Audeo Perfect Fit Ear Buds by Phonak
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CNET editors' rating:
3.5 stars
Very good
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 129 reviews
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Product summary
The good: Stylish, compact form factor; dual color screens; integrated VGA camera; speakerphone; innovative menu design.
The bad: Stiff hinge; so-so picture quality; short standby time.
The bottom line: With its i860 camera phone, Nextel brings some much-needed improvements to its otherwise staid lineup.
Specifications: Carrier: Nextel Communications; Band / mode: IDEN 800; Talk time: 165 min; See full specs
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 12/21/2004
The Nextel i860's external display is a pleasant surprise. Much larger (1.4 inches diagonal) than other Nextel external screens, it supports 4,000 colors. Besides showing the date, time, battery life, signal strength, and caller ID (where available), the screen also gives you picture caller ID and icons with the ringer and messaging status. Above the external screen is the lens and the flash, but we'd like a mirror for self-portraits. The speakerphone and the Recent Calls buttons are placed on the top of the unit. With the mobile's cover closed, you can make calls by pushing the Recent Calls button, then the speakerphone. The rear speaker, however, is located on the bottom of the unit, right where you hold the phone. Nonetheless, the speaker was loud enough, even when our hand was in the way. The Push To Talk (PTT) button sits on the left spine, along with the volume controls; both are easy to manipulate. We were disappointed, however, by the lack of a dedicated camera key on the outside.
Inside the phone is the gorgeous 262,000-color display. At 2.25 inches (diagonal), it's great for viewing photos and Java (J2ME) applications, and it lets you can change the text size. We also were impressed by the attractive, user-friendly menus, which are a huge improvement over those of Nextel's earlier handsets. Instead of a simple list, animated icons allow access to the various features. Navigation buttons are the same as those of the carrier's other handsets, although they're more crowded on the i860. You get a five-way toggle, dedicated power and menu buttons, two soft keys, and Talk and End buttons. There's no dedicated camera control, but the navigation toggle, the soft keys, and the keypad buttons can be set as shortcuts to user-defined functions. The End button doubles as a main screen button when you're in a secondary menu, and the Back key inconveniently takes you out of the menus altogether. Rather small and backlit in blue, the keypad buttons are set flush; as a result, dialing by feel is difficult.
The Nextel i860 comes with a solid set of features. The 600-contact phone book holds up to seven numbers for each contact; as with all Nextel mobiles, separate numbers are required for regular and PTT calls. Contacts can be assigned to caller groups or be paired with a picture or any of 3 polyphonic or 12 monophonic ring tones for use with caller ID. If that's not enough, Nextel offers a free online account that lets you store--but not sync with--an additional 500 contacts as well as calendar information. Other goodies include vibrate mode (but no vibrating ring tones), voice dialing, text and multimedia messaging (see below), a speakerphone, a voice recorder, a memo pad, a calculator, a currency and unit converter, a date book, a GPS locator, and a WAP 2.0 wireless Web browser. Missing from the list, however, are Bluetooth support and an infrared port.For the on-the-go executive, Nextel offers a choice of POP3, AOL Instant Messenger, and Microsoft Exchange-compatible mobile e-mail options (with syncing) upon activation of a Nextel Online package, which will run you $10 to $15 per month. USB connectivity is included with the phone, as is access to your corporate calendar. You also can send contact information to other Nextel users, but they must be using an i860 as well. Subscription services are available to TeleNav 3.0 for audible driving directions and 1KTV for news, sports, and entertainment content. Other applications are available for purchase through Nextel.
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User reviews
- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 129 reviews
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