Sanyo Katana Eclipse user reviews (silver, Sprint)

Pros LED illumination effects, good call quality, loud speakerphone, impressive featute set for midrange flip phone

Cons Slightly smaller screen and less colors than other flip phones, mirror finish easily shows fingerprints, Flimsy charger connection cover, external player controls difficult to operate

Summary This is just an initial first impression review of the new Sanyo Kantana Eclipse for Sprint. The phone was released yesterday and replaces the discontinued Katana DLX. The Eclipse is very attractive looking at first sight. However, the face of the phone features a mirrored finish which shows fingerprints extremely easy. This phone features a strong feature set for being a midrange model. I haven't had a chance yet to experience most of its features but I've seen everything listed in the menus. One thing that has always impressed be about Sanyo's flip phones is that they have a very sturdy "click" action when you flip open the phone. It's not loose or flimsy feeling. Now about the pros: the phone features a cool external LED illumination feature that is customizable, I chose to disable this feature because it's just one more thing to drain the battery but some people might want to keep it enabled for the wow factor. The phone has cool call quality which is clear and loud, no complaints there. The speakerphone is loud and clear as well. All phones have their disadvantages and this phones isn't an exception. Compared with similar priced phones on the market the Eclipse has a smaller screen (2") with less colors (65,000). Surely you'd think that Sanyo would have upgraded to a better screen by now. The small piece of plastic that covers the charger connection on the side is flimsy and will more than likely break off over time. I prefer phones with a charger connection on the bottom which makes it easier to handle the phone while it's plugged in. The charger connection is located on the top left side of the Eclipse. Finally, the external music player controls on the outside of the phone are difficult to operate because they are flush with the face of the phone, they don't protrude out. I can see why they probably designed it this way, to prevent inadvertent key presses, but that's why you have the key guard setting. Overall this phone is a much needed addition to the Katana line and Sprint lackluster midrange phone selection. My last phone was a Sanyo that I used for over two years. It held up well and never gave me issues. Hopefully the Eclipse will follow suit.

Pros Good voice quality, fun LEDs, voice recognition software works really well

Cons Volume to ear phone plug is way too low. This is my 2nd phone in 1.25 months that has had a software problem. The first one was replaced and this one may need a replacement also. You get an error message to restart the phone.

Pros Love the illumination effects.
Looks very modern.
Call quality is very clear.
Custom ringtones and text tones for each caller in your contacts.
Sanyo makes reliable phones.
Bluetooth works great.

Cons Phone is very slippery, very easy to slide out of your hand.
Battery is not that good, only get about 3 hours talk time.
Reception is poor.
Don't like the charging port, the cover will eventually snap off.
Ringtones are not loud enough.

Summary I got the Katana Eclipse to replace my old reliable Sanyo M1. I have mixed feelings so far after one week of use. The Sanyo M1 was the best phone I ever had, only it had poor bluetooth performance, very choppy.
The Katana Eclipse has excellent bluetooth performance, callers hear every word I say, and on my end the caller is crystal clear.
I am disappointed in the reception for this phone, I was in BJ's last night and the phone said looking for service, had NO SIGNAL! This was not the case with either the M1 or other phones I have used in the past, the only time I ever lost service was in the subway or an elevator.
Also I have almost dropped this phone several times cause it's very slippery, I'm afraid one day it will fall out of my hand and smash into bits!
Also the battery life is not 4.6 hours as stated, perhaps if you turned off the illumination, kept the keypad light off, and put the phone in power save mode, you might get 4.6 hours, but in the real world, it's more like 3 hours at best.
Besides these issues, I like the phone, has very good call quality, cool lighting effects, and looks very stylish.
If I continue to have poor reception issues, I might switch back to my old reliable Sanyo M1 and put this Katana on Ebay.

Pros Instant email, easy fast intenet access, call clarity & sound, looks, size, battery life, Sprint's tech support & system

Cons None for my purposes & applications

Summary It fills the bill for me. Someone that texts a lot, uses the internet alot, etc., may want an instinct or blackberry, with a larger scren & better keypad, however that is a different class of phone. If you are looking for a compact phone that does everything a phone should and more, this is the one. Loves the size, shape, looks, and features. I have had several sanyo phones, going back to the 4900, and believe them to be among the best. I have also had Motorola, Nokia & Samsung to compare the Sanyo phones to.