Motorola i860 Phone (Nextel)

by Motorola

Product Details

Product Manual [3.57mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 3.4 x 2 x 1 inches ; 4.8 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00063FIEE
• Item model number: I860
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #123,510 in Cell Phones & Accessories (See Top 100 in Cell Phones & Accessories)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Motorola's i860 is everything Nextel users have come to expect in a phone, and more. This flagship phone has all of the great features and durability of past Nextel models, plus a built-in camera and support for multimedia messaging.

Design

Click the image to get a closer look at the i860's features.

The i860 is no ordinary clamshell. Like other Nextel phones, it's built tough for construction and utilities industry users. The phone sports a very large 176 x 220 TFT color display with a stunning 262,000 colors. Meanwhile, the outside cover features a supplementary 95 x 96 color display that can display photos, images, time, call information, battery and signal strength, and more. The built-in camera and LED flash are located above this display. The speakerphone unit is located on the rear of the phone, while the trademark Direct Connect and menu scrolling functions can be controlled from the side of the phone. The phone's control pad also features a five-way button that can control most of the phone's functions. Finally, a small button on the hinge of the phone's flip mechanism automatically opens the phone for quick access-- a real plus if you have your hands full.

Calling Features
The i860's built-in address book can store up to 600 contacts for quick and easy management of phone numbers and email addresses. The phone comes with built-in polyphonic ringtones plus a vibrating alert. More polyphonic ringtones can be added, as can MP3-based ringtones. Voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names. You can also speak numbers and control other phone features with the sound of your voice. Access the last 20 sent and received calls for quick call return or number storage via the recent calls list. A built-in speakerphone makes it easy to talk without having the phone to your ear and the i860's GPS location technology pinpoints your exact location when you dial 911.

One of the key features of any Nextel phone is support for Nextel's Direct Connect walkie-talkie technology. The i860 fully supports the service, which allows for one-touch conversations with anyone else on a Nextel phone. It's like a having a CB radio with enough range to cover all of North America. The i860 also features a walkie-talkie private speaker button. This switches from the external speaker to the earpiece for private conversations or to minimize disruptions in quiet environments.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The i860 features MMS-based support for mobile-to-mobile or mobile-to-email text and photo messaging. When used in combination with the phone's built-in camera, MMS opens up a whole new world of messaging fun. T9 text entry, which is a technology that makes it easier for people to enter words and text on handsets, is built into the unit-- a plus for mobile email and text messaging users.

Getting on the Internet anywhere is easy with the i860, as well. Nextel's optional Nextel Online package allows you to read and send e-mails, exchange instant messages and view your favorite web content on your phone. Nextel Online also features games, ringtones, realtime news and sports updates, virtual address books, and more-- all delivered to your Nextel phone.

Another Nextel innovation supported by the i860 is Nextel Direct Send. Simply push a button and instantly send all your contact info to another Nextel phone. It's an easy way to get people into your contact list fast.

The i860 ships with a calendar and a calculator, as well as a voice recording application that can record phone conversations if you need to replay directions or meeting times. A time and date clock are also included.

Imaging and Entertainment
The i860's 640 x 480 camera features a digital zoom and built-in flash that makes it easier to get quality shots in low-light situations. The i860 can also capture 10-second video clips. The phone's Media Center application and large internal memory allows you to store hundreds of photos in a variety of file types.

The i860 is packed with a number of Java applications. TeleNav for audible driving directions is included, as is 1KTV multimedia for news (both require a subscription). Preloaded games include ESPN Bassmaster Demo, Space Invaders Demo and Boulder Dash M.E. Demo. More game downloads are available via the Nextel Online service.

Vital Statistics
The Motorola i860 weighs 4.76 ounces and measures 3.45 x 1.85 x 0.98 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 165 minutes of digital talk time, and up to 65 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the IDEN 800 frequency. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
Motorola i860 handset, standard lithium-ion battery, i860 standard battery door, i860 carry holster, black rapid travel charger, user's manual.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Picture me Talking... Can you see me now?!?, October 12, 2004

By 

Nicholas Cherney "Nick Cherney" (Cincinnati, OH USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Motorola i860 Phone (Nextel) (Wireless Phone)

What can I say? I love this phone. If you're going to have the best service provider, you might as well have their best phone. A camera phone with Nextel has been long awaited-since 1999 with me. As always, I suggest speaking with the local phone techs before purchasing a phone. They always know, and will be upfront and honest, if the particular Motorola phone is of good quality or not. Although I didn't have the self-control to wait a month and adhere to my own advice, allow me to give you my 2 cents on the phone and Nextel as a carrier:

1)I though I broke my flip the first time I opened it. It clicked and stuck... FYI: There is a button on the top right side of the flip to push for auto-open. I now feel like Neo off of the Matrix.
2)I would rate this phone about 10x better than my i730. It's smaller, the LCD on the outside of the flip is huge, the LCD inside the flip is twice as big as that of the i730!!! Can you say a 640x480 camera w/ GPS, Picture caller ID, and MP3 Ring tones? I don't why as of yet, but I also seem to be getting better coverage with this phone than that of my i730-maybe about a bar in the plus.
3)The 10 seconds of video w/ sound that I can record has been a blast.
4)The data on this phone is superb. I have to say Telenav Track showing the map and talking to you on where to drive is great with the i860. The flip with double the viewing area is a godsend. There isn't a better phone to use it on. From all the Nextel users that I know, "If you are a business owner and don't have a data solution to enable the tracking of workers, vehicles, assets, shipments/delivery-you're undermining the competition and not utilizing Nextel's biggest differentiator other than the 2way..." A lot of my business contacts love a service called XORA that does this and there is a 15 minute presentation on their website.
5)Picture quality is pretty good. I suggest using the max resolution, which boosts you to 640x480 if you're going to send it to someone. Choose the wallpaper resolution for the obvious. Don't forget a 4x zoom, self-timer, and a shutter sound that is linked to your phone volume. Don't let anyone fool you. The flash pretty much sucks-but the ability to keep the light turned on has been useful for finding things I drop in the dark. So what if I now have a $400 phone/camera/flash light...
6)Want your name to show on the phone? Create a profile with what you want displayed. Want an alarm clock? Use the Datebook and create an event for the time you want to wake up. Want to find a hidden menu for Nextel Techs? Hit #, *, Menu, <right arrow> to trace the towers, find out how many mins the phone has used, the SIM/MSN #, and see options that you will probably never understand.
7)The games are decent at best that come with the phone. I like the Space Invader Demo though. 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 business tools in nature. Hence, you can note the focus of business 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...
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.
9)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...
10)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 whom you have.
11)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. Last year I can vouch for about ever Vegas Casino. Oh, did I mention there is never roaming charges with any plan?
12)Check out the News articles to see what worked for communication during all 4 (thus far) hurricanes in Florida. It wasn't the landlines, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, AT&T... Only the Nextel walkie-talkie worked (and as you'll read saved lives)!!!

I hope my technical background and insight from 5 years of having Nextel help. I can't see any angle where you could go wrong with getting this phone-it truly is the best.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good phone, but a few downsides..., September 6, 2005

By 

Mel Blanc - See all my reviews

This review is from: Motorola i860 Phone (Nextel) (Wireless Phone)

I got this phone with Nextel service about a year ago. Since then, I have used it as my main phone.

What's good about this phone?

1) Huge screen: You can easily and clearly see what you're browsing, reading, typing, etc. It also alternates as a flashlight of sorts in dark theaters.

2) Good sound quality/reception: What good is a phone if it has every gadget under the sun but horrible service and sound quality? Thankfully, this has a lot of both, especially when it comes to listening to the other party via the in-phone speaker or the external speaker.

3) External display: Okay, so you can't do much with the external display, but it's handy for checking for calls, the time, battery life, etc., without having to open it up. Tried to change the "Nextel" in the external display, but to no avail.

4) One-finger flipping mechanism: Press the button near the antenna and it opens up with a satisfying click and whoosh. My other phone requires two hands or tricky one-hand manipulation to open.

5) Durable: I've dropped this phone a few times. The display is half cracked, the exterior dented and punctured, but it still works like it did in the very beginning!

Now the negatives:

1) Miserable battery life: No doubt, because of the huge display that it has to keep lit. A full day on standby with an hour or so or talking will drain it to the point that it may not receive or allow you to place calls.

2) Huge size and weight: This phone is both large and heavy. It's thick enough that it does not comfortably fit in any pant pocket (unless you wear cargos all the time) and its weight nearly drags down your pants. I can't blame these factors on its age, because plenty of phones from two years ago were much lighter and thinner.

3) GPS is useless: In the one year that I've had this, I've only been able to acquire a signal once! I've been in open areas that are ideal for a satellite signal, but to no avail.

4) Camera is poor/lens gets dirty: The camera is pretty much useless. The quality is horrible, the resolution ultra-low, and the lens - since it's in a hole in the face of the camera - keeps getting dirty. You can only clean it with a Q tip, but it gets dirty quickly in a typical pocket.

5) No way to share audio/video/images other than through Nextel ($$$!): I bought an official cable from a Nextel dealer to download pictures onto my computer via USB, but it was useless. I used all the right software from Motorola, configured everything, etc., but it didn't work. Thus, I had to fork over $0.50 for each bad-quality picture I wanted to send to myself. Ripoff, really.

6) Functions are slow: When you make a change or take a picture or perform any other function, it takes a good few seconds to complete the task, thus becoming annoying. I have seen Sony phones do this much faster.

Well, there you have it! Whether or not this is a phone for you is your call. You may be interested in the "show off" qualities than the actual qualities for a phone, or you may need a solid audio-communication device that you can count on day after day. Whichever it is, consider my review if you're thinking about getting one!

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Nextel Phone By Far!!, January 14, 2005

By 

K. WILFORK "The GAR" (PC Florida) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Motorola i860 Phone (Nextel) (Wireless Phone)

First off, I've been a Nextel customer for over 2 years now and started with an i90 phone. I absolutely loved that phone for the entire time I had it and couldn't have been more satisfied. However as the times change so do features, looks, and functionality of a cellular phone. I figured it was time to upgrade and got my i860 at a relatively low rate of $300 on a 1 year contract(being that the phone had just come out) on my personal account. I had seen the phone online and pictures of it, and for some reason I wasn't too attracted to it, but I went out on a limb and got it anyway. Now I must say this is by FAR the best phone I've ever had. I work for Nextel so by default I should already know everything about the phone....WRONG. I seriously figure out something new or different that I can do to it every week, and to this day I haven't had a single problem with it.

Pros:
Great design, not too big not too small.

Very large inner display...(Looks a lot better than any other company's phone that's not a Motorola.

25Mb worth of memory...Most phones have 5 (V700, Razor, etc) I have video's, games, applications, tons of pictures..and Lord knows how many mp3's on here and it's only used 30% of the memory.

Anyone who has a data cable and knows what programs to use knows you can make all kinds of changes to the phone, such as making your background show up on the outer display, change color palettes and schemes, and create your own ringtones and wallpapers to TOTALLY personalize the phone to however you want.

Camera..Looks good if you get your resolution just right...no complaints on that except there's no flash.

Coverage where I live is better than any other provider in town, and it picks up a lot better than my old phone.

User friendly...Pretty easy to use..for the jacka$$ that said the phone doesn't have a calendar, yeah buddy it does, called a Datebook which you can switch to a calendar mode.

And to be quite honest more than any other feature the phone offers, my favorite thing is the push to open flip activation button. Regular flip phones just plain suck when compared to that.

Direct Send..Automatically sends someone's contact information to your phone whenever they Direct Connect you, or vise versa.

Cons:
I only have 3...
I HATE the flap that goes over the charging port, if you had an older model phone before this you'll probably rip it off.

The holster scratches the housing of the phone at the bottom.

I wish they made a black OEM battery door instead of the blue, because it looks out of place with the color scheme.

In conclusion, I couldn't be more happy with this phone.