Customer Reviews

MOTOROLA i880 NEXTEL CAMERA CELL PHONE

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought this phone as part of the Sprint/Nextel SERO plan.

I used it for about 14 days before deciding that it didn't fit my needs for several reasons outlined below:

- Battery life was sporadic -- I got maybe a day worth of power from it. One time it completely discharged overnight. For the price of the phone (and the two year contract it carries) this is a dealbreaker.

- The Nextel network coverage has gone downhill in my area (I was a former Nextel subscriber for 3 years - so I have some experience with coverage around town). I was getting disconnects and sporadic no signals.

- The phone would sporadically mute the ringer. An incoming call would light up the display but there would be no ringing. This seems to happen after I had put the phone on vibrate and then turned it back to ring.

- For the same monthly service fee, I was getting less access to web services and no high speed Internet ability. Admittedly the high speed access is not as useful on a tiny screen -- but if I'm going to be locked into a 2 year contract I would like to have some fast internet access on the phone. The i880 still uses the slow Nextel data network.

I was not a Direct Connect/Walkie Talkie user. If I were, then my opinion of this phone might be a little higher (since Nextel presently has arguably the best fully functioning walkie talkie network). I could not justify being locked into a 2 year contract with equipment that seemed sub-par on a network that did not (and likely never will) support the latest high speed technologies.

Below were my initial impressions during the time I used the phone:

Thankfully Motorola designed the phone so the micro-SD card is accessible from the outside -- no need to pull the battery to update the card.

Here's the big things I don't like.

1. You CANNOT use any mp3 songs that you transfer to the micro-sd card as ringtones.

2. You also cannot readily load additional wallpapers unless it is a picture you took with the phone or a paid download. Any message (mms) that you send to yourself can only be set as a caller id image and not wallpaper.

3. Battery life on my phone is flaky - I'm getting maybe a day and one-half with usage that approximates 60 minutes talk time and perhaps 6 to 10 picture messages.

You must pay Nextel to download ringtones. There are some users who have modified the phone and reportedly are able to use ringtones off their micro-SD memory card - however the process is more technical than what your average user might want to tangle with.

Note: Sprint and Nextel are both owned by the same company. If you're making a decision on Sprint vs. Nextel, there are only a couple reasons that I can think of to recommend Nextel over Sprint. First, if the Nextel coverage is better. Second, if you have a need to use the Nextel Walkie Talkie feature.

The Sprint side of the company features phones with significantly enhanced web browsing and higher speed data communications. The Nextel side clings to the larger phones and aims their services at the industrial/construction market. For almost every consumer, the Sprint side is a better deal. Sprint in my experience has better customer service whereas Nextel tends to transfer you endlessly among a variety of customer service representatives.

Here's my summary of this phone after using it about two weeks:

The Good:

-beautiful speaker phone

-compact design / solid feel

-2 megapixel camera, ability to capture movies

-flip swings open when you push a button

-Nextel sms/mms messages can now be auto-downloaded - I believe this is the first Nextel phone to sport this feature

-nice loud audio

-both Nextel walkie talkie and DirecTalk support

The Bad:

-can't play ringtones off Micro SD or via any other non-Nextel transfer (Note: Technically some people have been using a Motorola product called webjal to make transfers with a cable - but this may be more technical than the average user would like to tackle)

-Nextel is in my opinion on their way out as a carrier, soon to be completely assimilated into the Sprint side of things. While not entirely unexpected, it means that Nextel plans and features are not as attractive to non-construction users (Nextel's core group). If you want Mobile to Mobile unlimited minutes you pay more versus most Sprint plans which include them. Nextel doesn't have the super fast data speeds or network web browsing of competing carriers. Most web browsing on Nextel is limited to character based wap sites that both crawl along speedwise and present unexciting character based screens.

-the phone is a little bigger that what some have grown accustomed to.

-while not phone related, some users in larger cities have reported the iDen system is nearing capactity with a lot of busy signals.

-I am only getting about a day of battery life - which is extremely low.

Amazon offers rebates for new service activation, good luck receiving them! I bought my phone over 6 months ago and I haven't received any rebate whatsoever! Don't get trapped in the deceiving advertisement!

I love this phone. I can do so much with it. It is light weight and fun to carry. I love the button flip feature. Great phone!!!

I would rate this phone a little over four stars. The phone is great. I had the last one, think it was the i870 (the big silver one). Not much change from that just the camera is better and it is smaller which is nice. Looks a lot better too. I have a Motorola headset (H700) which works great. Have not played with the MP3 player yet but I am guessing it works simular as the last one. I am not sure if it is worth the $300+ price tag? My only problem is the phone is slower than the last one. When the phone is sleeping and open, it does not take the 1st number I put in. I have to push it twice, 1st to wake it up and second to get the digit in.

I CAN NOT TELL YOU HOW NICE THE AUTOMATIC FLIP IS!!! I can't go back to a non auto flip phone. It just makes life easier.

I have had my i880 since November. I do like the phone very much.

cons:

1. Like most people, I would like to use songs off of the sd card as ringtones, and to use pictures on the card as my photo ID. I believe the way around the latter is to email it to the phone, and save it that way. that is what i did when I had the i760.

2. a few bugs. My external screen cracked. Phone was replaced. a month later, i go to flip open the phone, and the internal display is upside-down. the phone still does everything it should though.

3. I don't know if this is the phone, or the iden, but i sure do get a lot of call failed, system busy 22 errors.

Pros

1. the stereo speakers are fantastic. Like all nextels, the phones are easy to hear them ring.

2. the voice caller id is great. it weirded me out the first time i heard it as I was unaware the phone would either speak the number or say the name and whether they were calling you from the home, mobile, work or other number. the pronunciation is spot on as well, even with difficult last names. You can turn this off if you don't want your significant other knowing who is calling you. It does save on buying ringtones to differentiate who is calling.

3. the interface with the camera and mp3 are extremely easy to use. i really don't use the mp3 player that often as i use my sansa rhapsody, but it is nice in a pinch.

overall, i like the phone a lot. My biggest recommendation to anyone that has this or any nextel/sprint phone is to pay the extra $$ and get the phone insurance. BOth times this phone messed up, it was fixed for free

Phone has a solid feel in hand, not flimsy. Large easy to read displays. Comes with AC charger and holster. Calls are clear. Good customer service to change your existing number to new phone. Nextel called to check on my satisfaction with product.

The owners manual uses icons to identify the buttons and were hard to follow throughout the manual. Button to activate flip is tricky to learn. Top 2 buttons are easy to accidentaly activate while putting phone back in holster. Product should have a 2 year warranty if you're required to have a 2 year contract.

I have had the phone for a month and if the phone and service continue to perform as I stated I would recomend this phone after reviewing nextels coverage map to see if it will fit your needs.

I only had mine for about a month before the screen cracked. Maybe I dropped it and don't remember, but soon a black cloud was covering part of the display and slowly getting larger. I know it took about a month because our crappy sales rep refused to cover it under warranty because the 30 days had just passed. About a month later, the screen quit working entirely. Something in the hinge, so that when it opened, you got a blank, off-look, even though the external screen worked and you could tell it was on and had plenty of power. Feh.

I also had that problem mentioned by another user where it would mute the ringtone. I missed a number of calls that didn't vibrate OR ring, and I didn't know were there until the message was logged and notified me. Not being able to upload my own wallpaper and ringtones sucks too. And all the other extra cool features aren't activated under the company plan, so all in all, I guess I'll go back to using a cheaper, fatter, uglier model that holds up better. Even though I love the look of the i880 (and it's the one used on CSI, too!) it just isn't worth the hassle.

Purchased this phone a little over a month ago and so far everything works well and have no problems. Many nice features and the service in the state of GA is good.

A flip phone designed for the construction worker. Great sound quality, awesome speakerphone. The battery life is killer but the camera and controls are lacking. Extremely durable with the only exception being if you drop it, be prepared to chase the battery as the backing will fly off. Otherwise a great phone for construction workers.

I have the i930 and wanted to upgrade to the next generation. Srpint Nextel stated it was the i880. The i880 was bluetooth as the i930 was supposed to be. You can not place programs and your own ringtones the micro sd card on the i880. The finish on the i880 is awesome though. Speakerphone is great. Caller id where it sjpeaks the name and origin of call is great too. Pairing with other bluetooth devices is very easy. Would not access internet for me except the websites that were preprogramed into the phone. No address bar to type in your own. Ca;n not use Microsoft Outlook on this phone which was a great disappointment. I have over 2000 contacts that I would have to re-enter into the i880 phonebook system. Nextel/Sprint has not provided any means of trans contacts from Outlook. By the way I purchased the i930 because it was supposed to be bluetooth. Nextel has offered it's customers nothing for the misinformation they provided their customers. Very insensitve group.

Now I would have kept the i880 but instead of the price Nextel said I would get of 249.00. They ended up charging me the full price and would not6 make any adjustments to the close to $500 charge for the phone. Called several times a day with no resolve. So I returned the phone. They had received it and still told me that it would take up to 3 months for a credit. They said if I did not pay the bill for the phone that they admit they had received as a return or the services would be suspended. What an corrupt group. Well getting back on track the i880 only suites on of my needs and that is for bluetooth purposes only. So I will swap between the two phones until. I'm presently seeking a decent price for the i880. Nextel Sprint has terrible customer service. Press "1" for Englis and you end up in Singapore with an agent that can only read off the screen in front of them. You'll never get an answer to you questions. However I am still and will remain a Nextel customer. I will try to remain transparent as a customer. I never want to call in for c.s. for anything. If you are thinking of service with this carrier buy your equipment from the internet and research you purchase thouroughly before buying equipment.