You just can't keep your finger (prints) off of it!
Written: Jul 13 '00 (Updated Jul 13 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Small, comes with lots of accessories, full of features
Cons: No WAP browser, expensive, attracts fingerprints
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| MediaLabGuy's Full Review: Nokia 8860 Cell Phone |
At the MIT media lab, you encounter a bunch of neat toys, and it just so happens that we got a Nokia 8860 in our research group to "evaluate." That said, we love the phone, and here's why...
One of the smallest phones in the US
The 8860 is by far one of the smallest phones in the US. At 4 oz., the phone is really not noticible when you carry it around.
3.2 hrs of talktime!
The specs say 3.2 hrs. of talktime and up to 6.5 days of standby, but we find that we get around 2 hrs. of talktime with a couple of days of standby before we have to recharge the phone. That's really typical of most digital cell phones, and for a phone this size, that's awesome!
Accessorize your heart out!
The kit you buy from AT&T comes with tons of accessories, including a desktop charge, an extra battery, a hands-free earset, and a velvet carrying bag (great for wiping your fingerprints off of the phone). That's a ton of accessories that most other phones don't come with, so it partly compensates for the high ($500) cost of the phone.
Look ma...no antenna!
Perhaps the coolest feature of the Nokia 8860 is that there is no visible antenna on the phone, unlike most other cell phones on the market. Rather, the phone uses a small black patch anetnna built into the back of the phone, and not having an antenna makes this phone a great piece of equipment to pack in your pocket.
Shiny...if you can get all your fingerprints off of it...
The Nokia 8860 is built of chrome, so it looks really cool...until you get all your fingerprints on it. A friend of mine who has this phone keeps on using the velvet bag it came with to wipe his fingerprints off of it. Call it obsessive-compulsive, but when you get this phone, you'll be obsessed with trying to wipe your prints off of it to for a while...
Crystal Clear Service
The 8860 is on the TDMA network, and the only large service provider in the US that supports it is AT&T wireless. In the Boston area, service rocks. The calls are clear and crisp, and work very well when your inside buildings. The lack of a visible antenna doesn't have any effect on receiving or making calls on the phone--connections are persistent, dropped calls are negligable, and the sound is crystal clear when you're on a digital network.
No WAP...oh well.
One of the biggest problems with the 8860 is that it's not "internet ready." AT&T is releasing new phones with "PocketNet" wireless Internet support, and the 8860, surprisingly, doesn't come with it. But if you don't plan to surf the web with this phone, this should be a non-issue for you.
The Bottom Line
The Nokia 8860 is one awesome cell phone. It's really pricy (one of the most expensive out there, and at $499, it's out of the price range for most everyone), but if you got it, you're be the envy of all geeks out there. However, there are other solid phones out there too for way less, so if you're not into flashy phones, don't get this one.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
MediaLabGuy
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Member: Wesley Chan
Location: Cambridge, MA
Reviews written: 48
Trusted by: 29 members
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