- Handset Reviews -

Motorola V60t

Sporting a silver aluminum casing and a sturdy flip design, the trimode Motorola V60 combines a new user interface with handy features such as caller ID, voice-activated dialing, and SMS messaging, making it an excellent choice for basic day-to-day business use.

Tiny is the trend these days, and the V60 fits right in, measuring a minute 3.42 by 1.77 by 1.07 inches, and weighing only 4.3 ounces. Once the phone is flipped open, it feels quite small, but still is remarkably comfortable to use, regardless of the size of your hands.

At first glance, we were struck by the phone’s stylish exterior. Constructed of a lightweight aluminum, the casing feels solid, but not clunky. The casing is also highly resistant to scratching, unlike the plastic design of similar counterparts, and held up very well when we dropped it on an office floor.

The external LCD screen is another welcome feature, with caller ID alerts that did not require flipping the phone open. The headset jack is on the very top edge of the phone, a nice touch that keeps the headset cord untangled during use. With a special stereo radio headset from Motorola (sold separately), the phone can access FM radio. Compared to other phones this size, the V60’s stub antenna did seem a bit large, making it difficult to slip the phone into a pocket comfortably.

Once we flipped the phone open and hit the power button, it took only six seconds for the phone to power up completely, the oval-framed four-line screen revealing improved graphics and quick access to the phone book and message menus. The keypad is comfortably designed, with the keys nicely spaced and just slightly raised, making for fumble-free dialing, while still maintaining the phone’s thin profile. Some phones tend toward top-heaviness when open, but the V60 is nicely balanced--a definite bonus for the thumb-dialers out there. Such balance is also important for accurate use of the phone’s side panel buttons. The buttons on the left side of the phone control call and ring volume, including the ability to discreetly silence a call or switch the phone to vibrate during a meeting. The button on the phone’s right side controls two different voice features. A quick press of the button activates voice dialing, while a press-and-hold move activates the voice recorder.

Three buttons below the screen and just above the numeric keypad basically control the phone. The key under the left corner of the screen gave us quick access to the phone book, and pressing the right key brought up the phone’s message menu, which keeps a listing of voice mail, text messages, and e-mails close at hand. The centrally located Up/Down key made scrolling the phone’s menu simple, and we were able to choose from a list of seven options fairly easy. That said, browsing the menu is not overly intuitive, and while this new interface was designed to give the user the ability to customize the menu to his or her needs, it could still use a bit of improvement. It took us quite awhile to figure out how to set up the voice-activated calling and short-cut features. How to delete a name from the address book was a mystery for longer than we’d like. Once we got voice-activated dialing set up, it was fun to use, and the sound was crystal clear, allowing us store up to 20 names for voice-activated dialing. The shortcut feature was new to us, and involved preprogramming a number or voice command that connects directly to any item on the phone’s menu, such as the date book or phone book. We were able to create a shortcut after some practice, programming the "1" key as the hot key to access the date book. We also recorded the word "date book" as a voice command to reach the same feature. By taking the time to sit down and preprogram the phone with similar shortcuts, and combined with the use of a headset, the V60 becomes almost completely hands-free.

The V60 also features a handful of other tools tailored for the business user. Besides text messaging, voice mail, and e-mail, it also works as a memo recorder. The voice-notes program lets you record notes to yourself, and the notes are saved for your aural perusal whenever you need them. To record a voice note, we pressed and held the button on the right side of the phone, and we were able to record a 20-second message. The phone is can hold about two minutes of voice notes, which is fine for recording ideas on the way to the office. Many of the phone’s personalization features, including the short cuts, quick-dial programming, date book, and even the ring settings, seem ideally suited for use in the business world. Our phone included 26 different ring tones, ranging from beeps, to sonatas, to funk (we were fond of the Uh-Oh ringer), along with five vibrate patterns to help you silently differentiate between voice mails, text messages, and calls. The V60 includes PIM functionality, and you can buy the TrueSync software and cable from Motorola to synch info on your phone with the calendar and phone book on your Windows PC. The one major business tool missing from the V60 is a wireless Web browser, an oversight that we hope is corrected in the next incarnation of this phone.

The V60’s battery life was consistent with Motorola’s guidelines of 240 minutes of digital talk time, and 190 hours of digital standby time--good battery usage for a phone of this caliber. With no games or Web browser to drain the battery, charging the phone is a pleasantly rare occurrence.

On the whole, we find the Motorola V60 a solid, practical phone, ideal for the business user, and a refreshing addition to the AT&T Wireless phone family.