- Average user rating: 3.5 stars out of 67 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
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9 out of 9 people found this review helpful
4.0 stars
"staid, yet strangely cool"
Pros: just-right internal memory and fusic-like music smarts and a comfy ear-phone mike combo
Cons: can't do mac's and some features just off in execution
Summary: i've had the m1 for a couple of weeks after 2 years of treo 650 ownership. so far, the transition has been smooth, with the greatest loss being the qwerty keyboard and the full internet access (power vision phones do not have built-in dun feature turned on) that i had with the treo. in return, i've gained a machine that is quick and responsive. it processes pictures and videos (be forewarned: only videos taken by phones like .3g2 files) very well.
styled like the lg fusic but beefier, the core function nevertheless remains a phone first and a music player second. the power vision streaming-tv features runs a distant third (the 2 displays are bright and decent, although a touch small), with the camera/camcorder features well out of the money. it works, but it's not spectacular. there are some hidden gems. thanks to its abundant internal memory, you can take hours of audio notes (no ditch that electronic recorder), as well as a veritable home-movie (4 weddings AND a funeral--literally). it's just that the pictures you get will not be that good. so, be forewarned.
mac-o-philes, the m1 cannot be used by macs via its usb cable as other than read-only. this is very annoying, since i prefer computers that don't suck. i thought about returning it for this reason alone, but the bluetooth connection allowed a slow-but-as-yet-acceptable work-around.
having said as much, i do like this phone very much. i previously tried out the samsung a900 for 2 weeks and thought that the design of the samsung was missing two crucial elements: memory and battery life. sanyo got both right in m1, and more.
so, don't get this phone if you are looking for cute (fusic or the pink katana) or stylish (motokrzr). rather, get this if you want a phone that's more about workign well than hype.
nota bene: the m1 does not take kindly to mpeg files. jpegs are fine. but as yet not tiffs. it likes mp3 and unlocked m4p files as well. i have not tried out a bluetooth stereo headphone, although it is an option. finally, it comes with all necesary cables.Updated
try this with your m1:
get a cassette deck music interface (like the ones you have for ipods), and connect to the m1 with your music playing. when you phone rings, the music will automatically suspend. you can then either answer or ignore (depending on how you've set up your phone). as long as your microphone is not buried, you have a defacto hands-free connection running through your car stereo. fun for the whole family, and especially for grandparents on the other end. music will automatically resume at the end of call.
as you've deduced, i really am starting to appreciate the music player more and more. it's like having a poor-man's nano, with the phone functionality built in. the music interface is very linear, but very workable. the battery time with the music player is decent. i could play from cupertino to lake tahoe, with a few conversations thrown in. however, i always travel with a phone charger. so i was not worried about draining my charge.
the reception is very good. typical sanyo. so, this is sanyo's swan song in the us cell phone market. i heard that they originally tried to make this a 2 gig unit, but settled for 1. either way, they are going out in style.
- 2 replies to this review
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Would you mind sharingyour BT sync method for Mac?
I am full Mac, and am interestd in this phone, and want to be able to sync to Address Book. -
i was wondering i am about to purchase the m1 and i would like to know if you had any problems transfering your contacts and or pictures and video from the treo 650 to the sanyo m1? (i have a full contact list this info would be very helpful to me)
