Motorola V180

Status: 🟢 Fully functional

The Motorola V180 was the most affordable flip phone in Motorola’s lineup, but it still packed some surprisingly fun features for its time. It could run J2ME apps, which meant you could play basic mobile games and use simple apps, and it could even handle MP3 ringtones—quite a treat for a budget phone. The protruding antenna gives it that extra touch of vintage charm, reminding you of the early 2000s era of mobile tech when flip phones were all the rage.

Hardware-wise, the V180 wasn’t much different from its candybar sibling, the Motorola C380. Aside from its external black-and-white display, it was essentially the same under the hood. But the flip phone design gave it a unique appeal, especially with that classic “flip to hang up” motion that made you feel like you were in a movie every time you ended a call. Despite my initial skepticism toward flip phones, which I thought were overpriced and less durable compared to candybars, holding a working V180 today has changed my mind. These phones were built to last—sturdy little business machines that handled calls with ease.

The one thing that could have made the V180 truly great would’ve been a MicroSD card slot. With such a feature, it could have been a true multimedia powerhouse for its time, able to store more than just a handful of MP3 ringtones. Still, for what it was, the V180 was a reliable and affordable entry into the world of flip phones, and it turns out they were tougher than I gave them credit for.