Motorola V500 Review

Overall Rating

Bluetooth
Camera
Handsfree Speaker phone
Polyphonics (24 voice) MP3 playback, Real-tones,

The case IS easily scratched,
Bluetooth has difficulty connecting,
Rarely the camera wont save pictures,
Not ALL java games work & uploading is difficult

Ok, overall the V500 isn't really a bad phone, it all depends on the user and what you want it to do, or what you want to do.

I'll agree with other reviewers that the case is easily scratched, I've got loads on my phone, but as long as it keeps working I don't care.

Bluetooth is a great system to use, and has become invaluable to me in my day to day life, I'm forever using it, despite the fact that occasionally it has trouble connecting to devices if the Bluetooth has not been used for some time and the phone has been left on. However this is usually cured by powering down and then powering up the Bluetooth, if that fails a phone restart does the job.

The camera is really handy for taking quick snaps, it's not a proper digital camera so don't expect great results, just make sure your camera lens is clear from dust and grime before taking a pic, the max resolution is 640x480, and the phone has four zoom levels (digital not optical) On rare occasions I've found that it wouldn't save a picture, this is either due to 'Multimedia' being locked or memory full, however my friends V525 temporarily wouldn't save pictures, full stop.

Some of the Java games get annoying as not all of them work, you'll spend ages uploading / downloading games to find "(X)APPLICATION ERROR!" appear on your screen.
Actually uploading the games is quite a long process to start with, you need about 3 or 4 programs on your computer, a data cable (you cant use Bluetooth).

The handsfree speaker which is built in is quite handy if you need lots of people to hear what is being said at the same time, or have to walk away from your phone and have poor signal, however it does sap battery life considerably, so short use is recommended.

The sounds produced from the phone are great quality, the built in tones are rubbish, and can be deleted using software on your pc to save space, but the advantage of MP3 playback is brilliant, plus 'real tones' but only in 'AMR' format. The pone features the classic "Helloo Moto!!" tone as from the TV ads.