I wanted a flip phone with bluetooth, built in QUALITY camera, GPS and I wanted it cheap.
I checked reviews on a whole stack of flip phones and they were mainly out of my price range or on such expensive contracts there was no way I could afford them by the month. Others had some oft repeated operation problems that made me concerned as to thier useability.
I found the NEC as an offer for £30 a month, one year contract with the first 10 months free...yes 10 months of a one year contract free. I worked out with this deal I would get all my calls and texts for a year for £60 PLUS the flip phone of my dreams. I read every review I could find on this phone and found none detailing anything other than sulking ex-Nokia users or folk moaning about the battery life.
Well....I've never used a Nokia anyway and find myself capable of adapting to any phone system as long as I read the handbook. The battery life didn't scare me as this little darling came with TWO batteries so one could be taken along as backup. Yes the phone is larger than the normal but it feels nice in the hand and closed up will fit most of the pockets I have with no problem. It also gives the advantage of a good sized screen and a nice layout for the controls and buttons.
I was supplied with a car charger, mains charger, USB cable and a case for the phone. I've never needed the backup as the battery life indicator is really good and I can charge it as soon as things look a bit low.
My Plantronics Bluetooth headset connects to the phone in three steps each time I get in the car with no loss of sound quality but that's probably due to Plantronics headsets being amazingly good.
The 3 network though is a little hit and miss. I live in a very large town where there is good coverage while I'm in it but as soon as I go out into the country to a horsey event or similar the phone really struggles to connect and keep the connection. Once my year is up unless 3 has improved dramatically I shall unlock the phone and return to Vodafone's pay as you go. In town though I have no complaints whatsoever, the calls are crisp and clear and never get cut off. Texts are fun to make and certainly a better system than my old Panasonic as the NEC allows you to use full stops, commas and question marks....in fact a lot of symbols without having to do handstands...!!!
I can set each of my number entries to show me a photo of who I'm calling which is really handy for me as I cannot read the text without my reading glasses so the picture that gets displayed is an absolute boon to me. I have no desire to use the internet so that feature means little to me as do a lot of the functions like games and ringtones. I did buy a CD from ebay with ringtones for the NEC and have my favourite set for each type of call. I was dissapointed that I couldn't set an MP3 as a ringtone as that would have been super.
All in all this phone has been a delight to own and most of my friends think it must have cost me a fortune as well as the fact that they all want a 'go'. I'm not a kid...I'm a woman in my late 40's so a lot of the games and WAP stuff really isn't what I want. I just want a phone with a camera that I can use buetooth with to rid me of wires and the ability to dial the right people.
I personally recommend this phone very highly though you will need your glasses to text...:-)
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My phone is exactly that, a phone. No flashy, flippy bits, but this one seems not too flashy, perhaps I will venture into the 21st century when my trusty 6310i bites the dust --- Arla
bowdeni 30.04.2005 20:03
not a fan of 3g. Has no features that appeal to me. I don't really need to watch movie trailers on my phones. I usually think its for early teens to show off. Ian
3 brings together video calling, video clips, location based services and amazing content to browse and download. 3 has great offers and a huge range of the 3G handsets. Visit the 3 Shop to find more info. on offers
Dear Ciao User, We are sorry we can't show you any offers on this page for the product you have selected. You can find offers here: 1 - out of offers for NEC E616
Advantages: Call and reception quality, bright easy to read screen, good battery life for a 3G phone, outstanding value for money as part of PAYG 3 package. Disadvantages: A little bigger than I was recently used to, battery cuts out with VERY little warning, Idiosyncratic menus and instructions.
peterkinxl5 09.02.2005 (09.02.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of NEC E616
Advantages: Pretty Much Everything Disadvantages: Screen gets easily clogged with dust, battery life is pretty average when you watch videos/use the camera, build feels a little flimsy
DAylen 17.04.2006 ·
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Review of Nokia 6280
Advantages: Cheap good quality phones (at least in my experience...) AWESOME Value-for money, range of advanced services Disadvantages: Per minute billing, top up lost after thirty days, variable coverage and network quality (though this has improved recently),0800 and 0845 numbers NOT included in your regular allowance.
peterkinxl5 30.03.2005 (30.03.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of 3 ThreePay Pay As You Go
Apr 30th, 2005
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