The first LG Chocolate music phone was sexy but marred by finicky controls.  The sequel, available in three flavors (Black, Blue Mint, and Black Cherry), brings a better interface and new features to the mix.  The Chocolate’s best upgrade is its new Navigation Wheel that makes scrolling through your music library – now organized by artist, genre, and album – a breeze.  The touch-sensitive buttons provide force feedback.  Optimized for use with Verizon’s powerful V CAST Music service, the slider features a customizable equalizer and lets you set music to play in the background while you’re busy texting or browsing Web over Verizon’s EV-DO network.

LG Chocolate VX8550; $99 (after two-year contract and rebate); verizonwireless.com

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