Customer Reviews

Motorola i730 Phone (Nextel)

5 star:		(61)
4 star:		(31)
3 star:		(19)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(29)

 

 

If you're going to get the best service provider, you might as well get their best phone (the blackberry 7510 is in a category all by itself). This phone boasts some of my favorite necessities: 600 phone number storage capacity, GPS, and a color display, voice activation, and speaker phone. I also enjoy the name specific ring tones and color flashes it comes standard with.

I read through some of the feedback on this phone and was wanting to clarify some of the ignorance that is being stated.
1) The battery life is typical that of the other Nextel phones. Not better and not worse. Charge it every night and you'll be fine (and I talk 4000 minutes a month). A Nextel phone uses more juice because the phones are setup to "actively seek out a signal." Other carrier's phones are programmed to sit in a dormant state until the signal "comes to them." I'm sure you can figure out these advantages on your own...
2) The games are decent at best that come with the phone. What's important is that you can buy or "obtain" hundreds of games because the phone is java enabled. A key thing to note is that Nextel's are buisness tools in nature. Hence, you can note the focus of buisness tools on the phone. If you're looking for some cheap play toy, you're looking at the wrong carrier. If you're looking for a status symbol, read on...
3)The "No Alarm Clock" feature that I've seen posted is not true. Think outside the box. The useful organizer/date book that is included in the phone is there for a reason. Set an appointment in it for when you want to wake up...
4)An account setup fee is typical. A first month proration fee is also typical among cell companies. Also, taxes are taxes--you pay the same high percentage no matter who you have.
5)Coverage, it depends where you are located. I'm guessing in the deserts of Arizona you'd have bad coverage. However, of the 20 or so states I've visited, Nextel has had SUPER coverage. Just recently I can vouch for about ever Vegas Casino ;D. Oh, did I mention there is never roaming charges with any plan?
6)If you have a tendancy to hit the Walkie Talkie button while it's on your side/in your purse, hit 'menu' then 'star' and lock lock the keypad. Don't worry, it unlocks auto when someone calls. Nuff said.
7)There is a Vibe/Ring Feature. Vibe 3 times then ring 3 times.
8)The Sprint/Verizon Walkie Talkie's suck. If you don't believe me try them. Nextel uses 2 systems in their towers (a duplex and a simplex-one for voice one for 2way). On a user end, a person 2waying from Florida to Hawaii will note instant connection. Verizon/Sprint only have 1 system in their towers. The way they 2way is using 'packets' from the cellular. What is unavoidable is the packets having to go through the landline telephone network. Put it this way, make a call and see how long it connects. Umm, average 5.7 seconds (according to the studies I've read). Now picture hitting a walkie talkie button and waiting 5.7 seconds for each response. Again, nuff said.
9)Telenav TRACK is incredible and DOES work. Ask to get a demo and use it like I did. It talks to you telling you where to turn and even recalcules directions on the fly if you miss an exit. A+++

Well, there was my 2 cents. If you're curious as to how I know all this stuff, I'm an electrical engineer and like to know everything about the toys I buy...

I have previously owned a Nextel i550, i90 and an i95cl. I just upgraded to the new i730 mainly because of the size factor. Second, Nextel is phasing out the i90 and i95 so I like to make sure I am staying up with the technology as it expands. I use this phone a LOT, mostly for work, but also for personal use.

My only main issues with this phone are the battery life and the size of the screen. I was used to the huge screen of the i95, but I have to admit the color is MUCH better with the 64k color screen of the i730. Battery life seems to be an ongoing issue with Nextel phones, but with all this phone does, I guess it is to be expected. It is odd that Nextel finally switched the "make call" and "end call" button positions on this phone. My guess is that it was in an attempt to make their positions on the keypad standard with the other cell phones on the market. Before this phone, they were always backwards compared with other cell phones. I do miss the "service indicator" light, but it isn't a major issue. The buttons are set up a bit different than my previous Nextel phones, but like with anything else, you get used to it pretty quick. One thing Nextel got away from was the ability to use a home charger and car changer from the old phone, with the new one. They changed the ends so you cannot use the I90 or I95 powercords with the new i730. They do include a home charger with the phone, but be prepared to buy a new car charger when getting this phone.
I like the sleek feel of the case, the thinner profile, the color screen, the ability to (finally) assign ringtones to each caller and the GPS service. A nice touch is the cover that flips over the bottom of the phone where you insert the charger. It may seem a silly touch to most people, but I work outside for my job and I was always concerned with water or dirt getting into the phone and causing damage to the circuit board.
All in all, if you can afford to get this phone, BUY IT! Nextel service, like everyone elses, has their good and bad points but I will stay with them for the long haul. I have had Sprint, Verizon, Blackberry and still currently carry T-Mobile in addition to this Nextel. (only because my company is cheap with their anytime minute allocation! *lol*) If they turned Nextel service off tomorrow, I would immediately go back to a Nextel office to set it right back up! The direct connect feature is addicting and doesn't take away from your cellular minutes. Don't waste time with Verizon's pseudo direct connect. Go with the people that invented the technology...Nextel!
Hopes this review helps. *S*

In Chicago, the GPS NEVER works (and yes I went by the window dozens of times). In the surrounding suburbs, it worked once about 30 miles north of Chicago, so I know it's not broken, unfortunately. TeleNav, the company that sells the GPS mapping service for Nextel phones, will charge you by the kilobyte, which is very mysterious, but comes out to about twenty-bucks a month, in addition to a "total connect" service that Nextel will need to add (for GPS to function), for another ten-bucks monthly. The kicker is when you figure out that your GPS hardly works at all, and you have already signed up for a year's Telenav service, TELENAV WON'T REFUND YOU A SINGLE DIME. "Too bad for you" it didn't work in YOUR area. The Nextel tech that I spoke to (in cancelling "total connect") said TeleNav told them that they should not gaurantee TeleNav to ever function. "There are not enough satelllites at this time". What a bunch of fargin iceholes.

Otherwise, it must be stated that I do like Nextel service and the web browser is the best of it's kind. You'll never call info with a "People-Finder", equivalent to White Pages and also a "Business-Finder". Movie times and all that other stuff as well, and "SNOCOUNTRY" tells you the amount of snow at any hill in America. That's nice.

I've been a Nextel customer for about a year, and the first thing I noticed about the new i730 is the size. It's thin! Much improved over my old phone. Looks good, and feels light. And improvements in size and weight haven't been made at the expense of features. The color display is jaw-dropping, very bright and clear. And I love the GPS. I know this has practical benefits, and I appreciate that, but right now I like this feature because it's cool and fun. Did I really need the GPS satellites to locate my position on Earth while I was at lunch today? No, but I did it anyway, and my lunch-mates were impressed.

One of the features the Nextel sales guy pushed was the fact that this phone has the latest Java technology. I haven't fully explored, but look forward to checking it out on my next flight. There are all sorts of productivity helpers and games to check out. And, this phone has "airplane mode" like my Blackberry, which lets you turn off the wireless part, while still being able to play games or run other java tools -- perfect for killing time while in-flight. Also on my list to do when I have a minute is to assign unique rings to a few people in my phone book -- that way I don't have to look at the screen to know if it's someone I need to talk to or not.

I've owned this phone for less than a month, and love it. I've been happy with Nextel, after having been with other carriers, none of them have the combination of service and features that Nextel offers. Nextel's walkie-talkie service is amazing -- fast, clear, and, again, very cool. Great service, and now a great phone -- I'm definitely a happy customer. 5 stars for this one.

I received the new i730 as a gift for Christmas, one of my many impulse wants :). LOL I have to say the phone is GREAT, I LOVE IT!!! It has many cool features, like GPS, assigned ringtones, light up front and much more. Another thing I noticed is that the speakers are a lot louder compared to the other phones. I also feel like I get better reception with this phone opposed to my i90. There's nothing really bad to say about this phone. If you are a nextel user I'm sure you can agree it is much better than the i90 and the i95. The only thing that I dislike is the way nextel runs business. I think it is ridiculous that they will not cut an existing user the same deal as they would a new user when purchasing the phone. Any other company you go to will honor the same price for an upgrade as they would for a new contract. Instead they think that they are giving you a deal by making you sign another 2 or 1 year contract, and you'll receieve the phone for $250-300 instead of $400 with no contract. It's just something you have to deal with if you want to upgrade the phone and stay with the service. Just something to prepare those who are thinking about signing up with Nextel.
As for the service itself, it's pretty good, I never really had a problem with it except when in wooded areas. A plus to this service is also the nationwide direct connect. You can get chirped(walkie talkie) from someone a different state. I say if you have the money get the nextel service and the i730, it's fun to have, but a little pricey :)

I LOVE TO LOVE MY I730!! :)

This is the best phone that Nextel offers due to its thinner profile and awesome color screen. It has a ton of great features for those who are like me and love to fool around with all the extras on any electronic gizmo that I get my hands on. I do have some getting used to as I was a 2nd generation Nokia user, but the fact that I can actually make a phone call on the i730 makes up for everything else it may lack. Yeah, there are many other cell phones out there that have cameras, PDA's, MP3 players, portable game consoles and whatever else they want to throw in but what it all boils down to is whether you want a Digital camera with PDA functionality or a phone. Me, I chose to have a phone because I don't want to pay $50+ a month so I can make calls in the corner of my house standing on one leg carrying a re-shaped wire clothes hanger just to get enough reception to make a phone call on a nifty game-console/mp3-player/pda/digicam/mediocre-phone.

Bottom line, when you're done fooling around with all the latest "toys" that Nokia and everyone else is putting out there and are ready to actually make wireless phone calls again, the i730 is what you're looking for.

I have had 5 cell phones in the past 10 years, starting with the original MOTOROLA FLIP-PHONE. Then I moved over to a NOKIA phone, which was okay, but I was not satisfied. I moved over to the NEXTEL phone service for my next phone, which was the MOTOROLA i1000 and a couple of years later I bought the i90, which was the phone I have been using until I recently upgraded to the i730. I have been with NEXTEL for the last 5 years and I am completely satisfied with their professionalism and outstanding service. The trade-in/buy-back program is wonderful and it definitely the best way to upgrade your phone. NOW........on to the i730.......WOW..........what an awesome phone!!!!!!!!! I can't begin to tell you that NEXTEL offers the best MOTOROLA phones then any other carrier. I have looked at other phones from other carriers and none compare to the i730. If this is your 1st MOTOROLA phone purchase, you are in for a real treat. The instructions are well-documented and it doesn't take rocket-science to navigate through the i730 software. The biggest treat for me is the COLOR screen, the sleek-ness of the phone and it's overall aesthetic beauty. So if want to be the envy of all your friends, please do yourself a favor and pick up this phone. Also, once you experience the NEXTEL service, it will definitely be your last and only phone carrier. PROOF: I have successfully moved over many friends and family members to NEXTEL and I haven't heard any compliants. ENJOY!

The perfect phone. Telenav works great (at least out in the burbs), hacked into it and changed my wallpaper to a family photo, great phone all alround, powers my laptop's net connection too...

I recently upgraded my nextel from an i90c (I dropped it in the water) to the i730 back in early August 2004. So far I love it almost as much as my old i90.

The design itself is excellent, very sleek looking. It's alot easier to "personalize" this phone because you can replace the little front cover thing for fairly cheap (I changed mine to a NY Yankees symbol for only $5) instead of changing the whole case, which you can also do. You can change the background, get real songs as ringtones, etc. I also love the mucical light around the front speaker (wish it played with actual song ringtones instead of just normal musical ringtones). The only complaint I have is that it can be exetremely loud when it rings, even on a lower setting.

My reception is fairly good with this phone, not as good as my i90 but much better than my old Nokia. I have heard that you can get a patch for the i730 that helps with the reception. The only times I don't have good reception is in some of the classrooms at my school and in the back rooms of my dorm (all of which are 2/3 concrete). I also don't get much signal out in the boonies but that's to be expected.

The software on it is great. You have more than enough space for all your contacts, 600 or so. All the programs are great, the calculator is as quick anymore, you actually have to select what you want to do (+,-,*,/) instead of using the scroll buttons, but that's superficial. You also don't get any full games, only demos but I don't think your going to buy a phone based on the games you get.

The battery life is the only real problem I have with the phone. I can only go for about 2 days without charging and that's if I don't make any calls or use it at all. The charging is really fast though, usually under 2 hours for me. The only other complaint is that the call buttons are reversed from the i90's so that took a little getting used too.

Sorry if this is long but I think its a good phone in general. The only reason it got 4 out of 5 from me is the reception and the battery issues. Hope this helps.

After years of loyalty to the Motorola Startac, I decided I needed a phone with more functionality. At the same time I was tired of Sprint's horrible service and bad plans. I got the I730 with the Nextel Nation 1000 Connect plan. It's great; perfect coverage and the phone is worth whatever you pay for it. It's less than my first Startac ($399 vs $499) and I am very happy with my Nextel Service (much more clear than Sprint). A definate recommend for those who require a quality phone rather than something made by Samsung, LG, or Sanyo. If I could change one thing it would be the battery life, if I forget to charge it at night and I am talking quite a bit I may get a low battery the next day. I don't complain about that too much though because I am usually connected to AIM all day long and often use my GPS TeleNav on my phone.