PIREP - EnV Smart Phone

My old cell phone was on its last legs. I had twice given my "free
upgrades" to my kids so they could get the "latest-greatest" music-enabled
whiz phones, so my old phone was...just a phone. It looked like a hockey
puck after a full season on the ice, with hardly any paint left on it, and
the sound quality was starting to go.

So, when my "free upgrade" came up again, off to the Verizon store I went.
I wanted something with a built-in planner, something WITHOUT a touch screen
(my son's experience with his "Chocolate" taught me that lesson), and a
decent built-in camera. The LG EnV was the one I settled on.

The EnV has all the features of their top-of-the-line "Voyager", but without
the problematic touch screen. The feature list is quite impressive, but the
ones that are most pertinent to aviators a

1. GPS
2. Internet access.

1. GPS. I had heard that cell phones were GPS enabled, but I didn't know
how far they had come. The EnV has two LCD screens. The one on the outside
is standard "cell-phone" size, but it opens up to display a much larger
internal LCD screen that is actually a bit bigger than the one in my Garmin
496. The navigational interface is easy and intuitive, and all you have to
do is enter an address (or point of interest) in and let the phone give you
street-by-street driving instructions, complete with a moving map.

Cooler yet, with the bluetooth earpiece, the little voice in your ear TELLS
YOU "turn left, 300 yards". It's quite remarkable.

Better yet, it's NOT really GPS, which requires a clear view of the sky.
The phone is actually more like LORAN, using cell towers to triangulate your
position against its internal database of the world. Thus, it works
indoors, and there's no need to position the thing on the dashboard. No
power cords, not antenna wires. Very nice.

I presume that it can't be used in the air, but it's sure making finding our
way around a strange city easier after we arrive.

(Yes, the 496 has turn-by-turn driving capability, too, but in practice
we've found that we just don't take it with us when we borrow the courtesy
car. The 496 is just too futzy to take out of the panel dock, and we never
seem to remember to bring the little bean-bag dashboard mount and the little
antenna. And, of course, you can't leave a $3K GPS sitting on the dash of a
clapped-out old police cruiser, so we're always trying to lock it in the
trunk.

The EnV, on the other hand, is always on my belt, so we're using it all the
time.)

2. Internet Access.
I used to subscribe to a cell phone weather service that gave me access to
radar and satellite info, as well as METARS and TAFs. It cost the same per
month as full web-access does on this phone -- and now I can get much of the
same weather as I can on any computer.

When you open the EnV it's got a full QWERTY keyboard that makes entering
data easy. That big (relatively speaking) color screen makes viewing easy,
and I'm surprised at how quickly the web loads. Verizon has invested
heavily in improving the speed of mobile web applications, and it shows.

There are a host of other great features (the planner is terrific, the
camera is very good, the 2 GB memory card holds lots of pix and video, it
can record digital audio for hours, it's a very nice speaker phone) that I
use daily, and a bunch I may never use (texting, iPod-like music, etc) but
the future really is NOW.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:1F0Sj.89684$TT4.28062@attbi_s22...
My old cell phone was on its last legs. I had twice given my "free
upgrades" to my kids so they could get the "latest-greatest" music-enabled
whiz phones, so my old phone was...just a phone. It looked like a hockey
puck after a full season on the ice, with hardly any paint left on it, and
the sound quality was starting to go.

So, when my "free upgrade" came up again, off to the Verizon store I went.
I wanted something with a built-in planner, something WITHOUT a touch
screen (my son's experience with his "Chocolate" taught me that lesson),
and a decent built-in camera. The LG EnV was the one I settled on.

The EnV has all the features of their top-of-the-line "Voyager", but
without the problematic touch screen. The feature list is quite
impressive, but the ones that are most pertinent to aviators a

[clip]

I just upgraded and was about to order the LG EnV when I realized that the
LG Voyager had *real* internet access and not the Mobile Web 2.0. In other
words, you can see most HTM-based web pages in a usable (albeit slow)
manner. The touch screen is pretty good and compares closer to the iPhone
than the Chocolate. CNET compared the iPhone and Voyager and the Voyager
edged-out the iPhone overall but lost in the touch screen category.

I personally refuse to pay $10 a month for the GPS--especially when I, like
you, put out the cash for the Garmin 496. I've used the 496 in automotive
mode a number of times during both aviation and non-aviation trips and it
definitely does the job. I would feel like I wasted some of the extra $$ I
spent on the 496 over the 396 if I didn't use it for auto guidance during
aviation trips.

Back to the Voyager though. With the HTML web access (which is $9 more a
month than the Mobile Web 2.0 access, is unlimited, and includes the vCast
package) you can get access to many more weather sites (except ADDS'
java-based applications). I still have the airwx.com as my favorite but
having the others as a cross-check is excellent.

I also can get to my job's Outlook Webmail (dodging the Blackberry bullet).

I'm really happy with my Voyager (so far).

Marco

I just upgraded and was about to order the LG EnV when I realized that the
LG Voyager had *real* internet access and not the Mobile Web 2.0. In other
words, you can see most HTM-based web pages in a usable (albeit slow)
manner. The touch screen is pretty good and compares closer to the iPhone
than the Chocolate. CNET compared the iPhone and Voyager and the Voyager
edged-out the iPhone overall but lost in the touch screen category.

I found the "real" internet interface to be too slow for practical use, at
least around here. (Maybe your uplink speed is faster in your market?)
Mobile Web lets me access pared-down versions of many web pages quickly and
in a way that better-fits the diminutive screens these smart phones possess.
I'm able to access my email, ADDS weather, and a gazillion other websites
using the EnV, so I'm satisfied with it.

As for the touch screen, Joe has had endless troubles with his Chocolate's
touch screen. It's just too easy to hit the wrong thing, and the screen
itself is very vulnerable. I'm hard on phones, since they hang from my belt
and I'm constantly up on ladders and moving heavy stuff around the hotel, so
I didn't want that pretty screen hanging out in the open. Because of this I
opted for the non-touch-screen version, and trust that I won't destroy it
quite as easily.

I personally refuse to pay $10 a month for the GPS--especially when I,
like you, put out the cash for the Garmin 496. I've used the 496 in
automotive mode a number of times during both aviation and non-aviation
trips and it definitely does the job. I would feel like I wasted some of
the extra $$ I spent on the 496 over the 396 if I didn't use it for auto
guidance during aviation trips.

My package combines GPS and Mobile Web, so the GPS is essentially free.

As for the 496, I've felt like I wasted $3K buying it virtually from Day One
of owning it, so I'm used to feeling ripped off. It's a barely adequate GPS
that happens to provide the only decent on-board weather interface
available. XM makes it worth putting up with...for now.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
news:1F0Sj.89684$TT4.28062@attbi_s22...


When you open the EnV it's got a full QWERTY keyboard that makes entering
data easy.

And in the hands of a 15 year old, the EnV is capable of sending over 1500
text messages per month.

I got an EnV for my son's 15th birthday. I tried using it for one day, but
couldn't see who was calling me. The (outside) screen isn't made for 46 year
old eyes.


Upgrade phone to EnV: $50

Monthly charge for five lines $99

Look on 15 year old's face when he realizes he has to work ANOTHER 14
Saturday's to pay off his text messaging bill: Priceless

"Jay Honeck" wrote in
news:1F0Sj.89684$TT4.28062@attbi_s22:

My old cell phone was on its last legs.


Much like your brain.

Pirep? You really are the daftest fjukkwit I've ever seen. And that's
saying something.


Bertie

Marco Leon schrieb:
I just upgraded and was about to order the LG EnV when I realized that the
LG Voyager had *real* internet access and not the Mobile Web 2.0.

what's internet on a mobile phone these days in the US? Do you already
have UMTS, HDSPA and all the fancy stuff? Or is it still 2G (Edge et al)?

#m

On Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:26:28 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:

I just upgraded and was about to order the LG EnV when I realized that the
LG Voyager had *real* internet access and not the Mobile Web 2.0. In other
words, you can see most HTM-based web pages in a usable (albeit slow)
manner. The touch screen is pretty good and compares closer to the iPhone
than the Chocolate. CNET compared the iPhone and Voyager and the Voyager
edged-out the iPhone overall but lost in the touch screen category.

I found the "real" internet interface to be too slow for practical use, at
least around here. (Maybe your uplink speed is faster in your market?)
Mobile Web lets me access pared-down versions of many web pages quickly and
in a way that better-fits the diminutive screens these smart phones possess.
I'm able to access my email, ADDS weather, and a gazillion other websites
using the EnV, so I'm satisfied with it.

As for the touch screen, Joe has had endless troubles with his Chocolate's
touch screen. It's just too easy to hit the wrong thing, and the screen
itself is very vulnerable. I'm hard on phones, since they hang from my belt
and I'm constantly up on ladders and moving heavy stuff around the hotel, so
I didn't want that pretty screen hanging out in the open. Because of this I
opted for the non-touch-screen version, and trust that I won't destroy it
quite as easily.

I personally refuse to pay $10 a month for the GPS--especially when I,
like you, put out the cash for the Garmin 496. I've used the 496 in
automotive mode a number of times during both aviation and non-aviation
trips and it definitely does the job. I would feel like I wasted some of
the extra $$ I spent on the 496 over the 396 if I didn't use it for auto
guidance during aviation trips.

My package combines GPS and Mobile Web, so the GPS is essentially free.

As for the 496, I've felt like I wasted $3K buying it virtually from Day One
of owning it, so I'm used to feeling ripped off. It's a barely adequate GPS
that happens to provide the only decent on-board weather interface
available. XM makes it worth putting up with...for now.


Jay

I had trouble with cell phones 'on my belt' (had a couple come off and
lost) so got a neck strap and hang around my neck with phone laying on
my chest or stuck in my shirt pocket if shirt has one. If I am working
around rotating machinery or doing anything that the phone and strap
could get caught in I just slip the phone down the neck of my shirt
until I get back to my normal days activity. Works for me )

My phone is a flip top with cover and screen doesn't get dinged inside
my shirt or in shirt pocket.

Big John

Martin Hotze wrote:
Marco Leon schrieb:
I just upgraded and was about to order the LG EnV when I realized that
the LG Voyager had *real* internet access and not the Mobile Web 2.0.

what's internet on a mobile phone these days in the US? Do you already
have UMTS, HDSPA and all the fancy stuff? Or is it still 2G (Edge et al)?

#m

My iPhone is Edge but it is also WiFi and there is almost no place I use
the internet capability that isn't near an open WiFi Node so I almost
never use the Edge part of the phone.

And in the hands of a 15 year old, the EnV is capable of sending over 1500
text messages per month.

Despite incessant begging from two teenagers, I continue to not allow
texting on any of our cell phones.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

"Jay Honeck" wrote in
news:_P5Sj.90038$TT4.89932@attbi_s22:

And in the hands of a 15 year old, the EnV is capable of sending over
1500 text messages per month.

Despite incessant begging from two teenagers, I continue to not allow
texting on any of our cell phones.

Jerkoff.


Bertie