By Stewart Wolpin
Motorola's designers seem to be borrowing from themselves instead of innovating. Case in point: The new Motorola RIZR Z3, an EDGE-compatible phone available from T-Mobile, is essentially a slider version of Motorola's clamshell KRZR (not to be confused with the RAZR). The name RIZR Z3 (pronounced "riser") stems from the rising top, but we're not convinced it's a better design than the clamshell version.
Sporting virtually identical outer dimensions, both the KRZR and RIZR Z3 phones have bright 1.9-inch LCDs, the same navigation and array of buttons, and similarly styled and sized keypads. But while the KRZR has a mostly glass and metal exterior, the RIZR Z3 is encased in the same smooth, rubberized outer shell as the PEBL. With a slider, of course, the exposed screen is far more vulnerable to scratches, and it's easy to accidentally activate exposed buttons when the key lock isn't activated.
Initial startup on the RIZR Z3 takes more than 30 seconds, possibly because it's collecting all your T-Mobile myFaves information, which is the last item to appear on screen. But because the longest the backlight can keep the screen lit is 20 seconds, the screen will go blank before the phone is ready to be used.
For photos, you'll find a two-megapixel camera with a video light and 8X zoom. Unfortunately, despite the jump up in resolution from the 1.3-MP KRZR K1m, pictures taken with the RIZR Z3 were almost all overexposed, soft-focused, and lacking in contrast and black levels. We actually think the KRZR's pictures were better.
A built-in music player supports MP3 and AAC files. Stereo Bluetooth is also included, as is 20MB of internal memory and a 1GB microSD Card slot for songs; we just wish the slot weren't buried behind the battery cover. The problem with the RIZR Z3's music player is finding it. The phone doesn't have a dedicated music player key, nor could we find the music player listed in the Fun & Apps menu. Further complicating matters is how the phone mixes your ringtones in with your tunes and offers no way to separate them other than to create a playlist that contains just songs.
While the RIZR Z3's multimedia amenities may be lacking, the phone's calling performance is not. Voice volume was loud if leaning toward the thick side, with only slight network warble at both ends. Voice-memo recording and voice dialing, as well as an enhanced phonebook all help make day-to-day communication a snap.
Initial Web access took about 12 seconds on T-Mobile's EDGE network, and subsequent WAP Web pages filled in a speedy five seconds. That's about average for an EDGE phone and is surprisingly speedier than the KRZR K1m on Verizon's EV-DO network. Its talk time of 3.3 hours is acceptable but shorter than what we've come to expect from GSM phones; the standby time of 9.4 days is adequate.
While the RIZR Z3 is certainly stylish, we think you can do better for the money. Unless you care more about looks than features, we say pick up the identically priced Nokia 5300 or the $149 BlackBerry Pearl instead.
