Nokia's Pocket Rocket
Written: May 10 '01 (Updated May 10 '01)
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Pros: Small Size, GSM World Phone, Sleek Design
Cons: See text below
The Bottom Line: If you are looking for a truly pocket sized phone that can be used in 100+ countries, this is the best on the market...at least in the United States.
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| tapa-king's Full Review: Nokia 8890 GSM Cellular Phone |
Background
I used to carry a Startac when they first arrived on the U.S. market, and in our area that meant analog. Regardless, I loved the size of that phone. When we moved overseas, I could not believe the advances in telephony! We entered a sea of small digital (GSM) phones with text messaging and multiband performance. Amazing!
Returning after several years to America was/is a disappointment in terms of phones. While significantly more people are carrying mobile phones today than even three years ago, it is still a disappointing market in terms of technologies and selection of handsets. There are at least three or four (maybe more) competing technologies here in the States, with all but one (GSM) rendering your handset useless if you travel overseas. In addition, most of the handsets in America are big and clunky. If you have a belt and don't mind strapping it to your side like large tool (yeah, that's attractive and comfortable), the clunky handsets might be OK. Ignorance may be bliss, but having seen what is on the international market, I wanted a modern handset.
Why the 8890?
I wanted a small phone that I could use around town as well as travel with on business or on holiday overseas without switching SIM cards or renting handsets (what pain). That meant GSM. I searched the American market and found that Voicestream used GSM and it had gobbled up OmniPoint and other U.S. regional GSM operators. Voicestream offered only a couple of world phones, and the 8890 was the smallest of the two, by far. I considered the Ericsson T-28 (available from PacBell) and understood that it was to be offered by Voicestream, but it has yet to become available.
Best/Most Appreciated Features
GSM Technology: It allows you to travel to most places (100+ countries) seamlessly and text message others.
Size and Design: The phone is clearly one of the most sleekly designed phones on the market today! Small, at about 2/3 the width of a deck of playing cards and slimmer. If you have massive hands or sausage fingers, you might find the buttons too small (I have heard that from some friends), but I think the small size is one of the best features of the phone! The brushed case is an improvement over the earlier 8850 that was chrome/polished and highlighted every fingerprint......and seemed a bit too girly.
No Antenna: The antenna remains hidden (completely) unless you desire to withdraw it from the body of the phone. You can use the phone with the antenna totally hidden, which means no bending or breaking of antennas. This is a common problem I had with Ericssons, even the stubby antennas would bend or snap off the handsets. You can slip the phone in your front pocket and sit down without worry of jabbing yourself or ruining the antenna.
Battery-Talk Time: The web site will give you the official stats. My experience is that you can leave it on overnight for a few (3-4) days w/o recharging and still use it from time-to-time....no problems. If I use the talk time heavily, it is still good for a couple of days, left on overnight. Great battery life from a slim phone!
Downsides
Cost: As everyone will tell you, it is fairly expensive. If you are going to treat this phone roughly (toss it under the car seat, drop it on the cement, etc.), perhaps you should invest in a US$30 brick of a handset instead of the 8890, because you won't feel so bad if you break it.
No Web: Others complain that for this price you should be getting a web enabled phone. Hell, in America no one even knows (exaggerating here) that web enabled phones exist, and the ones that do exist are pitifully slow in surfing the web. So slow and cumbersome, that I don't miss this feature at all.
Complaints
Battery Cover: The battery cover tends to loosen over time (it took me a few months of use before I noticed this). Not terrible or worth complaining about really, but it is a slight engineering problem. It manifests itself in a very slight wiggle of the aluminum battery cover on the back of the phone. Again, a minor flaw in a phone that otherwise has good fit and finish.
Infrared: The infrared/Nokia PC Suite seems like a good feature, but I have yet to get it to communicate with my IBM Thinkpad running Win95. Let me know if you can help me with this!
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 450
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Epinions.com ID:
tapa-king
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Reviews written: 1
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