KYJELLO
12-16-2003, 08:14 AM
I've had a lot more time to play around with this thing now and I feel it deserves another review. Now I'm not going to completely rewrite it, but I will be changing certain things about my other review and add things that I didn't even cover. I hope this is informative.
Design
---
Body: Compact, sleek and attractive, unlikely to snag pockets or purses. Opening the clamshell with one hand has a slight learning curve. No external display is a pain, but not really damning. Lanyard hole is easy to string. The phone looks a little fat from the side, but for some reason that actually makes it look even better.
Battery: Fits extremely securely, unlikely to become detached or have improperly aligned contacts. 4 studs help resist scratching when laid down on surfaces. External contacts for charging in the optional 2 slot cradle charger is a big plus.
Antenna: Better than the n400's antenna in resisting snagging on pockets. Antenna is unfortunately permanent. This thing bends easy, but is also easily bent back to its correct position.
Buttons: External - just volume control/scroll wheel. It's a little small. Internal - standard layout for numeric buttons, including tactile guides around number 5. Directional keys lie flush with the phone. They are easy
to press, unlikely to be accidentally pressed, and are actually pretty good for gaming. In the center is a
button that is the rough equivelant of 'ok' and triggers the primary fire in games. Surrounding the directional buttons in a U shaped manner are the remaining buttons. To the upper left is an ok/voicemail
button, the lower left is the green talk button. To the upper right is a menu button, the lower right is the
red end button. Directly under the directional keys is the back button. The ok/voicemail button and menu
button also function as softkeys.
Display: 65,000 color LCD, 128 x 160 pixels. Very noticeably improved over the n400. Contrast is adjustable. Can be
read in direct sunlight, to my surprise. By default a timed power-saving mode reduces the backlight intensity
to save battery life. The display even turns off after an even longer amount of time, although it doesn't do
this in web browser mode apparently. Very high quality
Menu: Fairly intuitive, although more options on the main menu, and less menu depth would have been better. The
nature menu-style is far better than the camera mode.
---
Voice/Audio
---
Ringers: Midi ringers sound much better than the n400. I honestly can't tell if there is any distortion at higher
volumes. QCP and PMD ringers sound fine, but slightly distorted at higher volumes. Standard ringers are loud
enough for almost anyone, even in noisy areas. Vibrate does not rattle phone like some models. *new* The PMD and QCP ringers that sounded distorted were actually just miserable quality, they sound amazing when recorded correctly.
Calls: Little to no distortion at even highest volume. Loud enough for anyone if up to ear. Lack of speakerphone is
a minus. Call quality is pretty good, but not as good as the 8100 (of course). No noticeable hardware-caused
echo. Mobile Broadcast Network quality is hardly bearable, but this can be due to hundreds of factors besides
the phone.
Signal: Signal strength during calls or 3g access is far more stable than with the n400. Signal strength indicator is
very quick to respond, perhaps even realtime. No dropped calls so far when moving.
Other: Real One sounds vastly superior on the VI660 than on the n400. Of course its appeal evens out on this phone
due to the lack of a speakerphone.
---
Performance
---
Web Browsing: Much, much quicker than with the n400, although the comparison is pretty unfair. Status bar is quick to
respond and is actually a good indication of what is going on. Status icon is also quicker. Throughput is
also noticeably faster than with the n400. Caching is obviously in effect here and is a boon to anyone that
regularly uses the wireless web. *new* There are way too many errors with this browser, and I can't even count all the different error codes. The browser is still far superior to the N400 bug-wise and speed, but I am looking forward to the first firmware update.
J2ME: It isn't stressful to play games or use applications on the VI660 like it is with the n400. So far there is
no noticeable lag, nor any bugginess. Applications appear to access the wireless web much easier than with
the n400. Active Viewer and J2ME VNC are actually functional if you have the patience. Games are actually
enjoyable. Why is there only 1000K for storage? That's only 500K higher than the n400! What gives?!?
This phone does support the gamepad. *new* Getting jar's on this phone is a huge pain in the ass. "Attribute mismatch" is more common than "Download Succesful". I understand that a lot of times servers aren't configured to send to sprint phones, and any number of errors in any stage of the transfer can cause problems, but this is ridiculous. I believe this is not as much an error with the phone, as with the way Sprint does things. I can't wait till I get my cable in.
*new*
Battery Life: This is a huge plus to this phone. According to Phonescoop, talk time is 3.40 hours and standby is 7 days and I absolutely agree. The battery indicator doesn't have the annoying habit like some phones do of going down to 1 bar about 5 minutes away from a dead battery. I believe the extended battery on this phone is going to be amazing, although this time I will avoid an off-brand as I have had terrible luck with them.
*new*
Speech Features: VoiceSignal is absolutely amazing. With only about 2 minutes of training this thing will understand you no matter how inebriated you are. I quite honestly don't understand it, but the thing recognizes commands and numbers as good as Dragon Naturally Speaking 8.0. How can this be?!? Just open the phone, hit the left button (default), and say what you want to do.
Phonebook Dial - "Dial Manuel *phone dials my friend Manuel* " No training needed for individual names!
Number Dial - "Digit dial *pause, asks for number* 653 8399 *asks confirmation* yes *phone dials!!!*" This is awesome and you don't have to speak slow
Voice Memo - "Voice memo *records*" How great is this?!? They even sound good.
Phone Book Lookup - "Phone Book <name>" I hate looking up names manually so this really helps. It is so quick!
Your Phone # - "My Phone Number" I don't know the point of this honestly, it's ok though.
Phone Status - "Status" After you say status it then reads outloud to you in a natural voice what network you are on, your signal strength (measured high medium low), and your battery life (same measure). Can we say awesome?
---
Overall
---
Pros: Quick to respond, rugged, good call quality, awesome display, compact, ability to adjust volume anytime.
Great battery life. Voice Recognition features are just amazing.
Cons: No speakerphone, no external display, and overpriced at $229.
Final Thought: Great all-around phone with good Vision performance. Not the best for hardcore vision users. The voice recognition features of this phone REALLY add to its appeal.
contact me on aim if you want: disposableface
Design
---
Body: Compact, sleek and attractive, unlikely to snag pockets or purses. Opening the clamshell with one hand has a slight learning curve. No external display is a pain, but not really damning. Lanyard hole is easy to string. The phone looks a little fat from the side, but for some reason that actually makes it look even better.
Battery: Fits extremely securely, unlikely to become detached or have improperly aligned contacts. 4 studs help resist scratching when laid down on surfaces. External contacts for charging in the optional 2 slot cradle charger is a big plus.
Antenna: Better than the n400's antenna in resisting snagging on pockets. Antenna is unfortunately permanent. This thing bends easy, but is also easily bent back to its correct position.
Buttons: External - just volume control/scroll wheel. It's a little small. Internal - standard layout for numeric buttons, including tactile guides around number 5. Directional keys lie flush with the phone. They are easy
to press, unlikely to be accidentally pressed, and are actually pretty good for gaming. In the center is a
button that is the rough equivelant of 'ok' and triggers the primary fire in games. Surrounding the directional buttons in a U shaped manner are the remaining buttons. To the upper left is an ok/voicemail
button, the lower left is the green talk button. To the upper right is a menu button, the lower right is the
red end button. Directly under the directional keys is the back button. The ok/voicemail button and menu
button also function as softkeys.
Display: 65,000 color LCD, 128 x 160 pixels. Very noticeably improved over the n400. Contrast is adjustable. Can be
read in direct sunlight, to my surprise. By default a timed power-saving mode reduces the backlight intensity
to save battery life. The display even turns off after an even longer amount of time, although it doesn't do
this in web browser mode apparently. Very high quality
Menu: Fairly intuitive, although more options on the main menu, and less menu depth would have been better. The
nature menu-style is far better than the camera mode.
---
Voice/Audio
---
Ringers: Midi ringers sound much better than the n400. I honestly can't tell if there is any distortion at higher
volumes. QCP and PMD ringers sound fine, but slightly distorted at higher volumes. Standard ringers are loud
enough for almost anyone, even in noisy areas. Vibrate does not rattle phone like some models. *new* The PMD and QCP ringers that sounded distorted were actually just miserable quality, they sound amazing when recorded correctly.
Calls: Little to no distortion at even highest volume. Loud enough for anyone if up to ear. Lack of speakerphone is
a minus. Call quality is pretty good, but not as good as the 8100 (of course). No noticeable hardware-caused
echo. Mobile Broadcast Network quality is hardly bearable, but this can be due to hundreds of factors besides
the phone.
Signal: Signal strength during calls or 3g access is far more stable than with the n400. Signal strength indicator is
very quick to respond, perhaps even realtime. No dropped calls so far when moving.
Other: Real One sounds vastly superior on the VI660 than on the n400. Of course its appeal evens out on this phone
due to the lack of a speakerphone.
---
Performance
---
Web Browsing: Much, much quicker than with the n400, although the comparison is pretty unfair. Status bar is quick to
respond and is actually a good indication of what is going on. Status icon is also quicker. Throughput is
also noticeably faster than with the n400. Caching is obviously in effect here and is a boon to anyone that
regularly uses the wireless web. *new* There are way too many errors with this browser, and I can't even count all the different error codes. The browser is still far superior to the N400 bug-wise and speed, but I am looking forward to the first firmware update.
J2ME: It isn't stressful to play games or use applications on the VI660 like it is with the n400. So far there is
no noticeable lag, nor any bugginess. Applications appear to access the wireless web much easier than with
the n400. Active Viewer and J2ME VNC are actually functional if you have the patience. Games are actually
enjoyable. Why is there only 1000K for storage? That's only 500K higher than the n400! What gives?!?
This phone does support the gamepad. *new* Getting jar's on this phone is a huge pain in the ass. "Attribute mismatch" is more common than "Download Succesful". I understand that a lot of times servers aren't configured to send to sprint phones, and any number of errors in any stage of the transfer can cause problems, but this is ridiculous. I believe this is not as much an error with the phone, as with the way Sprint does things. I can't wait till I get my cable in.
*new*
Battery Life: This is a huge plus to this phone. According to Phonescoop, talk time is 3.40 hours and standby is 7 days and I absolutely agree. The battery indicator doesn't have the annoying habit like some phones do of going down to 1 bar about 5 minutes away from a dead battery. I believe the extended battery on this phone is going to be amazing, although this time I will avoid an off-brand as I have had terrible luck with them.
*new*
Speech Features: VoiceSignal is absolutely amazing. With only about 2 minutes of training this thing will understand you no matter how inebriated you are. I quite honestly don't understand it, but the thing recognizes commands and numbers as good as Dragon Naturally Speaking 8.0. How can this be?!? Just open the phone, hit the left button (default), and say what you want to do.
Phonebook Dial - "Dial Manuel *phone dials my friend Manuel* " No training needed for individual names!
Number Dial - "Digit dial *pause, asks for number* 653 8399 *asks confirmation* yes *phone dials!!!*" This is awesome and you don't have to speak slow
Voice Memo - "Voice memo *records*" How great is this?!? They even sound good.
Phone Book Lookup - "Phone Book <name>" I hate looking up names manually so this really helps. It is so quick!
Your Phone # - "My Phone Number" I don't know the point of this honestly, it's ok though.
Phone Status - "Status" After you say status it then reads outloud to you in a natural voice what network you are on, your signal strength (measured high medium low), and your battery life (same measure). Can we say awesome?
---
Overall
---
Pros: Quick to respond, rugged, good call quality, awesome display, compact, ability to adjust volume anytime.
Great battery life. Voice Recognition features are just amazing.
Cons: No speakerphone, no external display, and overpriced at $229.
Final Thought: Great all-around phone with good Vision performance. Not the best for hardcore vision users. The voice recognition features of this phone REALLY add to its appeal.
contact me on aim if you want: disposableface