i730: Versatile. Powerful. Affordable.
Written: Sep 29 '05
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Pros: Excellent durability, more than adequate memory, many really cool features.
Cons: Too trivial to even be worth mentioning here.
The Bottom Line: This phone has made me believe no other phone will satisfy me after owning this one.
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| nclusvevaliant's Full Review: Nexel i730 |
My review consists of over a year of experience using this phone on a daily basis.
Upon first purchasing this phone, I was taken back by a few trivial things. First and foremost being that Nextel finally got it right; "Talk" button on the left, "End" button on the right. I was happy with this recent transition, but after owning 3 other Nextel phones with the buttons reversed, it took a little getting used to. Once the initial shock wore off, I found it much more efficient.
The color screen was a great change from the green and black display of their older models, making it much easier to identify the icons at the top of the screen. I find that the screen size is ideal for my needs, despite what other reviews have stated. Unless you are utilizing the web feature daily, I don't see the need for a screen any bigger than what the i730 offers.
What sets this phone apart from others available is its capability to change your ringtones to whatever you choose. Using software you can purchase through several different providers, you can set this phone to reflect your exact personality. Not only does it allow you to download your very own ringtones, but it allows you to in many different forms. MIDI, WAV, or MP3 can be added to this phone with ease. It also allows you to download wallpapers of whatever you choose. Being an avid football fan, I have chosen to use an Eagles wallpaper, which adds to my satisfaction with this phone.
Another feature you will find on this phone is "Voice Record." Not only does it let you record just like a little tape recorder, but you can also record phone conversations. There is no set time limit for either use, it simply goes by how much memory you have left on your phone. And unless you have several WAV ringtones or several wallpapers, it takes quite a lot to fill up this phone's memory.
Now, let's get to the really cool stuff. You want a different ringtone for certain people? No problem. Each and every ringtone can not only be assigned to one specific contact, but you can set them to alerts, voice messages, text messages, and reminders. This is also the first Nextel I have come across that allows you to have it Ring and Vibrate simultaneously which is a great feature if you're in a loud environment.
With this versatile phone, you can store up to 600 contacts, each contact alloted 7 numbers making it a snap to add the contact's home, office, cell, and pager numbers. (Who has pagers nowadays anyway? *shrugs* Well, you can add it if they have one.)
I have noticed a lot of reviews stating the low battery power as their con. Personally, I have yet to experience a low battery power problem on this one, and I have been using the same battery since I purchased the phone. One tip I learned over the years is not to plug in the phone unless it's low on battery power. By plugging it in every day, even if it doesn't need to be charged, the battery will begin to "think" it has less charge than it actually does, therefore showing a low battery too soon. By plugging it in only when it needs to be adds many many months to the life of the battery.
Another really neat feature this phone has is when using a MIDI ringtone, you can choose to have what they call the "Disco Light" blink while the phone is ringing. It's a small circular light on the front of the phone that will blink several colors in an almost psychedelic fashion. Unfortunately, this feature can only be used with the MIDI ringtones, not WAV or MP3 ringtones. It's a completely frivolous feature, but seems to keep us "easily amused" folk happy.
Want a durable phone? Check this out. I'm not the most careful of folk, and tend to be a bit clumsy at times. My phone has dropped more times than I can count, many occasions it has been dropped on concrete. The best part is, I have no major scratches or dents to speak of. Simplistic cosmetic scratches that would only bother those of the highly obsessive complusive variety. Try doing that with these razor thin phones. I can almost bet you wouldn't have much of a phone left.
The only problems I have with the phone are these. The Voice Record feature, when used to record while not in the middle of a call, tends to have an almost tin-can result. The few times I have used it to record idle conversation between me and friends as though it was a tape recorder seemed to have a very robotic sound to it, as though we were speaking directly into a microphone loudly, causing the equalizer to peak.
Another very petty problem I had was with the ear piece "grill." Not really sure what else to call the cosmetic screen covering the earpiece. Within months of having the phone, my 2 year old niece was able to remove it with ease. I came to find out that it is simply glued on, and some i730's I guess weren't given as much care as others. I am the only one in my household that has had this problem though, 3 other i730 users accompanying me in this house. So I don't know if it was just my phone, or if it's a cosmetic defect on all.
Other than that, I have no complaints to speak of. This phone has been the best investment to date.
I highly recommend this phone to anyone not interested in being able to take useless photos of random things while out, or someone who uses their cell phone as their only way to connect to the internet, simply because of the smaller screen.
Nextel definitely has a winner with this model. Even without the camera feature that everyone is raving about these days, this phone stands alone, and is well worth the money.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 149.00
Recommended for: Adventurous Technophiles - Tough and Durable
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Epinions.com ID:
nclusvevaliant
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Location: Frederick, MD, USA
Reviews written: 8
Trusted by: 1 member
About Me:
I want to go back to believing in everything and knowing nothing at all...
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