Motorola KRZR k1m

The Motorola KRZR K1m is a gorgeous fashion statement, sure to be the next iconic cell phone design. In terms of features and functionality, however, it's really an old RAZR in a new case. If you aren't dazzled by the design, the KRZR is just another mid-range Verizon music phone.

Probably the nation's shiniest cell phone, the KRZR's long, narrow, glossy sheen will appeal to anyone who likes expensive bangles or yearns for an Aston Martin. (The bottom of the phone is even stippled in a vaguely automotive-grill-like fashion.) Much like the original RAZR, it looks expensive, and it feels great in the hand; the mix of glossy, matte (on the back) and stippled textures is tremendous fun to fidget with. The glossy front is a fingerprint magnet, though, but that's inevitable on something so shiny.

Because it's so long, the KRZR feels very comfortable against the ear, and because it's so narrow, it's even easier to hold than the RAZR. The 3.6 oz phone flips open to show, essentially, a slightly miniaturized RAZR display and keypad. The RAZR's 2.2-inch screen is down to 1.9-inch (but maintains the same brightness and 176 by 220 resolution), and the keys, which on the RAZR are trapezoids tapering from 21 to 11 mm wide, are here rectangles of a universal 11 mm.

The KRZR has very similar specs to Verizon's existing RAZR V3m. There's a 1.3-megapixel camera with no flash, and a slot for an up-to-2GB MicroSD card under the back cover. The handset supports Verizon's V CAST video, V Cast Music store with Windows Media Player syncing and BroadbandAccess Connect EV-DO modem mode. (Syncing the phone to Windows Media Player requires a $30 Music Essentials kit, which comes with the appropriate drivers.) I slipped in my roomy SanDisk 2GB SD card and synced the phone with Windows Media Player 10 without a problem, transferring WMA and MP3 format music files with ease.

The KRZR suffered from poorer reception than the V3m. Although the phones did equally well in low-signal conditions, I got a few dBm lower readings on the KRZR in stronger-signal situations. Considering the earpiece audio is excellent, I'm hoping a future firmware update will fix this reception issue. The speakerphone was very clear and adequately loud, and voices transmitted through the microphone sounded pleasant. In addition, the KRZR hooked up to a Plantronics Discovery 645 Bluetooth headset without a problem. (It can't play music over Bluetooth, though.) Voice dialing comes from the latest version of VoiceSignal's speaker-independent suite. With five hours of talk time, the battery life is terrific.

I'm unenthusiastic, however, about the KRZR's multimedia capabilities. V CAST's video menu took a long time to load on my phone, the interface seemed sluggish, and videos were very choppy. Plus, while the V CAST Music store works smoothly, you have to open the phone and click at least three times before music starts playing. The external touch-sensitive buttons are pretty, but they can be both not sensitive enough (there's no way to use them to start the music player if it isn't already running) and too sensitive (once the music player is running, you can accidentally pause the music too easily.) At least the speaker is loud and games including Ducati 3D Extreme played adequately well. The phone uses a USB jack for headsets, but comes with an adapter for standard 2.5-mm headsets.

The phone's video camera mode takes decent, 176 by 144 videos at 15 frames per second that you can store on your memory card. Unfortunately, the 1.3 megapixel still camera had serious trouble with fuzzing out edges in outdoor photos, and low-light shots tended to be blurry.

If that wasn't bad enough, the Bluetooth capabilities are a bit confusing. You can download your photos off the phone using Bluetooth and drop new pictures into the 18MB of main memory. Still, that's a new and welcome feature on a Verizon phone. Sadly, you can't upload photos to your memory card or add songs or ringtones via Bluetooth. Connected to a Mac, I was able to transfer files and use the KRZR as a modem, but not use iSync.

I'm also a little cool on the KRZR because while it's beautiful, there's little technology innovation here. It really is a RAZR V3m in a new package, without even obvious potential additions like Verizon's new Flash-based interface or stereo Bluetooth. The LG Chocolate is a better music phone, and the LG VX8300 and Samsung SCH-A950 both match the KRZR's capabilities (and exceed them in some areas) for much less money.

Motorola has proven that it's a master of design. But to maintain its lead in the US, the company needs to keep producing devices which couple slick design with top-notch technology, not just roll-out great-looking, low-tech phones.

Benchmark Test Results
Continuous talk time: 5 hours 1 minute