Verizon CASIO G’ZONE COMMANDO C771 C 771 SMARTPHONE NO CONTRACT REQUIRED WORKS ON VERIZON WIRELESS
2Verizon CASIO G’ZONE COMMANDO C771 C 771 SMARTPHONE NO CONTRACT REQUIRED WORKS ON VERIZON WIRELESS
- Only from Verizon
- Rugged, dust, shock and water resistant
- HTML web browser and Adobe® Flash® Player
- VZ Navigator® capable, turn-by-turn directions
This CDMA smartphone is notable for its rugged, waterproof design. Other key features include compass, thermometer, pedometer, a high-resolution touch display, and extra-loud speaker. Rounding out the features are a 5-megapixel camera, Wi-Fi with mobile hotspot, EVDO Rev. A 3G data, turn-by-turn GPS navigation, and memory card slot.
List Price: $ 449.99
Price: $ 149.95
JT McClure
Casio Commando a great all around smart phone,
The Phone Body: After having used BlackBerry for a while, I decided to switch to the Droid craze and finally settled on the Commando. If you’re searching for a smartphone that looks as rugged as it actually is, then you cant find a better model. It seems the design of the phone incorporated a body that is almost like a protective after market case you see with other phones. It almost eliminates the need to even buy a protective case! The ports, such as the USB charging port and headphone jack have protective plugs that seal off like gas caps to prevent water leaking inside. The battery cover locks and snaps into place VERY TIGHT as well. Almost too tight at times though, which can be frustrating for a quick battery pull. However its a design limitation that sacrifices battery pulls in order to better protect the phone. So it can be a pro or con depending on your outlook. One notable feature I was was surprised by: THE SPEAKERS! These things can put out some good sound! They are actually louder than a few laptops I’ve used! I’ve had the volume at full blast before, with lots of sound and almost no crackling or sound distortion! Everything about this phone screams rugged! Keep in mind however rugged DOES NOT MEAN INVINCIBLE. This phone can be damaged, but its made to withstand wear a tear which it has done for me when other phones were already showing signs of wear. Fortunately I’ve had this phone for a few months now and it still looks as good as the day I got it. Its suffered a few drops, some rain water, and mud, but nothing hard core yet. While it is said that it can take more, I bought mine brand new so Im still playing it safe. To a certain degree you should take care of your phone as much as possible no matter what brand you use.
The Touchscreen: The glass is very sleek, smooth coated, and hasnt suffered a single scratch yet. Ive gone months without the screen protector and have yet to actually do damage. I would still recommend a screen protector just in case though. In addition, having to switch from a physical keyboard of BlackBerry to touchscreen of Commando was a bit frustrating. It does take getting used to. But thats not really the fault of the Commando. The default keyboard works ok but I would highly recommend getting a keyboard app from Google Play (Google Play is the store at which you will be using to download apps and comes installed on the Operating System). I highly recommend SwiftKey or GO Keyboard, Ive used both and like them the best. GO Keyboard has extra themes and Red Fusion matches the Commandos look perfectly. A nice additional feature, the phone switches from portrait to landscape when you tilt the phone which comes in handy when you need to use both hands. The touchscreen can be a bit wonky, but almost all touchscreens have hiccups no matter what you do. There is occasional ghost touches and unresponsive touches at times, nothing major that really breaks the phone itself however. But another pro this phone has for it is the screen itself is a nice size, not too big to make the phone overly bulky but displays the images with nice resolution and clarity!
The OS: As you probably already know, it uses the Droid Operating System. The version on mine seems to run smoothly. Keep in mind the internal specs of the Commando is nothing mind blowing, but it gets the job done. Also keep in mind if its your first time using a smart phone there WILL BE GLITCHES with the OS. I’ve used multiple smart phones and multiple brands and all have issues from time to time. They are computers and like all computers they have problems. But in comparison, I use my Commando more than I do my laptop, which says alot! I’ve played a few games and all seemed to work great. I played The Sims and a few other 3d games and had no problems. A neat bonus that comes with the Commando is the addition of GZ Gear. This program incorporates maps, thermometer, star gazer, compass, and more. All of which can be shortcut keyed to any of your multiple home screen panels. This is handy for outdoorsmen who use their phones for navigation, and gives the GPS a bit more usefulness.
The Camera/Camcorder: Neither are nothing special but so far they are better than other phones I’ve used before. One thing I like is the Commando incorporates a flash, which is one thing I can understand why other phones leave out. A cool feature is the ability to use the flash as a flash light at the push of a button. Other phones can do this, but many require a third party app to be installed. But luckily here its included right into the design!
All in all I could go on with all the pros and cons, so with those key points in mind, I love this phone. Its been the best one I’ve owned to date, and dont look to replace it any time soon!
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|MeJohnBigTree
Unbreakable,
This phone absolutely will not quit. I have literally listened to Pandora on this phone UNDERWATER and have (accidentally) run over it with an 8 ton tow truck before, and it never missed a beat. It has endured abuse above and beyond the call of regular phones, and still continues to impress. I say abuse, because frankly, myself and delicate electronics have a very sad and expensive history together, and this little guy has been put through things that go far beyond “hard use”. I rate it at 4 stars because of minor problems I have with the software, such as the inability to uninstall default programs like Bing (which I loathe. And Bing, if you happen to read this, Google has won. It’s over. Let it go.) and low memory capacity, etc. Otherwise, I just couldn’t be more impressed with it.
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