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Where Can I Find Cell Phone Recommendations?
Alex Bischoff asks: "I will likely be buying a cell phone within the next six months. And, while there seem to be half a million sites reviewing hardware, I can't find even one that does reviews of cell phones! Now, I've tried Google, of course, but all I can find are cell phone service providers and reviews on "super cell phones" -- that is, cell phones with built-in PDAs and such. I already have a Palm Pilot, so all I want is a "regular" cell phone. Can anyone recommend any sites that review cell phones, or offer his/her opinions on brands to buy and features to look for? "
Get a a motorola **ANALOG** flip-phone. Good ol' AMPS analog cellular. It's reliable. Lots of the nation is still not covered by digital. Digital phones go 'not in service' driving from Vegas to Reno for a few hundred mile stretches. Break down? Need a tow? Too bad if you're digital. And it's the desolate areas where having that phone is most important. Analog cellular even reaches into the remote, unpopulated wilderness areas of the nations, and in national parks. Also, when analog cell phones pass through a dead zone, they may briefly cut in and out or "picket fence" or the speech becomes noisy, BUT SPEECH REMAINS UNDERSTANDABLE. Digital breakups turn into an unintellibible buzzing/flanging type noise. And digital doesn't recover so well when you come out of the dead zone, 'cause your voice compression huffman dictionaries are out of sync now. This is the trade off of narrower digital phone channels done to squeeze more blood out of spectrum space and get more subscribers. Lastly, these new phones are tiny. They don't reach from ear to mouth. I constantly see people with these whacking their hand up and down and up and down while they listen and talk. Analog is still better. So unless you need some some sort of digital service, like that web phone, forget digital. Analog does caller ID, and voice mail handles anything text messaging can do. Ask "do i really **need** digital" before buying a phone.
This guy really seems to love his Ericsson cell phone.
I worked At staples for over a year and had the pleasure(horror) of selling Cells under four different providers, so I met a nice array of phone. Erricson's are the crappiest phones on the planet, I had more complants about them 788 being most pron to complaints. Qualacomm makes some really nice dual-mode phones. Dual mode is the way to go (in the US that is)!! Gives the assuraces of an Analog Backbone and the benifits of a digital network. My dad has a qualacom and I have played with it for many hours, and spent over 2hrs continous conversations on it. The phone is great, it has a quick nob on the side to change the volue while speaking, up for volup and down for voldwn. My next choice would be a Motorola Startack(yes I butchered it) or a timeport. Motorola does have a pretty crappy UI but it does make very good reliable phones, with great reception and battery life. If your on the East cost, use either Bell Atalantic or Sprint, both have very good rates, and a wide assortment of phones. Plus when you call Customer Service you actually talk to a person within 10 min (on avg).
I own a Nokia 8110, 8850, 7110.
And I must admit favourite is still 8110. 8850 is just way to small for my big hand, otherwise I admit it's a great phone, where 7110, I don't use anymore for all the bug in the firmware, but my gf is way satisfied with it, since she doesn't need as much stuff as I do.
On phones: Motorolas seem to have nice features, but suffer from "NASA engineering." By this, I mean that it seems like one team worked on the battery, one worked on the transmitter, one worked on the OS... but nobody considered the final result. Samsungs are similar, and about as indestructible (or destructible- the faceplates on Motorolas are utterly scratchproof, but those useless microphoneless flip covers crack off instantly on both Samsung and Motorola...), but seem to be more holistically engineered. I'm happy with my reverse-flip (speaker flips up) Samsung SCH-3000.
On services (more important than the phone if you live in the U.S.!)- Sprint seems to offer the cheapest overall rate, especially if you want free national LD. I signed up with the $30/300minutes plan and added 200 off-peak minutes for another $10. Sprint's coverage sucks, however- I'm at SIU Edwardsville, and I have to walk outside on a specific side of the dorm to get coverage (and this is supposed to be a covered area!) Lambert Int'l Airport in St. Louis is also not covered, and I've had to blow cash on analog roaming. (Would've been cheaper to use 1-800-C******..) Sprint also has the dumbest operators and technicians on the planet, you have been warned.
If you live in the northeast, where I'm from, Bell Atlantic is hard to beat. You get digital cellular (800MHz digital, which seems to be a bit more.. stable.. than Sprint's SHF stuff), and analog cellular (for all the places where digital isn't, yet), and it's a pretty good deal. Watch out on the tri-state plans, though- my old roommate went for one only to find out he could make LOCAL CALLS from anywhere in that area (no roaming charge), but that he didn't actually get free calling TO anywhere in that area.
Just to add to the GSM thread, the reason I would choose GSM over DAMPS is battery life. The nonlinearity of the GSM tranceivers saves battery life and as a result - you don't have to recharge the thing every night. Make the phone a 3 volt, stick a Li-Ion battery on it, and you've got yourself a phone that has a talk time over an hour and a standby time of god knows how long. Just don't throw it in a fire (boom you know).
CDMA
Gee, sorry to contradict an "expert", but you are quite incorrect.
There are analog and digital cellular phones (which operate in the 800MHz range) and PCS (which operates in the 1.9GHz range). (It might be 900MHz and 1.8GHz--I can never keep 'em straight.)
They all use "cellular" technology. The idea of having multiple small cells that automagically hand of the user off from cell-to-cell as the user moves around.
First of all, it costs extra to use analog service on a dual mode phone (analog == roaming, essentially). Further, analog mode will suck your battery dry FAST, unlike with the analog phones which were designed to run in analog mode all the time, and had batteries with more energy capacity. Digital phones aren't meant to do analog except on a stop gap basis.
FYI: The "tune" a GSM cellphone plays is a user option - normally they come equipped with 20 or more "melodies" - spanning from multiple variants of "normal" ringing sounds to short version of various "well known melodies". For the newer Nokia's you can download sounds as well - and on some phones you can edit your own. I suspect your friend just has poor taste in music ;)
Does anyone else think it's suspicious that someone asks "where can I find a site that compares cell phones" and the first two posts are people promoting epinions.com?
"Many ninja carry cell phones."
- A Ninja
I totally agree with Doug. I own a Motorola that cost me $1500. It broke 54 weeks later. Motorola didn't want to know about it as it just came out of warranty. Nokia seems to be indestructible. Steadman.
This phone rules for mainly two reasons that were extremely important to me: 1) The form factor. I love the flip phone form and the fact that it slips right in my pocket. 2) Built in vibrating. This cannot be understated. While in my pocket, a vibrate will alert me to a call (either in a meeting or listening to loud music) while simultaneously not disturbing anyone. And the vibration is better than the Nokia battery's (I was able to compare recently). Most excellent feature.
There's a new site starting up that's supposed to be starting that up at http://www.gadgetsquad.com that'll cover that kind of stuff.
I understand that in Europe it is common to prepay with cash for GSM service instead of buying a contract. With low rates of service it might be economical.
Is there such a cheap service in North America? If there isn't such a service, who will start one?
I'd like to phone anonymously! (But would I have to change phones frequently?)
--Anonymous Coward
I can download Scotty saying, "Engineering to Captain Kirk!"
I've thought this all along but never heard anyone say it. Now that I think about, it's pathetic that I actually recommend to fellow employees having trouble with their new company LGI digital phones (we had mot flip analogues before), to 'put it into analog mode' (which enables analog for 1 call, then you have to repeat). We didn't need digital! But it *was* cheaper. Now I know why. because it SUCKS! That's why!
Guys.. I reccomend this site if u're the kind of person who likes putting linux onto toasters, etc. .. It's got all the cool ways off how to reprogram your phone to do some cool things (ie. alpha tags, using cell phones as scanners, etc.)
I sell the SCH-3500 for Sprint PCS. Customers think that the style is great, but we're just seeing to many of them comming back. The build quality on the Samsungs just doesn't campare to others (especialy Motorola, my favorite).
Sorry, but Boston to D.C. isn't a fair test. Drive in an area where you see no buildings to the horizon. Drive the deserts of the southwest, through towns with two digit populations, and speed traps that pay for the sherrif's fleet of Ford Excursions, where towns are spaced hundreds of miles apart, and $2.75/gallon for gas looks good, 'cause you need it. And get off the interstate. Get on those lonely local state highways.
geckobeach.com/cellular
When I was shopping around half a year ago, I tried a dual-band StarTAC at GTE and found that its sound quality was significantly fuzzier than a Qualcomm phone that GTE offered. Also, I believe that it had a comparatively short battery life; they may have improved the battery life now.
Your selection of phones really depends on which carrier you choose, based on coverage area and service quality. It's unfortunate that in the U.S. the carriers all use different technologies, which makes it hard to switch between carriers. It really doesn't make sense to buy a phone independently, since you'll pay more for the phone and then be charged activation fees.
For myself, living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I chose Sprint PCS because I like the way they do business. Their rates are moderate, but they don't nickel-and-dime you for features like voicemail, long-distance, and roaming. Also, they don't lock you in with one-year service contracts. On the other hand, their signal strength is only mediocre. Having settled on Sprint PCS, I chose the Sanyo SCP 4000. It's small, dual-band, and has good battery life when using digital mode. The vibrating ringer is built into the phone, not the battery. It also has an HDML mini-browser, which is handy for certain things like getting stock quotes. (Don't expect too much, though. Like anything on a cell phone, the user interface is clunky. Also, tbtf.com reports that it has a security leak.) I've read somewhere that having a pull-out antenna might reduce your brain's exposure to radiation from the phone. The SCP-4000 has a pull-out antenna, which the Nokia phones don't have. I use a hands-free wire when possible so I can hold the thing away from my head, just to be safe.
The only disadvantage to the Sanyo SCP-4000 that I've found is that it's not a common model. That's important only in that if you want to buy accessories like a modem link or phone-book sync utility to your PC, your choice of vendors is limited.
lets you search for coverage, has links to reviews and places you can buy/sell used phones.
Buy Nokia. You can't go wrong. Some of their newer models are the most slim and compact I've seen.
Talking about indestructable phones... My friends Nokia got thrown out a car at 60mph, crashed right to a dirt road and still worked perfectly. I'd say that's indestructable :) But anyhow, pity you americans, your cell phone services are right from the stone age. I mean, I live in the middle of a forest, something like 20 km till the nearest town and all the three mobile networks here have full coverage. It's nearly impossible to find a spot in Finland where your phone wouldn't work. Oh, and the Nokia 3210 is one great phone.
Nextel Group Talk works for 100miles.
Get a fucking life man! Did you ever hear of getting off the phone once in awhile? I haven't used 50 hours of phone time in the entire 5 years that I've had cell phones! In fact, I average about 5-6 MINUTES a month on my bill and I get 100 free minutes a month. Bah. I hate people that talk on their stupid cell phones all day.
Hi,
...
Where can I find report/ review of EM emission from each brand of cell phone?? I have a NEC DB2000 which can distort the image on my monitor when it rings! So I got a handfree
Now I wanna try other cellphone and I wanna know the EM emission as well. Any report/ review on that?
Thanks
-erik
I bought a Nokia 5110 two years ago (in Spain) and never had a problem with softwate and auto-rebooting. Last time the phone was restarted was when I changed the battery. Check the output of w command: N5110> w 1:55am up 210 days, 6:46, 1 user, load average: 0.00, 0.02, 0.00 N5119>
For those of us who are lazy and would rather not copy/paste, http://www.commservice.ne t/ItalianBadBoys/CellularT&T.htm
Point.com is the place. I've used it to buy several phones, and their information is phenominal.
Now, if you always downrate products by telling ;). Anyway, I think those
:)
their good points, that might explain something
of your bad success
games and colors are meaningless, but hearing
long tunes are more fault of the users of phones,
just wait until 60% of the people has cellulars
on your country too.
And if you ask me about which phone, answer is
of course: Nokia
The question is should you buy a WAP-capable (Wireless Applications Protocol) mobile phone now, or wait a little (until Q1 2001) for the next generation mobiles which will have sensible bandwidth (enough for real-time, bigger than postage stamp size, video)?
Another issue (totally off-topic but where else on Slashdot exists for such discussions?) is that Slashdot articles are effectively dead only 6 hours after the initial posting. This site used to be better in 1997/8 when the Slashdot attention span was about a day or two.
I like my Samsung SCH-211, dual mode, Airtouch is the carrier. Inexpensive, but short battery life. I live in New Mexico, USA where ~90% of the state does not have digital. The choice was based on the fact that I do a lot of traveling in the state and I needed something that wouldn't leave me stranded or bleeding in a ditch. Digital is nice because of the text messaging and voice message alerts, but it is also nice to have the option of making a call where ever I am when I need to.
Try the StarTac or V-Series Motorola phones. I find them very cool.... BadBoy:)
You mentioned one, GSM. There is D-AMPS. There is CDMA(1 below 1Ghz and 1 above 1Ghz). And later(maybe they're doing some trials now), above the 1Ghz. If somebody wants a digital phone, I'll choose the CDMA one's. CDMA is the technology used by the our(US) forces in their communications because it's very secure. Regard, BadBoy:) I'm sooo bad
The goat feels that cell phones are silly. If you have a cell phone, you should spend 5 hours staring at the goat.
The first decision to make unless you are in a plan you can't get out of is to determine who you want to carry your wireless traffic. I personally use PacBell Mobile and find that in combo with the Ericsson CF788 it has a signal close to a hardline in the areas I travel. Using the DI27 infrared modem (now discontinued) and my Psion 5, I can send SMS email thru byedesk.com, browse web, check POP mail and cruise IRC from anywhere in Southern California, except for one part of Bev Hills. GSM wireless seems to be quite a bit more sophisticated than the other digital services offered in the area.
Buy the cheapest one. Then when you drop it in the can it's not a big deal.
if you ask some guy who got raped by his cell phone contract he'd prolly be a good source if u want to look into it through him, ya dig?
oh ya, if u sell crack r0ck, lemme know i need some mo' for my wife n kiddies. plus i needs more for myself two.
I have to agree with you about this. Before, I have a Motorola Ultra Sleek phone, maaan, it's like a stone. It's just indestructible. Sometime in our office, one had really a bad day and he slam this phone really hard on the cement floor. We're shock on what he did. but after picking it up and making a call, it still works. That's the same with the Microtac phones they have. It's pretty durable and reliable. I have used their StarTac on 1998 and their V-3688 when I was in UK and I find them sooo cool aside from being very small. Though never tried slamming or throwing it up. BadBoy
hmm, accidents happen.
cellphones are nice for many of those situations.
look at http://www.mobilserver.com
I am spending Fall '00 semester int he UK. I think I might use a cell phone while I am over there and I was thinking that I would like to find a phone which works in the US when I come back (so as not to have an expensive paperweight... preferably Nokia... Any suggestions? or is this impossiable?
Or you can pick a service plan you like, and then serach for phones that come with it.
They also have some user opinions -- but there aren't very many except for the popular brands
I just get bag phones out of the garbage. Ive modified some of them for 6W RF power output and disabled the auto power control.
You can't go wrong with a bag phone. They have the most features if you know how to program decently in assembly. (Now the uPs some of them use is a bitch to get data on sometimes, but...) The storage on them is generally socketed DIP EPROMs so it makes customization a breeeze.
Telstreet Phone reviews by carrier
I recently purchased a cell phone after researching the market. After comparing and trying several different phones and services, my choice was the Qualcomm Thinphone, which is available in 800, 1900 and 2700 MHz models as the QCP-860, QCP-1960, and QCP-2760, respectively. The exact model is tied to which service provider you choose. My choice was an AirTouch national coverage plan and dictated the QCP-860.
Not only does the Thinphone have all the geeky features, it's very easy to use and has the best sound of any phone I tried. It was notably better sounding than most of the small, clam-shell phones. One liability of the Thinphone is its unfortunately flimsy antenna.
Note that Qualcomm has recently sold their phone business to Kyocera.
Ive had my StarTAC for about six months (It is analog .. not digital) and I think it is great. It is the the size of a pager when it is folded up and expands to a nice size when unflolded. Plus (according to one of the big nightly news shows on one of the big networks .. I forget which) it shoots the least amount of radiation into your head out of all the cell phones they tested .. sorry I dont have any exact numbers off the top of my head, but it has to do with how the antenna just away from the users head. Although they wont admit that it is safer ..
..And it dosen't do digital. I just got a BA 330D, works great, crazy batt life and if it rings flip it op, done talking -flip closed... thats damn simple.
Had a startac before and broke the little flipper and the attena in 2 weeks, also my fat fingers couldn't push the button as well as my 330D.
Nokias cook your brain, great reception, yeah it uses your head as an amp...
User: Kancer -to lazy to find stoopid password
As I see it, you have to select your service first and that depends on your area. I live in the midwest and use Sprint PCS, but here the network is always bogged down in places like NYC (dropped calls, busy signals, etc). Here it is great, I get 1000 minutes to anywhere in the country for 75 a month. All of my business partners have them and I bought phones for my family as well. I have a motorola start tac and it is great. Before that I had the Sony Zphone, but the startac is amazing. Small, light, 4 hour talk, 115 hour standby, silent ring. The coverage/signal strength with each wave of new phones is better, so plan on buying a new one when the battery loses charge capacity. My brother & mom each have a Samsung SCH3500, pretty slick and cheap. Voice activation, cool/solid design, great sound and reception. My only beef with the samsung is ringer volume. Hope that helps.
Here is a nice simple/rugged phone from NEXTEL: http://www.nextel.com/products/productcatalog/prod ucts_catalog_i500.shtml
Of coure it's a bit difficult to really test a phone for reception here, since Scandinavia is the best covered area for cell phone use in the world.
Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway are the four countries in the world with highest cell phone usage - with more than 60% of the population using cell phones.
In Norway we've just exhausted 10 million cell phone numbers for 4.2 million people (because of additional services like GSM data, fax and voicemail)...
I've got a 12-month contract with U.S. Cellular... $25/month, with 60 minutes per month free airtime, and 1500 minutes free weekend airtime each month. Absolutely perfect for what I use it for, and cheaper than U.S. West landline service.
Wow - you're paying too much, IMHO! I'm in Canada on a non-contract service. I'm paying $20/month CANADIAN for 100 minutes anytime. An extra $5 or $10 will give me unlimited evenings and weekends. No contract, and billed by the second. Free call display (caller id), call waiting and voice messaging. Remember - I'm paying in Canadian dollars too! Extra minutes are $.20, long distance minutes are $.20. About as cheap as I could find, with a decent coverage area. I could also pay another $5 to give me 200 minutes/month anytime, but I don't need them (I average about 65-75 minutes/month)
I love my Clearnet. Been with them a year, never disappointed me.
The big, clunky Motorola "Contour" phones with Ameritech were absolutely the best as far as reliability. The Sony Z-100 with SprintPCS is a close second. (The big problem there is that my "Z" is PCS-only. Which means when I leave a SprintPCS coverage area, I'm out of service. But their coverage is increasing and improving all the time.)
The Nokia phones, with both Ameritech and AirTouch, were a disaster. I wouldn't touch another Nokia on a bet.
The jury's still out on the Qualcomm with AirTouch, but all seems to be going well so far.
The general feeling I get from most providers is that Motorola generally makes the most dependable phones. But the tiny StarTac may be an exception.
I would first find a provider that has the type of coverage you need for the area in which you need it, then select a Motorola, Sony or Qualcomm phone from that provider. Lithium Ion batteries are by far the best, btw.
If SprintPCS' coverage is good where you need it, I would recommend taking a serious look at them. Of the three providers I've used-- the other two being Ameritech and AirTouch, SprintPCS has far-and-away been the best. And I don't mean just be price alone. The best over-all. As to price: I'm getting 300 minutes any time, 1st incoming minute free, free long-distance in the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, caller I.D., voice mail, call waiting, three-way calling and detailed billing for US$30/month. Can't beat that with a stick! I added another US$2.00 to get up to 10 text messages a month. Subscribe to Sprint Long-Distance and you get further discounts, I believe.
I just bought a new phone, and could choose any model I wanted, and get a 150 USD discount for keeping my current subscription (yeah, they even subsidize you for not switching to their competitors), or the same amount from one of the competing services to start a new subscription.
I'm in Norway, though ;)
Last I heard PCS is really only GSM on a different frequency... (1900 MHz?). I've got a Motorola triband phone, and it handles GSM 900, 1800 and 1900, and according to the docs, 1900 is for use in the US.
Try Consumers Report of a few month back.
I just bought a new cellphone, and the quality is better than my stationary phone, and it's a GSM phone...
Ericsson brings functionality at the cost of reliability I totally agree. They turn themselves off constantly, whether because of software or hardware I don't know Yours too? I've got an Ericsson A1018s and it reboots at least five times a week. Not to mention that when it loses touch with a station nearby (especially on trains) it doesn't find a new one without having to shut the phone off and back on. I used to have a Nokia 1911 (I think that was the name). It was big as a brick, but worked perfectly.
I've got a Sony phone which does the same thing. I actually figured out *some* of the things which cause it to reboot (ie: using the lock keypad feature), but sometimes it's random and it pisses me off. I will be replacing it eventually.
I have to go along with this. I started with Sprint, but their customer service reps are next to impossible to get ahold of and I had numerous billing errors with them. Apparently Sprint has the highest turnover rate of the major carriers due to poor performance.I ended up switching to AT&T. One odd note there though. On Sprint I used a Star-Tac and was very happy with it. I tried a Star-Tac with AT&T and didn't get good reception. Nokia, which I had tried on Sprint and was not too impressed by, worked wonderfully on AT&T. Sprint and AT&T use different signal methods, so a Nokia or Star-Tac on Sprint isn't exactly the same phone internally as it is on AT&T, but you'ld expect a good phone on one to be a good phone on the other.
nokia 7100 / 7110 depending on part of world your in I canceled my cell service until the 7100 hits the states ooo, using anything else is just uncivilized
>I still think those Nokias from The Matrix rule...
Because you don't have one. I had been coveting them for a while also, until I got a good look at one belonging to a friend.
They're cheesy silver plastic, and have TERRIBLE reception (in NYC at least).
He's since dumped his and got a Startac, but that's another story . . .
NOKIA NOKIA NOKIA. On a related note for Linux users: Check out http://www.gnokii.org
They had a breakthrough as per March 16, quoting from the news there: "We have data calls!"
Good site that. Worth checking out if you are a Canuck.
Try to hack my 31337 firewall!
gotta love phones that sell based on pretty colours and inline games.... talk about quality. plus there is the added bonus of 40 second long tunes for the phone rings... i hate hearing those god-damned rings
The antenna is not directional, it radiates in every direction. I doubt the small power output from those batteries are going to give you a brain tumor. Measure how much power is being generated from the monitor you sit in front of every day.
Only the State obtains its revenue by coercion. - Murray Rothbard
This may be what you are looking for: http://www.point.com jb
here
looked at ephones.com? Not necessary a review site, but it does allow you to compare plans... which in my opinion are far more important the phone you choose.
As for phones, I like my Nokia 6185 (with the long life battery). Also, if you live in a PCS area - go PCS. It still sounds like you are talking on a cell phone, but less so then analog.
As a student, i dont have too much money to spare on a phone considering that the palm is already quite expensive.
Which cell phone would you recommend for this kind of usage? I know IR solution exists with internal modems but they are VERY expensive, and i dont think i ll be able to use that in a moving BUS (Packet lost, too much IR deviation!:-)
Am i forced to buy (or build heh) a palm modem and than a cable to connect to the cell?
---
Posted by Nr9:
the star tac is damned flimsy
Posted by Nr9:
my experiences are just the opposite
the startac is the flimsiest phone ive ever worked with while the Nokia 5130 is the most durable. i now have a 7110 and it works great but ive not and i dont want to throw it on the pavement
Posted by Nr9:
From my experience, Nokia phones are the best.
IF you want a basic phone with no WAP, etc, get a nokia 3210. it looks cool and is very reliable
ive used the 5130 before but its discontinued now.
The 7110 is a good choice because of the way the cover opens. It looks cool and it answers the phone just like the one in The Matrix. It also sounds like it.
Also, if you go to Japan, almost everyone has a phone but they are all japanese made. They are strange and they can only be used in Japan. THey weigh like 50 grams and are small and cheap. one can get a 50 gram small phone for about $30. Unfortunately, they are not for export and they are japanese only.(damned monopoly japs shit)
everywhere else, nokia's the best. snake is best game.
I have a Bell Atlantic Mobile BAM-330D (OEMed LGC-330W), and I'm pretty happy with it, with the exception of a lack of third-party accessories.
:)
If you want data capability on a CDMA network, go with Qualcomm. They invented the technology.
For a general all-around phone, I'm getting a Nokia 6185 when I renew my service contract. (Unless there's a newer Nokia by then.)
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
Weird... When I was choosing a phone, I had a few people tell me it was flimsy...
retrorocket.o not found, launch anyway?
I have had several phones, the one I use now is my favourite, a Nokia 8210. It's small, good ui, has Irda, which works with laptops and my palm iii, and it has vibrate. I have had Ericsson (gf788, sh 888), Motorola (8400, 5200) bot nothing beats the Nokia.
I've been using SprintPCS for about 7 months and I have been extremely happy with their customer service and their pcs service. I know other people who have been very happy with them too.
Their customer service reps have always been extremely polite and helpful.
Just my 0.02...
You might want to check out CNet's pretty good Wireless Phone comparison DB. It compares phones and plans; it's good for getting a good idea about phones, but not great for phone plans - I found better deals by just calling the service providers directly.
Regards,
Brent
Phone bashing.
So set one up.
--dan p.
Where can I find cell phone recommendations?
:)
Yes, yes, there are problems, and I am busy working on them
the nokia 6160 is the greatest cell fone i have ever had the joy of posessing. its got liION battery, games, like 50 different ring types, games,
id recommend getting one. a lot of times you can get one for free when signing up for service.
i also recommend get AT&T service. its the clearest ive ever heard and they have all those nice digital PCS features. they are a bit more pricey then the competitors, but its worth it.
Global warming is good for you!
I recently got a dual-band digital StarTac from Sprint PCS to replace my Qualcomm QCP-2700. Not only is the StarTac smaller and lighter, but the call reception is MUCH better, even better than my friend's Nokia 6185 (which is also Sprint PCS). I got the StarTac because I think these tiny little Nokia phones are just too damn small for my hands. The StarTac is large enough to hold comfortably when it's open, and nice and small when it's closed. Best of both worlds, I guess.
Get a dual-band phone, even if you don't plan to leave populated areas that often. One of my friends was in a remote location recently, and another car in his group was in a very bad accident (drunk driver in the snow hit them, grrr). Without analog capability, he would not have been able to call the paramedics.
I highly recommend the StarTac, it has great battery life and great reception, and it looks very cool.
If you don't know what a 14 year old needs a cell phone for, you never had any friends when you were 14.
I've tried Fido's data service (under Windows only, unfortunately). It works fine - but you only get 9600bps - on digital only.
Cheers,
- Jim
You know, all these cell phones we find in the US are pretty hot. They look badass and have cool capabilities. However, the US is far from the coolest in cell phone capabilities and looks. We have regulations on what cell phones can do, etc.
If you want a badass phone, ship yourself to Australia and get the "flip phone" featured from the movie "The Matrix". Tell me that's not a badass phone. Or just go to one of the main Asian countries like Korea and Japan. Ericsson, Nokia, Sanyo, Samsung, etc. All these major cell phone makers make badass phones for other countries except us. Damn these regulations!
My 2 cents...
Sometimes I go out on Friday nights and get into cell-phone-smashing contests with drunk people.
Have you ever thought of, I dunno, seeing a movie? Or going dancing? I hear bingo's quite fun.
But if you're determined to get into phone-bashing: www.phonebashing.com
--Yoz
www.point.com is not bad. They give you a quick overview of all your choices. But for more in depth, IMHO, the best (but limited) reviews can be found at www.arcx.com/sites/default.htm
--
--
#include <malloc.h>
free(your.mind);
aheam... bull cookies! I've used my 6120 on both circuits, analog and digital, with out a hitch.
I read at +2. If your post doesn't reach that level I will not see or respond to it.
Ericsson brings functionality at the cost of reliability. I have had 3 different so far, the two last being the GS18 and the SH888. Ericsson actually replaced the GS18's in my company with SH888's because they couldn't fix the GS18's.
Even the SH888's have software that feels like a late beta at best. The user interface is terrible. They turn themselves off constantly, whether because of software or hardware I don't know. Every time we get a phone repaired it fails less often for the next month or so, and then it's back to the daily crashes.
Just to top it off they have zero coverage in places where a Nokia 7110 reports "half" coverage and goes through flawlessly.
Never again Ericsson.
Finally! A year of moderation! Ready for 2019?
Phones.
1. Nokia is rock solid, great battery life, and the easiest menu of them all. Get a 61xx model.
2. Nokia Faceplates Skinz.
3. Nokia, get the ear piece adapter. Makes it easy to drive or work on a computer.
4. Nokia has a few dozen ring tunes, the UK models can be programmed with private tunes.
5. Motorola StarTac will impress the babes, looks cool, but doesnt have the battery life.
Service
1. AT&T has the largest coverage area, with an extended roaming area for those who live in the back woods.
2. AT&T Digital One rate, you cant beat the price. http://www.att.com/onenet/
3. Family plan, up to 5 phones, unlimited talk time to each other (Same calling area).
4. AT&T prepaid (For those with ok credit)
5. Sprint - Not bad, not great. Works ok, but limited coverage area.
Internet Phonesl
Mitsubishi T250 with AT&T Pocketnet Service.
http://www.attws.com/business/pocketnet/index.htm
Pocketnet has been out for 3 years. But LARGE Personal Launch date is a few weeks away.
The Mistubisi T250 is the same siza as a Nokia, had the best display, with Indeglow backlight.
1. 1. The phone uses CDPD network (Largest Wireless data network, with your own IP)
2. Supports TML, HDML, WAP, WML, WMLSCRIPT.
3. Email, Pageing, Internet surfing, bookmarks, Pop email, Personal site to configure services.
4. PIM (sync with exchange, notes, domma delimited text files, etc..) and much more.
IMHO,
---IronWolve---
No, PCS isnt 1900-GSM. Its just that some providers start using 1900-GSM in the US now in addition to the (sadly) still dominant PCS system.
And I have learnt the following;
I am very concerned with the user interface for gadgets like this that you use every day. For the Motorola CD930, I can only uphold it as 'flunked'. Even my other phone from autumn 1994 has a better user interface.
And now that I'm finished ranting, I'll read the other posts and hopefully find my next phone. Only it will not be a Motorola. (Ps: If someone from Motorola reads this, can you please restaff your quality assurance department? And send me a upgraded phone?)
Regards, Jørn Jensen. Slightly pissed.
--
Fast, Soon, Correct. Pick 2.
Yeah, I know it doesn't apply to analog roaming (of course, neither does Sprint's plan either). If you have a Nokia 6190, you have to get the Plus module to do Analog.
The views expressed herein are not necessarily those of anyone, including the poster.
GSM, if you ignore the fact the US uses different frequencies, is a worldwide standard. I can take the SIM card out of my phone in the US and plug it into a European phone. My identity and phone numbers are stored on the SIM card, so no muss when I travel internationally. GSM hasn't caught on in the states for various reasons.
GSM phones allow far more customization. The Nokia phones allow you to do custom ring tones and graphics, have built-in Data and FAX capabilities (with the right software and cables) and Short Messaging Service (can send and receieve Internet email either through SMS -> Email gateways or through your provider).
The downside to GSM in the states is that there are still some major holes in coverage (though I understand that Dallas and Chicago will have GSM coverage soon). Also, GSM may not be usable in smaller areas, so you'll have to make sure you can roam in Analog mode (if you've got a Nokia, you will have to get the Plus module) and pay analog roaming costs. Other than Voicestream's North American Neighborhood plan, (it's not on their website -- you'll have to call them and ask about it), I don't know of any GSM provider with a nationwide no-roaming, no-long distance plan. I just signed up with this plan (ditching the Death Star), so we'll see how it compares.
-- PhoneBoy
The views expressed herein are not necessarily those of anyone, including the poster.
I'm using a Sprint PCS phone which has been ok. I haven't tried using it outside my coverage area. I don't know about all the service plans but I would think you'd get a much better deal if you buy the phone instead of getting one of those free phone deals. The deal I first checked out was a free crap phone and expensive contract with hardly any air time. So I payed about $130 for a good phone and got a nice service contract.
I hate to burst everybody's bubble, but there has been at least one study done positively linking cell phones to brain cancer and malfunctioning pacemakers. Read this article, which comes from a really good listserv on corporate misdeeds.
I previously worked at an AT&T Callcenter and through my experience there I saw a lot of phones come and go. The most popular phones seemed to be Nokia's, Ericsson's & Motorola's. Motorola: good sturdy phone that can take a beating (unless it's a startac, in that case they can be flimsy). Ericsson seems to make reasonable phones for a low cost. They aren't too sturdy, but if you're low on bugdet you can get a good DMN (Digital MultiNetwork) phone for much less than say a Nokia. Nokia on the other hand didn't seem to haev as many problems than the others. If you have a problem with your phone you can easily get good customer service from Nokia. I found the 5100 series to be the best, but the 6100 series has many more features. In my opinion I would probably choose a Nokia 5160. It has everything you need without the terribly high cost of some other phones.
Of course if you have the money you can splurge and get a Nokia 8800 series phone and be able to check your hair on its chrome shell.
Wouldn't deja.com be what you're looking for?
During my conversation, the salesman told me that a dual mode phone was better, because even if the phone is operating in digital mode, the analog network will be used to improve the quality of the call, without any additional cost. This seems like a load of horse crap to me.. isn't the PCS network digital only? Wouldn't it have to use a competing analog network, like Bell Atlantic? I'm real skeptical.. I've heard of salespeople lying about coverage and features in order to make a sale. So, was this guy speaking the truth or lying through his teeth? Thanks
Had my 5120 for a year. I'm still in love with it. Simple UI, not too tiny as to be uncomfortable to use, good signal quality, and nigh indestructable. Besides, the Wireless Web is a load of unusable crap anyway.
Decide.com is pretty damn impressive, IMHO. I used them to validate that my choice, GTE, was the best in the area. The audio playback of particular services compared against each other at specific locations (find one near home, near work, and along the way) was a big win. I haven't taken the time to check the others, but I'll have try them out sometime soon.
Their reviews of phones is pretty useful as well. Although I was convinced that the "Thin Phone" should be pretty awesome based on their reviews, I can't bring myself to ditch the StarTac I've had for the last year and a half after having actually tried it.
$0.02
I don't know about the whole Europe but the situation in Finland:
#1. Buy a phone. Any phone.
#2. Get a subscription. Any subscription.
#3. Ask the staff to insert the SIM-card into the phone.
#4. Wait 20 minutes for the activation.
I.e. The phone and subscription are separated. It is illegal for the provider to subsidise the phone. Selling phones tied to only one operator is also illegal. Freedom Rules :) Also take into account that whole Europe uses same standard => You can use your phone in whole Europe + World (-Japan & America).
Karma: Good! Napster: Baad!
Actually... All hand-held (digital, analog, whatever) cellular phones are limited (in the US) by the FCC to 600mW of output, due to concerns over the potential for Bad Things to happen when a significant portion of the radiated energy passes directly through the user's head before it goes anywhere useful.
The only way to get around this restriction is to use a genuine wired-in-place car phone, or a somewhat messy contraption which acts as a cradle for a handheld, and includes a 3 Watt amp (which is the maximum legal power).
Besides, power has nothing to do with how good a 'digital' call sounds, but rather the CODECs used, how forgiving they are of errors in the bitstream, and the bitrate at which they operate (which is often dynamically adjusted depending on system load). Take a poor-sounding 600mW phone, and boost it to three Watts. It will continue to sound horrible.
Kid-proof tablet..
nextel is another provider some friends of mine have been happy with...the i1000 and so on..
---
Jedi-Bene Gesserit
"Teachers leave us kids alone
I'm with you... I switched from BellAtlantic Mobile to SprintPCS due to BAM's poor customer service. The reps at the physical stores can't cancel service, and can't access records you have with the 1-800 customer service. At BAM stores, if you ask for a manager, they actually tell you to go home and call the 1-800 number. Not only SprintPCS customer service been great, but I bought a Samsung SCH-3500. I can check my Yahoo! mail, use the $99 Data connection kit and get a slow but reliable 14.4 connection to the net. BAM did have better local coverage in the Pittsburgh, PA area, but Sprint's coverage is definetly acceptable. I recently traveled from Pittsburgh to NY, NY. On the way, I found my phone was in full digital (non-roaming) service in areas that weren't even on Sprint's roaming map. And even people using AT&T and BAM have trouble on the PA Turnpike (the world's worst highway). Another unique Sprint concept is that you're not charged roaming as long as you're on their network - you're only charged long distance (unless you're on a Free & Clear plan as mentioned above). If you travel or need Wireless Web access, Sprint is the way to go.
I've had Nokia phones since 1996, with a 21xx-series. The antenna broke (a major stress-point on a mobile), and my service provider allows a cheap upgrade every 12 months.
So I bought a 61xx series phone. After a year or so, the antenna was so broken, the phone kept crashing from intermittent contact.
Well, I've finally got my 7110 (you know.. the WAP one with the springloaded slider). Very nice -- software a bit crashy. However, the antenna's still the same design. I give it about four months before the antenna starts to crack. They're putting internal antennas on the 3210 and the new ruggedized 6250, but right now it's annoying.
Other than that, Nokia thrash Motorola. I had a Motorola while I was waiting for the 7110, and I had real fun destroying it last night. =)
I recently got a 7110, and as long as you don't use WAP (it's crashy) and you've got a reasonably recent OS revision, it's fine... and a lot nicer than the 61xx range.
Plus, the Matrix-style springloaded cover is cool. =)
Nope.. the first 'base' phone in the range often has a '0'... most often "xx10", like the 6110, 5110, 7110, 8110, 2110, etc. The second digit starts as '1', but later phone ranges for the same market up that one (eg. 3110 was a consumer phone with no pro features, just like the 3210 is now).<p>
Often the last two digits represent a variant for a different type of network (2148 being a GSM-1800 variant of the 2110) or a functional change in design (6250 is a ruggedized phone similar to the 6210)<p>
<em>I would love to have one of those compact chrome phones</em><p>
Incidentally, IIRC, the chrome on the 8810 phones acts as RF shielding for the head, while the back (unplated) radiates. Neat idea. Probably explains the signal issues though.
www.point.com
www.decide.com
www.myrateplan.com
These ask you detailed questions about your intended use, then suggest the best rates in your area. I would try all of them, think about my actual/possible use, find a good plan, then look at the phones, and decide what you must have, and if that plan can provide it. I ended up with a Nokia 6161, which is a triple mode (both digitals and analog) with a long battery life, but also look at the nokia 6185 (also triple mode) which can attach with a special serial cable to your cpu/palm.
I bought a motorola cd930 (or the 920, the one without the flip anyway) a year ago.. At the time it came with incredibly cheap service, it has a great battery, EFR and vibra-call.. But I'm not entirely satisfied with the sound, the service's coverage, and the fact Motorola phones don't have the snake game on them ;-)
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SCO employee? Check out the bounty
I've had a nokia 5190 for about a year now and it's awesome. Definately go for a pcs or digital phone..analog is crap. The only place i couldn't get reception on pacbell pcs was underground in a concrete structure.
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|-_-| . o O ( bEef!)
I really don't know whether GSM is really better than PCS. On the other hand, I have been using a 900 Mhz GSM for almost two years now and rarely get loss of coverage. Works fine in the subway as well and in most parking garages, as long as you are not more than one floor underground. My 1800 Mhz phone has a bit more coverage trouble, but generally speaking it is still far better than the horror story you are telling. Interoperability is never an issue, for a starter. In fact, it is not uncommon to buy a phone in a phone store and get a separate SIM from the mobile operator, although the vast majority of subscribtions are sold in a package deal.
-- Spelling and grammar errors tend to be a sign of erroneous thinking.
Decide.com
- Computing Review
- Epinions
- Deja.com (see Consumer Electronics>>Communications>>Cell Phones)
I chose the Nokia 5190 due to the interfaces being understood and the progress on a Linux interface (data calls now complete -- enough for TCP/IP). I would endorse it more strongly if Nokia was emitting more documentation.First, worry about the service/carrier first. Talk to people, find some reviews for your geographic area on who has the best coverage and service, since this is FAR more important than the actual phone you use. (In NoVA/DC Metro area, I've always liked Bell Atlantic, but YMMV.)
I've used the Nokia 630-series (older, kinda clunky, didn't care for the NiMH batteries), the Motorola i1000's with Nextel service (kinda spotty coverage, though the two-way radio thingy is neat, if your employer is willing to eat the bill), and the newer Nokia 5180 (cute, indestructable so far as I've seen, good battery life, fun to play with).
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"We can categorically state that we have not released man-eating badgers into the area." - Major Mike Shearer, UK
www.wirelessdimensions.com - compare up to 5 phones at a time, then quicklink to the ones that interest you. Also pretty detailed info on who your local providers are, and what specials they're offering.
Envy my 5 digit Slashdot User ID!
Of course, there are epinions and deja .coms.
:-) Which has terrible reception, by the way.
Or you could save yourself the effort and just get a Mitsubishi G150 if you only need PCS, or a Nokia 6100 series if you need analog too.
I have a G150 and it's a much better phone than the highly touted Nokia 2100 series, the Ericssons, and pretty much any other phone I've looked at. It has better reception than pretty much any PCS phone, and to me, that's the most important feature in a phone. The feature set isn't bad at all, but you can't play games or check your calendar on it like you can with the Nokia.
Good luck with your search.
No, I am not working for Nokia. Sorta.
God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ --1Thes5:9
....if someone wants info on phones which (at some point) may be attached to a Linux-based computer.
Check http://www.cs.uit.no/linux-irda/ for information about this. In particular http://www.cs.uit.no/linux-irda/hardw are.html surveys phones (and other stuff) with emphasis on IrDA-capabilities and cooperation with Linux.
-- "Life is a bitch - and she hates me..."
that's my recommendation. pretty simple, eh?
But, I'm not in Canada, nor in a large enough metropolis that there is competition. Two nets to choose from, and US Cell was cheaper. :)
And no such thing as a non-contract plan in this area, either! (Unless you want prepaid rip-off service.)
"Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives" should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
I've got a Nokia 918... simple, small, elegant design. 5 ring tones, and three of them are nice and short. (I used the high-pitched ring-ring one.)
It's got no games, either. I'm jealous. That'd be great when stuck in gridlock traffic.
I've also got a Motorola Startac (not hooked up anymore) It was a good phone, too, but the LED display was rather '80s. :)
10 more months to go, and I get another phone. Gotta love getting a free phone every time you sign up for new service!
"Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives" should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
I've got a 12-month contract with U.S. Cellular... $25/month, with 60 minutes per month free airtime, and 1500 minutes free weekend airtime each month. Absolutely perfect for what I use it for, and cheaper than U.S. West landline service.
I had non-contract service before, and it was costing me a little more.
The moral? Contract service is fine, just be damned sure you don't cancel early. :) Then your out $200+ dollars.
"Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives" should be a convenience store, not a government agency.
Its the cheapest of the two major services
that offer non-contract services. The other
is Motorola powered Nextel.
Also, the Denso Touchpoint for Sprint PCS is a kickass phone. It doesn't have voice activation, but all of its other features are top notch. One easy feature it has is the ability to strip phone numbers off of email and text/numeric pages you receive and place it directly in your phone book!
Nextel has unique features as well, which is
a ``group'' calling feature almost like a CB radio. You can get unlimited group calls for organizing with your work group at a distance
I've seen it work for across at least 10 miles
i.e. from Jamaica NYC to Laguardia Airport.
I havent tried their phones yet, but their basic
plans are about 40% more expensive then Sprint's plans.
AVOID CONTRACT PLANS AT ALL COSTS!
Well, I bought a Nokia 8210 last week and I have to say that it absolutely rules. It's about the zie of a ZIPPO lighter, it weights virtually nothing, it has T9 predictive text input for SMS's, built in modem and infra red connection which is great for use with laptops and PDA's.. The UI is *excellent* and despite it's small size, the battery lasts for about 5 days.. I'm very happy with it. My old phone, a Nokia 6110, was also very nice, but it was considerably bulkier.
Try Decide.com. It looks fairly decent for the SF Bay Area, but I've not looked at their coverage of other areas.
The Samsung 3500 is a great phone, the one I currently have. It's snazzy looking, gets amazing battery life (130 hours standby and 2.5 talk time), and is pretty thin (around 1/2") so it fits nicely in a pocket. It also has a vibrate option, which lets you avoid lots of glaring, annoyed looks when someone calls you.
Another very nice feature is that you take voice memos with the phone. I've used this countless times to keep notes, reminders, etc.
The voice activated dialing and Internet access are both neat features, though I haven't found either one very useful yet.
"People that quote themselves in their signatures bother me" - athakur999
... those phones which doesn't ring but plays tunes to indicate an incoming call/message.
My friend has one of these and I'm soooo embarassed when it rings. It plays the 7th symphony or something like that in midi quality.
Its not cool or neat, just plain ghey.
The surprise isn't how often we make bad choices; the surprise is how seldom they defeat us.
I have a Nokia 6185. I love the thing. At my company, we give the user their choice of phone. First off, those little square Sony ones suck. Don't even think about getting one. We've been through so many of those things it's not funny. Needless to say, we refuse to outfit our employees with them anymore. More to the point:
It is a fairly regular occurance to replace phones. Our engeneers especially seem to give them a beating. That's why we insure them though. We have replaced 1 Nokia. Not because it was banged around. It fell off off someones belt into the toilet.
I drop my 6185 at least twice a week (I'm a klutz). It has suffered nothing but scratches to the REPLACEABLE faceplate. The antenna is a little banged up, but it still works like a charm. I can say however, I haven't acctually tried to hurt my phone. That's just kinda stupid.
That's my 2.5 cents.
You're thinking of either the Motorola i1000 or i1000+. I have one (provided by my employer). The speakerphone on it is pretty sweet...and it is LOUD. It's good for when you're driving and you don't want to have the phone stuck up against your head. The two-way capability is also good for conserving airtime.
(ObDisclaimer: I don't work for Nextel, I don't own their stock, yadda yadda yadda...)
20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
Last time I checked (which was, admittedly, a while ago), analog was more expensive than digital. Yes, you could get an old brick phone (or even a newer analog phone...I have a Motorola pocket phone with alphanumeric memory and vibrating call alert that I used for about a year back around '96 or so, sitting in my closet) dirt-cheap, but analog airtime often costs more than digital because analog chews up more bandwidth.
20 January 2017: the End of an Error.
Wrong, the 5100 and 6100 series models for North America don't have IR. They have a piece of plastic that looks like the IR window, but there's nothing behind it.
Unfortunatelly, although there is some information to be found at that site, there are often errors (some of which I brought to the author's attention about a year ago and are mostly still there), so unless you already know much about these things you can't be too sure if what you're reading is true or not. Steve Punter is a very frequent contributor in the alt.cellular* groups, and really "gets it". He maintains a web page with a wealth of information that is very accurate, as far as I can tell, and it's quite objective as well (although he doesn't try to hide his personal preference). It's again Canadian, and it's Ontario-centric, but I found most information quite useful in British Columbia as well. His site can be found at www.arcx.com/sites/
PCS is a much-abused term that doesn't mean very much any more. It's true meaning is just services offered at 1900Mhz (cellular or paging). The FCC has allowed more than one standard for digital cellular. This is in contrast to Europe, where GSM is the only standard allowed. So there are three different digital cellular standards available at 1900Mhz: IS-136 (TDMA based system), IS-95 (CDMA based system) and GSM (TDMA based system). IS-136 and IS-95 are also offered at 800 Mhz, using part of the bandwidth allocated for AMPS (analog cellular). The same is not possible with GSM, because GSM was not designed to co-exist with AMPS (which makes perfect sense, since the countries where GSM originated in didn't have AMPS service).
So "PCS" might mean GSM-1900, but not always. I personally consider the term PCS useless, and prefer to refer to the cellular standard + frequency. Some carriers have even used PCS to describe their 800Mhz digital service, so as you can see it really has no meaning any more. What's even worse, some people use the term "cellular" to refer to 800Mhz and PCS to refer to 1900Mhz, as if the "PCS" services are not cellular!
Actually, the dual-mode (800Mhz AMPS/CDMA) Zuma has been out for over a year (I think). My roomate has one, and it's a really nice phone, although the terrible network he uses doesn't do it justice. However, you can't even get Sony CDMA phones anymore, since Sony pulled out of the CDMA market a few months back.
They have much of the population of Canada covered, but very little geographic coverage. If you live outside a few major cities, you are out of luck. This generally holds for all 1900Mhz networks in Canada.
I've had a digital Motorola StarTAC with service through Sprint PCS for about 6 months, and I love it. I've had the service since they set up shop here in Nashville, TN a few years ago. The little li-ion battery is great in the StarTAC. Despite its tiny size, it will last a solid TWO DAYS, and limp into three before having to recharge it (talked on about 20-30 min a day.) You never have to power it off. It sounds / works much better than various Sony models that I tried before getting it. If Sprint PCS is in your area, check it out. Just my two cents! :)
Out of order? Fuck! Even in the future nothing works! - Dark Helmet (Rick Moranis) "Spaceballs"
I'm in the Waterdown/Hamilton area, Fido's GSM coverage is great. (up in waterdown, it's the only carrier with decent signal strength) ... my only gripe is the AMPS module : It drops calls, sounds horrible, drains battery, misses calls, and costs way too much.
... at least now when I drive in the nether-regions (between GSM & AMPS signals) it doesn't take 60 seconds to pick up signal again ... it always happens right when someone's trying to call, too.
I ditched my AMPS module 3 months ago and got a pager
Has anyone used the GSM data services yet? I'm thinking about getting the kit, but what kind of speeds can you expect with it?
There are some phones which allow you to do that. :-)
Nokia Communicator is one of those if I remember right.
One dude had a yell as his ring tone, freely translated as "Come on you fucking dork, answer the phone!"
--
It has to work - rfc1925
Hey man, get off the damn cell phone! You are spending over 10% of your waking hours on that thing. Your head is getting irradiated, and you are the type of person who is going to have brain cancer 15 years down the line! BTW, stay away from the 1900Mhz phones if you use it that much.
I'm from sweden, where the mobile phone hype is incredible. You are considered to be "Different and odd" if you don't own one yourself.
Getting information about cell phones is as easy as asking your very next neighbour who know most certainly knows all the details and so on...
However my personal view on GMS (Europe) cell's is that you should take a closer look at Nokia's phones. (8210) (Better display, longer "uptime")
But, are you not so lucky to be living in Europe, you should probably check out Motorola phone, or any of the new competitors, siemens or sony.
Btw, howcome we're not using the same BAND globally? I hate to know that I can't use my Nokia 6150 in the states (as if I would ever get there)
I can't penetrate the lies, the damage you do is written across your eyes (Mesh -- Damage you do)
//stalle
Again I ask for a similar site that acknowledges the existance of Canada. (It's not like we're hard to miss, we've got a much larger land mass up here)
Intolerant people should be shot.
Now I'll ask for a third time for a site that realizes that Canadians want to know these things too.
Intolerant people should be shot.
I'd mention my desire for an equivalent site with Canadian content, but I'm probably becoming annoying by now...
Intolerant people should be shot.
Motorola Timeport and Nokia 8890 both have built in modems and work in the US. They also work in the rest of the world because they can do 900/1800/1900 GSM.
If that was possible, I want the little 'dododododododododo' that Austin Powers' communications devices do when they want his attention...'Yes Basil?'
I too have just basic needs of a phone. However, I have a Nokia 6190 PCS phone, and I love the extra features of it, and it really does not cost any extra if you look around. I have a provider called Iowa Wireless and I get these:
80 mins a month
Caller ID
E-Mail to phone
Paging to Phone
Voice Mail
Free Long Distance in Iowa
First incoming minute free
and a few other small features
All this for $20 a month.
The range for the service is contained mostly to large cities and along the interstate highways. Also, I cannot get a connection inside of large buildings most of the time.
I bought the 6190 (for $125) because of the much better battery, and it is a great phone. It is durable too, but I recently bought a cover for it so I would not scratch up the screen.
Also, I have a Palm III, and I dread carrying both of these gadgets around. You may not want one of those combo phones, but I think it would be worth it. I know Qualcomm sells a Palm/PCS phone, and you can probably get Internet access using it too, which would be cool on a limited basis.
Overall, I look to see devices that are this in a single product:
PDA with Internet Integration
PCS phone
MP3 Player
Limited digital camera and video
Mobile Video Conference using that little camera
Games
and probably other stuff
The unit would also come with Headphones with mic for use while driving and phoning, and also listening to music.
Overall, I am very excited about the future of these devices, as I believe that people will be using these more than their PC, especially if they can get good e-mail and Web integration built in. Also, inproved user input methods. I can also see voice recognition actually being useful on a device like this, especially since you will also be carrying those headphones/mic (which should be the type that fold up real small).
E C
"...we are moving toward a Web-centric stage and our dear PC will be one of
EverCode
I'm 18, so I don't really want to aqurire a debt, monthly bill, or any of that other crap. After doing a bunch of research, I purchased a Pay-As-You-Go phone, and it was the best idea I ever had!
In case you don't know, the idea behind the Pay-As-You-Go model is that you purchase time as you need it, in 1-hour increments, for $25 each. (That's here in Canada, I'm not sure what it is down in the States.)
Now, once you run out of time, you can't make or recieve calls. So you don't get charged! Then all you do is go buy another hour, punch in the serial, and away you go!
Of course, with this, freedom DOES come with a price. The cost per minute is about twice as much as a standard cellular plan. (2500 Cents / 60 Minutes = 40 Cents Per Minute. But check my math.)
Still, I think this is the way to go for ME anyway. I use the phone when I need it, and no more.
,-----.----...---..--..-....-
' CitizenC
' "Bug? That's Not A Bug, That's A Feature!"
`-----.----...---..--..-....-
First, I set my phone to answer only with a key press and not when I open it.
Secondly, everyone here keeps recommending the nokia phones. My problem with the nokia phones is that Bell Atlantic doesn't (or at least didn't) support them. In New York, AT&T's receptions has been atrocious (The reason they are being sued in a class action law suit) and Sprints coverage out of New York (Meaning in areas like rural Maryland where I sometimes have to travel) sucks.
Just my 2 cents.
-sirket
The startac is definitely a great phone. It is available with all of the major providers, has good battery life, a lot of features, is tiny and is indestructable (I have dropped mine down the subway stairs on numberous occasions and there isn't a scatch on it.
-sirket
Keep your eyes on http://www.chakumatic.com. Currently this site focuses on the rather strange Japanese "chakumero" phenomenon where cellphone owners spend *hours* keying popular melodies into their phones in order to have a personalized ring. Chakumatic.com lists dozens of user-generated songs and key sequences for a variety of popular Japanese phones.
The last I checked, the most popular song was one about racoon testicles.
Anyway, over the next couple of months the site will move away from just chakumero to include news and information about the Asian cellphone market, as well as WAP and Japanese iMode-based software.
Its a bilingual site, by the way: Japanese and English.
Moterolas are known for their ruggedness.. however, thier phones are quite basic in features.
Speaking of ruggedness, check-out the Nokia 6250! This phone looks like it was designed to be dropped, kicked, thrown, bashed, etc. and keep ticking. This _is_ the phone I need, I hope there are plans to release it in the US soon (currently available in: Europe and Africa, Asia Pacific).
it's a sig, wtf?
I use a Sprint PCS TouchPoint single band. I've found its feature set to be quite usefull to me; such as storing multiple number per individual in the directory, caller ID, distinctive ring, call logs. I know many of these features are provided with other phones, but this was the first I tried and I liked it. Also, the mouse makes one thumb navigation great, esp. while driving. ;-)
Boston, MA is pretty well covered with digital service, so I've always had a clear signal. A friend has the dual band version of this phone, and has complained about call drops/signal fade in areas that usually don't affect me. But also, his phone has a fixed non-extendable antena, so that may be why.
Also, as this is a single band phone, it's offered for short money these days.
Maybe you're thinking of the 1910 - I think all Nokia's end in '0'. I've got mine sitting on my desk right in front of me, I've had it over 3 years and the only problem I've had with it was when the battery connectors were a bit loose and it would switch itself off. That was 2.5 years ago now.
I would love to have one of those compact chrome phones. They look the bollocks.
Consultancy: If you're not part of the solution, there's money to be made in prolonging the problem
The UI is easy, I can switch between silent mode(vibrate only, built in to the phone) and regular mode without needing to look at the phone which is great in class. Telephone number entry is so easy I can do it faster that writing the number down by hand practically. Same with checking messages, in fact the only things is I wish the IR port on top worked(for some reason they don't seem to be enabled it in the US)
As for punishment, its bounced off of sinks, floor and taken a 20 foot ride down a rock face and still works.
The battery life is great I got the extend life battery for those days when I leave my apartment at 8am and don't return till 12am, but they regular battery is fine otherwise.
I don't even have a local phone (though my roommates do) last year I was spending 50$ month between local access and long distance calls, now I talk the same amount AND carry my phone with me.
My father has the same phone and the only issue he's had with it is the belt clip on the back of the phone broke( I wasn't surprised, it was only a thin piece of plastic) He has at&t one-rate and seems to be satisfied.
My brother has the nokia chrome deal (looks like a zippo) and seems to be happy with it as well though he has only had for a few weeks.
All in all Nokia seems to be a reliable phone manufacturer, I'm please with Sprint PCS converage and availability, major areas I've used the phone in are San Jose/San Fran, Austin, Albany/Troy, Chicago, Newark, Houston, El Paso, Las Vegas, Pheonix, and Montreal (yes canada, though I had to pay extra for the minutes there)
cheers
"Have you seen my marbles"
main(O){10<putchar(4^--O?77-(15&5128 >>4*O):10)&&main(2+O);}
Stop by http://www.cellmania.com, we offer down to earth comparison shopping for pretty much every cellphone sold in the united states. Coverage maps for virtually every plan with every carrier. The ultimate die hard answer for buying. Also we offer business to businses special offers which can be acquiried by emailing b2b@cellmania.com -- Stop on by, we've been working _Really_ hard to be the one stop shop.
-krs, cellmania.com
I was looking for a service a while ago, local service area was fine with me. So I picked Omnipoint. They had what I wanted, which was a good prepay plan.
Anyway before I get too far ahead of myself, when I was looking for a cellphone I did find it hard to find one. Then I reliezed why when I went to Nokia's website: www.nokia.com They have virtually the same phone listed as 4-5 different model numbers. This is so the're resellers can sell them and claim they are the only ones to have XXXX phone. Besides companies like Sprint PCS, I believe all cellphone manufacturers do this. I could be wrong but thats how it looked to me. A friend of mine got a Nokia 51XX? and it was virtually the same as my Nokia 5190. Except I think his had 50 less places in his address book. But he got his at Cellular one and mine was purchased at Omnipoint. Mine was actually cheaper than his go figure..
Runestar
Careful with bell atlantic. I asked them if my town was covered, and they were like oh sure. Got home, the sig. strength was very low, and it makes it really really hard to talk...alot of cutouts, not being able to dial at all, and static. I told them about this and said this was barely service at all, and they just said "cell phones are not landline phones, you can't expect the same from both." In my opinion, thats BS...the really said thing is a 10min drive away and the sig. is pretty good...too bad i use it at home 90% of the time :(
I don't know if this helps, but MSN (insert livid noises here) is running a review of cell phones. I saw a link off their page as i was logging out of hotmail. Check this out, and I hope it helps: http://shopping.msn.com/softcontent/softcontent.as p?scmId=39&scpId=101
Remember, a truly wise man never plays leapfrom with a unicorn
This was a known problem with some Nokia models. I had it with my 6110. Brought it to a service centrer where the display was replaced. Never had the problem again.
Apart from that the Nokia's have the name of being very robust, unlike Motorola. That is at least what three (different) phone companies told me.
Hehe... I'm still carrying a baby brick. Sure the thing is like 30 pounds, and four feet long. Doesn't do digital, the battery dies in about 3 hours... but I'll be damned if you can find anything that will break it. I've dropped it four floors straight down onto concrete and ended up with a little scuff mark in the plastic... 'accidently' drove over it with my suburban and yet the thing refuses to die!
Aside the Motorola flip phones (of any type) they are by far the best cell phone on the market, indestructible and feature rich.
first off, it is my personal pet peeve when people say "cell phone". It's not a cellular phone, it's a mobile phone, or PCS phone. The term cellular annotates an analog phone. Most people will know what you mean when you say cellular, but for people involved in the industry, it's quite annoying. I guess it's just one of those things you never can seem to shake. Like people using the term laptop instead of notebook. For me, "laptop" conjures up images of monsterous 286 laptops with b&w lcds and all that.
But back to the question at hand. I work technical support for Voicestream. So I would like to think I have more to base my opinions on than most. First off, let me tell you, the Ericcsons, they break. More than any other phones Voicestream offers. It'll probably break once while under warranty, and then you'll get it replaced, and then it'll probably break again when warranty is out. If you ask me, thats unacceptable.
Most likely, you've already decided on what provider you are going with. Each provider will have different model series available to them. That's due to the different technologies (CDMA, TDMA, or GSM). If you ask me, GSM is far superior than the other technologies. And thats not just because I work for the largest GSM provider in the world, Voicestream. Today, right now, most people would probably be better off with CDMA or TDMA, because GSM is still trying to cover the US. But have no doubt, GSM is the future. In Europe, everyone is on GSM. They actually put together a research committee to determine which mobile technology would be best. They came up with GSM, we copied them. Of course, they chose different frequencies, frequencies that we couldn't use here in the states because they were millitary.
But anyways, the Nokia's are the phone to get for most computer nerds. Customizable, small, cheap, durable. Another phone that most people overlook, is the Mitsubishi. Working tech support, I get these sorts of questions all the time, let me know if you have any, and I'll be sure to answer them for you.
if you are canadian, you are definitly going to want to go with Microcell. They have most of canada covered in GSM.
Just a quick little tidbit. Voicestream owns about 35% of Microcell. And because of that, they have traded technologies and the such. They have created the first cross-system call availability in the world. Meaning you can make a call in BC on Microcell's GSM system, and you can drive across the US/Canadian border still on the call, and down through into Voicestream coverage, without dropping the call. And automatically be switched to roaming. No other systems in the world are able to do that. pretty neat, huh?
the 5190 and 6190 both do data IR.
There's a site here in Australia that not only reviews mobile phones, but also the major carriers, their packages and service.
Try:
http://www.phonechoice.com.au
Brought to you by the author of such childrens' classics as "Some Kittens can Fly!" and "All Dogs go to Hell."
The Motorola Timeport 7389 seems to be the right phone for you. It works in GSM 900/1800/1900 networks, it supports Voice Dialing, it has an integrated WAP Browser and all the other common features (it has no games *g). It has an IRDA port , too. So you can connect it to your Palm :).
(www.mytimeport.com)
That's what they do. They review not only the phone, but the plans too.
We had similar issues with SH888s but now we use the I888 (virtually identical but with a flip to protect the keys and pseudo triple band) which seem not to have these problems. It works *superbly* with my Psion 5mx PDA - in fact Ericsson sell a rebadged Psion to go with them. By pseudo triple band I mean the frequencies they support. A lot of European phone now are dual band so they can be used with both European GSM frequencies. A few are Triple band, meaning they aslo work in North America as they do that frequency too. The I888 is pseudo-triple, it odes on European and one American.
~~~~~ BigLig2? You mean there's another one of me?
I'm not much of a cell phone expert, but one option which I love and is worth its weight in gold if used, is free weekends! It encourages use, and is great for sharing and not worrying about someone running up a tab when you're on the weekend.
Mike Roberto (roberto@soul.apk.net) - AOL IM: MicroBerto
Berto
The best site I've found for info on cell phones and plans is www.point.com. Although they don't "review" phones as such, they let you do side-by side comparisons of phones and service plans.
I've got a Nokia 3210, which, for whatever reason, isn't available in the US, which is a shame, because IMHO, it's the sexiest phone available. It has an internal antenna and beautiful curves. It's fairly small, and lies nicely in your hand. The internals are the same as many other Nokia phones. It's very popular here in Europe. Check out the Nokia 3210
Cheers,
Costyn.
The Official Steve Ballmer Webpage
the situation is identical in Belgium.
J.
One problem that I had was the placement of the heatsink for the transmitter. The Nokia that I had placed the heatsink at the top by the ear piece. After about ten minutes this area gets very warm in the ear area, which can cause all kinds of problems if you listen to the brain cancer propaganda. I just bought a Motorola StarTac which has the heatsink in the lower half of the flip. It also has the upper band, so I get better connect around computer equipment. I also fits comfortably in my front pocket. When set to vibrate with ringer off, I can carry it into meetings and leave my multiply damned pager behind.
All Windows problems are hardware problems. Don't load it on hardware, no problems.
Seriously though, many people overlook analog as an option. Depending on your area, there may be good plans available.
Lots of detail on TDMA vs CDMA; IS-137 vs IS-95 vs GSM vs IDEN, phone reviews etc etc.
>No other systems in the world are able to do that. pretty neat, huh? Sure, but this is hardly a unique feature... it works like this in most places in scandinavia. Of course cell phones have been around here for quite some time more than North America and GSM is 100% standard since about 4-5 years back. Multi-operator roaming was one of the original goals of GSM i believe. All though not everyone implements this.
Dual Band phones are a stop-gap while whatever
company builds out its network. It was never
meant to be a coverall. If you live in a
major city and don't travel out to BFE, or to
"remote" areas like St. Joe, MI, dual band is great.
Don't be fooled by these arguements about
coverage. My phone works fine where I need it
to, plus no roaming ir long distance. Analog
gives no service outside of dial tone. With
digital I get Voicemail, caller id, free long
distance, and 1 number ring anywhere. In
chicago, it's cheaper to use a cell phone for
cross town calls than a regular phone.
If you're too anxious on quality, review the phone companies, the cheapest here in Holland have very bad communication lines, services like SMS and stuff.
If you want quality, look for the brands Ericsonn, Nokia, Panasonic, Siemens, and don't seek a bargain.
Bizar technology?
I just upgraded phones from a samsung 2000 to a motorola TimePort, While I have to give the 2000 credit for taking alot of blows it had one fault, the flip down cover would flip down on my belt and get caught on things and snap off... it actually didn't do damage to the phone it seems it was designed to pop off easly. After much searching and feature looking I choose a motorola Timeport... This phone has every feature I could want. The phone book has 4 numbers per listing, a nice feature in a day when the average person has 3-4 numbers. Vibrating alert (It's not everyones buisness that I got a call) common headphone jack, fully customizable. But by fart my favorite feature was the computer cable included, no more having to add numbers with the tiny dial pad, I just type it in my PC and synch, also it has a built in fax/modem for me to use with my laptop. Add DualBand for those emergencys when you would pay anything to be able to use the phone and I got a complete package. It only needs to get on the charger every 3 days or so. To give it credit the Nokia 6100 was my second choice. The timeport is expensive ($300) twice the nokia... but it comes with a case and the computer cable so not much else you need except a headset... and it's not a special jack like the nokia to limit your choices.
iRepairIT - iPhone, Mac, & PC Repair
I dropped my V3688 on to concrete - it bounced.
Works fine, not even a scratch.
I have a Nokia 6160.. (True story)..
I was walking down the stairs at a subway station with my cell in my left pocket.. While walking down, lady caught the clip on my cell phone case which pulled the phone right out of my pocket.
The phone went ROLLING down the stairs to the bottom. Phone still works perfectly and did not suffer any noticeable damage from that roll down concrete stairs.
Ericson's goal in a phone is functionality unlike most cell phone makers out there who want the phones to be purdy. Thier phones are really solid with no extraneous features. Further, some of them have ir ports, so you can go on the net with your pilot through them.
--Alex
Sometimes, in fringe analog areas, I can hear people perfectly, but they cannot hear me. I wonder if the analog transmit power is lower on this phone.
Overall, I'm happy with mine. I'd probably buy the same model again if I were buying again. I paid C$160 plus a two year lock-in at $20/month.
About four years ago my dad decided he needed a cellular phone for business purposes... He got an AT&T 6650, which was supposedly, according to AT&T Wireless, the hottest digital phone on the market at the time. Now, what I can say for the 6650 isn't very good... battery life was about 2 days MAX on standby, audio quality was about what you'd get from Realplayer on a 14.4 connection, with copious dropouts, echoes, and belches (don't ask). Sometimes, even with the phone in digital mode, another nearby caller could be heard! Once, while I was using it, I actually found myself temporarily dumped completely into someone else's conversation, in analog mode. I believe the VCO RF oscillator drifted wildly on the phone. As for the Nokia 2160... I believe it was exactly the same as the AT&T 6650, except for the AT&T brand name. The software was a little different, and the nice 7 step signal meter was replaced by a little thing on the side that went from 5 bars (at which the phone would show symptoms of RF front end overload and wouldn't do ANYTHING) to 1 (it'd ring and connect, but no audio would pass). Both the AT&T and Nokia phones were heavy enough, with the extended NiCD battery (NiCD, geez), that they would pull down my pants if I carried one in my pocket. The 2160i, which we got after my dad accidentally sent the 2160 for a swim in the porcelain god, was functionally (dysfunctionally) the same in performance and interface. I eventually cleaned up the 2160's internals and used it as a desktop charger, for the 2160i seemed to have an even greater appetite for power! Well...I can say one thing, those old monsters were rugged. They took a couple drops and stuff without any damage. When my dad got tired of not being able to call home from about 50% of the county, and not being able to use the phone at home at all (due to overloading from the delightful 70 foot cellular "tree" AT&T wireless erected about 1000 feet from here, next to a school (egads)), he switched to Sprint PCS and got the Qualcomm QCP-1920. My first impression with the phone was, "RETURN THE !@(#&% THING!!!". I could pick the phone up in my hand and squeeze it gently to produce a sickening "crunch" sound. Recently, the antenna broke, we've had no luck finding a replacement. even with the antenna broken, sound quality is good, although on rare occasion, a connection will be made that allows it to sucessfully transmit but not recieve. Coverage with Sprint PCS is about 75% or so of countywide, although there are some REALLY dead spots. When the phone is powered on in a dead area, it will say "Looking for service..." on the display, and continue searching (probably transmitting at full power) until the phone becomes hot to the touch!! On Tuesday my dad got two Motorola I500+ phones and service from Nextel, which have been working beautifully so far. My little brother threw one of the i500's 30 feet across the floor during a temper tantrum and it survived, so I can certainly say it's rugged... (and I can certainly say he's not going to touch that phone again, geez!). Cellular coverage is *almost* countywide on it, and Direct Connect gets through when it's out of range on cellular. My conclusions, after this longwinded post, are as follows: Nokia 2160: Don't bother. Qualcomm QCP-1900: Okay, but be careful to leave the antenna down when not in use. Motorola i500+: Totally awesome, although the menus are a little clunky. It reminds me of something from Star Trek, though I'm not really sure what. Just my five cents' worth... :)
I haven't tested my 6185 yet. :)
Paul
I've used both Nokia and Motorola phones and there is one "feature" that I hate about Motorola phones. The display. My Digital StarTac has the new display and I love that. I can actually read it. But if you don't have the LCD display, they are almost imposible to read with out a cheat sheet handy.
But if you are comparing Motorola phones with LCD to Nokia phones, you quickly find that there is a major difference in feature style. Motorola focuses on "phone/call" features and Nokia focuses on "User" features.
Example 1. No games on my motorola, no repeating timers on the nokia. Repeating timer is a tone that sounds every user setable minutes. I have mine set to beep every 5 minutes. PLUS it beeps 10 seconds before the moment so that you can close the phone at the beep and not get taken for a minute of air time when you used 3 seconds.
Example 2. Multiple choices for how to answer phone. The motorola will let me choose to answer on open, answer on "send" or answer on any key. Plus it has a silence ring feature. The Nokia has only the one "big" button which is used to answer calls.
Example 3. Access to stored numbers. I can jump to names in the directory by pushing the "smart button" then the alpha digit on the keypad till I get to the "N's" for example. Or I can just press the up/down buttons till I get there. The Nokia has just up down options.
Example 4. Easy access to last 20 numbers dialed.
My wife on the other hand loves her Nokia. She plays the games when she finds herself stuck somewhere. She loves the many ring tones as well and she uses the clock/alarms all the time.
I wish my Motorola had clock/alarm as well but there doesn't seem to be anything else I really want with it. If I did, they have a PDA that clips on to the back of the phone that offers more than I want.
I don't know about throwing it out of car windows (never was dumb enough to try that) but for $100 it is a nice all around phone with a week of standby time. If your the type of guy who feels the urge to throw it out of a car window or pound it against the ground I would suggest a startac but if you just need a good functional phone with both dualband and dualmode the nokia 6160 or the ericson kf788 are good choices.
I use a nokia 282.
- small flip phone (fits in my pants pocket)
- Vibrating ring. (and silent mode)
- Caller id.
- 99 entry phone book.
- No games.
- No internet browser, email, etc.
It is only analog, which is fine for me since I use it 99% locally.my
-- Andy
* "Uncle this droid is malfunctioning" -- Luke Skywalker
Terribly sorry. This is probably off-topic, or flamebait, but I have to say it - Fuck Sprint! Fuck 'em right in the ear. I, too, got screwed by Sprint and left with no remedy after being jacked around by their "service" department. What, am I going to do, sue them for $53? Just stay away from Sprint, and just to be safe, you might want to also stay away from anything Sprint related, including MCI and Earthlink. Those bastards. Note: www.fucksprint.com is one of their registered domain names!
....
--Hey Doctor Jones! No time for love!
Call me cosmetic, but not matter what it's functionality, I'd like to find a phone that looks like that cell phone Morpheus' crew used in the Matrix.
I can just imagine being at the local bar, getting a call and whipping out my spring loaded cell phone...
But then again, I guess that phone didn't actually exist since it was just a bunch of 1s and 0s formulated into an image and projected into one's brain.
Now, i just looked at the Nextel site, and there's a banner saying "You pick up the call, we pick up the tab" - now that's just plain unheardof over on this side of the Atlantic. Calls to cell-phones are free, and Slovenia (my little country) has it's cheapest minute of cell conversation at something like 5 cents :) But, of course, 1/2 the country has a cell phone :)...
Now, let's assume this: you want a cell phone, BUT... you don't want to pay the monthly rates? NO PROBLEM :) Pop into any old store or gas station, shell out 100$ and walk away with a Nokia 5110 and a perpaid "account" - and be completly anonymous. You can use the phone, get calls on the phone, but neither the operator nor anyone else knows who's using the phone. There's of course the bomus of registering the phone, one that gives you 50$ of free calls :)
Anyone that's drooling - STOP IT! :) If you want to see what an actuall cellular service provider look in Europe, take a look at www.simobil.com :) ;)
Now for the hillarious bit: All new prepaid customers that register untill sometime in march are going to be in a draw for a trip to New York. Gees I hope they get substitute phones
---- Ericsson i888. OKay, it's ugly. But it's got IR modem and GSM 900/1900 coverage. It just - works. David
I bought a T28 about 3 months ago (as soon as they were available in New Zealand). It does almost everything you could ever want in a phone, it even has Tetris & solitaire for those who like games, & voice dialing which I find very ahndy when I'm feeling lazy. .. it weighs about 80-90 grams. I forget I have it in my pocket. It gets my vote.
Just snaggle a Nokia. They rux0r.
signature smigmature
- James
I got rid of it however, since I believe those things are radiation hazards.
You can't handle the truth.
http://www.shopnokia.com has great information on their phones as well as service providers, etc... Hope this helps
I've got an Ericsson KF788 and I'll be getting rid of it ASAP. It sounds fine in the store but it's just not loud enough outside or in a car, and the damn antenna fell off after a few months. I know a guy who is real happy with his Nextell phone (not sure which one it is, haven't really looked at them). One time, we needed to conference someone into a meeting but the room we were in didn't have a phone, so he dialed it on his cell and put it on speaker. The thing was louder than the regular speaker phones! So they might be worth checking out.
On the other hand, I still think those Nokias from The Matrix rule...
My other
I can't find even one that does reviews of cell phones! Now, I've tried Google, of course,
I couldn't believe that the mighty google may have failed... So I tried the search 'review of cell phone' (subtracting the plural s, and google ignoring the of) and guess what the fourth link is to http://www.point.com, which was mentioned here as a good ressource.
http://www.google.com/search?q=review+of+cell+phon e
daniel
If you're looking for a cheap, rugged and reliable cell phone, nothing beats a used 5 year old Nokia (like my 'vintage' 1610 :-D ))
Ok, some refer to them as 'Housebricks with antenna and keys' , so they're obviously not suited for pocket use... They can take a whole lot of abuse (built around a manganese cast frame!) and out-perform many other phones on reception. And... you've got some extra space in them for geek usage (I'm planning to build in a sampled-sound chip for realy c00l 'ringtones' (What about really weird sounds? ('thoug severy limited in frequency range) (MOO! "Oh, someone's calling me"
just my experience
The single most important thing is the service plan.
There is no such thing as a good deal on a plan longer than 1 year.
About the phone itself - NEVER a nicad - go lithium-ion or one of the other types. My first was a nokia with nicad - the battery was trashed after 9 months and cost more to replace than the phone. Went to a motorola startac, and no problems since. most of my co-workers have them and everyone seems to be happy.
good luck
-
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. Shakespeare, Henry VI, Part 2, Act 4, Scene 2
You would have to pay me a lot of money to make me using a cell phone. Here in Switzerland 3.3 of 7 million people have a cell phone. This is crazy! what the fsck does a 14 year old student need a cell phone for (there are schools where cell phones had to be banned because they were disturbing too much)?? why does everybody think he/she is that important? i can understand that buisness people who are on the road all the time need a cell phone. But for most people i just don't see what they could be useful for. And it is way expensive too (at least here in Switzerland), lots of kids can't pay their bills anymore.
And why do those cell-phone owners have to set their phones to playing beethovens 5th everytime the phone rings???? There are phones wich just vibrate instead of making stupid sounds. There is nothing more annoying than sitting in the same train with some wannabe cool guys showing each other all the melodies their phones can play! I recently saw a feature on tv about cell phones. A lot of people answered the question why they own a cell phone with: "well everybody else has one so i bougth one too". It's sad to see people just following trends without thinking about why they do so. </rant></offtopic>
Ok, first off, try epinions.com for yer recommendations. Secondly, Nokia'll probably end up being your best bet. Thirdly, the amount of RF radiation emitted by a cellphone isn't enough to kill a rat with 2 years of constant exposure. God I hate people who assume silly things like that. And just because yer phone is wired DOES NOT mean it doesn't radiate. Any metal with an electrical current running through it will radiate. And please please please don't drive while using the phone.
Up in Canada we've got a GSM provider (Fido/Microcell)which also offers AMPS fallback. IMO the call quality is far superior to other digital networks, and of course analog networks. The other party is usually suprised when I tell them I'm on a mobile phone. Real text messaging, and handset email services via SMS, and good data services.
There's nothing magical about the reception as it still falls into the same limits of any radio technology. As mentioned in the previous post - coverage is king and if you can't get a 10 or 30 day trial from a vendor then you probably wouldn't want to deal with them. However shrewd shoppers could have picked up a bargain sattelite network last week, like new - hardly used!
As for handsets I would only buy a Nokia. My 6190 has been through hell and after a new faceplate looks pretty good (YMMV). But you should not worry about handsets until you find a good contract (or better - no contract) and service for the areas you frequent. If you really want to do some digging try perusing the newsgroups.
one better than mcleodeight
Great quality, good features, and usually very inexpensive if you buy it with a service contract. Not to mention that Nokia phones were the phones used in The Matrix
I highly recomend Nokia phones. Check out the 6100 series if you live in a digital area. www.nokiausa.com
Since this whole topic got opened, I've got a question of my own:
What _US_ available phones emulate a modem via IR? It seems that most of the newer phones available in Europe do this, but that its not available in US models. (The cynic in me suspects it because US carriers want to charge for internet access and thus don't want built in modems.)
I've heard from lots of people in Europe using connecting their Palm Pilots to the internet by dialing their own ISP this way, but have yet to find a way to do this here in the States. Anyone have any suggestions?
+--------------------- You idiot! I told you we were facing the wrong way!
I don't know if anyone has mentioned these (I don't feel like reading through 300 comments to find out).
http://www.cellmania.com
http://www.simplexity.com
I used these two when doing research before buying my cellphone. They both also have breakdowns of service plans available. Good luck!
My personal opinion is that the Samsung SCH-3500 is the best bang for your buck (150 of them) available right now. That is if you can find one, I had to search for a month. I don't know if they have ramped up production yet to meet demand.
-
I got the digital StarTac when it first came out and it was great at first: digital/analog, small, new, etc... but the damn antenna keeps bending or breaking and I just have accepted the fact that I will have to replace it every 3 months (and it is not covered by the warranty or insurance). A co-worker has the same phone and his fell apart. I have gone through two belt clips and now I just put the phone in my pocket (which helps protect the antenna).
I really like the 6190 and the equavelant model (I think the 6185 or 6195) that is digital/analog. It is not a folding-style phone and the antenna does not move. I don't know anybody who has the 8860 (phone from Matrix, but the little door does not snap out), but it looks really cool.
The web stuff is actually getting pretty useful. I know people who go to stores and price books and other stuff while they are in the store to make sure they are getting a god deal. If the web has a better price, then they buy it through thier phone.
I don't know more people don't use vibrate. My phone is on vibrate 80% of the time. It is really nice in meetings because I can get calls without the whole room knowing.
-Amos
Sorry, I can not tell you where to find cell phone ratings but I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND a Nextel Phone. I love my Nextel Phone and have given them to family members as gifts. Check out their Direct Connect feature. You can find them on the web at http://www.nextel.com
I currently use one of those new Qualcomm thinphones. It's very nice. My one recommendation would be to get a phone capable of digital. It's a lot clearer than analog, plus with the digital carrier, those phones have a lot more options, like buit in caller ID and stuff. My favorite phone, which I wish I could afford is the StarTAC, very nice, lots of options (with the digital model), and VERY small. I'm with Airtouch, and I pay $30 a month for 100 minutes, and no long distance and no roaming. Not bad.
I recently bought a cell phone in Germany, and I use pre-paid cards. No contract. Planning on moving to the US in a short while, however.. any way I could keep my phone? I know the US is on a different system -- we're on 900/1800mhz GSM, and the US has 800/1900mhz GSM (right?).
So here I've got a problem. Different standards... any way to convert? Or should I just cell my phone and get a new one later?
Thanks, Kale
dude if you can't find mobile phone reviews, its because you haven't looked! :)
For cell/mobile phone reviews from consumers without a selling slant, check out: http://www.deja.com http://www.consumerreview.com http://www.epinions.com http://www.cellmania.com/cgi-bin/cm_store/ui/rant. jsp? For cell/mobile phone reviews and comparison/shopping information, check out: http://www.cellmania.com http://www.decide.com http://www.point.com FYI, a cell phone is only as good as the carrier's service in the area where it is activated, so keep that in mind when making your decision.
This is definitely true in my area. I haven't checked analog rates recently, but about a year ago when I upgraded from analog to digital I more than doubled my airtime and my monthly bill dropped by about $10.
In addition, I got caller-id, voice-mail and several other goodies thrown in for free that aren't even available on analog (at least with my provider).
I understand your point, that a buyer needs to concentrate at the services in your area and not the actual phone.
Well, that's a good point, but what do you do once you've already selected the provider? Just take any random phone the salesman happens to be trying to unload that day?
Choice of service provider is very important, but now that I've made that choice, I for one would be very interested in reviews of the actual equipment since I'm planning to upgrade my phone again soon.
I have used half a dozen models of cellphones. My favourites are the Nokia 6162 and the Sony D-Wave Zuma CM-Z100.
Nokia 6162
Excellent phone. Dual-mode TDMA and AMPS. (SunCom, perhaps the worst provider ever, tried to convince me that it was tri-mode: "PCS, TDMA, and cellular." No amount of arguing would convince them that there's no such thing as PCS.) It's small, durable, and easy-to-use. Good OS that's easy to hack. (Type in *3001#12345#). I abused it pretty badly, and it held up really nicely. It was a bit big for me, though most would consider it to be small. The battery life was really good, and I very seldom had trouble with low battery life. It holds 200 names and numbers, and the flip cover on the 6162 is really nice. (The junior versions, the 6160 and the 5160, are good, too. But the 6162 is worth it, just for the keypad cover.) It's got a million stupid rings and two vaguely reasonable ones. It's embarassing having other hear some of the lame little tunes that chirp out of this phone.
Sony D-Wave Zuma
I love this phone. It long held the title of Smallest CDMA Phone. (I think the Nokia 8860 or the Motorola StarTac gets that title now.) It's just right in size -- I can sit down with it in my jeans pocket, and not have to adjust my pants. The signal isn't as good as the Nokia, largely due to its smaller size. It's a single-mode phone, though having CDMA instead of TDMA is great. This holds 99 numbers, and spares you from the games and other weird shit in the Nokia. I'm won over by this phone's cuteness, unusual look, and solid OS. (The jog dial is great, too.) The only downside is that the mic arm tends to get wobby and need to be replaced every 6 months or so. Gotta love that warranty. It's got just a few rings that are perfect for reasonable human beings that aren't interested in hearing the 1812 Overture when somebody calls. For those of you that need AMPS and CDMA, give it a few weeks and the dual-mode Zuma will be released.
You'd do well with either of these phones.
-Waldo
try epinions.com they offer user-based opinions of a lot of products and services
I had a Nokia 6160 and now I have a Motorola
StarTac Digital.
Both good phones, but for different reasons.
The Nokia has really good battery life, great features, was easy to use, and has good sound quality. However, it is sort of bulky (it doesn't fit into a pocket well) and lacks a vibrate feature so you can wear the thing in a meeting. This can be corrected by buying a battery with a vibrator in it, but still...
I bought the StarTac because I wanted something smaller, and my brothers really love it. It's a good phone; and it can be easily tucked into a pocket. The battery life is pretty good (but not as good as the Nokia), and the vibrate feature is built in. However, this phone has less features that the Nokia. Ths sound quality is pretty good, but the phone is not as comfortable to hold. It also feels more flimsy.
Both phones work on TDMA digital systems and do analog as well. Both cost about $200. Both have plenty of after-market "hands-free" kits, batteries, and other accessories. Get the Nokia if you want features and battery life, get the StarTac if you want to put it into a pocket.
Steve Punter has a good site for Canadian cell users. Non-Canadians might want to have a look too since it has a great deal of information about different kinds of phones.
:-)
What makes it a Canadian site is that he's ridden around on his bike and MAPPED all the cells in the Toronto area. He documents how to do this, so maybe someone in another city wants to copy the technique and map their area too
It looks to me like this varies dramatically by geography. I know people who got and dumped Sprint PCS service because the quality was so crummy. They have the best advertising, but (as far as I can tell) the worst service.
But it looks like this varies dramatically depending on where you live, so get a local recommendation. My guess is that their service is going to be worst in lage and expensive cities where ramping up service is pricy.
I'm in Los Angeles, and here I would under no circumstances get Sprint PCS again - service was horrid.
I have a Noika 6100 series flip phone and it's a very cool piece of technology. My AT&T service is pretty good, too, but like all cell phones I'm aware of, it's not perfect.
D
----
It's got a tiny text window and a minimal set of features, but it's terminally cute and rugged as heck. I've splattered it across the pavement about 5 times by having it fall out of my pocket when I'm riding my bike... and no damage. I had to clean the battery contacts once. I will definitely buy one again - one that's even smaller (although the 768 is *still* one of the smallest after being out almost 2 years). I just which I could program it myself though, because I know I could do a better job. *sigh*. Will hardware makers ever get it? All they have to do is open the specs, and we'll make their phone twice as good as it already is.
Life's a bitch but somebody's gotta do it.
Yeah, but you can get like an additional 200 minutes of nights/weekends for $9.95 or something, which about half price. you can buy as many 200 minute blocks as you need.
Plus they got 1000 minute plan for $75 through to the middle of next month...
Instead of looking at your nights and weekends being free, you have to look at what you are paying for that...break it down to a per-minute
charge for the time your using, because just because you have unlimited nights/weekends, that doesn't mean that you're paying any less for them.
My journal has hot
Which is a bunch of nonsense. Basically it all depends on the cell size. If you are in an urban area, say Western Europe people often won't notice that you are using a cellular phone instead of a analog fixed one. And that phone is operating at probably 0.5 Watt, because any more is a waste of power in microcells anyway.
-- Spelling and grammar errors tend to be a sign of erroneous thinking.
I too have a Nokia 6150. It was a great phone when it came out, and had some really nifty features.
I agree, some of the ring tones are quite long, and i guess were ONLY put in because of marketing reasons ("hey this phone has 26 ring tones"). Considering the UK mobile phone consumers seem to LOVE these sort of things, it does tend to get many sales.
But lets look at the phone without any of the gimmicks. You still have a good phone that is rugged, has EXCELLENT call quality (using EFR, most poeple I call still cannot believe I am on a cell, rather than a fixed line). Also its menu system is rather sane, and logical.
However, this phone is now quite old, and has been surpased by newer models
Those wishing to buy a phone now should look instead at the 8250. The 8250 is the 6150 equivelent, with voice dialing, predictive text input (absolutely essential for people who use SMS a lot), and is small, with a hidden antenna.
I wouldnt go for the Nokia 7110 unless you REALLY need WAP.
I dont like Ericssons much, because their user interface are not that intiutive.
Moterolas are known for their ruggedness.. however, thier phones are quite basic in features.
Nokia is certainly the best provider of mobiles, and i used to work in a cellphone shop, and that is the comments from our customers too.
my two cents.
I understand your point, that a buyer needs to concentrate at the services in your area and not the actual phone.
But, I really feel the need to defend my Sprint PCS phone. I concede that they don't have a unlimited off-peak plan, almost. They do have an off-peak option that for $10 gives you 200 minutes for free and clear plans and 500 minutes for standard plans. While not optimal, remember that free and clear plans have free long distance, this is 5 cents/min long distance on a cell!
Now, about using it... absolutely wonderful. Since most of my calls are long distance, free and clear is perfect. Their coverage area is most of the urban US. I'm covered in NJ where I live and work, NY when I have to go there, OH where my folks live, and most of the other places I find myself traveling. All for the same price. Does anyone else beat them in coverage area (without roaming fees)? If so, you might get me to switch.
All of the extras are included, caller ID, voice mail, 3-way, call waiting, numeric paging. But these are a given when talking digital phones.
Finally, my favorite part, no contracts! When they come up with better plans, you can switch. You have to buy the phone, but when their phones start at $100, this isn't too bad.
So, yes it comes down to who you are and what is available in your area. For me, no contract was first and foremost, followed closely by coverage area and cheap long distance. Sprint PCS fits this bill nicely.
Try Deja
Go get yourself a Motorola whatever, from whatever service providers. Unlike the Nokia phones, these things really are indestructible.
:)
:)
This is sort of true. I've had both Nokia and Motorola Phones. The first Nokia phone's display would keep fading out, even though the batteries were completely charged. If you smacked the phone against the palm of your hand it would come back for a while then fade away again.
My second and third Nokia phones were rendered completely inoperable by simply falling out of my jacket onto the street when I got out of my car. All of these Nokias had that fancy padded leather case too.
Once I dumped AT&T as a provider and went to Omnipoint, I got a cheap Motorola (g520) which has been indestructable. It doesn't have a leather case, and has survived a few really hard drops.
One time I was carrying a bunch of things, and the phone slipped out of my hand. I used to play "Hackey-Sack" when I was a kid, and I tried to kick the phone back up and try to catch it. All I wound up doing was kicking the phone about 10 feet away onto a set of brick steps, and it bounced back down. It got scratched up pretty good, but it still works.
A service provider is just as important as a phone too. I've used Sprint, AT&T (local NYC and One Rate), and Omnipoint.
Hands down AT&T is the worst provider out there, I think about 2 out of 10 calls would go through in the NY Metro Area. I had their One Rate, as I travelled a lot, and most cities would have bad connects or no coverage at all. The only city I think AT&T worked well was Atlanta, where our Engineering HQ was who made the decision to go with AT&T. Whenever the Atlanta guys came up here they always bitched about AT&T not working.
Sprint was pretty bad too, unless you were far away from New York, Jersey City, Newark, or another built-up area. The only place my Sprint phone seemed to work was at the shore
Omnipoint so far has been great. I've had them since August, and use the phone a few times a day usually. I only had two bad connects, and one was during Hurricane Floyd, so that probably doesn't count.
For those of you who have never had a 3W phone installed ina car with a great antenee, you don't know what you're missing. There's nothing clear about digital phones except the money it makes for the provider.
I see comercials on TV using word like "Crystal Clear" and "Digital Clarity" and I just have to laugh. They all use less than 3W of power, and the quality suffers as a result.
So get whatever phone you want, but take a trial period, carry it around for a week or 2 and make sure the coverage is good. As a previous poster said, it's all about coverage, if they ain't got it, you ain't dialin'.
_______________
Er, no.
I've been through three cell phones in the last year and the Motorola StarTAC was the worst. Hard to use, flimsy case, poor sound quality, shitty battery life, awfull.
I got rid of it after 6 months. I now have an ericcsson. Much better. The Nokia was even better, with battery life of upto a week.
Chris.
-- I don't have a cool sig.
Actually, it only costs more if you go with a local plan. As to Motorola signal receiving, and dual-mode phones, the newer ones actually choose the strongest signal strength, regardless of whether it's analog or digital, providing the person with the clearest call support for that particular area. And while analog signals do use up more battery life, isn't that an argument to get a phone that supports digital signals, and EXTEND your battery life?
My key consideration in picking my cellphone, after having used several brand of cellphones (Nokia, Ericsson, Motorola), was the ability of the phone to pick up a usuable signal in different areas. Of all the phones I've tried, the BEST one at doing this was the Motorola StarTac Digital (model 7797 - AT&T's version). While the Nokia 6100 series (with extra life vibrating battery) does have the longest battery life of all the dual mode phones I've used, the signal pickup isn't as good as the StarTac Digital.
I researched cellphones for a year and a half before I bought my first one (Nokia 6160), and it was great for what I wanted to do then.... The main question you have to ask yourself is how you're going to use the phone - are you going to want to use it outside your area/for calling outside your area? Different providers use different phones - not all have the phone you may want. And depending on what kind of coverage you want (local vs. larger area), you'll need to pick a certain kind of provider (local vs. large area).
IMHO (assuming you live in the US), if Sprint covers the areas you want covered, then I'd do their $50/500 minutes package, and just be happy with that. You can go most places in the US, and use the phone w/out roaming charges, as well as call long distance on it. I chose AT&T because they're the only large-area provider that covers my hometown digitally (in NY), and they have the largest coverage (analog + digital) of all the providers.
Twykr -The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese!
Worrying works!! 99% of all the stuff I worry about never happens
I recommend Steve Romaine's cellular information site. If you're Canadian, this is really all you need to know. A lot of the discussion of plans will be immaterial for yanks, but he also has detailed reviews of the various handsets. I found this really helpful. -Tim
My father bought a cell phone recently for his trip to LA. My father isn't a Luddite, but he's not technologically crazy; he prefers writing on yellow legal pads to Word (but can you blame him?) and his laptop still runs Win 3.1. So when he bought a cell phone, he wanted it as simple as possible.
And the damn thing still has Internet access.
Expect to have trouble going for "simple" when you buy a cell phone. They're getting to be like computers these days: if you buy them from an outlet or company, they tend to be loaded with stuff you don't want.
But if you can just grab a soldering iron, you can fix it up before you can say "Netpliance".
------------
"Okay, who taught the cat how to type ctrl alt delete?"
Would a motorola with it's flip and antenna hanging off it (moving parts) really do better than an all in one "chunky" nokia? (no/fewer moving parts)
For the record, my nokia 5190 fell out of my shirt pocket (I'm 6'3", so that's a fair height) on to the pavement, where it was promptly run over by the pedal-cab (with three people in it) I was jogging in front of. It survived with only scratches to my Ginger & Sporty stickers :)
As others have said, the phone is your last concern, check out the service first.
good luck.
I paid $14.95 for unlimited nights and weekends and used up approximately 2000 minutes of offpeak minutes. This is way cheaper than $10.00 for a 200 minute block.
Sometimes the same series of phones has different features. The 6185 has a built-in vibrator; the 6190 requires a battery with a vibrator.
The first digit is the series number; the third digit usually indicates the technology:
xx1x GSM 900/1800 (europe)
xx2x TDMA 800
xx3x GSM 900/1800 (europe)
xx5x GSM 900/1800 (europe)
xx6x TDMA 800/1900
xx7x CDMA 1900
xx8x CDMA 800/1900
xx9x GSM 1900
2160, 2170, 2180, 2190
5110+, 5120, 5130+, 5160, 5170, 5180**, 5190
6110+, 6120, 6150+, 6160, 6161, 6162, 6185, 6188*, 6190
* = Canada only, + = European, **5180= CDMA 800 only
Two great sites are Steve Punter's PCS guide (lots of Canadian info) and Steve Romaine's west coast site (also has Canada-specific info). Even if you're not Canadian, there's tons of info on various phones and technologies.
and don't get a single ban phone :)
I'm one of the unfortunate ones that has to deal with tech support with cell phones...here's what phones I recommend, etc..Analog Motorola- Motorola phones (excluding the startac) seem to be able to take alot of abuse...although face it...they just aren't all that cool... The Analog Startacs (the 3000 at least) seem to have signal issues.... Nokia - 252, 918 - good all around phones..stay away from 638s.. Stay away from Ericssons..Pansonics, Necs..etc (luckly most, aside from Ericsson, have gone out of the cell business) Tdma, Pcs- Nokia 5100/6100 series are good all around phones....with decent features...stay away from the 8860(at&t), it looks bad ass, but seems to have poor reception. The qualcomm 860-890 seems to be a good all around phone. Cdma- The new Samsung 850 is great and packed with features...battery life sucks on it though... Don't bother with the Samsung 211, you can get a smaller 411 for the same price...these have the same features. Startac 7760- Good Cdma phone...easy to break... really easy to ruin the antenna on this phone.. Audiovox 4000s and up seem to be pretty durable, and look pretty damn cool... Stay away from qualcomm 820's...the jack on the bottom of the phone for charging is very prone to breaking... Have fun choosing... but do yourself a favor..stay away from ericsson some fun- some codes to get into cell phones programming moto- fcn 0(x13) rcl..use the * to scroll.. nokia..252 and up... *#639# ericsson.. 987 menu menu or fcn fcn..the # to scroll.. Audiovox... lock code + function the #1 or #81... fnc #941273#..send to scroll... or 289 fcn#1.. Have fun...
IMHO, *all* the cell phone services fail to provide useful maps of usable coverage or realistic measures of what performance to expect.
I have AT&T's Digital One Rate and a Nokkia 6160 phone. Nice phone, more features than I can keep in my head, and the service has interesting quirks.
A few other points to remember:
Anyone have 1st-hand experience with the situation in europe (GSM phones)? Are they really better, or is it more hype?
The phone itself is secondary to the service provider, though. A lot depends on how you plan to use the phone. There are 850Mhz cell providers like your Cell One's and Baby Bell's that offer either TDMA or CDMA digital in addition to AMPS Analog. The call quality of these technologies is inferior in my opinion to 1900 MHZ PCS service. Depending on where you live, you might have a choice of different providers using different technology. The difference will be one of national coverage. If you don't "roam" outside your local area, then just go with whoever has the best local coverage, rates and phones. If you plan on using the phone in other cities, you want to make sure your provider has coverage agreements. AT&T wireless has a pretty well-established national coverage, they sell phones that operate on 1900Mhz IS-136 air interface, plus they have multi-mode capability so they can step down to 850 Mhz TDMA or even AMPS if you roam in a city that doesn't have decent PCS coverage.
Look at this site. It is possibly the best out there.
http://www.point.com
I like point.com fot comparison shopping cellphones. They let you pick the phone and the service providers or choose a service provider and then a suitable phone. I also go a real neat discount around Xmas. As for phones, my personal favorite is the Samsung SCH-3500. Net capable (SPRINT) and voice commands.
You can also check out simplexity.com . I tried the web site when it used to be talkingonair.com . Also check out CNETs gadget section for comparison shopping.
Now git and don't complain about the lack of options.
Well, I happened to come accross this site, which lists a bunch of codes for 'hidden' features of a variety of cell phones including ericcson, motorola, nokia, sony, samsung, etc.
l arT&T.htm
http://www.commservice.net/ItalianBadBoys/Cellu
It's more important to find a review of cell phone services or at least get a good opinion of the service providers in your area before getting a phone. For instance, my girlfriend got one of those cool Sprint PCS phones with internet browsing capability and I was smitten and decided to go get myself one. On arriving at Best Buy the Sprint attendant informed me that they had no unlimited nights & weekends plan which my current provider Bellsouth provides. Considering that I average about 3000 minutes a month on my current Nokia 5100 phone (which was cool 1 year ago but seems so clunky and sucky now) it would have been a financial nightmare for me to switch to a cooler phone with Sprint without my unlimited nights and weekend plan as a financial cushion. Secondly I also didn't go with Sprint after fining out that complaints about it's service had a category in Yahoo!
PS: Try Phone Choice or Mobile World for phone reviews.
Go get yourself a Motorola whatever, from whatever service providers. Unlike the Nokia phones, these things really are indestructible. To prove the point, I threw mine out my car window while cruising around town. Unfortunately, my timing was off, and it almost went down a sewer drain. I saw the drain and I was really worried it would fall in! But I wasn't worried at all about whether the phone would work. I went back to get it, and of course it still worked perfectly.
I contrast this to the typical Nokia phone. Sometimes I go out on Friday nights and get into cell-phone-smashing contests with drunk people. I throw my Motorola down on the sidewalk, and I challenge them to do the same with their whatever they have. One guy's Nokia phone didn't survive the encounter. He said it's the fourth time he had to replace it. I've caused quite a few drunks to break their cell phones this way... and the Motorola is still going, even after hitting the pavement dozens of times.
---
How am I supposed to fit a pithy, relevant quote into 120 characters?
Three easy steps:
This proceedure is guaranteed to get you a number of very strong and detailed recommendations about what to do with your fucking cell phone. Some helpful motorists may even be kind enough to help you implement some of these recommendations (which leads to Step 4, wherein you will say to the ER surgeon "I swear to God, doctor, that's really how it got in there!).
Try Deja.com, Usenet alt.cellular, alt.cellular.*
There are alot of people selling/repairing mobile phones discussing things in the alt.cellular.tech newsgroups(it's also a good place to ask questions)
I've been in the mobile phone R&D business for over 4 years now. I've learned that you can't just rely on the brand name of any one individual manufacturer to help you make a good choice. These are tricky devices to make and one model by one manufacturer may be Excellent while another really sucks.
There are also Software Recalls and Just plain bad hardware. Anytime cheaper phones are built the cost savings can come from economizing on various critical parts(like say in the RF area) that will cause the platform to underperform(ok just plain suck).
Whatever phone you buy here's a few things I feel are important.
---- Digital is a must, longer battery life
- Coverage may be an issue depending on the network tech. you choose(CDMA,TDMA,GSM,AMPS....)
---- RF Performance
- it it can't acquire the network and stay on it this handset is not for you.
- Some models perform much better in fringe coverage areas than others. so check out the coverage plans for the service provider you will sign up with.
---- Audio Quality
- hey its a phone. If we can't hear each other why are we talking.
---- Accessory availability
- Car Power Adapter
- Data Connectors - if you wish to use a Laptop or PDA with it(InfraRed or Serial)
- Headset/Carkit - I like the portable headsets. ("mic on a rope")
---- Nice display
- nice font size which is quickly read
- something readable in the dark
----- Good Keypad
- size - good for your fingers
- Tactile feedback - responds well to your touch
- layout - some of these suck when you try to use them for basic functions
------ Form factor/Manufacturing Quality
- if it doesn't feel good in your hand keep looking.
- Materials Quality, if if feels cheap it probably is and will break easily. It will be dropped.
- Balance, don't want it to feel like it will fall out of your hand when pressing keys(especially if using SMS or browser services)
Just a small list of things to look for when browsing peoples opinions.
BTW, Don't forget to check up on software updates for your handset. There will usually be one or two additional software releases once a particular model is put on the market.