Great phone, worth the price.
Written: Mar 23 '03 (Updated Mar 25 '03)
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Pros: Large color screen, external Caller ID, backlit buttons, SUPERB speakerphone.
Cons: Recessed buttons (hard to dial quickly), button feedback could be improved, and slightly bulky.
The Bottom Line: If you're looking for a full-featured phone and money is no object, then get the i95cl. It's the creme de la creme of the business-class cell phone world.
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| sac86738's Full Review: Motorola i95cl Cell Phone |
Okay, so this phone is a little pricey, but it's intended for business customers who demand the latest and greatest. The i95cl by Motorola is indeed the latest and greatest. The large color screen is easy to read and makes the display a pleasure to look at under most any lighting condition. Adding to the readability of the large color screen is the ability to zoom in or out. Zoom comes in one of three ways: Zoom, Standard, and Compressed. Zoom and Standard are ideal for situations where you can only look at your phone with quick glances--such as times when you're in a car or at a meeting--while compressed allows for much more text to fill the screen--such as when you're viewing a Web page.
One of the features that could be changed is the recessed buttons, and the almost lack of feedback they provide. Unlike the i95cl's older relative, the i50sx--which had raised buttons and excellent feedback--the i95cl comes up a bit short. This is due to design regards, since the flip style of the phone forces the buttons to be flush with the surface. If anything, Motorola could have made the button feedback just a little more "clicky" so dialing can be done while walking down the sidewalk, rather than having to stop everything you're doing in order to place a call.
One of the greatest assets to this phone is its speakerphone feature. If you're familiar with Nextel phones, then you already understand. However, the speakerphone on this model is unparalleled. Voice quality coming out of the speaker is outrageous! It shouts your caller's voice loud and proud. The microphone quality is top-notch, as I have asked many of my callers whether or not they knew I was on speakerphone. Their response? "It sounds like you're on a regular phone." Some even report it sounds like I'm on a land line. (Just depends on how strong of a signal you've got, of course.)
External Caller ID provides all you need to know, including (from left to right) (1) signal strength indicator, (2) time, (3) date, (4) and battery meter. Additionally, if you're using an earpiece or speakerphone to place a call, you can use the external caller ID to scroll through the last 20 calls you've placed, and place the call with the cover closed. While we're on the subject, you can take calls with the cover closed, too--either by putting your caller on speaker, or using a hands free earpiece.
While Motorola's menuing system has been improved, it is my personal opinion that it is not as user-friendly and intuitive as, say, the Nokia menu. This is to be expected, however, because this is not a consumer but a business-oriented phone, and therefore it contains many other features and settings that consumer models have no need for. The new menuing system allows you to customize not only the order of items on the main menus, but also lets you to create your own Shortcut section, allowing you to create shortcuts (imagine that)--similar to how you create a shortcut on your desktop--so that you may easily and quickly navigate to frequently used menu items that are sometimes deeply buried within other menus.
One last comment is that, while this phone is light for as many things as it can do, it is slightly cumbersome in terms of thickness. This is due mostly to the great built-in speakerphone (gotta have room for a speaker, right?) This extra-thickness for a clamshell-style phone might make you think twice about putting it in your pocket. I know I did. Instead, you might opt to wear it on a belt clip of some kind, and for those of us new to the whole bely clip thing, it can feel pretty weird in the beginning. Rest assured, though, you'll get used to it in a couple weeks and actually enjoy the fact that you don't have to go digging through your pockets to get the phone, because it's conveniently sitting at your side. The belt clips that came with the phone (both the leather case and the regular belt clip) are solid in design, and will not fall apart.
BOTTOM LINE: I think this is a great phone. The i95cl and the accessories that came with it are solid & sturdy, built to last, has all the features you could ask for (well, almost!), and surprisingly stylish, too, for a business phone. You can probably find a great deal on this phone, too, so don't let the price scare you. I paid $299 with a $50 mail-in rebate and I'd say this phone's worth the money even if I didn't have a rebate coming back to me. I think you'll be happy with your purchase, but your mileage may vary.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 299
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Epinions.com ID:
sac86738
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Reviews written: 3
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