It felt like a piece of jewelry. Seriously. If you were holding a phone in 2006, you were likely holding a plastic brick or a silver Motorola Razr that felt a bit like a surgical tool. Then the LG Chocolate cell phone arrived. It didn't look like a phone. It looked like a sleek, obsidian slab of secrets. When you slid it up, that glowing red touch-sensitive pad felt like something pulled straight out of a sci-fi movie.
People forget how risky this was for LG.
The mobile market was obsessed with utility, but the Chocolate (specifically the VX8500 in the US) was pure aesthetic. It was part of the "Black Label Series," and it basically signaled that LG was tired of being the "budget" alternative to Samsung or Nokia. They wanted to be cool. They succeeded. But man, those touch buttons were a nightmare if your fingers were even slightly sweaty.
That Glowing Red Interface: Innovation or Gimmick?
The first thing anyone noticed about the LG Chocolate cell phone was the face. There were no physical buttons on the front. Instead, you had these heat-sensitive "ghost" buttons that glowed a deep, moody red. Honestly, it was beautiful. It felt premium.
But here’s the thing most people get wrong about the design—it wasn't just about the looks. LG was trying to solve the "pocket dialing" problem without needing a clunky lock switch. The touch sensors only reacted to the heat of a human finger. You could throw it in a purse or a pocket and, theoretically, it wouldn't start calling your ex-boss at 2:00 AM.
However, usability was... questionable.
The D-pad was replaced by a touch-sensitive circular scroll or a set of directional touch points depending on which specific model you had. Verizon’s version, the VX8500, used a touch wheel that didn't actually spin. It just felt your thumb moving. If you were trying to navigate a long list of songs—because this was also marketed as a high-end MP3 player—you were in for a workout. It was finicky. One wrong graze and you’d accidentally back out of a menu you spent three minutes entering.
The Slider Mechanism That Satisfied a Generation
There is a specific sound a well-made slider phone makes. It’s a metallic thwack. The LG Chocolate cell phone had one of the most satisfying spring-loaded mechanisms in history. You didn't have to push it all the way; you just nudged it, and the phone did the rest of the work.
Opening the phone revealed the actual keypad. The buttons were checkered—alternating shades of dark gray and black—to mimic a chocolate bar. It was a literal interpretation of the name. It felt dense. At 3.5 ounces, it had a weight that felt like "quality" back then.
LG Chocolate Cell Phone: The Multimedia Powerhouse (For 2006)
We take Spotify for granted now. In 2006, having 1GB of storage in your pocket felt like owning a personal library. The Chocolate supported microSD cards up to 2GB. That was massive. You could fit maybe 500 songs if you compressed the bitrate until they sounded like they were recorded underwater.
LG pushed the music angle hard. They included a dedicated music button on the side so you could jump straight into your tunes without sliding the phone open.
- Format Support: It handled MP3 and WMA.
- The Headset Drama: It used a proprietary LG charging port for the headphones. You couldn't just plug in your favorite Sony earbuds without an adapter. It was annoying then, and it’s still the biggest complaint collectors have today.
- Bluetooth: It had A2DP! This meant you could actually use stereo Bluetooth headphones. This was bleeding-edge stuff for a mid-2000s feature phone.
The camera was a 1.3-megapixel shooter. By today's standards, the photos look like impressionist paintings made of blocks. But back then? Having a flash on a slider phone was a flex. You could take "night" photos at the mall and actually see your friends' faces, provided nobody moved for three seconds.
The Cultural Impact: From K-Pop to Verizon
The LG Chocolate cell phone (the KG800) actually started in South Korea. It was a massive hit there before it ever touched US soil. When it finally migrated, carriers like Verizon saw a gold mine. They didn't just sell a phone; they sold a lifestyle.
They released it in different "flavors."
- Mint (Light Green)
- Cherry (Red)
- White Chocolate (Self-explanatory)
- Strawberry (Pink)
This was one of the first times we saw a tech company treat a phone like a fashion accessory that needed seasonal colorways. Apple does this now with the iPhone "Pro" colors, but LG was doing it with "Black Cherry" and "Blue Mint" nearly two decades ago.
Why the Chocolate Eventually Melted
So, why don't we all have LG Chocolates in our pockets today? Aside from the obvious rise of the iPhone in 2007, the LG Chocolate cell phone suffered from "form over function."
The touch buttons were notorious for failing. Over time, the heat sensitivity would degrade, or the internal ribbon cable connecting the slider to the motherboard would fray. If you owned one for more than 18 months, you were basically living on borrowed time.
Also, the software was proprietary. It wasn't an "app" phone. You were stuck with whatever Verizon or LG put on there. If you wanted a new game, you had to pay $6.99 for a "BREW" app that took ten minutes to download over a 1X or EV-DO network.
The "New" Chocolate (BL40)
LG tried to revive the brand in 2009 with the BL40. It was a bizarre, ultra-wide 21:9 aspect ratio smartphone. It looked like a remote control. While it was a beautiful piece of hardware, the world had moved on to Android and iOS. The "Chocolate" magic was tied to that specific 2006-2007 era of "dumbphones" that tried to be smart.
How to Handle a Vintage LG Chocolate Today
If you've found an old LG Chocolate cell phone in a junk drawer and want to see your old photos or messages, you’re going to run into some hurdles.
First, the networks. Most of these phones ran on CDMA (Verizon/Sprint) or 2G GSM. Most of those towers are gone. You can't activate these as "phones" anymore. They are essentially paperweights that can play MP3s.
Retrieving Your Data
Don't bother trying to find the original LG PC Suite software; it won't run on Windows 11 without a fight.
- The MicroSD Trick: If you saved your photos to the memory card, just pop the card into a modern adapter.
- The Internal Memory Struggle: If the photos are on the internal memory, you’ll need a proprietary LG USB cable. They are cheap on eBay, but the drivers are a nightmare to find. Your best bet is an old Windows XP laptop if you have one lurking in the attic.
Battery Swelling
These phones used Lithium-Ion batteries that are now 15+ years old. If the back of your Chocolate looks "puffy," do not plug it in. That's a fire hazard. You can still buy replacement batteries (model LGIP-411A or similar) for under $15.
The Legacy of the Gloss
We owe a lot to the LG Chocolate cell phone. It forced the industry to realize that people care about how a phone feels in their hand, not just how many bars of signal it gets. It paved the way for the "fashion phone" era and eventually the luxury smartphone market.
📖 Related: Find My on iPhone: Why You’re Probably Using It Wrong
It was flawed. It was smudge-prone. It was occasionally frustrating to use. But it was also the first phone that felt like it belonged in a nightclub instead of a boardroom.
If you’re looking to buy one for a collection, stick to the original KG800 or the VX8500. Avoid the "Chocolate 3" flip phone—it lost the soul of the original slider. Look for units that still have the port cover intact; those were the first things to snap off.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Check your old tech bins for any LG devices; if the battery is swollen, dispose of it at a certified e-waste center immediately.
- If you're a designer, look at the Chocolate's UI—the "minimalist red on black" aesthetic is making a comeback in modern "Dark Mode" applications.
- Dig through your old microSD cards; the 512MB cards used in these phones often contain lost "lo-fi" photos from the mid-2000s that offer a unique nostalgic aesthetic.