Great phone for the money
Written: Oct 22 '00 (Updated Oct 22 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: very THIN, decent standby time, replaces my pager
Cons: no vibrating alert, quiet alerts are still loud, just a tad bit too long
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| scottredd's Full Review: Qualcomm QPC-860 Cell Phone |
I'm no cellphone freak, but I do enjoy playing with gadgets. I got
the bug to lose the old analog phone and go digital a year or so,
but could never bring myself to it. After all, I rarely use the phone,
and analog works just fine anyway, right?
Well, can you get the internet on any old cellphone? No! Starting
with Sprint, but now rolling out across the country is Airtouch's
wireless "Net Access" which is accessible via my new
Qualcomm QCP-860.
The 860 has a built in mini-browser, which is great if you want to access a site optimized for a tiny display of information, such as weather and movie listings. In addition, I am able to hook up a laptop or
Palm PDA to the phone to access the net.
I'll put the net access aside and talk more specifically about the
phone. The first thing you'll notice is the extreme thinness of this
phone. At about a half-inch thin, this phone fits nicely into a shirt
pocket, or even your pants pocket, assuming they aren't too
tight. :) It's a little longer than I'd like, but it's about as long as
any tiny flip phone in the flipped state.
Another nice feature of this line of Qualcomm phones is the ability
to add an extra battery right on the back of the phone. This
enables you to extend your talk or standby time if needed. Adding
the extended battery makes the phone not so thin, however.
The phone is pretty standard in the way of features: 99 number
phone book, multi-line backlit LCD, volume controls, etc. One nice
thing is a couple of "smart buttons," whose functions change
based on the text on the LCD above them. The Caller ID is great
for helping to cut costs by not taking all calls.
It's lacking in much beyond the standard features, though. You
won't find a vibrating alert or many custom ring tones. Even the
lowest setting for the pager alert is still loud... not too nice in
meetings. There is not much memory for text pages, so you'll
quickly blow out the memory if you try to get to many email
alerts on the 860.
I've read some complaints that the battery life is not quite as
advertised, but I've been able to go almost two days on standby
with some usage before charging. I think charging nightly would
be a perfectly acceptable compromise. I keep the extended
battery around so it's ready if I need it.
Speaking of the extended battery, I'd like to put a swivel clip on
my phone, but I can't since it would prohibit the use of the
swivel. I could put a swivel on the extended battery, but then I
couldn't make use of the swivel clip when I want to be in "thin
mode." I'm forced to use a leather case, but that's not all bad, I
suppose.
In all, I think this is a great phone for people interested in not
only going digital, but going digital in style. This thin phone is a
great internet tool, allowing you to surf and get a wireless ISP for your Palm or laptop. If your carrier give you a discount or rebate,
it makes this phone even greater.
Note: This is an edited version of an earlier review from the general Electronics category. Epinions just opened up this webphone category, and I asked them to add this phone to it.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
scottredd
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Member: Scott Redd
Location: Omaha, NE
Reviews written: 28
Trusted by: 12 members
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