A Good Phone for the Money
Written: Sep 13 '05 (Updated Jan 07 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: size, weight
external display
non-extendable antenna (prefer a patch)
Frequent call list
Cons: short battery life in "extended area"
hard to read display in sunlight
selection of ringtones
The Bottom Line: Of the phones offered for new customers by Verizon, the Kyocera KX1 seems to be the best of the basics.
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| cartan's Full Review: Kyocera SoHo KX1 Cell Phone |
When signing up for the Verizon Family Plan with four lines, we had to pick a phone that would be adequate for our needs and not pay a lot for bells and whistles that we didn't need. After reviewing prices and specs for all the phones offered, the KX1 stand out. Not on any "special" at the time we signed up, we felt it was sufficiently better than the freebies to be worth $40.
Having used these four phones for two months, we are generally pleased with them. We like the aesthetics; the size is nice for the pocket, purse of belt. The external display (b&w) is convenient; the buttons are big enough and the tactile feel is fine.
We use this phone strictly for calling; no text messaging, no "Get It Now", no mobile web. It works great, sounds good, fairly intuitive to use. We really like the frequent call list, where those we call most often migrate to the top of the "phonebook" for easy dialing.
We frequently use the phone in an "extended area" where the signal is only two or three bars. This seems to drain the battery rapidly, and it must be charged every night.
I wish this phone had a feature to save short text (notes) easily. Trying to save notes as text message drafts is cumbersome. I find the calendar (scheduler) not worth the effort to use.
But as a phone, for calling and receiving calls, fetching voicemail, etc., the Kyocera KX1 is a good deal for the money. None of the four of us have had any problems with our phones.
UPDATE (Jan 7, 2006) Having used these phones for six months, I would like to add a few comments. All four phones have held up well in spite of a few drops. The reception, voice quality and ease of use is great. The user manual says something about 200 contacts, but I have no idea how much memory is available. I keep adding multiple phone numbers and complete addresses for contacts and have not run out of space.
The only grievances so far is that (1) in the winter time, while wearing heavy coats, covering the phone on my belt, I cannot hear it ring in a noisy environment, even on the loudest setting. I could enable the phone to vibrate and then ring, but it vibrates for ten seconds and then rings. I can't set it to vibrate and ring from the start, as I prefer. (2) the 'scheduler' does not allow one to find 'events' on a list (just 'occasions', like birthdays and anniversaries). Since viewing a day only shows a part of the day at a time on the screen, it is difficult to find all the events. I would like the phone to be more PDA-like, (without Bluetooth, Mobile Web, etc.), so that it would be easier to enter and view notes, to do lists, and appointments
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
cartan
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Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 3 members
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