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Verizon Wireless and LG Electronics introduced the LG Fathom on May 24. A speedy world phone, it offers the newest Windows Phone operating system, 6.5.3, a 1GHz processor and 3.2-inch touch screen that offers tactile feedback in the form of a light vibration.
Spiffy in slate blue, the business-meets-pleasure Fathom is a slider phone, opening to reveal a four-row qwerty keypad. There’s a dedicated key for quick access to the phone’s Task Manager, and a Windows Mobile Device Center and Active Sync features allow users to keep content from Outlook Office and a Microsoft Exchange Server in sync.
Business users may also appreciate the ability to view and edit documents in Excel Mobile, OneNote Mobile and Word Mobile applications – a PowerPoint Mobile app is view-only – and get turn-by-turn directions in more than 20 countries, with VZ Navigator Global. In addition to maps and directions, the service offers distances in a choice of kilometers or miles, as well as points of interest, whether tourist attractions or the nearest ATM.
With Verizon service, Fathom customers have support for voice calls in more than 220 countries, access data in 200 of those and access to 3G speeds in 110.
Should the device be turned off in New York and woken up in France, a global roaming feature enables it to automatically switch from CDMA/EVO to GSM/UMTS as necessary.
WiFi and Bluetooth 2.1 connectivity are included, as are text-to-speech and voice-activated dialing, Flash User interface support for texting and sending images, and a sensor for adjusting the brightness of the LCD backlight.
For after-hour fun there’s a Windows Media Player 10 Mobile and a video player that supports WMV, MP4 and 3GP formats, as well as MP3 and WMA music players.
The camera on the Fathom is 3.2 megapixels, with five photo resolutions and three video resolutions, a macro mode for close-ups, a panorama option, landscape and nighttime settings, and an image editor, among other features.
There’s USB mass storage, for transferring files between a microSD card and a PC, and microSD slot that supports up to 16GB of additional memory.
The Fathom will be available to Verizon Wireless business customers beginning May 27 and to consumers though Verizon retail stores June 3 for $149.99 after a mail-in rebate and with a new two-year service agreement.
Customers will need a Nationwide Talk plan, which starts at $39.99 a month, as well as an Email and Web for Smartphone plan, which begins at $29.99 a month for unlimited access.