- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 47 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
Full user review
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6 out of 7 people found this review helpful
2.0 stars
"a sturdy phone with lots of things that make you say, "Huh?""
Pros: Sturdy is (mostly) the operative word here
Cons: some odd features missing for a flip phone
Summary: Yes, you can dash it to the ground and plunge it in water and it will work just fine. A very nice coolness factor, if you are interested in that sort of thing. I am not... I am in construction. I need a phone that wouldn't be overly phased by a plunge to the ground from atop a ladder.
However, as you dash it to the ground, make sure you see which direction the battery bounces as it frequently separates from the phone, even though it is "locked" into place with an imposing looking little screw doohickey. I does go back together and function perfectly quite easily, but I didn't anticipate that the battery would become separated from the phone with such speed and aclarity. A definite minus in my book for a "military tested phone." I would think I had a bad unit, but hubby's phone does the same thing.
I also have a couple of niggling things that annoy me with it. #1 the "max" volume control just isn't. I am very hard of hearing and have been using bluetooth phones for two years at this point. I have adjusted all volumes to "max" and I can only hear the other end of the conversation if there is no background noise around me. It seems silly to have to press the bluetooth headset firmly to my head to hear the other person, kinda defeats the whole "hands free" aspect of bluetooth. Even sharp-eared hubby wishes it would turn up one more notch. And a side note to the bluetooth... the phone drops bluetooth connectivity at the drop of a hat. Ten feet appears to be the max range it is capable of and I am on the exact same headset that performed admirably with my other phone. Also, it isn't too quick to reconnect, either.
Issue #2... the voice activated dialing SUCKS FANNY WITH A FIRE HOSE!!!!!! It has "voice recognition software" built into it so you don't have to prerecord "call Mom". What you have to do instead is press a button to activate voice command mode... then "please say a command"... you say "call"... it says "repeat, command not recognized"... you repeat... and it goes on and on ad nauseum. If you are lucky, after about 10 minutes of irritating commands later, it finally puts through a call to your boss named Don as opposed to your mom that you were trying to place the call to. The voice dialing feature is completely useless.
Issue #3... not a big deal, just annoying... When you go to hang up a call you have to open the phone and press the end key. There is no button on the outside of the phone to hang up the call. Why not? I could use the hang up button on the bluetooth headset, but that always shifts the headset slightly and, when done repeatedly over the course of a day, bothers my ear, so I usually hang up at the phone.
Issue #4... The camera is one of the worst I have seen in a phone in years. I can live with 1.3 megapixels, but it is very hard to be completely still when snapping a shot. I haven't managed to take a non-blurred shot yet because I persist in breathing and the movement is too much for the camera. And I need the camera for work. When I need a question answered at a jobsite by the boss, a picture is an invaluable tool.
And one last pesky nuisance... the ringtones are horrible and it is quite expensive to purchase decent ones. I use one ring for hubby, one for all my work associates, one for family, one for friends, and one last one for everyone else. This way I know from across the room how professional I must sound on the phone before I even get to it.
If you aren't interested in bluetooth (or have fantastic ears) or the camera... it's a great phone. But I expected better... especially after seeing C-net's glowing review.
- 3 replies to this review
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Interesting review. I just received my purchase of a used G'zOne type-S and I am already having problems keeping the phone on. It is like it has a mind of its own. It will shut off and start up again on it own.
Any way, what I found interesting is that you are able to have your phone ring differently for selected types of callers. I haven't been able to find this option. Please reply with instructions. Thanks. -
I wont have a phone that has low volume- my hearing's just fine, but the world is a little noisy- a fact the phone makers forget about when they design and test the phones in their quiet labs.
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All I can say is a big loud DITTO! One of the worst phones I've EVER owned. The battery popping feature works from desktop to a hard floor also (what, 3 feet). All I can say is I laughed at my boss for getting these and I laugh at him when the call drops all the time! The old Motorola E815 had awesome reception! Voice activation, joke; camera, joke. Dont get this one!
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