Amazon.com Product Description

With a unique sliding design and a focus on mobile internet and email connectivity, the SL56 packs a powerful punch in a small package that weighs under three ounces. In addition to a built-in email client, and support for multimedia messaging, the phone also features voice dialing, a speakerphone, and tons of phonebook memory. All these goodies make it the perfect complement to AT&T Wireless service.

Design
By going with a slider design, Siemens offers a compact device that offers access to the number pad only when you need it. The front of the phone sports a 101 x 80 color display. Meanwhile, the area below the display offers one touch access to wireless Internet services and your phonebook. There's also a five-way directional key that controls most of the phone's menus and functions. Using the SL56's infrared port, you can synchronize your contacts and calendar events with other devices.

Calling Features
The SL56's generous 13 MB of internal memory provides plenty of space for thousands of contacts, which you can access quickly and easily via the phone's interface. The phone also features a speakerphone for easy handsfree talking, and you can set pictures and graphics to display when specific contacts call you. With 16-chord polyphonic ringtones built in, you can also spice up your incoming call experience. Even more ringtones can be downloaded from AT&T Wireless' mMode service. And for those times you want to keep things discreet, there's also a vibrate ringer mode.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The SL56 has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging. Support is built in for sending and receiving text, graphics and sound via messages. Instant messaging is also supported and the phone ships with a built-in email client (AT&T messaging charges apply). T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet is easy with the SL56, as well. It supports the GPRS protocol for speedy downloads and wireless Web access. AT&T's mobile mMode service lets you receive and send emails, read news headlines, get sports scores, download games and ringtones, and more.

A number of handy software tools are bundled with the SL56 including a voice memo recorder, a calculator, a calendar, a to-do list, and an alarm clock.

Entertainment
The SL56 supports custom themes and wallpapers, plus it comes with two games. Of course, more games are available via the AT&T mMode service.

Vital Statistics
The Siemens SL56 weighs 2.79 ounces and measures 3.21 x 1.75 x 0.86 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 3 hours of digital talk time, and up to 175 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the GSM/GPRS 800/1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
SL56 handset, battery charger, lithium-ion battery. ... Read more

Features

• SL56 features the new innovative and stylish sliding design
• Comes with 4,096 color display
• Multiple themes and backgrounds for custom displays
• Supports Internet browsing and text messaging
• Equipped with integrated speakerphone

Reviews (21)

Cool Sleek Phone But It Breaks Too Often
When first released, the SL56 was a great phone. It had many features packed into a very tiny shell. However, the phone now is really outdated and it breaks very easily! I have had my phone sent back countless times because of keys that don't work or buttons that have fallen off. If for some reason you want to purchase this now, I would stay away for there are far better phones on the market!

Cute phone, but poorly made
Right after our wedding, I added my wife to my cell phone account.We went to a kiosk in the mall to take care of it, and after much time deliberating, she decided on the sl56.She was happy with it, until it started malfunctioning.During calls, it would just shut off randomly, for no reason.She took it back to get a replacement, and there was another woman there, doing the exact same thing.Aside from the random-off feature, it has quite a low-resolution screen, with a limited color range.Also, the processor is slow, making the display take a big hit when displaying animated pictures, movies, and the like.When it did work, it was fine.But other than it being `chic', I'd have to say that it was a poor investment

Bad Combination-- Poorly Manufacture and Poor Performance
I am writing this while on hold with Cingular Wireless, attempting to get a replacement for this phone.

Let's start with the positives:It looks cool.Unfortunately, that is the totality of the positives.

Now, let's discuss the negatives.

First, it is poorly manufactured.Buttons began falling off within two (2) months (I hope that you are good at dialing with your thumbnail).Some of the remaining buttons worked only intermittently thereafter.Finally, the send/receive button gave up the ghost after ten (10) months of use.Cingular and Siemens have taken the position that buttons falling off the phone is not part of the warranty.

Ahh, but when it did work, it worked poorly.First, the buttons are an ergonomic nightmare.I had friends with small, dainty fingers, who would hand me back my phone with disgust, as they were unable to manipulate the minute keys.The four bars AT&T advertises?I never saw more than three, and then I saw three only infrequently.Make a lot of calls?No battery life.You have your choice of either a charger or a handsfree connection, but not both simultaneously.

When I was younger, a friend of mine opined that owning an MG was a true luxury.You not only needed to be able to afford the car, but you had to have the full-time mechanic to fix it.This phone, sadly, while lovely to look at and fondle, is a disappointment to own.Take a pass.

compact and feature packed
I bought this to replace my Sony-Ericsson T616.I did not like the weight, size, poor camera quality of the T616.Besides, why the heck would I want a lousy camera on the phone when I got a kick a$$ digital camera?During my one year ownership, I found no use for it.

I choose SL56 because of high consumer reviews on other sites.Indeed, it is small, well constructed, and light.Which means it will fit into my pocket just fine.It also has loads of features like appointment reminder, voice/data memo, etc...Which almost make it a small PDA.Its ringtones sounds great.It has speakerphone and it is loud and clear.Shocking consider its small size.Signal/reception is good.

Now for some cons.I would prefer it to have a better screen.Compare to today's top phones, which has at least 65k colors and even 262k colors and superior screens, SL56's 4k colors is woefully sad.No bluetooth or mini-USB connector.battery is weak compare to other competiting phones.500mA is way too weak for a cellphone battery.If it has tri-band capability, then it would be useable world-wide.

Overall, so far, I am happy with it.

sl56
I received the phone as a replacement to the c56, which was very small and light. i had no problems with the c56. The sl56 is smaller when closed and weighs about the same. Its a bit deeper though than the c56. Sound quality is about the same, although people on the other end say the sl56 is clearer.

I hope people realize how cell signal works. A tower can only have so many calls being placed on it, or traffic. This could be a reason for the degradation in call signal strength and sound quality. You should check a coverage map for the gsm 800/1900 signal. The sl56 does not support analog, and most phones of the future will probably not either because this signal is old and not great seeing how it is one of the first digital implementations.

I'm in canada and am on the Rogers gsm network and i have no problems with signal or call clearity. my c56 had a stronger signal in my basement by one "bar". I live outside Toronto which has the strongest coverage throughout canada.

People are very amazed by this phone when you slide it open and a tone plays. This gets annoying very quickly either by the noise (which can be changed or turned off), or by people wanting to know what you are doing when you try to do something with the phone. The phone does not need to be slid open to place or answer calls, or to do anything that doesnt require the keypad.

Many applications can be downloaded from the net, for free, and transfered to the phone. Or, you can find many sites that will send them to your phone to make it a better business tool, if that is your intention.Personally, I could not see this phone being used on a business standpoint.

I also like the feature of the voice recorder. You can activate it while on a call and record the conversation, both ends, during the call. Also,you can record up to 7 minutes - ample time compared to the c56.

I also find some of the ringtones to be really long, around two minutes in length.

The approach of giving the phone a "filesystem" is techy, but unless you are computer literate, you might get lost in the structure.

I'm hooked on the tennis that comes with the phone. I'm upset that Rogers currently does not carry an downloadable games for the phone, and I don't want to waste data chargers on playing real time, online games with the phone.

Overall, its a great phone. And I would recommend it to friends. ... Read more

Features

• Internal display of 7-9 lines, 4096 graphic colors, 120 x 160 pixels
• High quality audio features real musical ringtones
• Downloadable applications such as games, graphics, and images help create your own unique experience
• Email pictures wirelessly right from your phone to any e-mail address
• Includes camera attachment, battery, headset, charger and user documentation

Reviews (6)

Horrible battery life...
The battery life for this phone reminds me of my old bulky analog Motorola phone.I must charge the phone twice-a-day.Whenever I use it to make a call, I have to be sure to plug it into the charger.

The only good thing about this phone is that I can now trade it in on a better cheaper phone.

Next cell phone please!
We have owned this phone about 16 months. Others on the web have found the hinge would eventually break.
Not ours. We suffered a bad case of LCD screen noire.It looks like a badly miscolored computer monitor. Except that much of the screen is black and it's not fixable by degaussing or anything but replacing the LCD = the entire phone.
And I thought cellphone insurance was for those who lose their phones or abuse them.
Ha! No, insurance is for flashy phones like this one. Stay far away from this shiny junk.

has many faults
I bought this phone with a Verizon service and from the first days I started to face sevral problems. My main objection is the battery consumption. It is huge. I had to put the phone on charge at least once a day. A 15min call could drain the battery. I have seen other phones with color screen and their battery works much longer. The phone would "hang" like a computer at times, so that the screen froze and there was no response by pressing any key. The only thing I could do was to take out the battery, put it back again and restart the phone, which was frustrating.

The quality of sound in the receiver was bad too. With just a little background noise, I coud not hear the caller anymore.

The only thing I liked very much about this phone was the calendar and scheduler, that had almost the same capabilities of a handheld. I would organize all my events and activites by my phone. Also the desktop was convenient as I could customize for the icons I wanted to see as fast links and I could choose to show 4 of them on screen.

Decent, but room for improvement
I've had this phone for about a year and half now, and have been mostly pleased with it.My main gripes with it are:
1)The joints squeak and crack after about two weeks of normal use.To people on the other end, it sounds like you're typing on a keyboard while speaking.
2)I've had a few instances where the phone would freeze up.Turning off the phone and then restarting it always fixed this.
One of the other reviews stated it had short battery life, but this hasn't been a problem at all for me.
Overall, if you have the opportunity spring for one of the newer Motorolla versions.As I understand it, they've fixed many of these issues in later models.

Good phone, with some compromises
Right now I currently have this phone through Verizon and am generally pretty happy with its performance.I almost always have a signal and the color screen has good resolution for a phone. There are a few things that I must say though.In the 2 years that I have had this phone I have had to replace it twice, once because it stopped turning on, and another because it wouldn't hold a charge and was acting really glichy.With normal use the charge will last maybe 24 hours then it is dead.If it is roaming for a signal or I'm playing games it won't last anywhere near that long.As long as I remember to throw it on the charger every night this is not a problem for me because I don't use the games feature (through Verizon it is a rip off).I have also seen an attachment that will take pictures with this phone, but why suck the batteries taking pictures when your going to need it for your phone calls.Overall this phone has served the purpose of sending and receiving my phone calls and text messages relatively well, there have been many situations where friends and family haven't been able to talk and I have, even the other Verizon users. If you are looking for more though, the battery life is just not enough on this phone.I must say though that for $60 you can buy a bigger battery, but that makes an already relatively big phone by today's standards even bigger and I think that it only gives you twice the capacity. The way this things uses the battery when the screen is on I don't know how far twice the battery will get you. ... Read more

Features

• Large color display supports 65,000 colors
• Supports downloading personalization features Megatones and Wallpapers
• Comes equipped with a powerful mobile version of AOL Instant Messenger
• Equipped with embedded picture messaging, which allows you to receive picture messages from other T-Mobile camera phones
• Dual Band GSM 900 / GSM 1900

Reviews (39)

Worst Phone Ever!
Maybe I just got the un-luck of the draw, but this phone has been a headache to me for the past seven or eight months. The first problem that developed is that it would send incoming calls straight to my voicemail and never tell me that I had missed a call. So I traded the phone off the warranty. The second problem is that the phone would turn off and on again every time I tried to answer an incoming call. Another trade with the warranty. Then the phone would turn off and on again whenever I got a text message. Another warranty trade. Then my phone deleted contacts out of my phonebook and completely froze up half a dozen times. I have traded this phone off the warranty four times and T-Mobile keeps sending me the same phone. It's enough to make me miss the days of my LG1200 with Sprint. T-Mobile's customer service has been amazing, this particular phone stinks. Or maybe I've just been getting all the broken Samsungs from T-Mobile. Not only that, but sometimes the calls don't go through. There's not even a ringtone when you try and call someone. Then at least 3 times I have been talking to someone and hearing my own voice echo back to me. I don't know if these are phone problems or service provider problems, but I would steer everyone away from this particular phone. I've heard other Samsungs work great. Get one of those.

Great battery life, low voice quality
Some say the voice quality is good, but compared to a Nokia, the x105's call quality actually sounds quite boomy and muffled. But the battery life is excellent. I can often make it a whole work week without recharging the phone.

good basic sturdy

Basic good phone
Sturdy - dropped a couple times
Good reception and sound quality (just don't hold it by the top of the phone)
good battery life
Cheap-was able to get money back after rebates, bought from a non-corporate t-mobile store.

Favorite phone by far of my sony ericson and Motorola.

Make sure you use the given headset, other non-brand seems to give me whirring noise while I'm talking, very annoying.

Compact & Convenient Phone
I bought this phone from T-mobile, and i found this phone is really a good choice. My first phone is Sony Erricson T216, it is also small, but not so convenient to use.

Pros:
1. It is compact
2. very convenient to use
3. very good quality LCD
4. good quality of voice

Cons:
1. It is not convenient for infred connection
2. Games are not so interesting.

In all, if you just want a good & connevient phone, this is a good one.

Albert
FL

Versatile little phone for very cheap.
I've had this phone for about 7 months now. I got the phone practically for free ($19.99) by ordering at TMobile's site and signing up for a year plan @ 39.99 for 1000 minutes, Nights and weekends free!I couldnt get a better deal because I dont believe in rebates as I never got one back in the mail :(.

For the price, (Very important that one weight what you get for the amount paid), feature wise this phone is fantastic.

(+) mulitple alarms (Morning Call, Daily and Once Alarm) all ofwhich can power on the phone if it is turned off when the event occurs,
(+)To do List
(+)a calendar (with Alarms).
(+)It is a dual band phone 900/1900 which is great because it'll work in the caribbean when I go down (most islands use 900 GSM band).
(+)You can send MMS and SMS messages without a problem though phone does not take pictures.
(+)Fantastic no scratch LCD screen. Very sharp and colors are bright and vibrant under most light conditions. No scratch is essential for a non fliptop phone.
(+)Keys light up when phone rings making it easy to find in the dark.
(+) Very cool flashing light indicator that flash red(or green) when you have a new text message or voice mail.
(+) Durable! I have dropped this phone on the pavement many times, voice quality, signal everything has held nice.
(+) OK battery life ... about 3-4 hours talk time, 7 days standyby before batteries drain.
(+) Very good reception -- and no anntena to boot
(+) Very stylish looking... looks better on you than in pictures actually.
(+) Very light and small.
(+) Polyphonic Ringtones.

BUT ...
(-) Phone slips easily out your hand ... or from your pocket onto the floor.
(-) Vibrate could be stronger.
(-) Crappy Ringtones out the box, Luckly you get the TMobile ringtone as a default because the rest just takes up space on the phone.You can download cool ones via the site -- including the Mega Tones that have words and melody.
(-) Vibrate + Melody not as neat as could be. It Vibrates twice and then the volume on your selected melody goes up so slowly that you end up missing the call because you couldnt get it out your pocket in time.
(-) Slow menus -- deleting Text messages can be a slow and painful process.

For the amount of money paid I feel like I got the better end of the deal.I love this phone -- it serves it's purpose which is to keep me in contact with people constantly and help organise my life just a little with its calendar and alarm.I can't comment about web features since I opted out of getting this option on my plan. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

The Nokia 3595 is at the top end of Nokia’s entry-level 30 series phones, offering additional capabilities through its Java support and advanced messaging. The Nokia 3595 phone comes in the familiar slim Nokia package (4.64 by 1.95 by 0.87 inches) but has a larger and unique keypad design and a full 4,096-color display. This device supports messaging via SMS and MMS, enabling customers to create, send, edit, and forward messages with text and images to compatible phones. Customers can also receive messages with text, image, and sound, and instant message with friends or business associates. The GPRS connection ensures high-speed data transmission so users have quick access to Internet content via the XHTML browser. The Nokia 3595 also offers Java support for downloading business applications onto this phone. For fun, the Nokia 3595 has preloaded polyphonic ring tones, wallpapers, animated screen savers, and picture messages—plus the memory to download more.

The device also features four games (Backgammon, Sky Diver, Air Glide, and Bowling), and changeable covers in various colors. The phone book in the Nokia 3595 holds up to 500 contacts with up to five phone numbers and three text entries for each contact. Other standard organizational features include a calendar with up to 500 entries, a to-do list with up to 30 entries, and an alarm clock with snooze. The phone book, calendar, and to-do list can all be synchronized with a PC using SyncML software over the WAP connection. For hearing-impaired customers, the 3595 even offers TTY/TDD (Telecommunication Device for the Deaf) compatibility with the phone adapter. The extended Li-Ion battery is rated for up to 5.5 hours of digital talk time and 10 days of digital standby time. ... Read more

Features

• Phone comes with a $15.00 airtime refill card, headset, battery, and charger
• Large color screen supports 4096 colors (96x65 pixels)
• Send and receive messages with image, sound and text
• Personalize your phone with 8 different color schemes
• Phone book stores up to 500 contacts, with up to 5 numbers and 3 text entries per contact

Reviews (7)

I love this phone
this phone is the best well it is my only one so shut up

A decent phone by Nokia, but nothing special
This is a very good phone for anyone who is a Nokia fan or who doesn't want anything fancy.It will call people and receive calls.It has a color screen, downloadable ring tones and games, and has a decent audio quality.There is no camera or bluetooth or advanced organization tools.It is growing increasingly outdated and by a year from now hardly anybody will be using it anymore, but if you own this phone I wouldn't go running to throw it out just yet.It gets the job done, but isn't going to wow you in the process.

I love this phone!
I bought and loved this phone. It was easy to use and most important I can download ringtones and wallpapers all for free! It has games and all the goodies I love this phone! IT is worth wat you pay totally!

Perfect phone for light use
I bought this phone as part of my T-Mobile EasySpeak prepaid package and am happy with it so far.I'll admit it's my first cell phone so I don't have anything to compare it with, but it seems to work well and has more features than I'll ever need.I just want to be able to easily store a handful of numbers, make and receive calls with good reception, and occasionally check my account balance, and this phone does all that well.Also the color screen is a nice feature.It probably isn't as high a resolution as on higher end phones, but it's still much better than black & white.It has many other features like voice dialing, text messaging, instant messaging, calendar, games, etc. that I don't see myself using much, so if you're interested in all the bells and whistles you'll have to do some research to make sure the phone has what you're looking for.One problem you probably can't avoid is it takes a while to get comfortable doing the simple tasks you want since there's just so many features included in the phone.But I'd say it's still probably about as simple as could be expected.

An outdated but fine phone
Big but light, ugly but usable. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

The all digital VX4600 from LG is a stylish companion with powerful calling, messaging and mobile Internet features. It's the perfect complement to Verizon Wireless phone service.

Design
The phone features a traditional clamshell design with a large 120 x 160 TFT color display with 65,000 colors. The outside cover of the handset sports a supplementary OEL (Organic Electro-Luminescent) 96 x 38 display that can display time, call information, battery and signal strength, and more. Most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button on the handset's blue backlit control pad. Meanwhile, the top right side of the unit houses an antenna while the USB-capable data and charging port is housed on the unit's bottom edge. There's a standard jack to accept universal hands-free headsets on the left side of the handset.

Calling Features
The VX4600's built-in address book can store up to 499 contacts for quick and easy management of phone numbers and email addresses. The phone comes with 36 built-in polyphonic ringtones plus a vibrating alert. Voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names. The speed dialing feature allows you to dial up to 99 numbers virtually instantaneously. A built-in speakerphone makes it easy to talk without having the phone to your ear and the VX4600's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The VX4600 has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging. Support is built in for sending and receiving text and graphics via messages. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet anywhere is easy with the VX4600, as well. Verizon's optional Mobile Web package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. You can check your e-mail, trade stocks online, compare prices while shopping, access flight information, get movie listings and find directions to the theater.

Verizon's Get It Now wireless download service is also fully compatible with the VX4600. This pay-per-download service features application downloads, games and productivity tools. You can also personalize your handset with ringtone downloads and digital photo-sharing tools using the Get It Now service.

The VX4600 ships with a calendar and scheduler, a voice memo application with up to 4 minutes of record time, and a notepad. An alarm clock, calculator and world clock are also included, as is the very handy restaurant tip calculator. Never dine without it!

Imaging and Entertainment
The VX4600 is BREW enabled, meaning it supports games written on the BREW platform. Games are available via the Get It Now service. The phone also features customizable theme colors, 14 built-in screen backgrounds and fonts so you can make your phone reflect your personality.

Vital Statistics
The LG VX4600 weighs 3.38 ounces and measures 3.43 x 1.81 x 0.98 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 200 minutes of digital talk time, and up to 165 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the CDMA 800 frequency. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
LG VX4600 cell phone, desktop charger with adapter, standard lithium-ion battery, holster, user's manual, welcome CD, quick reference guide. ... Read more

Features

• High-end quality, style and essential functionality
• Cool clamshell design, high-resolution internal color display
• OEL (Organic Electro-Luminescent) screen make an undeniable statement of style.
• Blue Backlit Keypad & 5-Way Navigation Key
• 36 Embedded Ring Tones plus Vibrate Mode

Reviews (7)

Nice solid basic phone, but with some little drawbacks
One of the most solid phone I have seen, nice touch, but the exterior is too smooth, i have drop it several times because I don't have a good grip of it, and I miss the grip I can get from Motorola V300. The screen is very dim, even it's at max bright ness. I think LG intentionaly make the low end phone screen this dark, so I will like the more expensive one. If all u need is making calls, this is fine. If you have a polorized sun glasses, don't get this phone. The screen look completely dark under polorized sun glasses. Ring tone is so loud, even the lowest setting will scared me when it rings. No single ring tone does not scare me from this phone. No speaker phone, oh, i miss speaker phone. Lucky I switch to VX6100, which has a very good speaker phone. Battery don't last that long, but I never run out of it. I like the dock charger, even it's large, but I will always like to put my phone on the charger, that's why i never run out of battery.the external sub screen is probably the biggest attration of hte phone, but it don't seem the visible under sun light.

very good phone with only minor drawback
pro: solid, cool looking, much better than VX4500, nice material and workmanship, cool external display, loud speaker and microphone , people say they hear me better than T-mobile Motorola V300, very loud ring tone (good and bad), strong vibration(good and bad). Desktop charger make charging handy. Real Aluminum front cover looks very cool.

cons: screen is dim for today's phone, screen look like a cheap phone, can not compare to V300.not many good ring tone, no game, ring can be too loud and often scare me when it rings. Vibration is so strong, when place on table it make very horrible noise. Very common for today's phone, the clip exposed the phone for scretch. I prefer the pouchbelt clip like the one come with Motorola V300. If you want this phone, better buy a leather cover or a aftermarket pouch that fits. Pouch from V300 is too big for this phone. After 2 week of use, I already scretch the cool looking front cover. phone get warm after 15 minutes of use. You can only get this phone online, such as amazon.com. I bet this phone cost more to manufacture than the Vx4500, and look so much better than Vx4500, so they don't offer it in the store. They want people see the bland Vx4500 to buy more expensive phone.

Phone is good. Activation was a nightmare.
First of all I must disagree with three points a previous reviewer made. The phone does have a "vibrate only" mode--to activate it, simply hold on to the asterisk key (or the microphone button if the phone is closed.) This turns on vibrate and silences all other sounds. In addition, the phone does allow you tosilence the ringer. To do this, open the phone and use the volume rocker button on the left hand side of the phone. Third, you can talk on the phone while it charges. You can either use a headset or you can simply grab the charger and hold onto it to press the phone to your ear. Either this reviewer was using a completely different phone or s/he did not read the manual.

Because the phone does not have those deficiencies, it really is a pretty good phone. Like other reviewers, I find it slightly annoying that you cannot leave the outside display on, especially because I do not wear a watch. However, pushing the button to turn on the display is no big deal. I also find it a bit annoying that the external display goes into a marquee mode, scrolling the information horizontally. I would also point out that the color display can get washed out if you're in bright sunlight.

Otherwise, the phone has some good features. I like how LG allows you to have more than one number for each name in your address book. (Some phones make you program a different entry for each number, which is silly when you consider that one person can easily have four phone numbers.) I also find the menus to be easy to navigate. There is no camera, which I like because all I want to do is make phone calls.

Activating this phone was a nightmare. For some reason Amazon shipped it without activating it. So I took it to the Verizon booth in Circuit City, where he could not activate it because he claimed that there was no suitable electronic serial number on the back of the phone. (The number he needed was on the box, which I had left at home. So bring the box with you when you try to activate it.)

So I went to a different Verizon store the next day to activate it. First he tells me that the necessary number was indeed on the back of the phone and that person I saw at Circuit City did not know what he was doing. Despite this, it took over two hours to activate the phone. Supposedly this was because this particular model had never been sold in the Verizon store and therefore it was not in their computer.

Thus, although I like this phone and I got a good deal on it through Amazon, I will never buy another phone from Amazon because of the activation hassle. Instead I will just buy one in the store. Of course your mileage may vary--maybe my activation hassle was a unique one.

Lacks simple functions, but works well
I will be exchanging this phone for another model.The reception is good, phone works well, however there are a few simple functions that I just expected it to have, becausenearly every phone now-a-days has these features:
1.It only has a desk top charger.You can't talk while it charges.It also doesn't have a speaker phone, which would be convenient to use while it is charging on the desk top charger.
2.You can't turn off the ringer.
3.There isn't a "vibrate only" mode for the ringer.The only vibrate option is with the highest ringer level.

For me, numbers 2 and 3 are important because I am a teacher.I need to be able to keep my phone on during class, without a ring.The lowest level of ring is also very loud.

It is also a pain that the light doesn't stay on for more than 2 seconds.If you're dialing a number and look away for a minute, the screen is dark and you can't see anything.

If none of these are a big deal to you, then the phone is pretty good.If small gripes like this will bother you, I wouldn't buy the 4600.

A solid phone
I was a little leary about buying a phone that I hadn't seen (held or used) over the Internet (this phone is only sold through Verizon'z online store. They do not offer it in their stores). But I was pleasently suprised when it arrived. It has a fairly small form factor which makes it easy to slip in a pocket. It is also very well made. It seems very solid, even for a small phone. The menus are well done and easy to use and I enjoy the interface more than other phones I have had.

The external OELD is neat, but you must know that the longest setting it can be set to is 3 minutes and then it shuts off. You can't keep it on all the time. Also, there is no LED indicator to let you know about missed calls, voicemail and the like. You have to press the volume button to activate the OELD and then it will indicate if there were any missed messages. If this bothers you, then I wouldn't reccommend buying. To me, these are small issues. To others they may not be.

This phone really looks nice too. The combination silver/dark blue finish along with its design really makes it stand out. This was a very well thought out phone aesthetically speaking.

All in all, this is a great phone. If the absence of an 'always on' external display isn't a big factor, and you are looking into getting this phone, I would suggest you do. I think you'll like it! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Overview

Compatible with T-Mobile cell phone service, the Samsung V205 GSM phone sports a swiveling built-in color camera, a WAP Internet browser, and plenty of phone and organizer features, all displayed on an easy to read, 128 x 160 pixel, 65K color TFD main display with 20480 lines of resolution.

Calling Features

Used simply as a phone, the V205 benefits from a 5-way scroll key for easy menu navigation and dialing. Primary calling features include incoming call display on the external screen, multiparty calling with soft key privacy switch, 40-instrument polyphonic ring tones, a handy voice mail button, speed dial, call waiting and forwarding, call timers, redial, any-key answer, roaming indicator, phonebook look-up, phonebook scroll, mute control, no-answer transfer, usage alert, differential ring, and a 500 entry phone book.

Messaging and Internet

Access to the wireless Internet lets you download new ring tones, games, multimedia messages, and send and receive photos to and from your phone or PC. SMS two way messaging provides sending, receiving and storage of text messaging with multimedia attachments.

Organizer

Organizer features include a PIM (Personal Information Manager), alarm, and a scratch pad.

Vital Statistics

The Samsung V205 weighs 3.39 ounces and measures 1.87 x 3.57 x 0.91 inches. Its Lithium Ion batteries are rated at up to 240 minutes digital talk time and up to100 hours continuous digital standby. The phone supports English French and Spanish text prompts. The package includes a battery, charger, headset and user documentation. ... Read more

Features

• High speed GPRS phone with intergrated camera allows you to take and send pictures wirelessly in full color
• Dual display lets you view images and text on the internal LCD and check incoming calls on the external display
• 128 x 160 pixel, 65,000 color TFD main display
• Choose from 25 fixed, 40-instrument polyphonic ring tones or customize your phone by downloading the latest games, ringers, images and more
• Includes battery, charger, headset and user documentation

Reviews (1)

Creme de la Creme
This phone is truly exceptional.I have never had a problem with my V205. With tons of features and enough memory for all my contacts it's better than a Personal Assistant. I have never had a phone with so much battery longevity either, it has only died on me 3 times in over a year. Not to mention the swivel camera allowing me to take pix with my friends not just of them!! No matter where you go the V205 is guaranteed to be the most stylish and popular cell at the party. The Creme de la Creme on any guest list!! ... Read more

Features

• Phone comes with a $10.00 airtime refill card, headset, battery, and charger
• Supports text and picture messaging
• Downloadable ringtones allow you to customize your phone
• Comes with three games - Space Impact, Snake II, Pairs II
• 3.75 hours talk time, 10.5 days standby time

Reviews (3)

ringtones
i need to know what kind of ringtones can i download. can i even download any?

very good so far but ...
this phone has alot of fine features like text messaging and
picture messaging ("canned" is that what you call it? --
it's NOT a camera phone but has pictures like a birthday cake
to send) but the only thing that I miss from my other cell phone
is the call list only displays the time of call, not the date and
in an itemized fashion that I really miss.So, unless, there's
someone out there who can tell me if I am unaware that there IS
an itemized list, or date/time stamp, i give this phone 4 stars.
Otherwise, i would have given it 5 because I need to see the date

U Don't need this phone if U already use the AT&T network!!
The following advice is for those considering a AT&T Free2Go phone and service:Any phone under the AT&T network can be converted to Free2Go usage, and back to their normal network.So, if you had your AT&T phone cut off, and were in such a position that you had to resort to this method, just call their customer service and tell `em you want to convert to a Free2Go plan.They can talk you thru the re-programming process, and you don't have to pay an extra $100 for the phone.

This may work on other networks, but my experience is only with AT&T.Anyway, just a little money-saver for ya. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

With an integrated camera, voice dialing, and dual color displays, the Samsung VGA1000 makes a great mobile companion. Other features, like support for Sprint's wireless Web services, as well as built-in games and ringtones, round out a strong package that is sure to please.

Design
The VGA1000's handsome clamshell form factor houses an internal 128 x 160, 65,000-color display. There's also a supplementary color display on the front panel of the device that displays call information, battery life, time of day, signal strength and more. An extendable antenna is located on the top right side of the phone, and the camera and flash unit are placed on the rear of the device. Meanwhile, most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button above the handset's dial pad. A 2.5mm headset jack is also provided.

Calling Features
The phone's built-in address book allows you to assign up to 300 entries, each storing six numbers, with a total capacity for 300 numbers and 300 email and Web addresses. You can customize your caller ID by linking a photo to a specific phone number in your contact list. In addition to a vibrate mode, the phone allows you to choose from a number of polyphonic ringtones that make your received calls all the more exciting. The VGA1000's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911 (where available). Perhaps most importantly for users in rural areas, the VGA1000 is a tri-mode phone, meaning it can operate on Sprint's digital PCS network, as well as analog networks that serve many outlying areas.

Another key calling feature of the VGA1000 is its enhanced voice recognition capabilities. The system allows you to speak numbers digit by digit or speak the name of anyone in your phonebook. Voice features are speaker-independent, so there's no need to train the phone to respond to any one person's voice.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
If you need basic messaging capabilities, the VGA1000 has you covered as support is built-in for sending and receiving SMS text messages (Sprint PCS text messaging charges apply). T9 text entry, a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built-into the unit-- a plus for text messaging users.

The phone also supports PCS Vision email and instant messaging capabilities. Sprint PCS Vision transforms the wireless experience from something that's simply functional into something visual, entertaining and highly personalized. MSN Hotmail, Yahoo Mail and AOL Instant Messenger are all supported by Sprint's PCS Vision service. PCS Vision mobile Web services let you check out sports scores, get your seven-day forecast, check your flight status, and stay up to date with the latest news. Experience full-color graphic versions of popular Web sites.

A number of handy software tools are bundled with the VGA1000 including a calendar, a calculator, an alarm clock and a to-do list. A voice recorder lets you record memos for later retrieval.

Imaging and Entertainment
With its robust set of camera functions, the VGA1000 shines in the imaging department. The VGA-quality (640x480) digital camera lets you take, view, store and send pictures wirelessly in full color. You can also control brightness levels, white balance and color tone to get the image and effects you want. Other features include a self-timer for group shots, built-in fun frames to decorate your images, a multi-shot function for action sequences, and a self-portrait mode for special moments. Capture pictures in high, medium or low resolution and digitally zoom in up to 4 times. As mentioned, there's also a flash for low-light situations.

The VGA1000 lets you choose from a variety of pre-set images to customize your main and external displays and make them unique to you. With PCS Vision service, you can download games like Tetris and Pac-Man, as well as additional ringers, screensavers and backgrounds. You can even turn your phone into a gaming device with an optional, attachable game pad that makes it fun and easy to navigate when playing complex, fast-paced games on your phone.

Vital Statistics
The Samsung VGA1000 weighs 4.48 ounces and measures 3.5 x 1.9 x 1 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 2.9 hours of digital talk time, and up to 168 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the AMPS 800/CDMA 800/CDMA 1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
VGA1000 handset, AC battery charger, lithium-ion battery, user's manual. ... Read more

Features

• This tri-mode CDMA phone comes with a large color display that supports 65,000 colors
• Comes with integrated camera with flash
• Equipped with voice activated dailing
• Supports wireless Internet (WAP 2.0) and text messaging
• Phone book can carry up to 250 contacts

Reviews (89)

OK phone.Probably better off with something else
+ Reception is fine - bar meter acts almost exactly the same as my Hitachi P300 when tested in various areas.I don't think that there is as much noticable difference in reception between today's phones as some people would make you think.(Quality between providers is a whole other story.)

+ Talk quality - my earpiece is too loud.There are about 6 volume levels.I always keep mine on 1 and it is still commonly too loud.I am thinking of sticking something on the earpiece to dampen the volume.To comfortably have a conversation, you want to be able to put the earpiece right up to your ear without getting blasted.Also, you don't want everyone in the room to hear your conversation.

I have intermittent faint beeps in my earpiece while using the phone (also reported by many other users of this phone).

+ Picture quality - Usually not very good; finicky about lighting conditions and requires subject of photo to be perfectly still.Also, if you want to email photos or put them on your PC, you must pay $5/mo for Sprint's picture service -- you can not just pay per Kilobyte.Or, I read that you can get a third party software and connection cable (not so fun).But, this is true of all Sprint camera phones.

+ Battery life - fine; up to par.

+ Bugs - when you are in the menu or on the web, the phone randomly exits and goes back to the initial wallpaper/screensaver screen.This problem is also widely reported by other users.(Yes, I have the current software: WL15).Not much of a problem if you use the phone only for talking, but if you like to play with the Vision and whatnot, this would be annoying.

+ The phone has a nice quality feel.It is heavy and feels substantial - not plasticy or like a toy.The screen is beautiful (far more brilliant than my Hitachi P300 screen).The phone also looks nice and classy.However, it is bigger than many clamshells - it may be too big for some people.

+ I had to do it all over again, I would not get this phone. It is not that bad, but you can do better.I value talk quality and physical design most in a phone (not cameras, internet, bells, whistles etc).While not entirely fatal, the talk quality issues that this phone has (i.e. earpiece too loud and faint beeps) brings its score way down in my book.

At this point, this phone is old.There are alot more Sprint phones to choose from that are probably a smarter choice.

I might look into the Motorola v60v or LG vi125 down the road (A featureless clamshell with good talk quality).Word on the street is that the newer LGs for Sprint are way better than the older ones which had tons of problems.

Not the best phone
Had this phone for about 15 months; just long enough for the warranty to expire.Both my wife and I own this phone and we have the same problems with it.The phone has developed a habit of shutting off at just about anytime. I replaced the battery, but still have the problem on both phones.Lots of dropped calls, basically just not happy at all with it.Should have went with what my friend got, he is very happy with his sanyo phone, it gets better reception and no dropped calls.Dont buy a samsung.

great great phone
have had the cell for about 1.5 years now and its great. though not as small as my older one, none the less the more important issue is that it works flawlessly. havent had any issue's with the phone. the cam on the phone as well is great, phone book is nice and big, keeps 20 of that last calls made saved better then my last one which only held 10 in place. all in all, the only bad thing is sprint service but thats not the phones problem.


edit - one issue no sms, text messaging can get expensive but if you dont do text messagin then dont worry about it.

It's alright.
Iv'e had this phone since its come out about 1.5 years. I replaced it once cause it just stopped charging, not cause of the battery was old, it just wouldnt wouldnt charge, now about 8 months of getting my replacement phone it's doing the same thing, I have to sit there and wiggle the charger just to get it charged, I want to go replace it again, but I have all my settings and downloads on it and I don't want to have to start over. It also doesn't have sms, you have to sign onto the web to text, which can be slow sometimes, and other times it totally doesn't even work. Other times my phone will just turn off by itself. The camera is alright, it's fun to have, but picture quality is bad, and the flash is useless cause it just washes the picture out completly. I like the size of it, not too big.

WHY??
I THINK THAT THIS IS ONE OF SPRINT'S TOP OF THE LINE PHONES EVEN THOUGH IT IS NOT READY LINK!! I WAS LOOKING FOR ONE OF THESE AND WHEN I WENT TO SPRINT THEY TOLD ME THEY WERE DISCONTINUED!!I AM LOOKING FOR A PHONE LIKE THIS.IF ANYONE HAVE ONE AND WOULD LIKE TO SALE IT, PLEASE CONTACT ME.MY E-MAIL IS JOE14872002@HOTMAIL.COM OR JOE18872005@HOTMAIL.COM

THANKS ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

With support for messaging, application and game downloads, and voice dialing, the Nokia 3589i is a great mobile companion for Verizon Wireless users.

Design
The 3589i follows the tried and true Nokia candybar style with an extendable antenna mated to a dedicated internal antenna. The phone includes a 2.5mm headset jack and a USB data port for connectivity with a PC. The 96 x 65 color display boasts 4096 colors. Detachable faceplates are available for the front and rear of the handset.

Calling Features
The 3589i's built-in address book can store up to 500 contacts for quick and easy management of phone numbers and email addresses. The phone comes with 35 built-in polyphonic ringtones plus a vibrating alert, both of which can be customized to identify incoming calls. More polyphonic ringtones can be added, as can MP3-based ringtones. Voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names. You can also speak up to 25 numbers and control other phone features with the sound of your voice. The 3589i's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The 3589i has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging. Support is built in for sending and receiving text and graphics via messages. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet anywhere is easy with the 3589i, as well. Verizon's optional Mobile Web package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. You can check your e-mail, trade stocks online, compare prices while shopping, access flight information, get movie listings and find directions to the theater.

Verizon's Get It Now wireless download service is also fully compatible with the 3589i. This pay-per-download service features application downloads, games and productivity tools. You can also personalize your handset with ringtone downloads and digital photo-sharing tools using the Get It Now service.

A number of handy software tools are bundled with the 3589i including a voice memo recorder, a calculator, a calendar with up to 100 entries, and an alarm clock with snooze and a stopwatch. Via download on its Web site, Nokia offers a free application called PC Suite that facilitates easy synchronization of contacts, calendar events and other data between the phone and your PC.

Imaging and Entertainment
The 3589i is BREW enabled, meaning it supports games written on the BREW platform. Games are available via the Get It Now service. The phone also features customizable themes, screen backgrounds and fonts so you can make your phone reflect your personality.

Vital Statistics
The Nokia 3589i weighs 4.10 ounces and measures 4.68 x 1.96 x 0.92 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 3 hours of digital talk time, and up to 192 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the AMPS 800/CDMA 800/CDMA 1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Nokia 3589i handset, battery charger, lithium-ion battery. ... Read more

Features

• Color LCD 96 x 65 display with changeable fonts so you can change your preferred view
• Customizable profiles let you set ringing options, tones, volume, vibrating alert, message alert tone, keypad tones, and warning tones for all calls or caller groups based on your preference
• Assign up to 500 entries with multiple contact numbers
• Receive numeric and text messages in areas that offer messaging services
• Includes Alarm clock, Calendar, Voice recorder (1 minute), Calculator, and Stopwatch

Reviews (2)

The Best Cell Phone EVER!!!
This phone is seriously great.It's in color and has a lot of ringtones, and you can download tones and games from Verizon Wireless.I'm 12, and this phone is perfect for my age because I can't get bored with it like I did with my old phone.It doesn't have a camera or anything, but I don't need one anyway.This is a great phone.If you are looking for a cell phone, BUY THIS ONE!

Good phone
THis phone is actually not bad.

Pros.
-It has a full color screen
- Gets good reception
- Lightweight
-has txt messaging and get it now
-many built in ringtones and wallpaper for the screen

Cons.
-its not a folding phone which most are now
-Its a little on the heavy side and takes up room
Gets warm aftera half hour use
Thats it and happy cell phone hunting!~ ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Compatible with Sprint cell phone service, the sleek silver Nokia 3588 sports CDMA2000 1X technology for high-speed data transmission, a large, high-resolution color display, a built-in GPS (global positioning system), and much more.

Using the new open standard CDMA2000 1X chipset solution, this phone can offer peak data transfer rates of 3-5 Mbps and a typical throughput rate of 1 Mbps in a 1.25 MHz frequency channel. It also lets users perform two high-value tasks at once, such asdownloading e-mail from a corporate server while talking on another line, so you can maximize your time even when you're not at your desk.

As a phone, the 3588 provides voice dialing for up to 25 numbers, voice commands for up to 8 menu items, plus up to one minute's worth of memo recording. You can also choose from 45 enhanced musical MIDI ring tones, and download up to 10 more from the Web using the phone's internal wireless modem.

As an organizer, the 3588 lets users enjoy a 500 contact phonebook, with multiple numbers and text entries per contact, and a full calendar that lets you save meeting, birthday, and other reminder information. You can also synchronize your phone book, calendar, and to-do list with your PC using Nokia 3588i PC Suite (which requires data cable DKU-5, sold separately). There's even an alarm clock with snooze, and a vibrating alert.

For quick written communication, this phone provides text messaging and predictive text entry. It also includes a nifty GPS device that lets location-based emergency services find you. And, as on most new Nokia phones, it's TTY/TDD (Telecommunication Device for the Deaf) compatible, providing hearing aid support with the LPS-4 loopset (not included). For the color-coordinated, Nokia also offers a variety of Xpress-on color covers (sold separately) so you can change both the front and back plate color of your phone.Three video games are included with this phone: Sky Diver, Racket, and Bowling.

The Nokia 3588 measures 4.68 x 1.96 x .92 inches, and weighs 4.1 ounces. Its 1000 mAH Li-Ion Battery is rates at up to 3 hours digital talk time and up to 12 days digital standby time. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty. ... Read more

Features

• Color LCD 96 x 65 display with changeable fonts so you can change your preferred view
• Customizable profiles let you set ringing options, tones, volume, vibrating alert, message alert tone, keypad tones, and warning tones for all calls or caller groups based on your preference
• Assign up to 500 entries with multiple contact numbers
• Receive numeric and text messages in areas that offer messaging services
• Includes Alarm clock, Calendar, Voice recorder (1 minute), Calculator, and Stopwatch

Reviews (26)

works great, but don't dropt it
I've had this phone for over a year and I really like it. Having never been partial to flip phones, I can appreciate this Nokia's features. The color screen is very nice and all of the features are easy to use. The keylock is a simple two-button sequence though I do wish it had a timer for the keylock like my old phone. It has a lot of useful features, like a calculator, organizer, stopwatch and alarm, but the three games it has are too lame to play.

The customizable features are nice, but lacking in variety. This isn't the ideal phone for a guy. You're few options are pretty girly. The ringtones also lack something to be desired, but there are a few decent ones.

The battery life is pretty good, nothing special, but definitely not bad. It gets me through the average day without problems and sometimes lasts for several days.
My parents, sisters, and husband all got fancy Samsung flip phones with cameras and all the toys, and I must say mine works better. The battery lasts MUCH longer and the recpetion is MUCH better.

The downside to this cute phone is the case. It's made of very weak plastic that cracked in a few months. Also, if you're thinking about getting a different case for it, DON'T! Once you take it off, it will keep slipping off. It never attaches firmly again, and neither does the new case you bought. I've read this in other reviews too. Because of this, the last time I dropped it the back piece popped off and the battery flew out. Now my phone has issues. Drat.

Overall, it's a great phone, if you're content with the simpler things in life. Who really uses the camera on thier phone anyway? I just reccommend buying a protective case for it and leaving it on and don't drop the delicate thing.

Slow, annoying, fragile, heavy, and bulky...
1.) Slow - If you want to check your missed calls list, this phone feels compelled to inform you whether or not there are any new calls in the list...it does this for about 20 seconds.Of course, it will take you half a second to read the message...and you probably don't care about what it says.

2.) Annoying - Ever had anyone scream in your ear?That's a sensation I get from this phone on a regular basis.It has the nice ability to attach a voice tag to a phone number...a useful feature...when it works.About 80% of the time, it recognizes the number I ask for, the other 20% it lets me know that it doesn't understand...by screeching (next to my head).Want to know what that feels like with your phone?Turn the ringer up to the highest setting, hold the phone next to your ear, call your phone.Not pleasant.

Add to this the fact that when you're searching one of the numerous menus on the phone (menus that have at least 5 items in them), the menu system uses up a whole screen to display one line of text.It has three lines available to it...but it uses one.What's next?What did you just pass?Go back and look, can't find out another way!

3.) Fragile - My phone is cracked.Why you ask?Because I took off the battery cover.Why did you take off the battery cover you ask?Because I wanted to write this review and that was the only way to find out the model number.

4.) Heavy - Speaks for itself...the phone weighs way too much.

5.) Bulky - Again, like heavy, speaks for itself.

My recommendation: buy a better phone.This one will only make you cry at night.

Worth paying more for something else.
I bought this phone about a year ago and have been using it ever since, on the Sprint PCS network, to replace an old TP2100.The first time I bought it, the phone was defective, so I had to get it replaced after a few days.I liked the phone okay at first, but I really wish I can go back in time and buy a better phone.

Several issues:
*mediocre reception.
*rather bulky and unattractive.
*cheap feel, cheaply made, cheap materials.
*screen not easily visible in bright sunlight.
*battery life marginal.

I will go into a little detail about a few things.I get okay reception on this phone.It is NOT GOOD reception.The phone will work in areas where there is a good signal, but in areas with a marginal signal, such as my apartment, the phone will drop calls left and right, and fade in and out about 5 seconds of every minute (this is outside, so interference from the building is not the cause).In my residence, I use my husband's Sanyo, as it gets an excellent signal, and doesn't drop nearly as many calls.I have had Sprint check out the phone, and they say it is working correctly.I can only assume it is the poor quality of the phone that is to blame.

The phone is quite big for what I would expect from a modern phone, with no camera.In a small purse, it takes up a lot of room.What is more important is that the phone is cheaply made, and has a cheap feel to it.It's made out of rather flimsy plastic.I dropped the phone once onto concrete from about 3 feet up, and the antenna head got a crack in it and a corner of the phone got serious scratches.Also, the screen can be difficult to read in bright sunlight, but it's quite bright otherwise.

As far as battery life goes, it's not that great.I've gone to bed with the battery half full and have woken up to a dead phone.I believe the poor reception in my immediate area is to blame, as the phone searches for a signal and that takes battery time.Talk time is decent.

Pros:
*LOUD ringer
*lots of features, but I rarely use them.

Great free phone for Sprint customers.
This is an excellent choice for Sprint to use when enrolling new customers for service.It is the free option for most new customers and it has been excellent after a year of ownership.I love how it lights up when someone is calling which helps to really find the phone quickly when you are in the dark.If you have the phone in a purse it really makes it easy to find due to this fact.The Nokia phone seems to be tougher to me than the Samsung phones at the Sprint store also.So my only issue with the phone is the fact that since it is not a flip phone the keypad must be locked before I drop the phone in my pants pocket.This can be annoying if you get used to owning a flip phone before moving to the Nokia.

AVOID THIS PHONE - NOT EVEN IF THEY GIVE IT AWAY
I bought two of these phones to use with Sprint PCS.My wife's phone locked up (GPS failure) after only two months of use.After an hour of arguing at the store it was reluctantly replaced.My phone now has the same failure after only six months of use.I'm switching to another company's phone next week and will never use a Nokia product again. ... Read more

Features

• LCD color display supports 256 colors
• Polyphonic ringtones
• Downloadable games
• Phonebook can contain 250 contacts
• Includes battery, headset and travel charger

Reviews (15)

great light weight phone
this is a great phone for anyone that wants a light weight phone.

A GREAT Phone
I had this phone for 1 whole year now and its a great phone only that some places you can't get any reception. Then Cons on this phone is that the keys are VERY small,If you don't put this phone on phone lock it tends to call people in your call list.Some Pros are the battery lasts a VERY long time, Very good color display,and clear hearing ringtones. But the plus of this phone is that its very durable. I have to tell you that I'm impressed that my phone is still in great shape after droping it down stairs,cement,and even my sister throwing it across the room once were it hit the wall. If you want a phone that will last you a while buy this phone.

Solid phone. Great Value and performance
I've been with at&t for nearly 10 years. This is my 3rd Ericsson in the same amount of time. IMHO navigating the menus and performing necessary tasks is intuitive and a breeze. It beats any Nokia or panasonic by a long shot. The phone is sturdy and can take falling onto concrete or being tossed around the house on a daily basis without breaking. Voice quality is excellent, talk time and standby time are great too. Reception is never less than 3 bars - it's usually at 5.

The only confusing thing is understanding the difference between phone numbers stored in the phone and on the SIM. Otherwise, I would reccomend it to anyone with 100% confidence.

Don't like it.
I had the choice of another free phone. Should have taken the other one.I picked this one for the color screen.Can't hear it ring, turning vol to max doesn't help much.Reception is poor.Was never able to figure out what m mode is.
Would not pick it again.

Think twice before selecting THIS phone
I have had this phone for over a year. I have complained about the reception and was told that the New Generation towers are not up everywhere so it will get better. I am still waiting. And that's from AT&T! Now that AT&T is with Cingular, I had hoped for improved reception. I am beginning to think that it is the phones fault since I never hear anyone else complain. It does not receive the connection in parts of Utah, Montana, and Washington, which I can forgive because those are some off the beaten track places, but it also does not receive a network connection just 30 mins. from St. Louis, MO. Nor does it connect in Savannah, GA. And in ALL these places the people I am with are making phone calls with their phones (some AT&T as well). I got the phone for free. IN fact, I got two of them for free. That should have been my first clue. When they are giving them away like that, it can't be worth much. I agree with the other reviews on tiny keys, slow toggle around to all menues, low ringtones (i miss many calls), and I cannot think of ANY good reason to choose this phone over another--unless they give TWO to you free and you never leave the city!

Rating it with a 2 is overly generous of me; but it does work in the city. And it's small and cute. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

This stylish clamshell from Samsung sports dual color displays, support for Verizon Wireless' Mobile Web service, voice dialing and more. It's the perfect companion to the Verizon Wireless service.

Design
The phone features a traditional clamshell design with a large 128 x 160 pixels color display with 65,000 colors. A full-color 96 x 64 pixels supplementary display on the outside of the cover displays incoming call information, battery life, signal strength, graphics and more.Most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button on the handset's backlit control pad. Meanwhile, the top right side of the unit houses an antenna while the charging port is housed on the unit's bottom edge. The phone also features a standard jack to accept universal hands-free headsets. Up/down keys are located on the left side of the unit for quick volume control.

Calling Features
The A530's built-in address book can store up to 999 contacts for quick and easy management of phone numbers and email addresses. The phone comes with 15 built-in polyphonic ringtones plus a vibrating alert. More ringtones can be downloaded via Verizon's Get It Now service. Ringtones can be assigned to specific callers so you don't have to look at the phone to know who's calling, or you can match colorful pictures with callers to identify them. Voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names (up to 20 voice dialing contacts supported). The A530's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The A530 covers the messaging basics with support for sending and receiving text and graphics messages. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet anywhere is easy with the A530, as well. Verizon's optional Mobile Web package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. You can check your e-mail, trade stocks online, compare prices while shopping, access flight information, get movie listings and find directions to the theater.

Verizon's Get It Now wireless download service is also fully compatible with the A530. This pay-per-download service features application downloads, games and productivity tools. You can also personalize your handset with ringtone downloads using the Get It Now service.

The A530 ships with a number of handy tools including a calendar, a to-do list and a voice memo application. An alarm clock and calculator are also included.

Imaging and Entertainment
The A530 features customizable screen backgrounds so you can make your phone reflect your personality. The phone is also BREW enabled, meaning it supports games written on the BREW platform. Games are available via the Get It Now service.

Vital Statistics
The Samsung A530 weighs 3 ounces and measures 3.18 x 1.67 x .90 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 2.7 hours of digital talk time, and up to 140 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the CDMA 800/CDMA 1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Samsung A530 handset, AC battery charger, lithium-ion battery, user manual, welcome CD-ROM, quick reference guide. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

very nice phone
I've had this for nearly 2 years and it has worked great for me. nice small size. it is difficult to see display when not backlit. i changed the preferences to leave it backlit while in use and have not seen very much drain on the battery, but the phone does get pretty warm.the only major problem i did have was with the speaker and verizon replaced the phone...no problems since.

Great phone!
I purchased this phone a year and a half ago and it's been great. I haven't had any problems with it. The display is sharp. I got two batteries with it - a "short" duration, which makes the phone very light to carry around and looks sleek, too, and also the "longer" time battery. The longer time battery obviously adds a bit of weight to the phone, but not so much that it's bulky in your pocket. The phone is pretty small, anyway, so all in all, it's a great phone and I've been very pleased with it.

Warning: This phone is a lemon!!!!
I purchased this phone from Verizon 18 months ago for $200+.The phone headset jack stopped working after 2 months and I took it back to Verizon. Verizon replaced it with a defective refurbished phone which promptly stopped working within 3 months. This time, people could not hear me while on a call with me. I took it back again....This happened 7 times in 18 months. Each time Verizon refused to switch it for a new replacement phone (even when it stopped working within 2 months of purchase. Instead, Verizon exchanged it with a defective refurbished phone which stopped working within 2 to 3 months and I would have to take it back. Eventually, the seventh time I took it back and accused them of selling me a lemon and exchanging it with lemons, the store manager agreed and replaced it with a cheap LG phone. This phone did not have the high capacity battery or travel charger that my original Samsung did and defintely is of inferior construction / aesthetics.

Bottom line - the Samsung phone is defective, purchase it at your peril. ... Read more

Product Description

Welcome to GoPhone! Introducing AT&T Wireless GoPhone The best of wireless without a contract. It's a totally new way to go wireless - just buy, activate, and go. Start with a GoPhone package that includes a Nokia 3590 with phone charger and hands-free device. Then choose your calling plan and credit or debit payment method - plans start at $19.99. That's all there is to it. Plus you can add mMode (SM) service to e-mail, surf the web, download games, music, pictures, and more. Now there's no reason not to go wireless. Go Phone is right for you if you want: No annual contract No credit check No activation fee 30-day risk-free trial Whether you're new to wireless or just looking for a different option, GoPhone gives you what you want in a wireless plan. Plans start as low as $19.99, are available with unlimited night and weekend minutes and replenish automatically every 30 days (or when your balance goes below $5) It's easy to get started: Purchase your package Call AT&T Wireless to start service Select a rate plan Provide debit card, credit card or bank account number for automatic recurring payments (required) You're are ready to go! ... Read more

Features

• No prepaid minutes included. Requires no credit check and no annual contract
• This Nokia 3590 phone model is only compatible with AT&T Go Phone Enhanced service plans
• Battery life of up to 6.5 hours talk time and up to 300 hours standby
• Phone supports receiving messages with image, sound, and text
• Phone book can carry up to 500 contacts, with up to 5 numbers and 3 text entries per contact

Amazon.com Product Description

The Motorola MPx200 combines the power of the desktop with Windows Mobile and the "always at hand" convenience and quality of the Motorola mobile phone to make life simpler, smarter and more synchronized for the mobile professional. The The MPx200 features mobile versions of all the essential Microsoft applications you depend on, including Pocket Outlook, Pocket Internet Explorer, Windows Media Player, and MSN messenger.What's more, the unit's software is designed to sync seamlessly with email, contacts and calendar information on your PC. When coupled with a AT&T data plan, the MPx200 is a powerful companion.

Design
The MPx200 follows the traditional clamshell form factor, although unlike many clamshell designs, it has an internal antenna. The large, 176 x 220 screen with 65,000 colors dominates inside of the cover. A smaller black and white LCD screen, which displays incoming calls, current time, battery life, signal strength and other information is located on the outside of the cover. A five-way selection button allows you to navigate and control the Windows Mobile interface and there is also a jog dial on the left side of the device for easy access to basic controls. In addition to a headset jack, an SD/MMC memory expansion card slot is housed on the right side of the unit. It allows for up to a gigabyte of additional memory capacity. The power key and infrared port are housed on the left side of the unit, while a universal charger/USB data port is present on the bottom.

Calling Features
The MPx200 has all the latest calling features folks have come to expect. The built-in speakerphone makes it easy to talk without having the phone to your ear. Vibrate modes and custom polyphonic ringtones can also be set to your preferences so you know who is calling without having to look at the LCD. The included Pocket Outlook software features a contacts list that is cleverly integrated with the phone's dialing functions.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The MPx200 is designed as a complete solution for people who want to bring their office with them. The unit comes packed with pocket versions of Outlook, Internet Explorer and MSN Messenger. In addition to keeping track of contacts, Pocket Outlook features integrated calendar and email functions. Microsoft's ActiveSync software keeps the device synced with all of your PC's Outlook information (via USB or IR connection). Users who want Internet connectivity on the road with their laptop or PDA can select an AT&T Mobile Internet package and tap the MPx200's wireless modem capabilities.

You can use the MPx200's built in Internet Explorer browser for AT&T mMode downloads and mobile web browsing. AT&T's mMode service lets you receive and send emails, read news headlines, get sports scores, download games and ringtones, and more. Traditional text messaging, as well as picture and sound messaging are also supported by the phone. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

A number of handy software tools are bundled with the MPx200 including a voice memo recorder, a calculator, a to-do list, and an alarm clock.

Imaging and Entertainment
The inclusion of Windows Media on the MPx200 means that you can use the handset as an MP3 player. The amount of music you can store is only limited by the unit's memory (up to 1 GB using the expansion card slot), and the included stereo headset is designed for music listening. For gamers, the phone supports Java-based and Windows Mobile game downloads.

Vital Statistics
The Motorola MPx200 weighs 4.16 ounces and measures 3.50 x 1.88 x 1.06 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 4.25 hours of digital talk time, and up to 104 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the 1800/1900 MHz GSM/GPRS frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Motorola MPx200 handset, lithium-ion battery, desktop charger, mini-USB data cable, stereo headset, user's manual. ... Read more

Features

• The Motorola MPx200 Smartphone does it all by combining all the functionality you need into a single, pocket-size package
• Windows Mobile software brings the familiar Windows experience to the palm of your hand
• You can synchronize everything with your desktop PC -- automatically -- with a USB connection, or over the air
• Functionality allows you to download music, games, video clips, and ring tones
• Watch videos, news clips, and film trailers anywhere you go

Reviews (187)

MPx200 SMARTphone
this is one of the better phones i have used. With the email intergrated into the everyday options of the phone, life is that much easier. its so easy i now have a use for the calendar (i didnt use it before because if i wasnt at my computer it was useless.) now i take it with me. its great.

...and it's a flip phone.
I have owned many phones throughout all of the years that I have been dealing with cellular networks. However, I can definitely say that the Motorola MPx200 is one of originality, intelligence, and productivity. The ONLY folder fold phone that actually has a working version of Windows Mobile on it is definitely nothing short of genius and engineering expertise. I can positively say that this is one of the best and most useful phones available now.

Before anything about the inner workings of the phone can be reviewed, the first thing that is best to review is the one selling point that all buyers will look at first: it's immense beauty. Buffered hardened plastic with a neo-modern blue trimming and a perfectly-sized exterior LCD screen make the perfect combination for beauty at its zenith. There have been many beautiful clamshell/folder fold phones produced that can be considered BEAUTIFUL (RAZR, 8390, etc.), however for a one-of-a-kind phone like this one, it's exterior should not be overlooked.

When one opens the phone (with a satisfying click sound accompanying that), one is welcomed by the casual HelloMoto flower design that is on most Motorola phones now. However, what one wouldn't expect is the Windows Mobile boot screen to show up. After the system has loaded, one is presented with a clean-cut interface that is screaming mobile productivity. The possibilities are endless with the included Windows Mobile OS (which, by the way, can be upgraded to Windows Mobile 2003 if you search hard enough). It can synchronize with Outlook seamlessly. It can send SMS, MMS (in Europe or Asia), and regular e-mail. It can even access HTML web sites with its Pocket Internet Explorer (with much ease, if I may add). It can play all types of video and music files (with the right software), and it can obtain streaming media.

However, what makes its productivity even better is its compatibility. No special bells or whistles are needed for this phone to work. It charges and connects using a Mini-USB cable, which is included in the package (or it can be bought for about 20 dollars). The headset is a regular 2.5mm mono/stereo jack, however a converter can be used for regular headphones, which would be a good idea for MP3s. The storage interface is Secure Digital or MMC, which is relatively cheap and expansive (up to 1 GB). The downside to this is that it does not support Secure Digital with Input and Output functions (SDIO), so buying a bluetooth or GPS card is out of the question (that is what the MPx220 is for). It can, oddly enough, support an SD camera, which from what I heard takes good pictures. Gone are the days of searching long and hard for parts to a phone that may or may not be used for very long. This phones makes upgradeabilty easy and worry-free; exactly what a professional would need on the go.

As I mentioned earlier, there are downsides to this phone, some of which are critical. Unfortunately, most of the bad qualities of the phone are found in its performance. Since it is a small phone, it uses a Texas Instruments OMAP 714 processor, which clocks in at 132 MHz, which is not exactly speed-crazy. That is blatantly evident in the Windows Mobile 2003 version for this phone. It does compensate for this by providing an abudance of RAM: 32 MB of RAM and 32 MB of ROM, which is plentiful, that is if you do not consider that the OS uses about 12 MB of that ROM. USB connectivity is great for charging, but sub-optimal for file transfers. While it definitely wins at not needing special software like most mobiles and uses ActiveSync 3, transferring files through USB are unbearingly slow because ActiveSync uses a large amount of overhead for the transfer, thus treating it as a true serial connection. Don't expect to transfer albums of MP3s in fire speed with the MPx200.

Another big loss for the phone is its network support. Unfortunately, Motorola decided to make this phone a truly digital phone, making it only accept 1800 or 1900 MHz bands. This is terribly bad news for Cingular customers because the majority of that network uses 850 MHz. They would have better luck with the MPx220. T-Mobile customers, however, will reap the benefits of the phone's capability, as it has great signal EVERYWHERE and the call quality is above average, if not outstanding. People on the other line can hear me as clear, if not clearer, than I can hear them. The speakerphone on this mobile is comparable to some of the Nextels, which is truly outstanding (minus their terrible codec). The way it handles SIM contacts is flawless (unless you are working with T-Mobile; it can be picky on that), but the phone contacts are very detailed and elaborative. They are set just like Outlooks, so that does not require any explanation.

However, how useful is all of that when the battery is not as powerful as the OS can handle?

The MPx200's biggest drawback is its hit-and-miss battery life. There are many things that can be done to increase the life span, however its initial power is very very VERY low. I would expect, at most, 2 days standby and maybe 2 or 3 hours of talk time. Not much different than your i95cl (terrible phone, by the way). Just remember that that is just under Windows Smartphone 2002. Windows Mobile 2003 consumes even MORE power, so expect 1 day of standby and 1.5 to 2 hours of talking. To me, the features outweighed this, however, it depends from person to person.

The final aspect of this phone that I will touch is what the phone is missing. For those that are looking for integrated cameras, this phone does not have one, however it does have SD options available, so that may be something willing to consider. The phone is also missing Bluetooth, so anyone that wants those cutting edge BT headsets are out of luck here; it does have Infrared, however, which works great. Finally, the phone is missing EDGE and 3G (UMTS), so if video conferencing and/or super fast speed internet are a concern for you, I would look elsewhere. Just keep in mind that this phone has HTML support; many of those EDGE phones may not (except other Smartphones, of course).

In conclusion, if you are looking for an entry-level smartphone, or just a cool-looking smartphone that does not look like a slab of rock, then the MPx200 is the choice of all choices. I can honestly tell you that one you deal with a Windows Mobile, or any PDA-OS based phone, you will NEVER want to go back to just regular phone firmware AGAIN. It's just a shame that they lost on the MPx220 and the MPx. Those definitely had a future.

Run, don't walk, run from this phone
A phone with so much potential is actually a nightmare.Unbelievably poor reception (all along a major California highway), lost calls and generally poor/eratic interface performance.Outlooks synch is a huge upside, but at what cost?I would call ATT for support, but everytime I try on my drive home I either get dropped or stay on hold so long I reach my destination before getting an answer.Save yourself the frustration...

mpx 200 - sw upgrade
Hi all, I am also happy with this smartphone. It has everything I need and DOESN'T have a camera!!
What I do need is to upgrade system to Windows Mobile 2003. Anybody can help me how to do?

Motorola Secret IPOD killer
Hi all,

I have had this phone for all most 15 months. I truly believe this phone is perhaps the best piece of technology made this decade. WHy?

1)Cell phone w/ no antenna yet decent reception
2) Comparable to a Palm if you down load from Handango-Clearvue Suit....word, excel, pp, adobe, image...
3)Ipod-you can buy a 1g card and transfer files via mpx crattle or pixar card connection (SD,MMC etc). The latter will be faster and transfer from anywhere not just itunes and napster...
4)Headphones for phone includes 2 stereo earplugs and phone ans and hang up button
5)compact
6)movies....do you hwk (tmd)
7)reduced price now....I paid 250 and 100 for 1g card
8) smartphone 02 and now smart cats use 03
9) games....
10)internet....MB per month cheap now (mmode)
12)****** sync with outlook-calen, contac, notes, & task!!!!
13)mpx200.org damn phone got fan base
14)better than 220 because motorola put energy in 1st generation
15) Much more but you must do your homework- amazing piece of equipment

... Read more

Amazon.com

Sporting a large, 4,096-color display screen and an unconventional, rotary-style keypad, we found the sturdy, feature-rich Nokia 3650 cell phone one of the best designed phones on the market, with excellent ease-of-use, crystal-clear reception, and a camera, video camera, and Internet access.

Take and share pictures with the 3650. (See detail)

In our tests, we found that the comfortable rounded base of this 5-inch phone rested easily our palm, and the clever retro button display took only a moment of getting used to. The buttons and disc navigation felt quite durable, with a nice, solid action. Menu navigation involves two thin buttons on the top left and right that allowed us to move in and out of menus; then the standard 4-point clickable disc provided more detailed selection. There's a separate button for the main menu prominently below the disc, and the faux-rotary layout of the number buttons helped keep the navigation buttons out of the way during dialing. The requisite call and hang-up buttons are intuitively marked, and a futuristic-looking blue light shines through the numbers on all the buttons for easy keying in low-light areas.

The 3560 delivered consistent, excellent reception in a variety of testing environments, including a basement-level room that typically causes trouble with similar phones. The default ring tones were a bit too gentle for their own good; they were hard to hear in busy outdoor environments. The tones that we created using the composing feature, however, were quite audible, even in the midst of lots of noise. The vibrate alert was also quite effective and hard to miss. Nokia has also preloaded a variety of other polyphonic ring tones for alternate use, as well as a voice-dialing feature, which stores 25 numbers and was easy to use.

In Calendar, you can keep track of your appointments, meetings, birthdays, anniversaries, and other events. You can also set a calendar alarm to remind you of upcoming events. (See detail)	With the video recorder you can record video clips, and play video clips stored on your phone or on a memory card. Also, the video recorder is integrated with the messaging features allowing you to easily send created clips. (See detail)	Nokia 3650 provides various functions, in an-easy-to use interface, such as Camera, Video recorder, Messaging, e-mail, Clock, alarm clock, Calculator, and Calendar. (See detail)

Thanks to high-speed GPRS connection, users can access a variety of Web content, such as news, travel information, and entertainment specifically designed for mobile phones via an XHTML browser, which supports pages written in both HTML and WML (Wireless Markup Language). The 3650's calendar, phone book, and to-do list can all be synchronized with a PC using Nokia 3650 PC Suite software. This phone also supports Java for downloading business applications, and built-in Bluetooth and infrared connections empower users to send photos and text in either e-mail or MMS format to a PC or to another compatible wireless device. Some of the downloadable Java and Symbian applications provided by Nokia through their website include Merriam-Webster Word Search, and games like Racing Fever, Avant Go, and Terminator.

The phone's digital VGA camera is cleverly built in to the back of phone, and can store up to 1,000 photos at 640 x 480 megapixel resolution on its (upgradeable) 16 MB memory card. Also, the Nokia 3650's photo capability is immediately accessible from the top-level display menu, so unlike other phones it was easy to snap a photo at a moment's notice. The camera records images in standard, portrait, and a nighttime mode.

With the same basic set of controls, RealOne software lets the video recording function capture short, low-fidelity sound and video clips for immediate MP4 video playback on the generous screen or for sending to another Web-enabled user. The 15-frames-per-second video recording rate delivers stuttering, delayed images that look sort of like Neil Armstrong's transmissions from the Moon. We found this all very entertaining, and potentially useful for transmitting small bits of information, but hard to take seriously as a true video recording device.

Among the scores of additional features on this phone are text messaging templates, where you create a basic message (like "Let's eat at --- ") then fill in the blank as you wish; a foreign currency and units converter for the jet set crowd, and a "favorites" folder to store Web shortcuts and links. For hearing-impaired customers, Nokia even provides TTY/TDD (Telecommunication Device for the Deaf) compatibility. The headset included with this phone is functional, and Li-Ion battery comes rated for up to 4 hours of digital talk and 200 hours of digital standby time. The phone comes with a refreshingly well-written manual. While decorative faceplates and other accessories are available, we found that even without them, the Nokia 3650 is one of the most coolest phones we've ever laid our hands on. --Erik Hammen

Pros:

• Great reception
• Excellent, intuitive user interface
• Feature-rich
• Solid build and large display screen
• Fun camera and video features

Cons:

• Large phone size to accommodate large display screen
• Default ring tones a bit quiet.

How We Tested Battery Talk/Standby Time

When reading our reviews, you should view the test results of mobile-phonebattery talk time and standby time as relative information only. Many variables,including carrier signal strength at your location, signal consistency(including incoming and outgoing calls), display and ringer settings, andbattery charging methods and history, will affect performance. When handsetmanufacturers and mobile phone carriers list talk-time and standby-time ratings,they usually include disclaimers about variable performance and often refer tothe times they publish as maximum times. Some quote expected battery liferanges, and in this case you're probably safe to assume you'll experience atleast the minimum rated range. Note that manufacturers of dual-mode digital andanalog handsets publish battery-life rates for both digital and analog modes, asanalog mode consumes much more power than digital mode.

Our Tests: We tested digital-mode talk and standby times with each phone.Prior to each test, we fully charged the phone's battery according to themanufacturer's directions. To test digital-phone talk time, we turned the phoneon, established a digital carrier signal, dialed a number in our test lab, and,when the call rang through, took the receiving phone's handset off the hook.When all went well, we didn't do anything else except record the time when thephone died. In a couple of cases, the phones lost the signal and dropped thecalls. If we were right there and could redial, we did so immediately andcontinued running the test. Otherwise, we halted the test, recharged thebattery, and started the test over. Assuming consistent carrier-signal strength,this test should represent best-case talk time. And it's worth noting thatseveral phones' talk-time performance significantly exceeded the manufacturers'ratings.

To test digital-phone standby time, we turned the phone on, established acarrier signal, and left the phone in standby mode. We checked the phone everyfew hours (for what was often days on end) until the phone finally cut out.Since no outgoing or incoming calls occurred during testing and because thephone was not moved, this method should represent best-case standby time, againassuming consistent carrier signal strength.

... Read more

Features

• Wireless phone with integrated video/digital camera
• 3.4 MB on board storage, MultiMediaCard expansion slot
• Oversized display for MP4 video playback
• High-speed internet access, supports Java-based downloads
• Integrated Bluetooth connectivity for data transmission to other Bluetooth devices

Reviews (310)

ITS THE BOMB
i got this phone feb 28 2005 so far i no problems with the phone. camera is great .a litte big but not too big .the the keypad the bomb and the is screen is large. its has mp3 if u get the software for it

GOODs
keypad
large screen
loud speker

BADS
litte big.

I had this phone for 2 years and loved it!
This phone is a little clunky, but wonderful! The symbian operating system makes this phone infinitely expandable. Some of the programs you can download and install include: eBook readers (to download and read books from the New York Public Library, for instance), remote control software (to control your TV through infrared or your computer through bluetooth), game emulators (I had hours of fun playing games with a game boy emulator).

The operating system supports multitasking, so you can switch back between a phone call and an ebook without ever quitting either program... so you can turn the speakerphone on, and play a game while you're on hold. I grew to like the circular orientation of the number pad... while confusing at first, it made sense after a while.

Also, since the phone's PIM synced up with my Mac (via iSync), I never had to type a phone number or email address into the phone, which made for speedy usage.

The more advanced nature of the phone's operating system makes it prones to crashing. If a program isn't coded correctly or it crashes, this phone is prone to go into a "reboot loop", where the phone can't start anymore, and the only remedy is to take it back to T-Mobile or Nokia through the warranty. Meaning, if a program crashes your phone (which happened 3 times over 2 years to me), you have to get the phone replaced. Not good. So make sure you have a carrier with EXCELLENT customer service (like T-Mobile, as opposed to Cingular or Sprint).

Overall, I loved the phone, and the benefits far outweighed the costs.

Bluetooth works great
I have had this phone for almost a year now.It is one very dependable phone.Just got the chance to use it's Bluetooth capabilites.Paired it up with an IBM laptop with Bluetooth to use as a modem when WiFi is not available.The Bluetooth works great!I use it with T-Mobile and took it with me to Europe on vacation.Worked great!

NICE AND GOOD
I got this phone like 3 weeks ago and its good. Its really good with T-Mobile. I think it is a good price and i need it because im 14 and i go to school and its pretty far.
Pros
-Nice screen
-good camera
-good sound recorder
-good memory
-Good video recorder
cons
-It looks kind of big and weird
-The ringtones are to light and cant hear well
-The ringtone maker is hard to use
-The recorder only does up to a min
-The phone number is in a circule
-The phone buttons are a little to soft
-The phone has only a couple of numbers

But over all the phone is good and nice its much better then the sony errison t610 i switch with...It has good respution also...If you like nokia buy this...

I'm having a very hard time replacing this phone..
I've grown so attatched to it. It's the best phone i"ve ever owned. Sure, it's big but the features make up for it. I'll never go back to a motorola phone again. Someone please help me find another nice nokia phone wit TMobile that has these features. ... Read more

Features

• E-mail capability helps you keep in touch
• Changeable faceplate allows you to customize your phone
• Internal antenna, picture messaging, and predictive text entry
• Come with 35 ring tones to personalize your phone experience
• Phone book stores up to 200 contacts

Amazon.com Product Description

Compatible with Nokia prepaid cell phone service, the Nokia 3595 is at the top end of Nokia’s entry-level 30 series phones, offering additional capabilities through its Java support and advanced messaging. The Nokia 3595 phone comes in the familiar slim Nokia package (4.64 by 1.95 by 0.87 inches) but has a larger and unique keypad design and a full 4,096-color display. This device supports messaging via SMS and MMS, enabling customers to create, send, edit, and forward messages with text and images to compatible phones. Customers can also receive messages with text, image, and sound, and instant message with friends or business associates.

The GPRS connection ensures high-speed data transmission so users have quick access to Internet content via the XHTML browser. The Nokia 3595 also offers Java support for downloading business applications onto this phone. For fun, the Nokia 3595 has preloaded polyphonic ring tones, wallpapers, animated screen savers, and picture messages, plus the memory to download more. The device also features four games (Backgammon, Sky Diver, Air Glide, and Bowling), and changeable covers in various colors. The phone book in the Nokia 3595 holds up to 500 contacts with up to five phone numbers and three text entries for each contact. Other standard organizational features include a calendar with up to 500 entries, a to-do list with up to 30 entries, and an alarm clock with snooze. The phone book, calendar, and to-do list can all be synchronized with a PC using SyncML software over the WAP connection. For hearing-impaired customers, the 3595 even offers TTY/TDD (Telecommunication Device for the Deaf) compatibility with the phone adapter. The extended Li-Ion battery is rated for up to 5.5 hours of digital talk time and 10 days of digital standby time. ... Read more

Features

• No prepaid minutes included. Requires no credit check and no annual contract
• Share information and experiences with MMS
• Download java games and applications
• Comes with a full-color screen with bright white LCD
• Note: this Nokia 3595 phone model is only compatible with AT&T Go Phone service plans

Reviews (3)

Great phone with Java support for applications!
Not only can you download ringtones and java games, but also complete java applications into this phone!You can use IRC (chat), a complete Web browser, even small word processing and spreadsheet programs!!!Wow!It supports java and waba applications!

The best part is that you can synchronize it in Windows, Mac, and Linux.You're not forced to use one specific operating system/computer to transfer data.In fact, you don't even need a computer, since you can download everything directly from the phone.It's like a very small computer.

The plans availible include, as of January 2005, free nights + free weekends + no contracts or fees ever + 750 minutes or more for less than $40.And you can use those minutes for over 3 months.

I love this phone
this phone is tight cause it is my only 1 so shut up before shut up

A decent phone by Nokia, but nothing special
This is a very good phone for anyone who is a Nokia fan or who doesn't want anything fancy.It will call people and receive calls.It has a color screen, downloadable ring tones and games, and has a decent audio quality.There is no camera or bluetooth or advanced organization tools.It is growing increasingly outdated and by a year from now hardly anybody will be using it anymore, but if you own this phone I wouldn't go running to throw it out just yet.It gets the job done, but isn't going to wow you in the process. ... Read more

Features

• High-resolution color display with personalizable color schemes and wallpapers
• Send and receive e-mail and access the Web wirelessly
• Java support for game and application downloads
• Memory available for downloadable ring tones and picture messages
• Personalize caller ID with graphic icons

Reviews (39)

Gets the Job Done
I bought this phone a little over 18 months ago at an AT&T Wireless store. It still works, even though I drop it a lot and don't treat it like I should. Like others, I have a gripe with the little fingerpad in back: it fell off after about 1-2 months. But I don't care too much, I can do without it.

The reception is great for areas where GSM is patchy. I've had TDMA for about 4 years now, and when I get my next phone which will probably be soon, I will most likely go to GSM, if only because the phones are so much flashier.

All in all, this is a durable phone that gets the job done. As others have said, the games, ringtones, and wallpapers are boring, but at least this phone is cheap, has a color screen, is easy to use, and fairly durable. I have not had any major problems. Once or twice my phone has frozen, but I simply take out the memory card in back and restart my phone. Sometimes when the phone is plugged into the charger, and I receive a call, the phone neither vibrates nor rings, but simply lights up. That can be annoying.

Pros:
-Cheap (or sometimes free with mail-in rebates)
-Color screen
-Polyphonic
-Easy to use
-OK features
-Durable (lasted over 1.5 years now)

Cons:
-Games, ringtones, wallpapers are a little dull
-Not too many features
-A little heavier than I want, but it's ok: I can fit it in my pocket with only a little nuisance
-Fingerpad in back comes off easily
-Sometimes freezes, sometimes doesn't ring/vibrate when charging

Crappy Phone
I have had problem after problem with this phone.First, half the time certain keys on the keypad wouldn't work.Second, half the time I wouldn't receive voicemails until 4 or 5 days after they had been sent--very very frustrating.Third, I cannot get unlimited nights and weekends with Cingular, because it is a TDMA and not a GSM phone-- this makes my blood boil, as they will not give me a replacement phone with GSM so that I can fairly receive nights and weekends that everyone else gets with Cingular.Bottom line--avoid TDMA phones if you are with Cingular, as u will be discriminated against by not getting all the features you should be getting!!

Very reliable
I've owned this phone for a year and a half, and it's never given me any trouble. Its features pretty much cover all of my needs, but if you're looking for a phone that has all the latest features like a camera, then look elsewhere.

I get great reception everywhere with the exception of those places in the middle of nowhere. Its battery life has declined a bit, but that's to be expected, especially if you consider how long I've had it. This phone has done everything I've wanted it to and has never malfunctioned once, but I do treat it very well.

Overall, if you're looking for a very reliable phone that will last you a long time and look pretty good at the same time, go with this one.

Just about the coolest little TDMA phone available
While certainly not a high-end phone, the 3560 is nontheless respectable as is its sibling 3595 GSM phone.Bright, color, loud, graphics, games, and text messaging.I find it to be easier with a 3595 keypad even though the original keypad looks more usable.You can set its auto timed keyguard feature so inadvertent button pushing does nothing.

Around here the best coverage is still provided by AT&T (Cingular Blue) TDMA. This phone also does AMPS so you can communicate if you find yourself in the boonies.Works well on prepaid service.

While it does not sync, you can use Nokia PC suite to send contacts and calendar appointements to it so you can load the contacts from a computer rather than from the phone.

"Can't let you do that Dave...or that, or that..."
Could use some work on this phone, Normally Nokia puts out a suprior product. I'm sorry to say this one missed. Mine ferquintly cuts out calls,and without locking the keys one is truly in danger of wasting mineuts, Also (to flogg a dead horse) there is a tendancy for the bloody thing not to ring. When an incoming call is in progress,I've actually watched the caller I.D. go on with out hearing a peep out of the phone: and for you wise guys out there- no it was not on silent:).
In some cases there is a definate echo.

On the pluse side the menus are fairly easy to navigate, and placeing an out going call is rather reliable, the battery as with most drains faster over time, but starts out fairly well (and then goes to utter trash in record time). And the screen color and wallpaper options are ...Ok. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

This basic phone from Motorola sports one very cool feature not often found on much flashier handsets: push-to-talk. With a push-to-talk subscription from Verizon Wireless, you can communicate walkie-talkie style with a co-worker or entire teams anywhere in the country. The V60p more than pulls its weight as a cell phone, text messenger, and wireless web client, as well.

Design
The V60p's classic clamshell design features a black and white 96 x 64 pixels main display. A 96 x 16 supplemental display on the outside of the clamshell cover displays call information and current time. There's a standard jack to accept universal hands-free headsets on the top right side of the handset. The top right side of the phone houses the antenna while a combination charging/USB data port is placed on the bottom edge of the unit. Most features and on-screen menus are controlled by a two-way center button on the handset's control pad, or up and down buttons on the left side of the case. Optional user-changeable masks let you dress up the V60p's front and back covers.

Calling Features
Voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names. Voice commands can be also used to control many of the phone's functions. There's also a built-in address book that can store up to 500 contacts for quick and easy management of phone numbers, as well as up to 150 push-to-talk contacts. In addition to a vibrate alert, the phone comes with 32 built-in ringtones and incoming caller ID lets you decide if you want to answer or not. A built-in speakerphone makes it easy to talk without having the phone to your ear and the i860's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.

As mentioned, one of the key features of the V60p is its push-to-talk capability. The v60pfully supports Verizon's push-to-talk service, which allows for one-touch conversations with anyone else on a Verizon push-to-talk phone. Group-based push-to-talk communication is also supported. It's like a having a CB radio with enough range to cover all of North America.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The V60p has all the bases covered when it comes to messaging. Support is built in for sending and receiving text, graphics and sound via messages. iTap text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet anywhere is easy with the V60p, as well. Verizon's optional Mobile Web package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. You can check your e-mail, trade stocks online, compare prices while shopping, access flight information, get movie listings and find directions to the theater.

The V60p ships with a calculator with currency converter, as well as a date book, calendar, scheduler and an event reminder. You can also synchronize this data with your PC wirelessly via the phone's USB data connection.

Entertainment
The V60p is BREW enabled, meaning it supports games written on the BREW platform. The phone ships with Blackjack, Falling Numbers and Video Poker. It also features customizable menu colors.

Vital Statistics
The Motorola V60p weighs 4.37 ounces and measures 3.42 x 1.77 x 1.22 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 2.58 hours of digital talk time, and up to 55 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the AMPS 800/CDMA 800/CDMA 1900 frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Standard lithium-ion battery, battery charger, holster, user manual, quick reference guide, welcome CD-ROM. ... Read more

Features

• Push to Talk service that works across the nation
• Internal and external display with time/date and caller ID
• 42 embedded ring tones (5 vibrating and 1 silent alert) & 32 customizable ring tones
• 2-way speakerphone
• Voice-activated dialing/voice recorder

Amazon.com Product Description

The Audiovox "Vox" 8500 features a speakerphone, polyphonic ringtones, support for Virgin Mobile wireless Internet services, and much more. This sporty companion will keep you in touch with style to spare. It's the perfect complement to Virgin Mobile service.

Design
The phone features a traditional clamshell design with a black and white display that features five selectable backlight colors. Meanwhile, monochrome supplementary display on the outside of the cover displays incoming call information, battery life, signal strength, graphics and more.Most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button on the handset's backlit control pad. The top right side of the unit houses an extendable antenna while the phone's charging port is housed on the unit's bottom edge. The phone also features a standard jack to accept universal hands-free headsets. Up/down keys are located on the left side of the unit for quick volume control.

Calling Features
The 8500's built-in address book can store up to 99 entries for quick and easy management of your contacts. The phone comes with built-in polyphonic ringtones plus a vibrating alert. Ringtones can be assigned to specific callers so you don't have to look at the phone to know who's calling. Voice dialing is supported, as are voice commands, so you can both dial numbers and control certain functions of the phone without ever touching it. A built-in speakerphone lets you talk handsfree while you're on the go.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The 8500 covers the messaging basics with support for sending and receiving text messages easily and quickly (Virgin Mobile text messaging charges apply). T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

The phone fully supports Virgin Mobile's wireless content service, VirginXtras. Use the pay-per-use service to download ringtones, get content and vote in TV-based polls via the MTV area of your phone, or get jokes and updates from Comedy Central. Pick a celebrity voice to answer your voicemail, or get a Sponge Bob thought of the day. Need to jog your memory? Use Virgin's wacky song ID service. Press the Song ID command, point your 8500 towards a song that's playing in the room, and within minutes a text message appears identifying the song's title.

The 8500 ships with a number of handy tools including a calendar, a calculator and an alarm clock.

Entertainment
The phone features custom Virgin Mobile graphics-- screen savers, wallpaper and menu icons-- that let you dress up your phone to suit your personality.

Vital Statistics
The Audiovox 8500 weighs 3.2 ounces and measures 3.3 x 1.6 x .90 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 2.5 hours of digital talk time, and up to 110 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the CDMA 1900 frequency. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Audiovox 8500 handset, AC charger, lithium-ion battery, user's manual. ... Read more

Features

• No prepaid minutes included. Comes with battery and charger
• Seven changeable backlight display colors to match your mood
• External Caller ID Display: know who's calling without opening your phone
• 2-way text messaging, 1-touch and voice dialing
• Charger included for powering up

Reviews (159)

no problems for over a year
Let me start by saying I've owned this phone since it came out with no problems to speak of, even after being chewed up by the dog, and thrown from a second floor window by the good ole ex.Let me also state that I hate cell phones.I don't like being reached and hate carrying things that make my pockets buldge out, or paraphanalia which would look right at home on Batmans utility belt (yup, I'm not batman).
With that said, I think you should understand why I don't care if a phone has pretty graphics, a color screen, a camera, a million differant options and/or color cases to show your teeny bopper friends just how cool you are.
I probably make and recieve two to three calls a week, and I pay the minimum.I think it's something like 7$ a month, and I have more than enough minutes for what I use it for.If I want to make a phone call, well, I also pay for a house phone, and am lucky enough to have a job which supplies me with yet another phone.And somewhere inbetween the two, I make very few phone calls.
I suppose in the end if you don't make a lot of calls, then this is perfect.It fits nicely in the glove box, and is cheap. And I also live in a large city (chicago) and it works everywhere perfectly, even when I've driven to the south east all the way out to north cali.The only place I don't get reception is in my office, which is fine, because it has a phone already in it.
I thank Virgin Mobile for making a phone for people like me (people that need a mobile phone ONLY because this new bopper phase of spoiled convienence has eliminated almost all pay phones-i despise all of you)

Small.....But everything else a "BIG PROBLEM!"
DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE!!! I have had enough w/ it! This is probably the worst phone ever made! I live in a major city and yet do I ever have a decent reception! I have no problem with the company (Virgin Mobile)....just the freakin' phone! There are sooooo many cons about this phone! No games, Speaker volume will fade for no reason, Phone will shut off when in silent mode and turn back on all loud and evrything (which really sux when im in class), Then after using it for like 10 min. (like txt messaging or VirginXtras) the phone will heat up so bad to where it starts to burn ur hand!, LCD Background colours suck! U can't read anything, No good txt message memory, Speakerphone will turn on in the middle of a conversation (OUCH!).....Thankfully this phone broke after 3 frustrating yrs. (it's a pretty strong phone...I give it that) So im now thinking of upgrading to the VOX 8610, But still paranoid if the 8610 will be like the 8500....

My Review
I think this phone is the perfect starter phone for a teenager. This was my second cell phone ever. And I just recently bought a new one to upgrade. It works great, I get great reception. (I'm in PA) I took it to FL with me last summer and it worked great! If you are one of those "high tech" people. This isn't the phone for you. But for starters, it's great.

Spend the extra $20 and upgrade
I really, really didn't want to purchase yet another phone.For over 10 years I have had a mobile plan and every time I switch companies they make me buy a phone (please, please recycle your old ones.Target takes them.Ok, off my soap box)So I wanted to get the best deal, so I went for this phone since it was on clearance for $80.Big mistake.

To be fair, it's a great looking phone...from the outside.It's the smallest one I have ever seen.But it has a "black and white" screen-- so dated.For $20 more you can get the 8610 and get a full-color screen.The phone is a little bigger (I mean a LITTLE bigger) but the screen is the best.The 8500 does have a backgroung color (choice of 8), but it only stays on for 20 seconds max. and then turns to that outdated green screen with grey lettering.

This was the very first phone Virgin ever had and the 8610 is an upgrade in ever sense of the word.Better screen, better ring tones, better reception.I switched and you should too.You won't be sorry.

But hey, if this model goes on *super-duper* clearance, go for it!It's sweet, and looks and feels great.But I wouldn't pay more than $50 for it.

Decent
Firstly, I do not believe any Virgin Mobile phone is meant for the serious cell phone user. With no free nights or weekends and having to pay 25 cents a minute for the first ten minutes you talk a day (10 cents a minute after that), you rack up the bill pretty fast.

There is a serious convenient factor, seeing how you can actually pay your bill from your phone.

It's not very manly either. As said in other reviews, the screensavers are Sunflower, Cuddly Bear, and Flower Cart. You cannot download others from this phone.

If you like MTV and Comedy Central, you're in luck because so does Virgin Mobile. You can get various features from each channel sent to your phone for a fee.

All in all, if you talk alot, go for something with free nights and weekends on a service plan. If you need a phone for emergencies, this is your man (or girl). ... Read more