(Associated Press via NewsEdge) In time for the holidays, Verizon Wireless is launching a cell phone that looks a lot like the hottest phone so far this year: Apple's iPhone.
Like the iPhone, the LG Voyager features a large touch screen, a camera and extensive multimedia, web browsing and email capabilities.
However, it one-ups the iPhone by folding open lengthwise to reveal a QWERTY keyboard and a second, non-touch sensitive screen. The lack of a hardware keyboard has been one of the main complaints about the iPhone.
The Voyager will connect to Verizon Wireless' latest data network, providing speeds much higher than the AT&T network the iPhone uses. The Voyager also has direct access to Verizon Wireless' online music store.
However, the Voyager will not come with a large built-in memory for songs and video, offering instead a slot for memory cards up to 8Gb. Its screens are also not as large as the iPhone's.
It's an open question whether the Voyager can encroach on the iPhone's cachet or match its ease of use. Apple has sold more than 1 million units since the phone-cum-iPod hit the market June 29.
In announcing its holiday lineup, Verizon Wireless did not say how much the Voyager or three other new phones would cost. It also didn't give a specific launch date, saying only that they would be in stores before Thanksgiving.
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