Verizon Adds Dare, Centro And Decoy

By Joseph Palenchar On Jul 7 2008 - 6:00am

Verizon Wireless launched the $99 Palm Centro PDA phone and the $199 LG-made Dare, which is the carrier's first consumer-oriented phone with all-touchscreen operation and no dialing or QWERTY keypad.

The carrier also launched an LG Decoy, said to be the industry's first handset with detachable Bluetooth headset.

The Centro is Palm's lowest-priced PDA phone, and it features CDMA 1x EV-DO high-speed data, touchscreen, hard QWERTY keyboard and the ability to be used as a wireless modem.

The LG Dare, available at $199 after $50 mail-in rebate, is the carrier's first all-touch consumer phone "as long as you don't count the LG Voyager, which you could use as an all-touch phone but has a QWERTY keyboard," a spokeswoman said.

The Dare went on sale in late June on Verizon's Web site and became available on July 3 through carrier-owned stores and indirect retailers. The touchscreen offers tactile feedback and handwriting recognition, and its 3.2-megapixel camera features face detection. It can also access Verizon's VZ Navigator and VCAST multimedia services.

The LG Decoy EV-DO slider features a Bluetooth headset integrated into the design so that it slips into the back for charging when the phone is charging. It is available at $179 after $50 mail-in rebate.