Plantronics isn't planning to share intimate details about its Voyager PRO Bluetooth headset until April 23rd, but evidently its supply chain executives didn't exactly touch base with marketing before sending out stock to Best Buy. Jeff and John both managed to procure the $119.99 Bluetooth headset over the weekend, and we've got the shots to prove it. Based on the teaser site down in the read link, this here headset should be it's most advanced yet, but for a buck twenty, it better answer and respond to our calls without us having to intervene.

Update: Plantronics pinged us to say the price point here should be $99. Interesting.

[Thanks, Jeff and John]

So we're still not totally certain whether the Voyager Refresh is the Voyager's new firmware with visual voicemail support or whether it's actually this, a titanium-accented version of the original phone -- but either way, we think it's a good thing. Look for this one to be available this Tuesday via phone or web for the same price as the current model, while anyone hoping to meander into a Verizon store and pick one up might be waiting a while longer.

There aren't exactly all that many details left to announce, but Verizon has just gotten official with its late to the party Visual Voicemail service which, for the time being at least, is only available on the LG Voyager. As we had heard previously, the service will run you an extra $2.99 per month on top of your usual bill, and you'll be able to store up to 40 messages for 40 days, with an option to create up to 10 greetings and 20 distribution lists. Unfortunately, Verizon didn't take the opportunity to announce any firm plans for a roll-out to any of the other phones supposedly in line to get the service, with it only going so far as to say that additional devices will be getting it in the "coming months."

Seems like things are coming along nicely for the launch of Verizon's downloadable visual voicemail service, with some preliminary information briefly hitting VZW's interwebs before seemingly being pulled. As we'd previously heard, a retooled LG Voyager -- creatively named Voyager Refresh -- will be one of the first devices to get access to the service, while current Voyager owners will be able to download the app required to get hooked up. Unlike what we'd previously heard, though, it seems that Verizon has opted to offer the service at no additional monthly service charge (a wise move, may we add). Since the entire lowdown has been taken offline, there's no telling exactly when we're actually supposed to know that VVM exists or when we might be able to sign up for it, but all indications suggest it'll be sooner rather than later.

[Via phoneArena]

Update: We're hearing that the $2.99 / month fee is still in effect. For shame, Verizon!

It looks like Motorola's hard times have been particularly good for LG, as it has now moved (by some accounts at least) into the number three position among the top five handset makers, just a quarter after it passed Sony Ericsson to take the fourth spot. That comes after LG moved an impressive 27.7 million handsets in the past quarter, a full third of which were sold in North America. LG is also particularly quick to boast about sales of its pricier touchscreen phones, which totaled some seven million. Among those, the Viewty was the top seller, moving more than two million units, followed by the Venus with 1.6 million, and the Voyager with 1.3 million. It's apparently not all rosy for the company, however, with it also warning that the slowing economy could cause its average selling price to fall by 26 percent.

Korea's Electronic Times is quoting a mysterious LG "official" as saying that the company's Voyager -- the high-end touchscreen flipper currently on Verizon -- will be making the leap to both AT&T and Sprint before the year's out. Although that isn't necessarily an outlandish thing to believe (Verizon's exclusivity period probably lasts 12 months at most, after all), it implies that at least two additional versions of the Voyager would have to be in the works: a CDMA piece without MediaFLO for Sprint and, of course, a GSM variant for AT&T. The news comes on the heels of LG's triumphant claim that they've shipped a whopping 1.1 million Voyagers since launch -- a pretty impressive number considering that the phone just launched at the very tail end of 2007 -- and a number that could pretty easily triple if these other carrier deals turn out to be legit.

[Thanks, Jeremy]

So, first the bad news: you've gotta trek all the way down to a Verizon shop to get your Voyager updated to the latest rev. Now, the good: it's probably worthwhile. LG's latest and greatest firmware for the Voyager superphone appears to bring a host of fixes and enhancements ranging from better battery life (or so they say, anyway) to an improved browsing experience. Let us know how it goes if you go get 'er flashed, k?

[Via Boy Genius Report]

There is certainly a substantial amount of hype built around LG's latest stab at the QWERTY phone market for Verizon Wireless -- the VX10000 Voyager -- and it isn't without merit. For starters, the feature-packed candybar sports a 2.81 inch exterior touchscreen paired with second display of equal size and a full keyboard on the inside. In the media department, the handset features a 2 megapixel camera with autofocus, video camera, expandable memory via microSD up to 8GB, and VCAST services of both the Music and TV varieties. Do the features stack up in Verizon's favor? Does the Voyager live up to the hype or will it fall short of expectations? Continue reading to find out.

Here they are, the product waifs, which can only mean one thing: the LG VX10000 QWERTY Voyager and LG VX8800, AKA Venus, slider are official. The dual-display Venus (2-inch main on top and 1.49-inch haptic VibeTouch touchscreen below for navigation) is up and dancing on Verizon this morning for immediate availability. Same $200 fee after online discount and 2 years of your life inked in blood that we already saw on pre-order. The Voyager with its 2.8-inch VibeTouch, external touchscreen (and 2.8-inch internal) is still on track for its 21st launch for $300 plus 2 year contract. Don't worry, we'll remind you come Wednesday.

[Via LG]

Read -- LG Voyager on Verizon
Read -- LG Venus on Verizon

Well, it's finally here: meet the LG Voyager, successor to the enV and arguably one of the best QWERTY handsets on Verizon to date. Pretty much everyone walks away with a feature or two here that they're gonna love: EV-DO, VCAST TV, a 2 megapixel camera, two amazingly large displays, expandable memory via microSD, touchscreen exterior display and a full keyboard all make the cut. But hey, enough of the small talk -- head off to the gallery, check it out, and stay tuned for our full review!

Trying to wrap your noodle around the concept of a pink LG Venus? Us too, and naturally, visuals help -- the more, the better. On that note, we're pleased to present a handful of pictures of the pink Venus with a couple of its darker, statelier cousin thrown in for good measure. The black will launch first -- November 19, if you recall -- with the pink following on December 11 for $199 after a $50 rebate has been applied. QWERTY more to your liking? Fret not, as we're hearing the Voyager follows up on the 21st of November for $299 with the same $50 rebate.

[Thanks, anonymous tipster]

For some of us, the LG Voyager could be the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel that Verizon customers have been hoping for. Stacked to the gills with features like EV-DO, VCAST TV, a 2 megapixel camera with autofocus, expandable memory via a microSD slot, an exterior display which touchsrceen capability and another interior display that reveals a full QWERTY keypad, it's certainly designed to please almost anyone. Even though some of the features appear a little quirky -- like only being able to rotate the phone clockwise while snapping pics -- we're sure that you'll find great info in the quick start guide while you wait ever so patiently for its release.

Counting down the hours until the Voyager makes an appearance on Verizon? If so, here's something sure to tide you over. Apparently, the handset's datasheet has made its way onto the intarweb, and it's got just about every detail you could ever want -- save for a price and pinpointed release date, of course. Highlights include a 2.81-inch external touchscreen, VibeTouch tactile feedback support, V CAST Mobile TV, dual integrated speakers, a two-megapixel camera, microSD expansion slot and VZ Navigator preloaded. If you've undoubtedly got this one on your must-have list, hit the read link and eat your heart out.

[Via MobilitySite]

We've caught boatloads of noise detailing Verizon's pipeline for the remainder of the year (and possibly into early '08), but exact launch dates have been harder to come by. Granted, the carriers often don't know these until the last minute anyway -- network test failures and supply problems being what they are -- but Boy Genius Report has scored a spreadsheet that should at least start to give us a rough idea of what we can expect for the next few months. The Samsung i760 finally (and we do mean finally) launches on October 19, followed by the Juke two days later on the 21st. The first of November sees the BlackBerry Pearl 8130, LG VX5400, and Palm Treo 755p (probably right about the same time Alltel gets it), with the LG Venus coming just a short few days later on the 4th. The 15th sees two new shades for the G'zOne Type-S -- black and "burgundy / gold" -- alongside the Samsung u900 "FlipShot." The ultra-cool LG Voyager and G'zOne "Type-Sptt" (possibly just a Type-S without the cam) slide in on November 18, with two new VX8550 shades dropping on the 21st. Whew! Now, the real question: how many of these dates are actually gonna hold?