Samsung t809 or LG VX8500

[Risa (:]

Simple... which one would you choose? It's a toss up for me. I'd have to pay $50 for the LG w/o an activation fee. The t809 would cost me $0 but with a $35 activation charge.

t809 pros over LG:
-Costs $15 less
-tmobile offers the Caller Tunes feature that allows me to use my own MP3s
or even a recording of my voice as a ring replacement for incomming callers
which I think is sweet. I can also get David Lynch ring tones with tmoblie
(big plus for me). His ringtones are not available thru verizon yet.
-I know how to tweek the volume of the phone so that's not an issue.

chocolate pros over t809:
-slightly better build quality
-better camera
-reportedly slightly better sound with ear buds over t809

I want to know your take on which is the better quality and better value. I don't care so much about how the phone looks. thanks

[DINO returns]

Don't get the chocolate with a carrier, buy it unlocked. Carriers mess up the look so much, it ends up not being nearly as sleek and beautiful as it was. And the only good thing ABOUT it is that it looks good. T809 is a good phone, just flash it to a 820 when you get it.

[Sunny.]

The chocolate with verizon has the expansion slot you can download the song you want and do the email trick and will cost like 25 cents to get it instead of downloading from verizon.

[Little Miss Pipedream]

TMobile's Caller Tunes supposedly (according to 3 diff. reps) allows me to select an audio file, whether it be something I ripped myself or something I paid to download, and somehow the person calling me will hear that audio clip instead of the normal ring ring. Verizon has a similar feature called "Ringback Tones". The difference is that Verizon won't allow me to select a mp3 file from my own stash, they demand that I buy it from them and then it is only mine for 12 months=sucks.
Something else that turns me off from the Chocolate is the talk time is so low. The Samsung's isn't great either but it's better than the LG.
Some things that turn me off from the T809 are: the lack of voice activated calling, the slightly blurry pics it produces, and the fairly flimsy feel to it.
Man, I've probably read close to 400 reviews of these two phones over the last two days and no matter how much I read there seems to be an equal amount of complaints and praise. That hasn't helped the decision making process much.

To any T809 owners....How has your phone held up? How has the slider held up? Is the dust problem a big deal? If I drop it once is it going to be ruined? I want to be confident in the t809. I handled it in the store and it felt so light and the slider top and bottom parts kind of wiggled. I've heard someone say his phone started to squeak after 2 months. It just didn't feel as sturdy as the Chocolate. So, T809 owners, will this phone easily last 2
years?

[mongrel ryan]

There are lots of threads about the T809 in the T-Mobile sub forums and if you look through the first few pages (or do a search) you should be able to find answers to your questions there.

[Morgan Bo Borgan]

This isn't even a matchup. Verizon w/ LG Chocolate wins by DEFAULT due to the network.

Oh, and what are you babbling on about the ring tones? Download the mp3 of whatever you want to use as your ringtone. Upload to phone. Set as ringtone. Both phones allow you to do this (yes even Verizon's).

Both phones being relatively underpowered, the Chocolate is still better. And Verizon kills T-Mobile (period).

[mandaluvzmnkyz]

DarkTemplar194, I've read many of the posts on the T-Mobile subforum. Like I said, I have probably read close to 400 reviews and posts in the last few days. What I'm asking for here is peoples opinions on which phone is a better value and better quality. Which would you choose?

MelchiorZH, you need to educate yourself. Verizon's "Ringback Tones" and T-Mobile's "Caller Tunes" are features that allow THE CALLER CALLING YOU to hear a audio clip instead of the normal ring ring. It is totally different than ringtones. Ringtones are things that YOU hear when someone calls you. BTW, My music selection is enormous and I have access to almost any audio that I desire. I don't need to pay my provider $1-$2 for music I already have. I also know about Bitpim for the LG and the changing of the file extension to .3gp for the t809, so ringtones are not a concern for me. Once again "Ringback Tones" and "Caller Tunes" allow the incomming caller to hear audio other than the standard ring ring. Ringtones are heard by the person on the receiving end of the call. This is the third time I've explained it in this thread. Maybe now you will be able to grasp it and stop being a jerk. BTW, I'm not asking about the network, as my area has equal coverage by both, I'm asking only about the phones. thanks friend