What cell phone do you have?

We're considering changing carriers which means we have to option of getting new phones. We'll probably just stick with the ones they offer for "free" (I told my wife, "they're not free, you can't walk into a cell phone store, grab a phone and leave".

Right now we have the crapphy Nokia 3560.



It's pretty much got the bare minimum of "features". The only thing I really like about it is the bowling game. A decent game to play when I'm on a public terlet with nothing better to do besides doo doo.

As much as I'd like to get a $200-300 phone I can't quite justify the expense for something I barely use. It's terribly tempting though, just because there are some really cool "looking" phones out there. But I don't really see me using a camera, video, MP3 playing phone all that often.

Nokia 6230

www.nokia.com/nokia/0,,47665,00.html

This is what I have:

LG 6000



It's a pretty decent camera phone. It's nice to always have a camera with you just in case, I've gotten some cool pictures that I would have missed out on otherwise. Cost me $15 after I renewed my contract w/ verizon last fall.

Audiovox CDM-9900  verizon wireless

camera ok
internet nice since we have a lite version of ar-15.
sound good.very rarely have any problems with services.

Treo 650:



It's been great for organizing my contacts and meeting schedules

http://www.diamondsuite.net/spotlight/moto_v3.jpg

Love my Motorola RAZR V3

You guys are hilarious.

Anyone know anything abou the

SAMSUNG SPH i500


or the

Kyocera 7135 Smartphone


I know these aren't being sold anymore so it would probably be stupid to even consider buying one, but I thougth they were cool for having the PDA features built into them, including the stylus-writing area.

Can you just buy any phone and use it with any service or is there something that needs to be done to the phone in order to do this?

Samsung VGA 1000
camera
flash
zoom
blah blah blah

Quoted: Love my Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg

Free after rebate from Amazon.com with Cingular service plan (2 yr) or Tmobile (1 yr)

Kyocera 7135.

Quoted: Quoted: Love my Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg Free after rebate from Amazon.com with Cingular service plan (2 yr) or Tmobile (1 yr)

Slick phone; unfortunately doesn't come with the software package the European models do. Anybody have good apps to recommend for the RAZR?

Quoted: You guys are hilarious. Anyone know anything abou the SAMSUNG SPH i500 www.palmq.ru/images/news/2003/jan/Samsung_I500.jpg or the Kyocera 7135 Smartphone www.citicomm.net/cellular/verizon/phones/kyocera/kyocera_7135verizon_lg.jpg I know these aren't being sold anymore so it would probably be stupid to even consider buying one, but I thougth they were cool for having the PDA features built into them, including the stylus-writing area. Can you just buy any phone and use it with any service or is there something that needs to be done to the phone in order to do this?

Ebay check shows them to be CDMA phones, so you wouldn't be able to use them on T-Mobile or Cingular's GMS networks. Maybe Sprint or Verizon could set you up,  a dealer would be able to tell you for sure.

There are some "smart phones" like the Treo out on the market currently. Might want to look into those instead.

V220 Good little phone

Quoted: You guys are hilarious. Anyone know anything abou the SAMSUNG SPH i500 www.palmq.ru/images/news/2003/jan/Samsung_I500.jpg

I have the SPH 500i, it uses the Palm OS, and no, you can't just buy a phone and have whoever activate it.  It must be one of the individual services phones in order to get a plan with that company

Quoted: Quoted: You guys are hilarious. Anyone know anything abou the SAMSUNG SPH i500 www.palmq.ru/images/news/2003/jan/Samsung_I500.jpg or the Kyocera 7135 Smartphone www.citicomm.net/cellular/verizon/phones/kyocera/kyocera_7135verizon_lg.jpg I know these aren't being sold anymore so it would probably be stupid to even consider buying one, but I thougth they were cool for having the PDA features built into them, including the stylus-writing area. Can you just buy any phone and use it with any service or is there something that needs to be done to the phone in order to do this? Ebay check shows them to be CDMA phones, so you wouldn't be able to use them on T-Mobile or Cingular's GMS networks. Maybe Sprint or Verizon could set you up,  a dealer would be able to tell you for sure. There are some "smart phones" like the Treo out on the market currently. Might want to look into those instead.

My i500 is Sprint

For the RAZR owners:
How do you like this phone?
How is the quality of the camera pictures?
Is there a way to hook this phone up to a PC to download the pictures and manage the "phone book" and "personal information management"?
How good is the "phone book" and "personal information management"? Can you put addresses and other information in the address book or is it just phone numbers?
How good is the speaker phone?
Battery life on regular use?
Games?

Quoted: Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg

Free after rebate from Amazon.com with Cingular service plan (2 yr) or Tmobile (1 yr)

Got a link for that? I'm looking for that on Amazon right now but can't find anything indicating a rebate that would make it "free".

ETA: Ooooh. The Cingular one is the special edition black. I can deal with their crappy service to have a cooler phone for free.



Can you switch plans to get this one? Our Cingular service is about to run out. Can you just "renew" to get this?

Quoted: For the RAZR owners: How do you like this phone? How is the quality of the camera pictures? Is there a way to hook this phone up to a PC to download the pictures and manage the "phone book" and "personal information management"? How good is the "phone book" and "personal information management"? Can you put addresses and other information in the address book or is it just phone numbers? How good is the speaker phone? Battery life on regular use? Games?

Love it, the favorite of over a dozen phones I've had over the years.
Camera is decent for a cell phone.
Yes, with Motorolas' Mobile Phone Tools (not included with mine, $29 online), you can upload and download from the camera to your PC.
Phone book is fine, holds more info than I'd ever want to input.
Speaker phone is great, best I've ever had.
Battery lasts me 3-4 days.
Games - my phone from cingular did not come with any games and I refuse to buy any, I'm sure I'll find some when I start looking.
Voice dialing is a nice feature.

Moto V710 and HS810 bluetooth headset

Good mp3 player with the TransFlash card, damn near perfect voice recognition out of the box, headset is a Godsend, battery life good and bluetooth connection to Verizon's data network with my ThinkPad is a nice touch.

Camera isn't anything to write home about and truly sucks ass in low light.

Verizon can burn in hell for the rest of the bluetooth features they disabled.  Only reason I stay with them is that they do have the coverage.  I can't think of a single time in the past 6 years anywhere in the country where I couldn't get a signal (even if was analog roaming).  That's my number one priority with any cellphone or provider, turn it on and get connected.

Quoted: For the RAZR owners: How do you like this phone? How is the quality of the camera pictures? Is there a way to hook this phone up to a PC to download the pictures and manage the "phone book" and "personal information management"? How good is the "phone book" and "personal information management"? Can you put addresses and other information in the address book or is it just phone numbers? How good is the speaker phone? Battery life on regular use? Games? Can you switch plans to get this one? Our Cingular service is about to run out. Can you just "renew" to get this?

I have had a Razr for a few months now, and I like it.  It's honestly not much more than a phone.

Picture quality is about the same as most inexpensive camera phones.  They look blurry and fuzzy, and shouldn't be used for anything other than 'getting the idea' when you take pictures of something.

You can hook the phone up to a PC, but you have to use Motorola's Phone Tools.  It can be tricky to get it to install and work.  It worked fine when I installed it on my laptop, but pukes when I try it on my desktop.   It works well managing contacts, calendar events pictures and sounds.

The personal information management is a little lacking.  For instance, if I put in John's mobile number, his home number and an email address, John now has three entries in the phone book, not just one with all the info.  I bet it could be changed with a firmware flash, as you can store like 1000 contacts/numbers.

The speakerphone on it is GREAT.  I think it's one of the best features.  You do not sound like you're on a speakerphone to the other person, and except in noisy situations, you can hear them fine.

Battery life is pretty good.  I can usually charge mine up one night, use it moderately, and not have to charge it for at least two days.  If I use it very little, I can get probably 5 days before the charge is a bit reduced.  I have never run it all the way down, but I did almost last night.  I had charged it up Thursday night, and went to Houston.  Made a few calls, took a few pictures, and last night talked about an hour or so, and it finally showed the battery in an almost drained state.   The phone will charge when attached to a computer via USB, but I recommend using an AC charger most of the time.

Games?  I don't play them on my phone, so I can't comment.

Overall, it's a great PHONE, if you want just a phone. The calendar is decent, and works OK.  It's good at playing MP3s for ringtones.  The screen is easy to read with large fonts.  The buttons take a bit of getting used to, and might be difficult to manage if you have fat fingers.  It can be a little sluggish when reacting to buttons.  Sound quality is GREAT, and signal is pretty good.  I love just being able to slide it into my pocket and almost forget it's there.  

I'd highly recommend it if you want just a PHONE.  If you want/need a nice cameraphone, you may want to pass on this one.  If you want something that's really good at managing contacts, I'd pass on it, too.  Otherwise, it's a great PHONE.  

Quoted: For instance, if I put in John's mobile number, his home number and an email address, John now has three entries in the phone book, not just one with all the info.  I bet it could be changed with a firmware flash, as you can store like 1000 contacts/numbers.

You can change that in the setup for the phonebook (hit menu while in phonebook -> setup -> display -> primary contacts instead of all contacts). It'll then display only john's primary contact in the list.

Quoted: The personal information management is a little lacking.  For instance, if I put in John's mobile number, his home number and an email address, John now has three entries in the phone book, not just one with all the info.  I bet it could be changed with a firmware flash, as you can store like 1000 contacts/numbers.

It's just a setting that controls that. To change it so it all shows all the info under one entry just go into the phonebook menu, setup, then set the view to primary contacts, problem solved.

Quoted: Verizon can burn in hell for the rest of the bluetooth features they disabled.

How do they disable features on a phone and isn't there a way you can re-enable them? What features did they turn off?

Quoted: Quoted: Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg Free after rebate from Amazon.com with Cingular service plan (2 yr) or Tmobile (1 yr) I don't see anything for the T-Mobile deal. For the Cingular one I don't think you canget two of them for free if you want to get the Family Plan. I don't see anything that really gives the details on this one way or another, but all the plans you can get are the regional plans that don't show anythign about adding another phone to the plan. Anyone know?

Here is the FAR from Cingular/Amazon:
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A1329U/qid=1123520744/sr=8-2/ref=pd_bbs_sbs_2/103-4690678-7615003?v=glance&s=wireless&n=507846

Here is the T-mobile:
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A6KMTI/qid=1123520744/sr=8-3/ref=pd_bbs_sbs_3/103-4690678-7615003?v=glance&s=wireless&n=507846

Quoted: Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg

Free after rebate from Amazon.com with Cingular service plan (2 yr) or Tmobile (1 yr)

I don't see anything for the T-Mobile deal.
For the Cingular one I don't think you canget two of them for free if you want to get the Family Plan. I don't see anything that really gives the details on this one way or another, but all the plans you can get are the regional plans that don't show anythign about adding another phone to the plan.

Anyone know?

Also, my wife was talking to a T-Mobile saleman at the mall. He told her if she got a T-Mobile phone she could use it in Germany because they are owned by Deutch Telekom and therefore her service would essentially extend to the towers over there. I'm a litle skeptical about that claim unless there is an additional charge/plan you have ot pay for in order to be able to do this.

If you have a quad band phone would you be able to do this anyway, regardless of the carrier you have?

Do all carriers provide coverage in Hawaii? Or do you have to have some sort of special plan for that as well?

Quoted: Love my Motorola RAZR V3 tinypic.com/a4v474.jpg

I really like those phones.  Too bad the GSM coverage in my area is so crappy.

For family plans you'd have to get an individual plan and upgrade with the carrier directly, since Amazon doesn't do it. You may want to see if you can swing a rebate deal with a dealer near you; I got a better deal that way. With a family plan, I got just the Razr with $150 back (using a previous phone for the second line). I prefer to get a good phone every two-three years and carry it over from plan to plan and get cash back instead of getting a mediocre phone every year.

Make sure you read the fine print on the rebate and follow the instructions to the letter.

Quoted: Quoted: Verizon can burn in hell for the rest of the bluetooth features they disabled. How do they disable features on a phone and isn't there a way you can re-enable them? What features did they turn off?

+1

Quoted: Here is the FAR from Cingular/Amazon: www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A1329U/qid=1123520744/sr=8-2/ref=pd_bbs_sbs_2/103-4690678-7615003?v=glance&s=wireless&n=507846 Here is the T-mobile: www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000A6KMTI/qid=1123520744/sr=8-3/ref=pd_bbs_sbs_3/103-4690678-7615003?v=glance&s=wireless&n=507846

Ok, I see the one for T-mobile now. You have to select a plan as if you were going to buy it.
Still it doesn't really show anything for a family talk plan. I don't know if you got that and then added on a line after the fact and I guess just put a generic phone on it or something. They're really unclear about how that works.

When we signed up for Cingular i think we got two of their crappy Nokia 3560 both for free.

I pulled this out of the Cingular Rebate text:

2. Activate your new service (note: this rebate does not apply to phone purchases for use on an existing account and phone number. If you already have an existing account and wish to obtain a second line of service (for a family member, employee, etc.), you will qualify if you purchase and activate the phone with a new service plan. Rebates will not be honored for customers adding a line of service who then cancel an existing line). Please print this form when you place your order.

What a bunch of bastards. So if they already have you as a customer you don't get shit for a rebate. Nice. They really have a good way of keeping current customers don't they.

taken with a SE s710a

Amazon does not sell family plans.

How many phones are you going to add to a plan?

Just got my Motorola E815 today.  

Pathfinder  



I sent you an IM reguarding the info you requested but I'll also post it here as well.

How do you like that phone? Love it, its far more rugged then you'd think a $500 phone would be.  I've dropped it countless times and it still keeps on ticking. Did you own a PDA phone before buying it? Yes, the i300.  I really liked the design of that phone and it's reliability as well.   How does it compare to a standalone PDA? Other then it having a smaller screen (obviously) it is exactly the same (minus the phone).  It has application menu, and infrared port and also this phone is internet capable.  When your surfing the web you can see the pages in almost the exact same format as if you were using a desk-top or lap-top.  Also one of it's most important features is that AR15.COM comes up just fine and you can easily read the forums. Do you have any problems with it now that it's a couple years old? The only issue I have with it now is that the battery comes loose every now and then because I accidentally broke the battery release button about 2 weeks ago (due in large part to dropping it well over two dozen times in the last yeah and a half). Even though this model is no longer sol, this upgraded version is, the i600: The big plus with this version is it comes with a windows OS and has an external read-out so you dont hve to flip the phone open every time you want to see who's calling or what time it is. Info here!!

Hope this helps, if ya have any other questions let me know.

Quoted: Amazon does not sell family plans. How many phones are you going to add to a plan?

1. Me and my wife. 2 phones total.

Quoted: img.photobucket.com/albums/v442/airwolf144/v710-2.jpg img.photobucket.com/albums/v442/airwolf144/hs810.jpg Moto V710 and HS810 bluetooth headset Good mp3 player with the TransFlash card, damn near perfect voice recognition out of the box, headset is a Godsend, battery life good and bluetooth connection to Verizon's data network with my ThinkPad is a nice touch. Camera isn't anything to write home about and truly sucks ass in low light. Verizon can burn in hell for the rest of the bluetooth features they disabled.  Only reason I stay with them is that they do have the coverage.  I can't think of a single time in the past 6 years anywhere in the country where I couldn't get a signal (even if was analog roaming).  That's my number one priority with any cellphone or provider, turn it on and get connected.

+1  for the phone, and the disabled stuff rant.

Got a Nokia 6620


Smartphone capabilities in a pocket-size package (though there's no keyboard or touchscreen or anything).

For general phone info, check out:

www.phonescoop.com/
www.mobileburn.com/

Quoted: How do they disable features on a phone and isn't there a way you can re-enable them? What features did they turn off?

They load custom firmware on the phone that disables the features. In an interview on this page, they confirm that they intentionally disabled those features to make you use their pay services to get the same features. If you want full bluetooth functionality, stay away from Verizon.

Can you just buy any phone and use it with any service or is there something that needs to be done to the phone in order to do this?

Not quite. There's some more detailed info at the links I posted, but basically, phones and carriers are either GSM or CDMA. GSM phones can only be used with GSM carriers, and vice versa. There's also four frequencies: 800, 900, 1800, and 1900. IIRC, the US uses 800 and 1900, and Europe uses 900 and 1800. Some phones support all four, most seem to have two or three. Some US carriers use both, some use only one.

I belive GSM (used by Cingular and T-Mobile)  is generally considered more flexible. GSM phones are made into your phone (your phone number, your service, etc) by a little SIM card. You can put that card into any GSM phone (that isn't locked to another carrier) and use it as your phone. As far as I know, you can't do this sort of thing with CDMA phones and carriers.

Quoted: Quoted: Amazon does not sell family plans. How many phones are you going to add to a plan? 1. Me and my wife. 2 phones total.

Will you save any money with just 2 phones? I looked into it a couple months ago. I couldn't find any savings with any family plan with 2 phones. The only bonus I found was only having one bill.

However, the $150 back from Amazon.com makes it worth while to have 2 bills.

In fact, there are times with there are multiple rebates. You can find the top of the line phone from last year with a $50 manufacturer rebate. Then tie that with the Amazon.com rebate.

I bought my wife a T-mobile phone for $25 with $200 in rebates. Only down side was that t-mobile service is lousy where I live. I had to send it back.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Amazon does not sell family plans. How many phones are you going to add to a plan? 1. Me and my wife. 2 phones total. Will you save any money with just 2 phones? I looked into it a couple months ago. I couldn't find any savings with any family plan with 2 phones. The only bonus I found was only having one bill. However, the $150 back from Amazon.com makes it worth while to have 2 bills. In fact, there are times with there are multiple rebates. You can find the top of the line phone from last year with a $50 manufacturer rebate. Then tie that with the Amazon.com rebate. I bought my wife a T-mobile phone for $25 with $200 in rebates. Only down side was that t-mobile service is lousy where I live. I had to send it back.

Pooled minutes, free minutes between the two phones.

I second the nokia 6230 it's an awesome little phone with a very decent phone camera, FM radio, MP3 player (can use 1gig SD card ~$50), good speakerphone, and lots of nice other features like voice recorder, bluetooth, etc.

My wife has a V220 and it works well as a phone but the other features are very basic.

One thing I like about the nokia is that it fit in my pocket a lot better than the moto razr. The razr is a little wider than I expected and I didn't want to use a belt clip holder.

Avoid samsung e-317/8 like the plague they are. Horrible little pos phone even if they paid you to take it.

Kyocera KX414.



Not a bad phone but I'd be hesitant to buy another Kyocera.

I have a zebra print case on mine!

I currently have an N-Gage QD with cingular, but we're switching to Verizon next march and my phone is broken so I have to replace it.

Whatever I get, though, I want to make sure it has Symbian OS. It's the greatest thing ever.

I am thankfully unplugged.    

This pissing contest is unbelievibly funny comming from a bunch of gun nuts like myself.

Don't have one, don't want one.

Although, the wife has one in case of emergencies.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Amazon does not sell family plans. How many phones are you going to add to a plan? 1. Me and my wife. 2 phones total. Will you save any money with just 2 phones? I looked into it a couple months ago. I couldn't find any savings with any family plan with 2 phones. The only bonus I found was only having one bill. However, the $150 back from Amazon.com makes it worth while to have 2 bills. In fact, there are times with there are multiple rebates. You can find the top of the line phone from last year with a $50 manufacturer rebate. Then tie that with the Amazon.com rebate. I bought my wife a T-mobile phone for $25 with $200 in rebates. Only down side was that t-mobile service is lousy where I live. I had to send it back. Pooled minutes, free minutes between the two phones.

You get that from most vendors today. Cingular to Cingular calls are free. Minutes roll over.

IMO, When you take a good look at individual vs family, family only wins with 3 or more phones. And then, not all the time.