Messaging, Internet & Connectivity
4.7
Email is supported through Verizon's optional Mobile Web 2.0 "VZW Email" service, which makes it easy to set up access to an AOL, MSN, or Yahoo! account. Accessing other email accounts is possible through third party WAP-based services. Sending and receiving of email messages is accomplished through the WAP interface, and not an integrated client. Instant messaging, on the other hand, is possible via the built-in Mobile IM client. Again, AOL, MSN, and Yahoo instant messaging is supported out of the box.
Internet access on the VX-8600 happens by way of Verizon's VCast, and Mobile Web 2.0 services, all of which are optional for-fee services. The Web browser on works well with Verizon's "Get It Now" content as well as most WAP Web sites, which load very quickly over the EV-DO data network. HTML Websites, on the other hand, generally didn't load properly on the phone, as they're not supported by the browser.
Verizon's VCast service offers a wide variety of streaming audio/video and downloadable audio content. As a reviewer, it was fun to browse through the offerings, watch a few videos here and download a few songs there to check out. As a paying consumer, however, just remember to keep track of how much all of this entertainment costs - streaming media on your phone is a fun, and addictive, way to kill time while waiting for friends or appointments.
Verizon, along with Sprint, continue to provide the best mobile broadband data services in the United States via their CDMA EV-DO networks. However, access on non-Smartphones is generally limited to Verizon-approved channels and not to the entire Web. If you're addicted to mobile access to your favorite Websites, check with Verizon (or borrow someone's VCast handset) to make sure you can get to them before shelling out for a VX-8600 and Verizon service contract.
The VX-8600 supports CDMA 800/1900 bands and 1xEV-DO data on the CDMA 2000 band. The phone is locked and so may only be used on Verizon's wireless network.
Bluetooth is supported on the VX-8600, and unlike most previous Verizon handsets, it supports file transfers - I was able to move files back and forth between the phone and both PC and Mac computers. The phone also paired easily with a (mono) Bluetooth headset and worked well for voice calling and voice command dialing.
The phone also features a microSD slot for expansion via removable memory cards. No microSD card is included in the retail package.
