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Motorola MOTOKRZR K1mBuy the MOTOKRZR K1m for its looks and voice quality, not its multimedia chops. By Stewart Wolpin 
The type of person who would buy the MOTOKRZR K1m probably couldn't care less about this clamshell's ability to stream videos, play 3D games, and download full-length songs using Verizon's V Cast service. And that's a good thing for Motorola, since this variation on the RAZR isn't exactly blazing in the multimedia department. Judged merely as a style statement that gets very good reception, the $199 price tag is nearly justified.
The KRZR's design certainly makes a good first impression. At 1.7 inches wide, this handset is about 0.25 inches slimmer than the RAZR. Otherwise, the KRZR, at 4.1 x 0.7 inches, is actually larger than the RAZR, but its slimmer profile makes the phone more comfortable to carry in a jeans pocket. The face of the KRZR is covered with a shiny, mirror-like gray glass exterior that, while pretty, really shows off smudges. Inside is a linear keypad that's a bit less confusing than the RAZR's wavy-lined array. The KRZR certainly isn't lacking in the features department. You get an adequate 1.3-megapixel camera, instant messaging, and support for the VZ Navigator service, which turns the phone into a GPS device. You can use the Bluetooth connection for pairing a wireless headset, off-loading files to a PC, and even for turning the KRZR into a wireless modem for your laptop via the dialup networking profile. On the other hand, this phone doesn't support Bluetooth stereo headsets, which means you'll have to listen to music using a set of wired earbuds attached to the included mini-USB-to-3.5mm adapter. With only 20MB of memory on board, users who want to store a bunch of pictures, videos, and music files will have to spring for a microSD Card. We like that the KRZR can support up to 2GB of external memory, but we're not fans of the card slot's location-behind the battery cover. While not as convenient as a side-mounted slot, it's an improvement over the behind-the-battery location on the RAZR V3m. Unfortunately, the KRZR's emphasis on style compromises the V Cast video and music experience. For viewing video, the otherwise bright 1.9-inch screen is skimpier than the RAZR's 2.2-inch LCD. But both phones use the same LCD technology, and as a result, the KRZR's video was crisp and clean with true colors and minimal splotchiness. When it comes to music, the KRZR's touch-sensitive, backlit controls are bright blue and appear on the front glass flap when the music player is activated. Unfortunately, even just breathing hard on these controls can activate them, which means we don't recommend putting the phone in your pocket when music is playing. Oddly, you can't press and hold the external play button to activate the music player, as you can with other V Cast phones. All of this is assuming you have the patience to wait for content to arrive in the first place. Video clips and music tracks took nearly twice as long to stream/download on the KRZR compared with other EV-DO-enabled handsets: around 30 seconds for video clips and about a minute for music tracks. Wireless Web pages, however, loaded in five to seven seconds, as speedy as on other models. In our tests on Verizon Wireless' network, voice quality was clean and crisp, and the reception was steady. The KRZR is comfortable in the palm and when held up to the face. Under the mouthpiece is a stereo speaker that pumps out a surprising amount of volume for both talk and music. Best of all, we squeezed out nearly 30 minutes more than the rated 4 hours and 10 minutes of talk time. Despite the MOTOKRZR K1m's extras (which aren't so extra anymore), the best reasons to buy this phone are its style and voice quality. That said, we'd recommend waiting for the price to drop. Compare Prices | Motorola KRZR K1m Specifications
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