TracFone LG 225 Review - Part Two
This is part two of my review of this phone. If you haven’t yet seen it, you find my LG 225 Review Part One by clicking here. Or, if you are looking for a good deal on this phone, look at this page.
Here is a picture of this phone, for sake of comparison, shown in between the Motorola w376g (the silver one) and the LG 600G. For more pics, check out the link at the bottom of this page.
TracFones: LG 600g, LG 225, and Motorola w376g
Ringtones and other Downloadables
This phone supports mp3 ringtones, so long as you download them from TracFone (which will cost you either minutes or dollars). I’ve enjoyed this option, and the ability to set up separate ringtones for different caller groups is nice too. I do think, however, that the ringtones could be a little louder. Unless my hearing is starting to deteriorate, I think that this is one of the quieter TracFones I’ve heard.
One thing that surprised me with this model is that TracFone offers downloadable games. They are offered at $5.99, or a corresponding number of airtime units that varies according to the most recent card you added to the phone. There’s actually a pretty wide variety of games for this model. I haven’t ponied up the money to try any of them, though, so I can’t comment on how well they work. The game that comes with the phone, ZooZoo Club, is a little puzzle game that can serve as a pleasant distraction if you need one.
Design
The exterior of the LG 225 features a glossy black finish, small external screen, and stub antenna. In terms of appearance, it’s nothing special. I do like the external screen, though. Similar to the LG 600g, the external screens conveys a lot of helpful information, such as ring status, signal strength, battery meter, message waiting indicator, and calendar reminder, in a small space. Most important to me is the large clock. I can take the phone out of my pocket and check the time without having to flip open the phone.
Also on the exterior of the phone are two connectors - one for the charger and one for the headset. I like the fact that, contrary to the 600g, the 225 offers a universal headset plug, so you don’t have to go hunting for a headset that will work specifically with this model.
Finally, while I’ve had the phone for just 3 months so I haven’t had the chance to really abuse it, the device itself seems quite durable. I have dropped it - hard - several times, and it hasn’t missed a beat.
Organizational Tools
The LG 225 offers an alarm clock, calendar, calculator, notepad, world clock, unit converter, and tip calculator. I think all of these are pretty self-explanatory, but I do have a couple of complaints here. First, a stopwatch is missing from this model. That was something I used frequently on my previous phone, so I really missed it.
Another thing I missed was a flashlight. It seems that none of the newer phones have flashlights any more, but I found it to be very handy on my old phone. However, I did find a work-around with this phone. I took a picture of a blank white sheet of paper in bright sunlight, and set it as my background photo. Now, whenever I flip open the phone at night, I get enough light to make sure I’m not stepping on anything as I walk across a dark room.
A couple more complaints about the alarm/calendar functions. First, there’s no snooze option on either of these features. Second, if your phone is set to silent, the alarm and calendar will also be silenced. Some might prefer this, but if I’m setting up an alarm clock or calendar to remind me of something, I want to make sure I get that message. Most other models that I’ve tried will play the applicable alarm or reminder tone even when the ringer is set to silent mode, and that’s my preference.
Summary
I’ve been pretty hard on this phone over the course of my somewhat detailed review, but that’s how I like to review phones. I pick them apart. Still, I don’t think I was being unfair in my assessment here. If you are considering purchasing this phone alone, at full price, I would strongly encourage you to consider either the Motorola w376g or the LG 600g. Depending on where you are looking, the prices probably aren’t that much different - the w376g might even be cheaper than the 225.
However, if you currently have an older phone and are looking for a low-priced upgrade, or if you are just getting started with TracFone, then I think that the current bundle option that offers this phone, brand new, FREE with a one-year airtime card is a very good deal for you (click here for info on this deal). Keep in mind also that this model, like the 600g and w376g, will automatically be enrolled in TracFone’s double minutes for life program when you activate it. That, in itself, makes the phone a pretty good value if you think you’ll end up talking more than 50-60 minutes per month.