Wonderful phone: small-light, lots of features, clear sound
Written: Aug 07 '00 (Updated Aug 07 '00)
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Pros: looks great, small, light, great features, price, voice activated dialing,
Cons: signal weaker than older phone, arms look fragile
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| d90's Full Review: Samsung SCH 3500 CDMA / AMPS Cellular Phone |
I have a Qualcomm 2700 dual band for my Sprint service. It has been a great phone: high quality, great sound, lots of nice & useful features... However, it is a pretty big and heavy phone, a little too bulky these days. I doe snot fit any pockets nor in small purses. So my wife hated it and always left it in the car instead of keeping with her which defeated the purpose of having a cell phone. Therefore I decided that I, well we, needed a new phone.
I wanted something affordable, clear sound, and compact size. The phone also had to do voice mail, pager, call waiting and three way calling, features included in my plan, and pretty basics nowadays. My first choice was the Motorola Startack. Everybody has one and I assumed it was a good phone. But i did some research and found the Samsung 3500. It is almost as small as the Motorola, and certainly small enough for me. It looks great, better than the Startack, its standard battery offers about the same talk and stand by times, and it has a lot of great features.
The Sprint PCS Samsung 3500 is sold for 149$; if you look around the web, you'll find discounts or it is likely that your employer has a national plan open for employees. I work for a large bank, and through my employer, I got a $90 discount on the phone. I paid $59 for this phone and it is worth 3 times that at least. The Motorola was 229 with Sprint. So I saved $80, more than I paid for the phone, and got a very good phone:
Dual band
Voice activated dialing: an awesome feature increasing safety when driving
three way calling
call waiting
voice mail/ pager
web browsing
9 different ring types (even music)
alarm
memo record
and lots more.
The menu is well done and is easy to access and operate. I just love the voice activated dialing. You can program (20?)numbers you often call and record a name for each of them. Once they are programmed, you don't need to dial the phone numbers again, just say the the word you recorded and it'll dial for you. No need to keep your eyes off the road to dial a number anymore! I have not had the chance to check out the mini web browser but I was told it does a good job for such a small and affordable phone.
People who own this phone have had concerns about the quality of the arms of the flip section. They do seem a little weak but I don't think they'll be a problem if you handle your phone with care; the phone should be fine for regular use. if you are rough with your phone (!), then you may want to buy one without the flip up/down ear piece.
Another concern was the battery not living up to expectations and manufacturers' specs. I fully charged my phone Friday night, then kept my phone on all day Saturday and Sunday, plus a little this morning. During that time I made four short calls, and played with the phone for at least two or three hours; setting up phone numbers, recording memos, playing with the voice mail and setting up my announce message, setting up my voice activated numbers, etc.. Well this morning, my screen still showed a fully charged battery.
Finally, I was told that the signal would be weak and disappointing compared to other phones, above all my Qualcomm; that I would lose calls, and be roaming even in town! Well, I admit the signal seems a little than with my bulky Qualcomm, but is very acceptable. I am not sure the Motorola would do better. Considering all the bad things I have heard and the very compact size compared to my 2700, the overall quality and sound is excellent. I might buy the extended battery because my car won't take the cigarette lighter accessory and I hate to take my phone in the house to charge it (I forget it there! CALL ME BREEZE!). But that is not because the phone standard battery does not perform well.
The only thing I need is the neat leather case with belt clip; however, there is no rush, this phone is so small that I' ve been keeping it in my pocket!
Overall, it is a great looking compact phone with lots of features and great sound. I would recommend it for almost everybody. "heavy users" might need more talk time (buy an extended battery or) or a tougher phone. Sprint PCS has been a great plan for me and I have always had positive experiences with their customer service. Combined with the Samsung 3500, it is a awesome digital service. Hard to beat! The Sprint PCS calling area in the US is growing and cover a lot of cities.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 59
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Epinions.com ID:
d90
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Location: Charotte, N.C.
Reviews written: 21
Trusted by: 5 members
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