By LEON STAFFORD
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Verizon Wireless, the nation's No. 2 carrier, is hoping the combination of mobile TV, touch-screen technology and removable memory in one sleek phone package will make consumers forget about that "other phone" this holiday season.
The telecom giant, which counts Atlanta as one of its five biggest markets, on Wednesday is releasing Voyager, its souped-up answer to the popular iPhone.
The new device, which will cost $299 after a $50 rebate and a two-year contract, comes with both a touch-screen keyboard and a traditional one under a flip-open hood. In addition to the obligatory camera, the LG-made phone can download music from Verizon's VCast store wirelessly, pull up YouTube videos and record voice memos.
"We were very deliberate in how we designed the phone," said Jeff Mango, president of the Georgia/Alabama region for Verizon Wireless. "The phone was in production for a year and a half."
Voyager's release is the latest line drawn in the sand of the ultra-competitive phone wars. Designed to dazzle the eye and combine your MP3 player, PDA and camera into one small, pocket-size device, feature-heavy cellphones are expected to again be one of the big sellers when Americans hit the stores beginning Friday.
NPD, a New York-based market research firm, estimated in findings released Tuesday that consumer phone sales for the third quarter were up 47 percent over the same period last year.
Verizon Wireless has to beat Apple's $399 iPhone, whose service is available only from the Atlanta-based wireless division of AT&T. The phone, released in June, raised the bar on what a phone could be and is going into its first holiday season.
Mango said the lower-priced Voyager will give Verizon an advantage.
"Price was a key factor," Mango said. "We wanted to make our products affordable. But more important than price, through listening to our customers we are able to offer a great value at an affordable price."
Voyager follows Monday's release of Verizon's Venus, which shares some of the same attributes of Voyager, including a vibrating effect when using its glossy touch-screen interface.
Though AT&T has a higher profile locally because of its acquisition of BellSouth last year, Verizon Wireless has a sizable presence in metro Atlanta. Its Georgia-Alabama region headquarters is off Windward Parkway in Alpharetta; it also has offices in Sanctuary Park in north Fulton County and in Dunwoody near Perimeter Mall.
The company has about 3,500 employees in Georgia and recently spent $150 million in the state on its high-speed broadband network. The company has 63.7 million customers nationwide.
Third-quarter revenue for Verizon Wireless overall was $11.3 billion, up 14.4 percent, the company said Tuesday. Data revenue — which includes money made from games and e-mail applications — was up 63.4 percent in the third quarter.
"Atlanta is definitely in our top five markets," Mango said. "And we have had continuous growth."
AT&T is not resting on its laurels. Dawn Benton, a spokeswoman for the company, said AT&T will promote a number of devices this holiday, including "smart devices featuring Windows Mobile 6 for consumers and business travelers." These include the Pantech Duo and the AT&T Tilt, and music-centric devices such as the new Samsung SLM with Napster Mobile, Benton said.
"AT&T is geared up for an active holiday shopping season for wireless," she said. "We're ready for this Friday — and we're ready with dozens of cutting-edge devices — including the game-changing iPhone, which we expect to be a very popular gift item this year."
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