LG Chocolate 3 VX-8560
Phone Scoop Review
Jul 23, 2008 by Eric M. Zeman
LG takes its Chocolate music phone in a whole new direction with the new Chocolate 3. See why it managed to stay on course and get lost at the same time. With video tour. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
five-*****-stars
This is a wonderful phone, certainly better than the old versions. This phone is very fluent and supports a wonderful music application. Its has many coolio features and is easy to use. The only thing is... wasn't the chocolates whole shibang about the slider phone?
Extremely Disappointing
Since August 7, I have owned two new chocolate 3s one black one blue both with version 4 firmware and they both have had the same four identical issues.
1) During a call the phone will restart, soft reboot, power cycle; by this I mean the phone will actually power down to the black screen with the Verizon trademark logo and then power back up, of course dropping the call. This can happen within 30 seconds of the call being connected or it may happen 20 minutes into the call. It has happened while on the go or stationary, in town or out of town, it may not happen for two days then can happen for three calls back to back. So far I have been unable to find the cause or trigger for this and is happening now usually 3 to 4 times a day. BTW I previously had two LG VX8700 phones that did this exact same thing in addition they would power cycle during an email, text or instant message and sometimes during a V Cast session.
2) Usually two to three times a day the key pad tones will stop working even though the volume level for the key pad tone is set at the maximum setting. Powering the phone off and back on will restore the tones for several hours.
3) When using the VZ Navigator the key pad tones become muted and will not function till exiting VZ Navigator.
4) About 20% of the time the phone will display âThis cable is not recommended for this phoneâ when plugging in the supplied AC charger. This message has never been displayed when using the cable plugged into a USB port or using an automotive charger.
I use my phone more as a phone than anything else, typically 3000+ minutes a month on the nationwide premium plan, email and text messages. No ring tones, music or third party software downloaded and all pictures are stored on a 1G or 2G SD card. Verizon's cure so far is to keep throwing phones at the problem rather than to try and diagnose the actual cause. LG does not have any customer service worth mentioning.
Tiny phone with big features!
I've been using phones with qwerty keyboards and touch phones for the last 3 years and I found this phone to be a very refreshing throwback.
Pros:
-Call quality. I've never had a phone where I can hear the person I'm talking to more clearly.
-Overall feel of the phone. It just feels comfortable in your hand. While it's light it feels very sturdy and durable.
-2mp camera. Not the best camera but it does what you need it to, it also has self portrait mode(for those who love to take pictures of themselves)
-Mp3 player and ring tones. I keep this phone on the low volume setting b/c the ring tones are so loud. This is by all means a plus as LG's tend to not be very loud. Standard Mp3 interface which isn't bad.
-Big separated keys. I've been using phones with keyboards and the keys on this phone are so nice it allowed me to transition back to the number pad with ease.
-Shortcut keys. You basically get 7 shortcut keys with the directional pad. No complaints about more accessible shortcuts lol.
Cons
-Battery life. This is what brings the phone down by an entire point. 2-3 days with maybe an hour talk time and medium texting. Even if this phone had the extended battery it would take away from the general feel of the phone.
-The main screen somehow gets a very smudgy from something that never has to be touched
-I'm not sure if it's just my phone, but I seem to sometimes just not receive calls or texts. With texts they eventually show up but if you miss a call and nobody leaves a v-mail...you're kind of up the creek.
-Another problem that I have a lot is that the phone seems to just randomly reset itself. I know EnV's and Voyagers do this or just turn off, but it's very annoying. I hope that these problems are just my phone, but knowing VZW I have a suspicion that it's not.
I'm very happy with this phone and I would recommend it to anybody who is looking for their first phone or somebody who just appreciates a nice phone when they see one.
Okay at First.
When I first got this phone I absolutely LOVED IT!!! But then as time went by it started acting up. It would just cut off for no reason(even though it was fully charged). The battery life went down after time. I remember charging it one morning and by that afternoon it was dead(and I didn't even use it). With my other phones I knew when I was getting a call or text if I had the phone on vibrate. On this phone you would never know anything because the vibrate option is lousy. And Verizon sucks in my area. I can't make a call unless I either leave my house or go outside. So I am done with them and am switching to T-Mobile.
Pros:
The ability to see your text messages on the front screen(never had anything like that before)
MP3 player and the ability to charge your battery with your computer.
Cons:
Battery life
Cutting off for no reason
Only 4 color themes
Vibration is not that loud or noticeable
No reception whatsoever until I leave my house(not the phone's fault. Verizon is not very good in my area). The only thing I can do at my house is send a text.
Great phone!
I've had this phone since October and so far it's been nothing but great. the sound quality is really good. I've taken it many places and have never had any issues with signal. My only grip is that the front display can scratch pretty easily...
phone is a disappointment
Got this phone and when ever the bluetooth is on ,it dropps calls. Also when using the blutooth other person cannot hear you. you sound muffled and distorted. horrible audio.
Definitely a step-up from previous LG models I've owned!
I've had this phone for a good month or two, and I can't find much as far as CONs go, other than when I open my phone it'll take a second or two for the screen to appear. That and that lock button on the side a real pain in the butt!
Other than that, I love this phone, it rocks! I'm gonna say the same thing about this phone that I've said about the prior Chocolate models: Basically an iPod with a keypad. I've never owned a Chocolate until now. And actually, by chance I wound up owning one. After I had gone through SEVEN VX8700s, well, let's just say that me and VZW had come to a compromise, and I'd gotten the Chocolate 3 to make up for the inconvenineces-basically a free upgrade. The rest, as they say, is history!
PROs:
Standard sized earphone jack,
Access to messages, camera, calendar, music, and pix without having to open the phone,
Sturdy rubber back,
Easy access for your micro SD card,
Very loud and clear speakers (you can barely recognize it at the bottom of flip),
Album art/visualizer with the phone either open or shut,
This phone had me sold and it didn't even cost me a dime! And just to think, I was about to sever my ties to LG because of the lemon VX8700 that I've had on seven different occasions (I've learned my lesson to get what's recommended by LG from that point on).
I look forward to a Chocolate 4 and hopefully it'll be a touch screen. I'll give credit where it's due (if I haven't done so already about this phone), this phone's reception is as clear as diamonds, literally! Even with no signal, I can still hear who I'm talking to!
Although I never owned either one of the 1st two Chocolate phones (and they were sliders at that), this flip-phone version was a switch as well as an attention getter!
I love my Chocolate. I'm spoiled rotten by it!
Love the phone
I have had this phone for 2 months now, and am glad I bought it. It replaces a Samsung U540. My wife has the Chocolate 2, and I don't care for her phone (she loves it). I prefer the flip of the "3".
PROS:
-Love all of the music options. Use the phone's speakers, stereo bluetooth, transmit to a FM radio.
-Love the buttons for texting. I have big hands/fingers, and small keys don't work for me.
-They put the voice command button in spot that I don't hit all the time.
-I love the size/feel of the phone. It doesn't feel light/chinsey.
-Great screen for internet use.
-Plug in antenna port. Was one of the options that was a must. It is my business line, and I have a booster/antenna set up for when we camp. Always have service.
-Good playlist set up.
CONS:
The battery cover comes off too easily. Especially if you remove it from the belt holder when wearing a winter coat.
Have to put ringer volume here. It is freakishly loud- even on the lowest setting. I bought a quieter ringtone due to this, and it still scares the crap out of me when it rings. Find myself using vibrate more often now.
Vibrate is kind of weak. It would be nice if they offered varying levels of vibrate on phones. I miss the phones that would start on vibrate, then ring progressively louder.
The FM transmitter is weak- The FCC's fault, not the phone's. Works ok in our van that has the ant. at the top of the windshield. Not so great in my truck, where the ant. is on the hood on the passenger side.
When it the battery starts to get low, LOOK OUT! Not much notice before dying, and the last bar or two drop very quickly.
ON THE FENCE:
It has pretty good reception. Not quite as good as the Samsung it replaced, but am satisfied.
Hard to open flip with one hand. You get used to it. I open it with my lower lip. Sounds funny, but works. :o)
Another great Chocolate
I have had this phone for about 3 months now and have been very satisfied with it.
The phone definitely lives up to its name for music playback. Has great external speakers (altho a little tinny sometimes), the FM transmitter works great if you find an unused station.
The displays are both clear and bright. The external display is very large and easy to use with the scrollwheel below. The external display options are great and very convenient, especially when receiving messages and viewing missed calls.
The internal display is huge and very bright. The auto-bright display works very well. The keypad is large and easy to see with the white background and very easy to text with.
Verizon finally got it right and included some different menu displays. There are 4 different menus and when playing music, the highlighted option will show a moving line which is unique and fun.
The cons with the phone would be that sometimes when sending a message the phone will freeze up which requires pulling the battery out and restarting. (horrible after typing a huge message)
Unless you have had LG phones before, the send and end buttons may be a little more hard to find since they are the same white color as the rest of the keys.
The blue version of the Chocolate3 did not get the rubbery back like the black version has.
The external display is clear, but is not as clear as internal. pictures are a little more choppy and rugged then the internal display. If you like to sleep in complete darkness, choose a dark background on the external display or flip the phone over when charging, this phone will light up an entire room at night.
Overall, this phone is great. As with any phone, it has its pros and cons, but definitely a great phone with great sound and reception quality. Two great displays make this phone standout from those tiny displays we are used to. Definitely a music player with great options for playback.
