Everything I need - ALMOST.
Written: May 25 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Offers all the basic features most people will need.
Cons: Lacks the calendaring features of the 6100 family.
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| dbirchall's Full Review: Nokia 5160 Cell Phone |
I wound up with the Nokia 5160 because a large gentleman made me an offer I couldn't refuse. Okay, the large gentleman was the telecommunications manager where I work, and the deal involved me getting a free cell phone, and free activation, and the company reimbursing me for the basic cost of having it, since I'm supposed to be "on call" anyway. Not a bad deal, really - even if so far it's only been used as a way to call me and tell me to come back to the office to sing "Happy Birthday" to a co-worker. But anyway!
I'd never had a cell phone of my own before, but I'd recently carried around an on-call co-worker's Nokia 6190 for a week while he was on vacation. Once I got the 5160, I promptly set about learning everything that it could do. I also got one for my wife (no, the company doesn't reimburse me for that one!) so we can now get hold of each other at a moment's notice - usually.
For the most part, this phone does everything I need. It's got decent battery life, and good talk time, three modes (two digital frequencies and analog), and a national network (AT&T). It can receive numeric pages and e-mail pages. It's got either 99 or 100 slots in its phone book - enough to store all my usual numbers, plus schedule information for the bus to and from work, and a bit of a "to do" list. It rings a whole bunch of different ways, to amuse my baby daughter. And it's even got a few games.
The 5160 leaves me wanting a couple features my co-worker's 6190 has, though. Since I don't have (or want) a PDA or day-planner, I could really use something better in the way of calendar and "to do" list features - and the 6100 series has those. The 6100 series also has a calculator, and one or two other nifty little things.
Of course, I can't get a 6160 (that's the PCS model in the 6100 series, my co-worker's 6190 is a GSM model on a different network) for free, like the 5160. It's not an entry-level model, so I'd have to pay extra. But sooner or later, I might do just that, since I'd like those extra organizational features.
I'm waiting, though, since my local service rep said the new netPhone from... Mitsubishi, I think? would be available soon, with some organizational features. And I can't entirely rule out the possibility that I might find a Nokia 9000i Communicator - which is basically a PDA and cell phone in one! - at a good price, and get it to work with the local GSM network.
For now, though, the 5160 pretty much meets my needs. It's small, cheap, and does most things well.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
dbirchall
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Member: Dan Birchall
Location: Hilo, Hawaii
Reviews written: 262
Trusted by: 64 members
About Me:
Techie, writer, dad, outdoorsman, traveler.
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