Customer Reviews

Motorola V220 Phone (AT&T)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(18)
1 star:		(29)

 

 

I got this phone only about two weeks ago and so far I'm pretty impressed. The screen is slightly smaller than my previous phone (Samsung x427) but the memory capacity more than makes up for it. I ditched the Samsung because it quickly ran out of memory but I've downloaded a ton of stuff on the Motorola and all of it plays fine. Anyways, here are some pros and cons:

Pros: memory capacity, sharp screen resolution, using the camera and sending pictures is VERY easy, being able to switch ringer betwen volumes or vibrate without opening the phone is nice, downloaded ringtones sound much clearer than on other phones, the speakerphone works well also, games load fast and play well, the battery life is also pretty good

Cons: although there are games available for download, the phone doesn't come with any preloaded, so don't be surprised, the outer display scratches a little too easy and would be better if it was more durable, the camera, while easy to use, doesn't have very good resolution and really needs a flash, the screen size is adaquate although it would be better if it was bigger

Overall it's a very good phone. For people looking for a good phone for ringtones and games, it's great, but for the best resolution on the camera, it's nothing spectacular.

I got this phone becuase it was free with an upgrade. I had read reviews and thought it would be worth the money (none) to upgrade to it. It's a good phone. I've had it two days and the battery is still going strong... they say it takes a few rechargings to get the full potential out of the battery.


On the plus side:

I like the front screen that shows caller ID. It makes for a quick check to see if I want to answer or not.

I also like the calendar. I can pull it up and quickly look at appointments.

I haven't bought the data cable yet but plan to do so soon.

I like the navigation disc... it's easy to get around in menus although the menus themselves are sometimes tricky... the cancel/exit/ok buttons switch sides on some menus.

The Shortcut option is great... the menu on this thing is extensive so it's nice to be able to quickly get to often-used menu options.

My biggest pet peeve people who let their phones go off in public places where they have no business answering a phone... so I love the vibrate option built into this phone.

Speakerphone!!



On the downside:

I'm left-handed and the side buttons really are a pain. I can't hold the phone with my left hand for long. It'd be great to be able to disable the side buttons... or change their functions.

The phone becomes very uncomfortable on my ear after awhile.

I don't understand the need for the side button that allows for voice-calling since I must have the phone open to use that functionality anyhow. It's just in the way.

The camera is pretty sad... I never understood the need for a camera on a phone in the first place and 640x480 is basically useless.

Often times I've been entering contacts and I accidentally hit the hang-up button instead of the save button and PRESTO... I lose all my entered info!

I want to be able to put my name on the front screen since my wife and I have identical phones... can't do it. Can't do it on the inside screen either (It'd be nice to take off my service provider's name too). I've been looking for a hack but haven't found one yet.

This is a great phone for those on a budget (like me!) It's one step down from the v400. So if you can afford it, get the v400 instead! The v400 has a ton of included themes and photos, and more memory (5 MBs) compared to this phone, which is sort of "bare bones" (1.8mb). Both have the same quality camera and photos, although the v400 has a better screen. Both phones can have .mp3's playing as ringtones.

The v220 has very clear sound quality, great screen and excellent battery life. My only problem with it is that there is NO SUPPORT from motorola for a data link cable. The V220 connects via a small USB plug, but you have to order the datalink software & drivers from motorola before you can use it (another fourty bucks! And Cingular didn't stock it, only Motorola does, on a very remote part of their site). I got my software on a file-sharing program because I've NEVER heard of a company charging money just for DRIVERS!!

All-in-all I'm loving my new phone (I've had it for several weeks). I've been able to get rid of my palm pilot because it holds 1,250 contacts (with the Simm Card). One note - if you add your contacts to the phone's memory (as opposed to the Simm's) you will have to set the ringer for each contact or else it defaults to no ring). The motorola software also allows you to sync to your Microsoft Outlook contacts and calendar, and it was truly easy to use!

This phone is a great way to feel like you've got tons of money, because it's basically just a "baby" version of the v400 (which retails for about $150 more usually). It's a good buy, and on Amazon right now with their rebate, you actually get money BACK for buying the phone!

If you have any questions about the phone that I haven't answered here, feel free to AIM me at WinterGetsMe. If you like my review please vote for it! ~ Michele

Pros - Tons of features. You can download ring tones and pictures from your own computer with USB. The outside caller ID is also nice. The battery life is good and I have no complaints with the reception.

Cons- The hinge is not as good as Samsung. The display is not as big as other phones. The default ring tones and games are horrible.


I am very happy with the Motorola V220. I paid $50 for this phone and got features that usually cost 2 to 3 times more. I will start out with some background.

I signed up for a family plan and I bought the V220 for myself and got a Samsung X427 for my wife. I am a gadget freak without a big budget. What sold me on the V220 was the USB port. I wanted to be able to make my own rings and transfer pictures without sending it to e-mail. This feature by far sets this phone apart from others. Motorola does not support the USB, but with a little research and Mobile Phone Tools it is possible to connect your phone to your PC with a mini-USB cable. The V220 also has a caller ID display on the outside. This is important because if you are in a meeting you don't have to open the phone to see who is calling.

This phone also has voice dial which is cool. I believe it has speakerphone, but I have not used it. I also love how the menus and buttons are fully configurable. So you can setup your phone the way you like it. The screen is good and the battery life is much better than my old Sony-Ericcson T306, and I thought the T306 had decent battery life. I have never had a dropped call (after 2 months of ownership). The signal is strong with this phone, and I always had dropped calls with the Sony-Ericcson. I wanted to throw that phone out the window. The camera is also a nice feature for a phone in this price range.

Now, the bad. The screen on my wife's Samsung is much better because it is bigger. Her phone is also a little smaller. I am disappointed with the default ring tones on the V220 and it doesn't come with a real game. My biggest complaint is the hinge. It creaks when you open it and doesn't feel near as solid as my wife's Samsung. However, the Samsung does not even have a caller ID display on the outside. The speaker on the V220 is not so good. When you make your own ring tones you have to be careful because the speaker cannot handle any bass or songs with a lot of instruments.

When it comes down to it, this is a great phone for the money. This phone was perfect for me because I can do a lot with it. The Samsung was perfect for my wife because it is simple and elegant. The V220 has more gadgets. Motorola needs to work on the hinge design, but I would definitely buy this phone again in a heartbeat.

This phone is the worst. Cingular gave it to me for free. I got what I paid for. It turns off randomly. The screen is way too small. The camera is a joke. And the menus are very akward. Can't download pictures because they didn't supply a CD or drivers. When I asked the guy at Cingular about this - he said you had to e-mail them to your computer. But, of course, they charge for the e-mail. Forget it.... I want my Nokia back ....

I have read all of the reviews and I guess that I just don't use my cell phone as much as I thought I did. This phone's battery life will last my husband and I about three days, taking about 4 10-15 minute calls per day. As for the camera, yes, the quality isn't really there. I haven't really seen any really great pictures from cell phone though anyway. This phone is excellent for basic use, and also, I guess my service area for Cingular is just really great because I don't have any complaints yet. We have not yet dropped a call, and it has been about two months. I love the rollover minutes, and Cingular's website is very easy to navigate! But I guess if you talk more than about 40 minutes a day, this wouldn't be for you, but this phone is EXCELLENT for average use, or even for an 'only emergency' phone! Also WAy NICER than other free phones!

I've owned just 4 cell phones since the late 1980's (2 Nokia and 2 Motorolas) and while I am somewhat "technologically challenged", I've found this phone to be fairly easy to navigate and setup. I purchased the V220 about two weeks ago (1) for its size; (2) the keyboard lights up in a neat blue color making it easier to read than some that do not - if you need glasses to read this is a plus! and (3) the camera. I really don't care about downloading games, sounds, etc. so I cannot comment on those elements.

I used the camera immediately and you can zoom in or out to make a picture clearer. It's easy to save a photo or delete one. I change or add photos for wallpaper and enjoy this feature. For me, the sound is good and using the speakerphone and voice dial are great, no problems.

One negative is the manual that comes w/the phone. I couldn't setup voice command using the "instructions" ... it is virtually non-existant. The cellular agent did not know how to set it up either. Apparently, on previous models it was explained better. After calling Motorola (very good customer service, by the way) the rep. walked me through it. He accessed the manual for my model online even telling me what pages in the manual the instructions were on, then realized why I was having a problem. He even admitted after trying to find the instructions in the V220 manual, that there was no way I would be able to set it up unless I had had a previous model and had setup voice dial before. After walking me through it I have no problem adding names and numbers. Another negative is paying attention to the symbols on the menu. Remember, I don't care about going online w/the phone. There are a few menu items w/a symbol next to the item (a globe or the Cingular symbol). If you hit those and don't have a plan for net access, etc., you will be charged for the time. It is just a matter of being more careful for me, but probably for most of you, the reason you are getting the phone is to access the net etc. so it won't be a problem.

Other than the two items above, I really like this phone. It fits in the palm of my hand perfectly. It's very attractive and functions well. My favorite things are voice command and the camera. Personally, I would recommend this phone to anyone.

I have had this phone for 6 months and it has been nothing but trouble. I have Cingular service and they have replaced this phone 3 times for me - with the same phone - V220. It drops calls EVERY time I try to use it. It is really frustrating. Now they are telling me to turn it off every day for 3 minutes in order to receive upgrades... this isn't working either. I am now looking to BUY a Nokia phone. I never had any problems with my old Nokia phone.

If you're looking for a good quality picture phone I wouldn't recommend this phone. If you want to see if you're battery is charged or if you have a full signal I wouldn't recommend it. The screen is waaay tooo small and the picture quality is horrible. My husband picked up the phone for me after I told him I wanted it. I played with the phone for about an hour and then decided it had to go back. I took it back and paid the extra money for the motorola v551 which is da bomb all around!! Oh yeah, Motorola instruction booklets are the worst!

This cute little clamshell phone does it job. It opens to a small color screen and a traditional keypad lit by blue light. Features include a speaker phone (great for the car if you don't have your headphone attached), camera, voice-activated dialing, international capability, IM, web browsing, alarm, date book, calculator, as well as the more standard caller ID, address book, and call log information. The camera is slow - don't expect to catch anything in motion - but adequate.

The worst feature is the ring tones, as it comes with very few (compare to Nokia's). On top of that, the volume is not high enough to hear the phone from the bottom of my purse. If you want a distinctive ring tone, you'll have to pay to download tones from your service provider. Although the phone has a mini USB connector port to download your own music/tones and to upload pictures, you need to find a driver that will work on your computer. Don't expect help on how to find one. The Motorola site is useless, and my service provider salespeople didn't have a clue it was needed. The thick manual that comes with the phone is barely helpful, as it shows key strokes to access features without explaining crucial information; for example, it tells you how to access new melodies without telling you how to actually accomplish the download. In general, the manual looks helpful without actually being of use.

As of the writing of this review, the phone seems to be too new for electronic accessory companies to have come up with a non-brand auto charger and headset. You'll have to pay your service provider rates if you want these.

On the plus side, the flip phone style makes it small enough to fit into my palm. The sound is good, and the international capabilities (check with your plan) make it more versatile than some of its competitors. I love that I can create my own wallpaper and screensaver with just a few intuitive key strokes. Eventually, the sound features, with Motomixer and personalized ring tones, will also be great - as long as I find a driver.

For a relatively low-end camera phone, its performance is surprisingly good despite the nonexistent support. Since this phone is often heavily discounted or free when signing a contract, it is well worth considering.