MP camera lens, flash and self-portrait mirror.

With screen swung into landscape mode, the alphanumeric keypad is revealed. Etched characters on the keypad and control panel are unevenly backlit that makes it hard to read the tiny alpha characters on the number keys, making texting difficult. In a well-lit room, it's actually easier to text once the backlight goes off.

In addition to TV, this is also a V CAST Music phone as well, and offers stereo Bluetooth. Curiously, you can only listen to music with Bluetooth headphones, not TV; for private TV listening, you have to use wired headphones.

(One solution for both V CAST Mobile TV phones: the Plantronics Pulsar 260 stereo Bluetooth earphones. Instead of compact headphones, these use a Bluetooth dongle that you plug the comfortable in-ear earphones into. When not using Bluetooth, the great-sounding phones can be used as regular 2.5mm wired earphones with an in-line mic.)

You also get the usual spate of PIM apps and tools -- calendar, calculator, alarm clock, notepad, et al. Contact entries have room for three phone numbers, an email address, a picture and a distinctive ringtone.

Image Courtesy of LG Electronics