Darn, did I misplace that puny cell phone again?
Written: Jan 17 '01 (Updated Jan 18 '01)
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Pros: really compact, very stylish, voice dialing, beautiful backlight, global support
Cons: really compact, tiny dial pad, only 8 voice dialing memories, price
The Bottom Line: The 8890 works flawlessly and is very stylin'. You can't go wrong if you don't mind paying for the high price of entry (or get it as a gift).
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| norm's Full Review: Nokia 8890 GSM Cellular Phone |
I got this phone as a Christmas present to replace my trusty and reliable Nokia 6190 that I had been using for the last couple years. So I slide out my SIM card from the 6190 and slide it into the 8890, turned it on and, voila, business as usual. Until I went outside of my service provider's area, that is.
I went to Seattle, Washington for a weekend and couldn't for the life of me figure out why my phone would not get any service in that area (no reception, no 611, nada, zilch), since VoiceStream operates a GSM network there that is the roaming provider for PacBell Wireless (my provider). My girlfriend's 5190 worked fine. I didn't at the time think of swapping out her SIM card with mine to see if it was the SIM card, but after much troubleshooting and hairpulling (and the recurring thought that my "world" phone not working *INSIDE* the U.S., but outside of my provider's service area), I heard from a friend that his colleague had a similar problem when they were in New York. He had an old 8k SIM from several years back that had to be replaced with the newer 32k SIM to get roaming to work, since those early cards (in my case, 1997) had roaming locked out of them for whatever reason. Lucky him, lucky me we both learned the hard way. No the phone's fault per se, but hopefully someone else out there with an 8k SIM card reads this and won't have to learn the hard way like we did (since going to that pay phone is oh so hard to do heh heh). :-)
That incident aside, this phone has been growing on me. At this point I still like the larger size of the 6190 more since it fits in my hand better. The 8890 seems to have reception and sound quality on par with that of my 6190. I seem to be dropping more calls with the 8890 when the reception is bad, though. Not scientific by any means, but it seems like the 6190 holds onto calls better when the reception is poor. The 8890 is too slim for me to comfortably rest it between my shoulder and cheek when talking (cuz I love to talk on the phone and drive my car like a mad man..no just kidding). And the dialing pad buttons are tiny...the bottom row of buttons (the * 0 # ) are really hard to press due to their proximity to the dialpad cover when it's slid down, and my fingers aren't really monstrous in anyone's book except maybe a newborn's. The brushed aluminum case is pretty and sleek, but I worry that it'll dent easy. As high tech (and high priced) this phone is, it's also high(er) maintanance it seems (compared to the 6190).
Gripes aside, I love the way the 8890 looks. It's very stylish and people always give ooo's, ahhhh's, and wow's when they see it. You will instantly become popular by purchasing this phone. ;-) The blue backlight is awesome...it's even bright enough to serve as a dim flashlight in the dark. Talk and standby time is a little less than the 6190, but that's not a problem since I charge the phone with the included charging stand nightly. The voice dialing function is great..you record a sound bite and associate it with a stored number and the phone will dial it for you. It even works from the included headset which is nice. Too bad the phone only holds up to 8 sound bites (even though the phone book can hold up to 500 numbers- 250 on the phone and 250 on the 32k SIM card).
The vibrating alert is nice to have, but is only useful if the phone's close enough to your body for you to feel it (essentially pressed against it)- I can't feel it when it's in my jacket pocket and can barely feel it when the phone's in my back pocket. The infrared (IrDA) port on the side of the phone is useful for wireless communication with your computer or PDA, but I don't think I will really put it to much use.
The 8890 works flawlessly and is very styling. You can't go wrong if you don't mind paying for the high price of entry (or get it as a gift). It's probably most functional for world travelers, but my guess is that most people will buy it for it's coolness factor. Either way you can't go wrong, as long as you're willing to pay the high price of entry.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): GIFT
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Epinions.com ID:
norm
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Location: San Francisco, CA
Reviews written: 11
Trusted by: 7 members
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