The Motorola Electrify is similar to Motorola Photon 4G for Sprint and comes with eight-megapixel camera, dual core processor, 4.3 inch qHD display and more. Its standard list of impressive features combined with compatibility with quite a few accessories and solid performance, makes it one of the best smartphones of U.S. Cellular, especially for those seeking a powerful smartphone with latest technology. The Electrify is a dual-mode CDMA/GSM smartphone and provides world roaming abilities. It works on CDMA network of U.S. Cellular and gets unlocked SIM, so if you travel overseas, you can buy a prepaid SIM card for receiving data and making voice calls.

Basic features on Motorola Electrify include speakerphone, multimedia and text messaging, conference calling and voice dialing. It is 3G capable and can also be used as mobile hotspot for up to 8 devices. aGPS, Bluetooth 2.1 and Wi-Fi are also onboard. Powering the Electrify is an Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system and incorporates Google’s services and applications such as Gmail, Places, Google Maps with Navigation, YouTube, Voice Search, Latitude and Google Talk. It is also equipped with plethora of useful applications, including WebTop Connector application that can be used with optional notebook dock, Quickoffice suite and task manager. The carrier has also loaded its own apps such as Daily Perks, IMDb and Zappos.

The Motorola Electrify features an eight-megapixel camera with dual LED flash, providing settings and tools for exposure controls, geotagging, different scene modes, effects and more. Picture quality is a bit disappointing. Images taken in low-light conditions will come out looking hazy with faint colors. However, the camera does well with outdoor shots, but videos taken outdoors and indoors will look washed out. You can share media through its DLNA or HDMI port. The Motorola Electrify has 16GB of internal memory and expansion slot, which supports up to 32GB memory cards. It comes packaged with AC adapter, USB cable, wired stereo headset, and reference material. The carrier doesn’t offer special bundles with laptop dock or other accessories like Bluetooth wireless keyboard and HD Station, but you can purchase them through the Website of Motorola.

Standard features on Motorola Electrify include Android 2.3 (Gingerbread); Multiple Networks: Worldphone – WCDMA 850/1900/2100, CDMA 800/1900 and GSM 850/900/1800/1900; 8 MP MEGAPIXEL camera with Digital Zoom, Dual LED FLASH, Automatic Focus and Image Editing Tools: Crop, rotate, advanced editing, Geo and custom tagging; Motorola Music Player; FM radio receive; Video Capable: HD video capture and playback with main camera; Front facing webcam; Playable Formats: H.263, AAC, MP3, H.264, WAV, MPEG-4, WMA10, WMA9, AMR WB, eAAC+, WMV v10, AMR NB, WMA v9, AAC+ and MIDI; Email4: Corporate Sync, Google Mail, POP3/IMAP embedded, Push Email, Yahoo Mail; Predictive Text; Image File Formats: BMP, PNG, GIF, JPEG; USB 2.0 (High Speed); DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance); GPS And Location Services: aGPS, sGPS, eCompass; Supports Corporate calendar, email and contacts (Exchange 2003, 2007 and 2010), Google contacts, calendar and Gmail, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and LinkedIn contacts.

The Motorola Electrify is also equipped with Advanced Speech Recognition; Automatic Redial; Call Waiting; Emergency Dial; Mute Call; Phone Book: Integration with Gmail, Google Apps, Exchange, and Social networks; SPEED DIAL: Direct dial shortcut, direct message shortcut; Gmail; Google Calendar; Google Contact Sync; Google Latitude; Google Maps Street View; Google Maps; Google Maps Navigation; Google Quick Search Box; Google Talk; Google eBooks; Google Search by Voice; Voice Actions for Android; Dedicated Keys: Volume control, Camera, Back, Search, Menu, Power/Lock, Home; Display Lock; Pinch To Zoom; Touch Screen; Virtual Keyboard; Voice Commands; Customize your docked shortcuts with your favorite applications; 1GHz dual core processor and Accelerometer. The rated battery life of Electrify is 10 hours in talktime mode and 8.3 days in standby mode. Nevertheless, it brings high-powered and fully stocked Android device, which is sure to please many smartphone fans.

The all new Motorola Atrix 2 offers blazing 4G connectivity, 1GHz dual core processor with dual channel RAM and advanced 3D graphics acceleration that provides up to 2x faster processing power as compared to single core handsets. The monster 4.3 inch qHD display provides clear, crisp and incredibly sharp images with high definition videos. It comes with an easy to use discovery dashboard for instant access to all artists along with personalized video and song recommendations, event info and real time music news. One of the extensive features found in this model is the Smart Auto Bass that optimizes bass in real time and while using headphones, virtual surround sound offers astonishing 3D stereo sound quality.

For the price, the Motorola Atrix 2 is an amazingly performance oriented feature packed Android smartphone for AT&T customers. The original Atrix 4G was introduced at CES 2011 with dual core processor, support for AT&T’s HSPA+/4G network, front facing camera and optional laptop dock accessory. The all new Atrix 2 gets better looking and larger display, upgraded camera along with Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system. It is lighter, slimmer and the company has ensured its compatibility with other Motorola cellphones. The Atrix 2 is available for the price of $99.99 after two-year agreement.

The Motorola Atrix 2 is identical to its predecessor with similar overall shape, rounded corners and typical slab design. However, it has shiny gunmetal gray bezel around front with rubberized textured back that provides a prestigious feel to the smartphone. It measures 0.41 inch deep, 4.95 inches high and 2.59 inches wide. The larger qHD 4.3 inch display offers legible and smooth text with crisp and vibrant graphics. It also features a 1GHz dual core TI OMAP4 processor; on the other hand, the responsive touchscreen is responsive to swipes and taps.

Underneath the Motorola Atrix 2’s screen, you will find standard Android shortcut touch keys for search, menu, back and home functions. The micro USB and micro HDMI ports are located on the left hand side of the device, while the dedicated camera and volume rocker button on the right. The power screen/lock key and 3.5mm headphone jack is on the top, while the front facing camera is above the screen for video calling. The eight-megapixel camera is at the back of the smartphone with LED flash. The Atrix 2 comes packaged with AC adapter, reference material and USB cable. You will also find other accessories such as new laptop dock known as Motorola Lapdock 100, extra capacity battery, vehicle navigation dock, HD station, portable universal charger, wireless keyboard and more.

The Motorola Atrix 2 is powered by an Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system with refined MotoBlur interface, which is remarkably different from other rivals and more closely resembles recent handsets including Photon 4G and Droid Bionic. It offers five customizable home screens, which allow you to tailor with various shortcuts and widgets. On the bottom row of each home screen, there are four shortcut icons, which correspond to the main menu, phone dialer, browser and email. The Atrix 2 provides plenty of similar features like comparable Android smartphones and original Atrix. You can use the front facing VGA camera to take self portraits; on the other hand, the Adobe Flash content in Webkit browser performs well.

The Motorola Atrix 2 is compatible with all the services and applications of Google including Gmail, YouTube, Maps with Navigation, Places, Voice Search, Latitude and more. It comes preloaded with various applications apart from Google ones; these include AT&T applications such as AT&T Code Scanner, myAT&T, AT&T FamilyMap, Live TV and AT&T Navigator. The company also added Qik Lite, Yellow Pages, Motorola Phone Portal and ZumoCast, a Motorola owned application, which allows you to share documents with home PC. Some of the connectivity options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and GPS. Its eight-megapixel camera offers settings for color effects along with special shot modes including geotagging, macro, multishot, panoramic shot and more.

The Motorola Atrix 2 provides excellent, sharp, clear and crisp looking images. Standard features on Atrix 2 include 2G Network: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900; 3G Network: HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100; 4.3 inch TFT capacitive touchscreen that boasts 16 million colors and 540 x 960 pixel resolution; Gorilla Glass display; Touch sensitive controls; MotoBlur UI with Live Widgets; Multi-touch input method; Accelerometer sensor for UI auto-rotate; Proximity sensor for auto turn-off; Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones; 8 GB storage, 1 GB RAM; microSD, up to 32GB, 2 GB included; HSDPA speeds up to 21 Mbps and HSUPA speeds up to 5.76 Mbps; Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, DLNA, Wi-Fi hotspot and Bluetooth v2.1 with A2DP and EDR.

The Motorola Atrix 2 is also equipped with 8 megapixel camera with 3264×2448 pixels, LED flash, autofocus, Geo-tagging, image stabilization and 1080p Video; Android OS, v2.3 (Gingerbread); Dual-core 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 processor, ULP GeForce GPU, Tegra 2 AP20H chipset; SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, IM, Push Email; GPS with A-GPS support; Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic; Digital compass; HDMI port; 1080p MP4/H.263/H.264.WMV/Xvid/DivX @ 30 fps playback; MP3/WAV/WMA/eAAC+ player; Google Maps, Search, YouTube, Gmail, Google Talk; Facebook, Twitter, MySpace integration; Organizer; Photo viewer/editor.

Also standard on Motorola Atrix 2 are Adobe Flash player; Quickoffice document editor; Predictive text input; Voice memo/dial/commands; Motorola music player; Equalizer with Bass Punch; wired stereo device effects: 3D Stereo, Home Theater, Live Stage and Custom; Email4: Google Mail, Corporate Sync, Corporate Directory Lookup (GAL), POP3/IMAP (embedded) and Yahoo Messenger; synchronization: Corporate Sync, BOTA, OMA DM; BLUETOOTH technology5: Stereo Bluetooth technology 2.1+EDR with supported profiles (AVRCP, A2DP 1.2, HID 1.0 Host, HFP 1.5, OPP 1.0, HSP 1.2, PAN-NAP 1.0, PBAP 1.0, DIP, SPP and MAP) and advanced speech recognition: Nuance, a Google Search by Voice.

The Motorola Atrix 2 gets automatic answer; call timer; call transfer; call waiting; emergency dial; mute call; Speed Dial: Quickstore Phone Book, Quickstore Private IDs, SDG Lists and Group IDs and text to speech – messaging: Readout of caller identification, Readout of new SMS messages, Readout of dialed digits, Readout of new email messages, Readout of new SMS messages, Voicemail alerts, Readout of phone book contacts and Missed / received calls. The estimated battery life of Atrix 2 is 15.9 days in standby mode and 8.5 hours in talktime mode. Overall, it provides excellent performance and is an incremental upgrade over original Atrix.

Motorola Defy is based on Android 2.1 and it is a bit dated considering that the 2.2 update is out. Let’s hope the update is offered soon. There are seven home screens, voice control, speech-to-text abilities, live wallpaper, and you can also use more than a single Gmail account at a time. The universal in-box feature lets you put all the correspondence and messages in one list. I liked the universal address book because it syncs with social networking accounts for contact information of your friends.

Motorola Defy has all the standard phone features which include speakerphone, voice dialing, conference calling, multimedia and text messaging, vibrate mode, and visual voice mail. There is no limit for the phone book entries, you can store as long as the memory card doesn’t run out of space. A single entry can take e-mail addresses, multiple numbers, etc. For connectivity, thre is Bluetooth with A2DP support, 3G, GPS with TeleNav support, and Wi-Fi. There are not a lot of phones in the market which support Wi-Fi and this is what makes the Defy a bit special. Through this feature, you can make phones through a Wi-Fi network and you also save on call minutes.

For Google fans, there is plenty to cheer about on the Motorola Defy. This handset has compatibility with every Google app out there which includes Gmail, Navigation, Google Maps, Places, Latitude, Google Talk, and YouTube. IMAP/POP3 connectivity is also supported and the phone is compatible with Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync too. Other apps on the phone include Social Networking, Motorola Phone Portal, YouTube, Family Room, Media Share, QuickOffice, BlockBuster, DLNA, and Audio Postcard. With DLNA, you can share and hook up with media files on a large HDTV. You will also find usual apps for new feeds and instant messaging. For apps, there are two options – T-Mobile AppPack store and Android Marketplace.

The phone has a good five megapixels camera but the photo quality could have been better. The sharpness was good and the brightness was not. Indoor shots were a bit muted but the LED flash did improve things a bit. Apart from that, there is also the music player and video recorder.

I then tested the Motorola Defy for call quality and found that it was really good. I could hear my friends very clearly. The quality of voice was good and there was a little background noise too. My friends also praised the call quality.

Friendly interfaces for SMS and FM radio combined along with big display and a very sleek keypad make sure that you get a good navigation experience. You don’t have to shout or raise your volume for talking on the phone and the person on the other side can be heard clearly as well. The Motorola W180 has Crystal Talk technology for smooth talking experience. There are enhanced and normal ringtones which can be heard clearly even in noisy environments.

You can type text messages on the Motorola W180 with just a press of a button and the memory can store up to 750 messages which is plenty. You won’t have to delete messages too often to make room for the new ones. This Motorola phone has limited functionality range. It is terminal technology Dualband (no GPRS support) which provides even 1 MB of memory for use. I don’t think it is of much use though; this space is too small for any practical use.

Motorola W180 messages can be written on itap pad and this feature replaces T9. The phone has FM radio but no MMS, MP3, camera, video playback or Web browser. The handset is 114mm by 43mm by 14mm and weighs 85 grams. The battery life of Motorola W180 phone is 465 hours in the standby mode and the talk time is nine hours.

This is a high quality accessible phone and the Crystal Clear communications technology really shows up while you are talking on the phone. For listening to FM radio, you will have to keep the headset plugged in as it contains the antenna for it. The shape is comfortable and you can easily access all the features of the Motorola W180 like music, data and cellular service. The user interface is friendly and intuitive. Display and navigation here are one of the best I have ever seen in a cell phone and the interfaces for text messages and FM radio are complemented by an elegant keypad and a large display.

Above the screen of Motorola K3, there is a two megapixel camera without flash which means you can use it only in day light. Photos taken in dim light conditions will look awful. The outer shell has glossy finish and it attracts a lot of fingerprints.

Flip the Motorola K3 open and you will realize that it can be easily opened by single thumb. This movement is not springy like slider phone but it is still less awkward and smoother as compared to other clamshell phones like N76. The K3 has hard and solid hinge but it looks a bit utilitarian when placed with Razr 2’s silver sexy version.

Motorola is putting the razor-cut and flat keypad on their products a lot and this tradition is followed on the Motorola K3 too. From the previous K1, there is just one change, the number buttons are nudged in to smile shaped, faint curve instead of blocky standard grid formation. This gives the phone a modern look but there is not much difference in usability.

Above the display, there is a VGA camera for use while making video calls. Apart from that, the phone has features like speakerphone, A2DP Bluetooth, and some small games. For storing data, the internal storage space is increased to 50 MB and the card slot can take in up to 2 GB cards.

Just like most Motorola phones in the market, the K3 is heavily focused towards multimedia. You can drag and drop the music files from a computer through Windows Explorer. Mac computers are also supported and the playlists can be synced through Windows Media Player 11. On the phone, the app can be minimized and you can work on something else while grooving to the music.

For me, the selection circular key on the Motorola K3 was too small. I had to be precise with my thumb presses to make sure that there were no accidental presses.  Performance of the camera was satisfactory but you need to have steady hands for avoiding blurry photos.

Motorola W377 weighs about 95 grams and the dimensions of the phone are 99mm by 45mm by 18.6mm. The phone fit comfortably in my hands and there weren’t any problems while using it. On the front, above the external display, there is a VGA camera having 4x zoom. You can use the inside screen as viewfinder while taking a photo. You can then store the pics on the phone, or share it through MMS or copy it to a computer via Bluetooth or USB cable.

The Motorola W377 is not a feature rich phone as it is pretty low end and made for people who just want to call other people or for messaging. The options for the latter include Multimedia messaging, Enhanced messaging, SMS text messaging and also predictive text. There is also FM radio but for using it, you will have to attach the provided headset as it contains the antenna for it. The phone contains MP3 ringtones for personalization.

There are not a lot of entertainment features on the Motorola W377 and hence not much can be written. You get small boring games like Tetris. There is also WAP internet so you can look for compatible content online.

Organizational tools on the handset include personal mobile calendar, currency converter, one touch MMS and SMS messaging. Other features worth mentioning here are hands free speaker, Bluetooth wireless, zoom font capability, alarm clock, streamlined keypad and a phone book which can store 500 entries. The rated talk time on this phone is 7.5 hours and the standby time 250 hours. I tested Motorola W377 phone for the battery and found that this was quite right.

I would recommend you the Motorola W377 if you are looking for cheerful and cheap phone. This is an excellent choice for people looking for budget phone without any gimmicks. I was disappointed to see that the manufacturer didn’t include an instruction manual with the phone.

The feature set of the Motorola W230 and W270 are the same but these phones vary in design. W270 is clamshell where as the Motorola W230 has a candy bar design. Both have a pretty basic feature set with good music playback capabilities. These phones have a dedicated music playback button and the integrated music player plays MP3 and other popular music file formats. The phone is basic but it supports memory cards of up to 2GB which is pretty rare in such low end phones.

This Motorola Phone has FM radio so you can groove to music even if you are bored with the onboard songs. It comes integrated with RDS or Radio Data System which shows you the artist name, title and the type of the song that is being played. It would be crazy to ask for highend features like camera or Bluetooth. You won’t find these on Motorola W230 but that is not something to complain about.

The display is very small and it supports a pretty basic resolution of 128×128 pixels. There are no high end features inside and hence the manufacturer hasn’t put a lot of hardware inside. This keeps the phone pretty light at just 80 grams.

Motorola W230 comes with CrystalTalk technology which helps to reduce any background noise. The manufacturer’s rated talk time is nine hours. I tested this in my labs and found that it was quite true. There is plenty of internal memory to store phone contacts and text messages. The device gives you a single click access for creating text messages and Web access is also provided.

Motorola W230 has is offered in two colors – orange and silver. The manufacturer describes these shades as dark titanium gray bordered in mandarin and licorice outlined in lustrous silver respectively which seems a bit funny. This phone is priced very low and it is recommended for people who just want to call other people. It will also serve well to music enthusiasts who are on a stiff budget. The card slot which supports up to 2 GB cards will let you store a lot of music tracks inside.

Motorola Milestone XT720 looks really sleek but it is a bit odd for smartphone. The handset is 4.53 inches tall, 0.43 inch thick, 2.39 inches wide and weighs around 5.6 ounces. The design, just like other touch screen handsets, has a slate layout. I would have preferred a streamlined design here but this layout didn’t make much difference to my experience.

The display of the Motorola Milestone XT720 is 3.7 inches big with resolution of 480×854 pixels. The display is capacitive so you will get the same user experience as the iPhone. The text is really easy to read and the images too looked sharp on the display. The screen has a built in accelerometer which automatically changes the orientation when you tilt the device. The photos’ can also be pinched for zooming in and out. The screen is also responsive and quick, you will not have any problems with it. I was also glad to see that the manufacturer dumped Motoblur for Android since the interface is much cleaner.

The keyboard of the Motorola Milestone XT720 could have been better though. There is no physical keyboard so all you get is the virtual one for punching your text messages. Things got really cramped in the portrait mode but I had plenty of errors and mispresses in the landscape mode too. I won’t recommend you this phone if you are going to type a lot of messages.

Motorola Milestone XT720 comes with an app called My Sign. For launching certain apps, you just have to draw some doodles. For instance, drawing W will turn the Wi-Fi on/off and drawing V will start the voice mail. There are a few preloaded gestures but you can also make your own. You can’t just make these gestures on the homescreen, you will have to start the app first. According to me, this doesn’t save much time because you have to open the application anyways.

There are a few buttons underneath the screen which are typical Android ones – search, back, home and menu. They are all touch sensitive so you will get haptic feedback for your touches. There are a few physical buttons on the phone like camera button, volume rocker, and media gallery launcher. On the phone’s top, there is a 3.5 mm headphones jack, power/lock button, and HDMI port. On the phone’s left, there is the microUSB port.

Thumbs Up:

Durable, sturdy design, easy to use interface, good audio quality, plenty of calling features.

Thumbs Down:

Display has a low resolution

Inside the Trunk:

Technology: iDEN

Band: iDEN 800/900 (Dual Band)

Phone design: Folder

Caller ID: Yes

Other features:

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

The LCD display of the Motorola i576 has a 128 x 160 pixels resolution with support for 65 colors. The external display has a smaller 128×32 pixels resolution. The phone is weatherproof, shockproof and dustproof. Organizer features on the phone include alarm clock, reminder and calendar. Downloadable content on the phone includes wallpapers, ring tones and games. Messaging features include NextMail, Multimedia messages (MMS) and Text messages. The phone also Internet browser and support for JAVA applications.

Razzle Dazzle:

Motorola i576 has a plane jane design. The handset is 4.3 inches tall, 1 inch thick, 1.8 inches wide and weighs 4.2 ounces. It is a bit bulky and thick but still is easy to carry around in your pocket. On the front, there are rubber sidings which reiterate the durability of the phone and also gives you solid comfortable feel in the hand. The manufacturer has put a textured design on the back and front covers which looks like a metal floor. This is just for improving the aesthetics.

Inside Dope:

Motorola i576 is a phone from Nextel and it doesn’t have anything out of the box regarding design or features. But there is hardly anything to complain about that since most Nextel phones have industrial and functional design and they are made mostly for durability and usablity instead of sex appeal. There have been occasional exceptions but Nextel has stuck to this rule for most phones. These handsets are made mostly for business. This handset has rugged design just like its predecessors and along with it, the phone has small external display, extendable antenna, and rubber sidings. The feature set on the device is pretty much basic, you don’t even get a camera but if you are looking for a sturdy phone with decent performance, the Motorola i576 won’t disappoint you. The phone costs $279 and with the service agreement, it comes down to $79.

Motorola i576 has a tiny rectangular external display just like most Nextel phones. There is a lot of information crammed on to the small display; you get caller ID, signal strength, battery life, time and date. The text is really tinny and the screen supports 64k colors. It doesn’t show photo caller ID but on this small screen it wouldn’t have been worthy anyways. There are two indicator lights above this screen for new messages and Bluetooth feature.

Left side of the phone has buttons for push to talk and volume rocker. Both these keys are tactile and large. There is the stubby antenna on the top and besides that, there is a speaker phone button along with a control for calling when the lid is closed. You can extend the antenna but be careful while doing this since it looks a bit delicate. On the right, there is a 2.5 mm headphones jack next to the microUSB port. The speaker is located on the bottom and it is colored in blue which feels a bit out of place.

The display on the inside is 1.75 inches big and has supports 64k colors. Even the most basic phones support 262,000 colors and the difference will be apparent. The look of the menu system can be changed in either grid or list formats. We thought both of these designs were quite easy to use. The font size and backlight time can be changed.

Design of the Motorola i576’s navigation array is quite pleasant. There is a four way toggle along with OK button in the middle along with Talk and End/power keys, Web browser shortcut, menu control and two soft buttons. The buttons are arranged spaciously and the buttons are quite tactile. The toggle button is silver colored and it stands out from the background. The buttons of the keypad are big and there is adequate space between them for typing without any mishits. They are also raised above the surface of the chassis and have adequate backlighting.

The phone book of the Motorola i576 has 600 entry memory and a single entry can take multiple numbers, e-mail address, IP address, and Direct Connect number. Contacts can be organized in groups and there are 22 polyphonic ringtones to choose from. Other features on the phone includes vibrate mode, multimedia and text messaging, calendar, speakerphone, voice recorder, notepad, Bluetooth, call timer, call forwarding and voice dialing.

Motorola i576 can be personalized with various alert sounds, themes, and wallpapers. More can be downloaded from the Web browser. There are plenty of choices for Java (J2ME) applications which includes Nascar Sprint Cup game, Calculator Suite, Sprint Mobile e-mail and Alarm Clock Plus. The handset comes with integrated GPS which lets you use TeleNav 3.8.

Finally, we tested the Motorola i576 for call quality and it was similar to other Nextel phones that we have used. The signal was strong enough on our side and we could hear our friends clearly but our friends said that there was a bit of background hiss.

Nitty Gritty:

This is a basic down to earth phone for just calling and sending text messaging. Get this handset if you are looking for an entry level phone.

Fantastic call quality; nice display; simple controls; sturdy design

Thumbs Down:

Poor streaming video quality and mediocre captured picture quality

Inside the Trunk:

Technology: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM

Band: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900

Phone Design: Folder Type

Caller ID: Yes

Other Features: Melody Composer, Push-To-Talk mode, TTY compatible

The Whiz Kid Speaks:

The Motorola Tundra VA76r has 100MB internal memory and micro-SD expansion slot that accepts up to 8GB.

The small external display sits on the phone lid. The 2.2 inches internal LCD display has 320×240 pixels resolution that supports 18-bit (262,000) colors. The 2-megapixel camera features geo-tagging, night mode, 4x digital zoom, and video-recording.

The 1130mAH lithium ion battery has a life of 300 minutes talk time and 336 hours of idle standby time. Accessories supplied inside the package are power adapter, battery, wired headset, and user manual.

Razzle Dazzle:

The Motorola Tundra VA76r is 3.9 inches tall, 2.1 inches wide, and 0.9 inch deep and weighs 4.9 ounces. It is more bulky than normal flip phones. The rear and front faces are made up of plastic, while the controls and edges are covered with rubber. It gives comfortable and sturdy feel while holding in hands.

Inside Dope:

The Motorola Tundra VA76r is a rugged phone for AT&T. It features support for push-to-talk (PTT) services, good call quality, 3G support, and multimedia highlights. It looks like a Nextel phone. The Tundra costs $199 with service agreement and you can also get its unlocked version for $399. It is certified with military specifications to withstand vibration, shock, rain, and so forth. The Tundra VA76r has an external antenna that is not extendable. It is one of the Motorola phones that have CrystalTalk Plus with a speakerphone on rear side for improving call quality. This technology also cancels the background noise that makes to hear even in noisy environment. The external controls and edges are covered with rubber. On the contrary, the VA76r phone also suffers some issues including poor video streaming and mediocre captured picture quality. It is noteworthy that the Tundra cell phone is compatible with T3 and M3 hearing aids.

The small external color display shows signal strength, battery life, photo caller ID, and date/time. You can also use it as viewfinder for the camera. The camera lens is located above the external display.

2.2-inch LCD display has 320×240 pixels resolution that supports 262,000 colors. It exhibits the sharp graphics, bright colors, and simple menu interface. You can adjust the backlight time, and brightness; while the font size cannot be changed.

The speakerphone key and ringer selection button are located next to antenna. You will find the PTT button and volume rocker on the left spine, while the camera shutter is on the right side. These controls are spacious and covered with tactile rubber surface. The combined micro-USB port for charger and USB cable is located on the bottom. The micro-SD slot is located behind the battery cover, which is usual for a rugged phone.

The navigation array is located underneath the display and consists of two soft keys, round toggle with middle OK button, Talk button, Web browser shortcut, Cellular Video shortcut, Back button, and End/Power key. The alphanumeric keypad and array are spacious and has tactile keys that require firm press. You can customize the four-directions of the toggle with shortcuts. The keypad has well-designed and large keys with bright backlight and sizeable text. You can text and dial without any problem.

The Motorola Tundra VA76r can store the contacts in its phonebook as per available memory and SIM card can hold additional 250 contacts. Each entry can save five phone numbers, one email address, a job title with company name, spouse and children names, a Web address, a manager’s name, an assistant’s name, a birthday, and three mailing addresses. You can organize the contacts into caller groups and pair them with one ring-tone and a photo for caller ID.

The basic feature of the Motorola Tundra VA76r set includes text and multimedia messages, a task list, a notepad, a voice recorder, a calculator, a world clock, an alarm clock, file and download managers, a calendar and a vibrate mode. The additional highlights are A-GPS, Web based POP3 email, instant messengers, A-GPS with AT&T Navigator, support for AT&T PTT network, USB mass storage, PC synchronization, 3G (HSPDA/UMTS) support, and stereo Bluetooth.

AT&T has also included its services such as AT&T Mobile Music for downloading wireless songs via partners, AT&T Cellular Video for streaming video content, and AT&T Navigator for GPS.

The inbuilt music player is similar to other AT&T phones. It features airplane mode, play-lists, album art, repeat and shuffle modes. The other music highlights are community section with access to fan downloads and sites, music videos, a Billboard Mobile channel, a Music ID application, and XM Radio Mobile.

The 2-megapixel camera of the Motorola Tundra VA76r features 4x digital zoom, multi-shot, self-timer, night mode, tagging, and video-recording. The still capture options are six shutter sounds with a silent choice, four lighting conditions, adjustable exposure, three quality settings, and four resolutions. The video recording options are three quality settings, two resolutions, others similar to that of still capture. You can record the video clips up to 24 seconds for MMS and longer in normal mode. The overall picture quality was good. The pictures appeared overexposed with auto-lighting and normal with manual.

The Motorola Tundra VA76r can be personalized with available alert tones, themes, clock formats, and wallpapers. It comes with five demo games: Midnight Pool 3D, Jewel Quest 2, Brain Challenge, Pac Man/Ms. Pac Man, and Tetris. You can download more options, games, and buy their full version from AT&T Media Net service via browser. The preinstalled trial applications are MyCast 5 Weather, MobiTV, Mobile Banking, and Yellow Pages.

We made few calls through quad-band based the Motorola Tundra VA76r via AT&T service for testing. The overall call quality was fantastic and quite impressive. We were able to carry out the conversation even in loud environments. We received loud and clear sound without any interference or static. The callers also received loud and clear sound at their end.

The HSDPS connection strength was strong for Web browsing and downloading. We loaded a video through AT&T Cellular Video in 10 second. The streaming video playback quality was better than other AT&T phones, but it was distorted and pixelated. The sound was synchronized with video. The video paused in between to buffer and after that, there was a delay between video and audio.

The battery life of the Tundra VA76r is 5 hours of talk time and 14 days of idle standby time. Its digital SAR rating is 1.36 watts per kg in accordance with the FCC radiation tests.

Nitty Gritty:

The Motorola Tundra VA76r is a good 3G phone to purchase if you need a rugged phone with excellent quality and can overcome mediocre picture quality.