The Samsung SCH3500 has been out for at least a couple years now and Sprint still sells it for $150. That has to tell you about the popularity and staying power of this phone.

The first thing you notice is the viewable screen design of this phone. It enables you to see who's calling you w/o opening the phone to take the call like the motorolas. Yet, the earpice still covers the keys to protect them. A very ingenious design, unless you're one of the unfortunate ones to crush the screen since it's not protected. Not that that's happened, but the possibility is there.

The flip earpiece has a springy action to it so that it pops up when you lift it. Some may feel it's cheap, but I don't worry a bit that it may break. Once you open it, the phone defaults into asking who you would like to call. And this voice-activated dialing is definitely the most used feature on this phone. You simply have to record a name and number in its memory, and then repeat it when you want to call it. It compares your command to its list and if they match, it will play back what it has recorded so you can be sure it's the right one, and it dials the number automatically. This usually takes about 1 second. I've used the feature in a noisy lecture hall several times and it seems to have no problem recognizing it. Admittedly, it has a harder time actually recording the name the first time around. You must be sure to be in a quiet area when you program it, and try to avoid names that are short, or sound like another entry. For one syllable names though, I've found it useful to just add a word, ie "Call Home" instead of just "Home."

It also has a voice memo feature to record memos up to one minute. This feature gets occasional use from me, but is nice to have when you don't have a pen and paper. Being a Sprint phone, it also can surf the web, although I have never used it for that. Being a "power" surfer, I really don't see the future for surfing on a phone. Simply too limited. The phone comes with enough ring variations and a few songs if you're creative. Not a Nokia, but who really needs all those rings anyway? I personally stick with the vibrate feature. The address book can hold up to 199 names, although it's not possible to program 2 numbers for 1 name--a definite shortcoming. Otherwise, features are pretty much on par with everybody else.

Its reception is usually pretty good, although the signal strength meter doesn't really tell the truth. I find in areas where I get 0-1 bars, even though I still have "coverage," I'm not going to be able to receive calls. I can still hear the rings, but answering the phone simply wastes a minute of airtime. However, it is still able to display that you got a message, so it could probably work as a pager.

Battery life could be better, although it could just be that my battery is old. Making just a few calls per day will knock the battery down a bar, and my phone can't go more than 2 days w/o charging, even when I turn it off at night.

All in all, it's a solid phone that everyone seems to still want. It is probably one of the more popular phones on Ebay, where I found mine for $66. I've had no problems with a used phone and for that price, it's a great deal for what it has to offer.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 66