After two Motorola's and a Samsung, I thought I knew what I wanted. However, I was talked into buying the LG-5600; All I can say is "THANK YOU"!!!. I wanted a basic phone, without a lot of bells and whistles; To me a phone is for making and receiving calls...period. This phone is wonderful for that. The audio is good (but not great), but its an easy phone to use. Its lighweight and, best of all, has an amazing battery life. I often go 7-10 days between charges (sometimes more). My ONLY criticism is that there is precious little warning when the battery is ready to quit. It goes from 2-1 bars very quickly, and then just shuts down. Except for this annoying flaw, this is unquestionably the best phone I've ever had. Performance As I initially wrote it has great battery life and acceptable audio Battery Life The best I've ever had...by a long shot Durability One day the external screen suddenly went. I took it to the Verizon store and they indicated that there was an internal crack in the screen. As a result, I've had to go 8 months without an external screen -- very annoying Design Its a clamshell. If you like that (and I do), then its a good design

NYCReviewer

New York, NY

First of all I am upset that we horribly overpaid for these phones from Verizon Wireless. Overall it is a decent phone, does not drop calls, voices are pretty clear. The calendar is a little more work to use than some other phones I have owned. The camera is decent, but does not autosave the picture, so you do need to quickly save it. My main complaint with this phone is the buttons on the sides. I cannot tell you how many time I have been out and I will hear a clicking sound, and yep, my phone is taking pictures of the inside of my purse again. Also, the volume buttons are on the sides so if you accidentally hit it while rummaging for your phone while it is ringing you shut off the ringer making it that much harder to find the phone in the messy purse. I never wear this on my waist so i am not sure if this would be an issue in that area. On the plus side, I have had this phone for 4 months and the battery is still awesome, I only have to charge it about once a week, and I use it a lot and it is always on. 

zbsharing

Dover, DE

As usual, all good things must come to an end eventually.  I'm referring to the trusty LG VX-8300 phone that I had been using for the previous 4 years.  The microphone seemed to be going out since nobody was able to hear me well any more, so I upgraded to the LG Accolade VX-5600 phone mostly because it was one of the only "regular" phones that was compatible with my old Verizon calling plan.  For the most part, the Accolade is what many would now consider a "basic" phone.  It works well for basic calling needs and also has the two main features that I care about: speakerphone and Bluetooth.  The camera is nice to have just in case I need to grab a quick snapshot of something to reference later, but it's not that great since it's only just over 1 megapixel.   It also has texting, web, and multimedia features, but I don't use any of those features.  I've never been a fan of the standard Verizon menu system, but it's good that they try to keep things consistent and they still have the best network, in my opinion.  The call quality of the Accolade is pretty good, but I find the speaker and speakerphone to be overly sharp and tinny, but it's tolerable.  I also like the USB connector for power and data connectivity.  Unfortunately this phone is not yet compatible with the popular open source Bitpim contact manager software application.  From a physical perspective, this phone is pretty lightweight and is one if not the smallest ones that I have owned.  It fits well in my pocket and doesn't get in the way.  Overall, this phone has been reliable and works well for my calling needs.

shigadeyo

Harrison, OH

My phone died (at the hands of my children--why does this start so many of my reviews?) and after shopping around, I found this LG Accolade. The thing that initially attracted me was the price for the cell phone. It was VERY inexpensive, but seemed like a good cell phone still. I bought it and have loved it. I have now had it for just over six months and it hasn't given me hardly any trouble. It has all the basic functions--speed dial, camera, speakerphone, music, online capabilities, but is still pretty simple. This is not the cell phone for you if you are into smart phones, but if you are looking for a simple and basic cell phone, this is a great value for the money. My one complaint is that after a few months, the battery life went down. It would last about 16 hours still though.

jslewis

West Jordan, UT

This cell phone is a really solid product. Good battery life, relatively solid (average) reception, and durable. The LG Accolade has not given me any significant problems whatsoever so far. Of course, these cell phones lack any kind of special feature, advanced function, or any particularly great quality. If you want a standard cell phone that does its job reliably and effectively, without any fancy-dancy hassles or expense, this product is for you. Otherwise, you would probably be the type to go look for an I-Phone, Blackberry, or something along those lines. But if you're like me and find those phones to be a waste of money (and learning-curve time), this product's for you! Some minor complaints: One, you can't really hear off of the speakerphone. The speakerphone is nearly atrocious. Two, the texting is a little funky. Sometimes I'll be typing out a sentence, and pressing the number eight three times in a row to enter in the letter 'v,' but then it'll skip and restart a new character from T. No idea why, but it tends to happen after I deleted a character.

scienceinproducts

San Jose, CA

I hated my last phone from Samsung.  It never worked right, half the time I could not even talk on it.  It was never fully utilized.  This new LG came with our cell phone contract and I had to do some convincing with my father to get this in our family plan.  It does not have instructions which is the negative and the sound to hear the voice volume is not loud, but it is very good otherwise.  Actually, you have to press the button on the left side which has the symbol of the speaker, and then you won't have a problem.  I have not figured out everything yet, as it is pretty new, but was able to set it up the first day.  I have made use of the alarm, calculator, voice command etc.  It has so many functions to choose from including using Bing, a navigator system, and loading other things which I don't do.  Each ring for text, voice mail, messages, etc. can be set to pretty great sounds- where my last one used to annoy me.  There is no breakup of sound between the conversations, so the caller can understand me and I can understand them.  The battery life is longer than I expected compared to Samsung, which I have had two types.  The camera has several functions, but since I am not good in that area, I have no description.  Overall, I highly recommend this brand's cell phones and I have been happy so far with this particular model.  I don't know the actual retail price, but you can get it for free if you sign up with certain well known  cell phone contract companies. I will continue to add more to this review, everytime I learn something new.  My suggestion for the voice command is, that since it has trouble recognizing difficult names, program into the contact list, words like home, work, etc.     My update recommendation is to pick up your wireless mobile phone company's guide book. The one I picked up has information you may not be able to find easily.  In it, I even found out how to be put on a Do not call registry.   I also just located, the way to find out information about the phone you just purchased.  Do not be discouraged by the lack of directions inside your box, and see what the telephone carrier offers besides the  service contract.  Yes, we were offered something unexpected.     Some information not found, perhaps useful for other phones too.  My clock did not change with the last time change.  No way to find out what to do.  There were three LG cell phones in the house at the time and all changed.  One was the same model as mine.   I was able to fix it by going to settings and tools and clicking on my company which was 1.  It changed right away.  For a good article concerning information for both the cell phones and plans, check the latest Consumer Reports, January 2011. For the update to conclude this review: I spoke to two people about this subject, and those two people had this happen to them.  They dropped their cell phone into liquids and it submerged, destroying the phone.  On a New York television pre-news show, they showed the benefits of  this type of phone surviving, should that happen.  You first get off all the liquid from the outside, to immediately take out the batteries-or it will be too late.  Place one side on the towel for I think ten minutes, turn it over again till it seems about the same time.  Overnight, you need to  place it submerged in a container of rice (they had white rice).  They said it works, but I wonder if you have to get a new battery (It did not seem so).  I am still happy with this cell phone, and maybe I will get an earpiece for hearing in crowded, noisy  areas.   I got it at Verizon Wireless.  I also, asked to have it ring in the store and compared the voice quality transmitting to me with two other cell  phones.  This was my first choice.

tsufu

New York, NY

I recently replaced my old cell phone with the LG-Accolade. I love my new phone! The battery life is excellent. I use it throughout the day, and generally charge it every four days or so. It does not weigh a lot and is a nice size. The phone has a sleek, modern look. The screen is clear and it takes photos well. The buttons are a nice size too; not too big, not too small. It doesn't have keyboard-style buttons, so for avid texters, it might not be ideal. The cell phone has a nice speaker on the front, so audio and phone calls are easy to hear. I have accidentally dropped it a couple of times with no problems. It seems to be hardy. I keep it in my pocket when I go out, and I haven't had any problems with scratches or anything like that. It does have a sort of mirrored front, which picks up fingerprints easily. It uses a USB connection for charging, which allows it to be connected to a computer very easily for data transfer. Overall, I am very pleased with my phone. I was mainly concerned with finding a phone with a long battery life, and the Accolade lives up to my standards. Great phone!

apple3

In Upstate, NY

The LG Accolade is an all function no bells or whistles phone.  The Accolade's real benefit comes from the unusually long battery life (Verizon claims up to 460 hours of talk time!).  The phone is absent of any special features like a touch screen, wi-fi, or any of the other increasingly common extras.  The phone does have a straight forward layout, a fairly compact size, and adequate call quality; the reception seems similar to other phones. The phone's screen is a little on the flimsy side, which could be a problem for people who are really hard on phones.  Since our family has several of these phones I can see that the battery life can vary considerably between phones.  Some of ours have battery lives that seem to never end and others are similar to what you would expect.  The phone does have some buttons that aren't in the best location and the camera button is positioned in a place where it is very easy to accidently turn it on. Overall, it is a great phone for a great price.  The battery life can be unusually long and everything else is comparable to similar models. Buy this phone if you want a stripped down phone with long battery life and a short list of features Buy something else if you want modern features or phone aesthetics are important.

Phorapples

Eugene, OR

I upgraded my cell phone in the past month and got the free LG.  I've never used LG cell phones before.  I usually am a Nokia or Motorolla kinda guy.  But It looked sharp and the price was sure right.  Most of the other fancier looking phones require you to have a multimedia bundle within the plan.  I figure its a way for them to recoup their money for giving away a nearly free cell phone.  Anyway, I picked the LG and got it a few days later in the mail.  I was happy with the speed of the delivery.  I opened the box and fired up the phone.  Everything worked well.  The camera was nicer than my older phone, and it was bluetooth compatible which is a nice feature now-a-days with the new road laws.  It has more options than my older phone had which makes me happy and lots of cool sounds and ring tones that come with it.  Overall I'm very pleased with the phone. Its durable and sturdy and it I don't lose a call.

Mardizzle

Beaverton, OR

For all intents and purposes, I purchased this phone the LG Accolade back in late June.  At first, I extensively researched which prepaid service to go with, and since I've tried Tracfone Wireless before and didn't particularly care for it, I decided to give Verizon Wireless a try with their prepaid service.  The phone itself is awesome.  It's not a smartphone, so a lot of the features that people want are not present, however I like the fact that I can use my bluetooth headset with this phone, and it's capable of going to websites like Facebook, twitter, etc.  And it's built-in camera is actually quite good.  I was actually very suprised that the pictures are of very good quality.  It's also got many great features like the Alarm Clock (I use this daily), calendar/tasks manager, calculator, and my personal favorite is the TIP Calculator (no more guessing by general estimates on dinner tips at the restaurants).  The world clock is not very useful to me, notepad is good if you just need a quick note of some info, and although it has a GPS function, I don't use it because it costs money. Some downsides though.  It does not have a memory card expansion slot, and sometimes the pound (#) button sticks when texting.  You can't transfer anything from a computer to the phone using its USB cable (it's strictly for charging the phone, which I found irritating), and the battery goes kinda fast, so it needs to be charged regularly. Other than that, it's a good starter phone for anyone who just needs basic functions plus a little extra.

halfblind79

Lakewood, CO