LG 500g Review Index
The LG 500g is NOW AVAILABLE from TracFone.com.
Further, it has been released for Net10 as well.
This is the starting point for your search for a complete LG 500g review. I’ll use this page as an index of all the data and review information I publish about this phone, including, of course, my full review. As of this publication date, though, the phone has not yet been released so very little information is currently available. I’ll put up here what I do have, and add to it as I learn more.
LG 500g
Here’s a link to the LG 500g review, part 1.
Here’s part 2.
And the conclusion.
It’s also been pointed out to me that there’s a very similar phone called the LG C105, and the manual for that model might also prove helpful for owners of the L G500g. Here’s a link to that user guide:
http://www.lgmobiles.com/UserManual/GSM/LG-C105_IND_100917.pdf
At this time, it looks like this device will run on the GSM network (as indicated by the “g” at the end of the model number), so it will run on the AT&T and/or T-mobile network infrastructure. Further, as you can see in the picture, it’s a QWERTY-style phone.
In many ways, it looks like the 500g will be very similar to the 900g, which has been available for Net10 for several months and has been very well-received thus far.
Here is a list of features I’ve found:
- 1.3 Megapixel Camera
- Video recorder
- Mobile Web
- Mp3 player
- Calendar
- Voice recorder
- Voice Command*
- MicroSD card slot
* With respect to the “voice command” feature, I included it here because it shows up on the America Movil tutorial page for this phone. However, I would be quite surprised if this is not an error on the part of America Movil. Neither of the two related phones (800g and 900g) offer this option, and historically A.M. brands have not included this feature on their GSM handsets.
Also, like the LG 800g and 900g, early signs are that Bluetooth will not be restricted by the firmware, allowing for transmission of media files and other data.
Finally, I’m not exactly sure which brands will offer this handset, nor can I say exactly when that might be. I think it’s safe to say we’ll probably get the LG 500g for both Straight Talk and Net10, but it’s rather questionable whether TracFone users will finally get a chance at a QWERTY phone.
When it is ultimately available for purchase, I’ll post a notice on this blog and get started with a full LG 500g review as soon as I can.
I just searched “LG-500G” on Tracfone’s website and found the camera under the LG tab of “Activate Phone”. It looks like Tracfone is getting their site ready to put the camera up for sale! Finally, a QWERTY phone from Tracfone!
Looks like the LG 500G is now up for sale on the Tracfone website for $29.99. Phone only, no minutes card.
Link to the Activate Phone tab:
http://www.tracfone.com/direct/init_activation.jsp?app=TRACFONE&lang=en&coming_from=activation
As far as that goes there is also a new addition to the site. Very similar to the LG 500g is the LG 501c! Looks like the same line of phones, one for GSM and one for CDMA. Good idea Tracfone!
Now available at tracfone.com.
I just ordered my LG 500g from tracfone. It was $29.99 and included double minutes for life for free. Also took advantage of their mother’s day promo of free fed ex overnight shipping (available til 5/8). Once it arrives I am going to (try to) port my phone # off my old tracfone (a candybar style motorolla which has faithfully served me for MANY years) onto this new LG; wish me luck. Finally a QWERTY keyboard! I seriously doubt incoming texts will still be free on this new one like they are on my old one though, that would be asking for too much I suppose.
The LG 500g is on sale this week at Radio Shack for only 19.99 – see back of Sunday ad
Do you know whether or not there is a car charger for the LG 500G?
Thank you.
Marvin – I can’t find a car charger either. I’ll let you know if/when I do. Liza
I bought an IGo Dual USB charger & an IGo A97 Power Tip and they work. I bought mine at Radio Shaack. They are rather expensive but at least I have a car charger. You can get them online for less – about $30.
Marvin Groth
The car charger for my LG 420G fits the new LG 500G. Now I’m on the hunt for decorative skins.
about how big is the screen bcuz I hear the fone is rather small so it cant have a screen larger than abt 2 inches.
I purchased a LG500G from TracFone May 9th. I continue to have reception issues with it and it is pretty much useless.
I alternate between No Signal and one or two bars. I can sometimes make/receive a call with 1 – 2 bars but then lose the connection.
I have been working with TracFone for nearly two weeks on the issue. Multiple updates have been applied to no avail.
As it stands they have asked for an additional 72 hours to investigae network issues. I like the phone except for the connectivity problems.
I think these two articles might explain why you are having problems:
http://pbush14.wordpress.com/2009/08/19/tracfone-and-net10-sim-card-info/
http://pbush14.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/more-tracfone-and-net10-sim-card-info/
Thank you for your response! It makes a LOT of sense.
This is my third Tracfone and after checking it has a T-Mobile sim in it. My first two Tracfones had (I checked) AT&T sim cards in them and worked great.
I am, as you suggested, in a strong AT&T signal area and a marginal T-mobile area.
I have demanded a new AT&T sim from Tracfone. If they don’t comply, I have no choice except to change phone provicers.
Thanks again!
So far I have received NO RESPONSE from Tracfone concerning my request for a new AT&T sim card to replace my T-Mobile sim card.
T-Mobile has weak to marginal coverage in my area. My two prevsious Tracfones had AT*T sim cards and worked great here.
It has been over TWO WEEKS without phone service and I am beyond frustrated.
Any suggestions as to how I can get Tracfone to respond? I seem to have no other choice but to change carriers.
Like their Facebook page and ask for help there. I’ve gotten help from them there.
Could you return the phone to tracfone for a refund, and then buy it again using a zip code on the order page that will ensure you an AT&T SIM card? Tracfone has allowed me to return a phone that go poor reception in my area, and that was before I found out that it was probably just the SIM card. We did order the same phone about a year later, but used the article author’s tip of getting the correct SIM card for our area.
Tracfone has agreed to replace the T-mobile sim card in my LG500 with an AT&T sim card.
Does anybody know if you can watch videos on youtube with this phone?
Ana ,
If you mean can the browser log on to Youtube and watch a video live; the answer is I do not know. I would not want to pay for the minutes to navigate Youtube on the built in browser. I hate the browser. I have wasted minutes having it browse from my pocket, now always lock the keyboard before pocketing.
But can you watch Youtube videos: I have two favorite ones on my phone and watch them. I bought a USB A to USB micro cable for less than 2 bucks off eBay. I bought a 4 GB SD card. I downloaded the videos off Youtube. They were downloaded as .flv files. I used the program super@ to convert them to .MMF files in Nokia format. I used the cable to connect to the phone, it shows up like a flash drive. I copied the videos into the video directory of the phone. They play rather well.
You can use the same process to put entire movies on the LG 500g. A 90 minute movie is about 100 meg on the phone. I went from Chicago to Columbus by Megabus and watched movies on my Tracfone most of the trip. That bus has charger outlets.
Revise! In the above post I meant to say , convert the video to a .3GP Nokia format before transferring to the phone.
Is there a way to edit one of your own posts here?
Supposedly the Bolt browser allows you to view Youtube videos on this phone, but I have not tried this method.
After 4 weeks of battling offshore Tracfone customer service, I received a replacement sim card.
As you might expect, they sent me another worthless T-Mobile sim card. T-Mobile has a weak to marginal signal in my area which results in the phone being useless.
I have once again requested a replacement AT&T sim card from Tracfone.
To add insult to injury, they have disabled my current sim card. It worked fine, as long as I am not in the immediate neighborhood where I live.
I finally made peace with Tracfone. I had to go to my local RadioShack and buy another phone that came with an AT&T sim card. Tracfone customer service is worthless!
Let me be clear, there are no problems with the LG-500G phone. It works fine and I am completely satisfied with it and its features. I would recommend it highly – if it has the features that you are looking for i.e. it is no Blackberry or I-phone.
Glen,
Does the keyboard works with the internet browser? (e.G. can I write http://www.tracfone.com???) I read in other place that it only works with text. Is that true??? Thank you!
The LG-500G manual is now available. I couldn’t find it on the LG web site, so I sent them an e-mail and had a PDF copy of the manual the very next day.
Can you delete all messages on lg500g rather then one at a time?
Lin, Here’s how:
go to the box you want to clean up. Select options. Go to mark/unmark. Mark all. Then options again. Then delete.
How do you download games/apps to a PC from mobilerated.com. My phone is already picked with all the available games/apps, but when I clk download, nothing happens. Any ideas?
@Throuble: where do I email LG for the manual?
Or can you post a copy of yours somewhere?
I can’t find it anywhere…
@Edvard: I don’t see a means to upload it here. Send me an e-mail and I’ll forward a copy to you. throuble@tds.net
By the way, for any who are interested, I bought a micro-SD card (4Gig) and a communications cable to hook my LG-500G to my computer. It works slick! Downloaded a home-made ring tone without a hitch.
-Thom
Does the phone come with any games already loaded on it, and if so, what’s the selection like? Can games be downloaded to this phone? My daughter wants a phone with MP3 capabilities and games, so I thought I’d ask. Thanks for your help!
To all who have questions on using the various features of the LG500G, here’s a very good interactive tutorial: http://tracfone.deviceanywhere.com/straighttalk/searchresults.seam?deviceId=716&locale=en_US&search. I was really surprised at all the stuff that was there!
If you’re interested in a silicone case, I just got one from: http://fatorder.com/lg500g_silicone_rubber_black_cover. (This is for a black one, they have other colors…) About $8 (with shipping). Only took a couple of days, too,
If you’re like me, keeping the phone in your pocket = destroying the screen. I found a nice little nylon case on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/TracFone-Net10-900g-Heavy-Canvas/dp/B005BW4A4E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310669627&sr=8-1. About $9 with shipping.
A lot of people are using modified LG Sabre or Blackberry skins/cases, and my nylon case was actually tagged for iPhone, so I guess there are other options you can try, too…
I purchased the LG 500G, through Tracfone, yesterday. After replacing an old phone in May, I couldn’t resist it when I learned they now have a Qwerty phone. I made arrangements on Live Chat, to keep the phone number and my current 300 minutes will be transferred when I activate the LG 500G. The Live Chat was extremely helpful … she answered all of my inquiries and made certain that it is set up according to my wishes.
I’ve saved hundreds of dollars with Tracfone during the last 2 years!
I’ve been very satisfied with Tracfone, and even find it gets signal during mountain-vacations, something I cannot say about the 7 years I had a contract with TMobile! I’ll never go back to a contract cell phone service!
I noticed inside the back cover of my phone it says “C-100″.
I looked up “LG C100″ and it looks very much like the same phone.
It also goes by the “InTouch C-100″, “Wink C-100″ and “Nelson” (?)
There’s a lot more info available under that model number, and the mobile app sites list more apps for that model, but still no comprehensive user manual. :
I received my new LG500 G, Tracfone last week. Had problems with service….no service where I had it before with my other Tracfone. I called Tracfone, told them the problem, I asked they check my SIMS card on the 500G…it was a T-Mobile. They said they would send me an ATT SIMS in 2-5 days. No problem. Always had great service. Been with them 10 years. Now, I’ve got to search the internet to see how to change SIMS. They said to call them when I got the new one so that will help. Anyway, that’s my positive experience. Loni
I changed mine and then went to the tracfone site and registered it.
Does the phone automatically save picture files to the SD card?
Yes, once you’ve filled up the internal memory, it automatically switches to placing the photos on the SD.
For the next 20 hours, you can get this phone, with accessories and Triple Minutes For Life at HSN…..http://www.hsn.com/todays-special_xh.aspx?ocm=todspc&cm_re=billboard1*ts*background
If I hadn’t recently gotten a new LG 290c I would consider this model, since it does have games, and MP3. Typical that right after I break down and upgrade, the very Next phone is the one I Really ‘wanted!’
Bruce Wayne
^^X^^
Bruce Wayne, I’ll swap you a brand new LG500g for your 290, if you’ll pay shipping . I just bought this new (B&M) and havent even cracked it open.After reading up on it I have decided it’s much more phone than I need. Lemme know
Thanks for the nice offer, Gene, but I think I will just be happy with what I have for now! Except for the extra features of the 500, I prefer the 290 being a slider with hidden buttons. (Don’t like the ‘boxy’ shape of the 500.)
And I can (almost) ‘justify’ buying a Tablet for MP3, games and more! Ha…today may be my birthday, but I’m not a sucker for That ever-changing technology! I just bought myself a ticket to The Star Trek convention in Vegas, so That will be my gift to me!
Bruce
^^X^^
@Shannon:
There are two settings to change that will put everything on the SD card:
1: Menu -> Settings -> Memory Info -> Primary Storage Setting
Set to “Memory Card”
2: D-pad left (to access camera) -> Settings -> Others (d-pad right) -> Memory In Use -> Select
Set to “External Memory”
HTH…
OK. someone said they downloaded their CD’s, but it did not come up on the LG500G that it only pulled up the MP3 songs. Any advise on that? Is that correct or user error. They are recommending a Bluetooth USB Dongle. Any advise?
As far as I know, the phone will only play mp3′s. If you need a good software for mp3 encoding, I recommend Exact Audio Copy. Very good quality, easy to use and free. I don’t work for them or anything, I just know it to be a good solution for transferring CD’s to mp3.
The bluetooth is useful for making transfers between phones, or with your computer if you don’t have a cable. Otherwise, a cable works just fine to go between your computer and phone.
Does the LG 500g use a microSD card, or a microSDHC card?
A phone that uses microSD won’t be compatible with microSDHC, that’s why I’m asking.
The reviews also say that LG 500g can only take up to 4 GB. Is that right? What happens if I use a bigger card?
I have a SanDisk microSDHC card in my phone right now, and it works fine.
Unfortunately, 4G is the largest it can take.
Someone on Howardforums reported that an 8G card simply did not work:
http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php/1715116-LG500g-notes
After reading most of the reviews and questions it has helped me out alot. I do have a few questions or comments. 1st — my phone number doesn’t show up. 2nd — how can you send someone a video from the phone? 3rd — when i try to download a song it says things like my time tank, been at idle for too long. It doesn’t even give me a download option on the web browser. I need some help. I have searched and googled and can’t find the answers that I’m looking for. I did send an email while on my lunch break for answers and for them not to give me just a scripted line on how to do something and it still doesn’t answer my question. If you could help me any any way it would be greatly appreciated.
Does anyone know how many units/minutes it costs to send a picture with the lg 500?
Thanks
Hi M
It is 3.5 units for any photo I’ve sent.
So, does the 500 have voice commands or not? One other note. Since Tracfone once offered a TMFL card several months ago, I asked a Tier 2 Support member that if I were to purchase a TMFL phone and didn’t like it..could I make my current DMFL phone a TMFL phone by way of transferring. Gues what??? They did it!
I’m so glad because by now Trac should have TMFL cards to sell but still they do not.
Mike
Neenah, WI
Hey Mike
Sorry for the delay. It does not support voice commands.
I needed to know two things:
Can I transfer pics from my old Tmobile Sony Eqinox flip phone to a LG500g without problems?
and is the LG500g campatible with android blur type phones? I’m leaving Tmobile and want to tranfer whats on our old phones to our LG500g phones? Please help if possible Dani
Hi Dani
You should be able to do this transfer with bluetooth. You’ll first have to turn on bluetooth (both phones), then pair the phones, and finally use the old phone to send the pictures to the 500g. I haven’t tried this transfer with this particular combination of phones, but it should work.
As far as Android, the 500g is definitely not compatible. It is a very basic “feature” phone, definitely not a “smart” phone.