Motorola V557 Phone (AT&T)

by Motorola

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• ASIN: B000C1ASTK
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #176,142 in Cell Phones & Accessories (See Top 100 in Cell Phones & Accessories)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

With Bluetooth, a VGA camera and a large color display, as well as support for high speed data and video capture, the V557 is a powerful mobile companion. It's the perfect complement to Cingular Wireless service. Plus, the V557 supports Cingular's advanced mobile media service, Media Net 3.0.

Design
The phone features a sleek clamshell design with a large 176 x 220 color display with 65,000 colors. The outside cover of the handset sports a supplementary 96 x 32 blue monochrome display that can display time, call information, battery and signal strength, and more. The VGA camera lens and self-portrait mirror is housed above this display. A stub antenna is placed on the top right side of the unit, next to the phone's headset jack. Volume buttons are placed on the left side, while a one-touch camera button is on the right. Most of the phone's features and on-screen menus are controlled by a five-way center button on the handset's control pad. A combined charging and USB data cable port is placed on the bottom of the phone.

Calling Features
The V557's internal phone book can hold up to 1000 contacts while the phone's picture ID system allows you to assign pictures to your most common callers. It also supports polyphonic ringtones as well as MP3 ringers, allowing you to use portions of your favorite songs to alert you to incoming calls. A number of ringtones come preloaded on the phone and more ringtones can be downloaded from Cingular Wireless' MEdia service. There's even an included application, MotoMixer, that lets you mix your own ringtones. For times when you want to be discreet, there's a vibrating alert. A built-in speakerphone makes it easy to talk without having the phone to your ear while voice activated dialing makes calling your friends, family and associates as easy as saying their names.

Because the V557 is Bluetooth enabled, wireless headsets can be configured with the phone for total handsfree operation. The phone supports Cingular's "Fast Forward" call forwarding device, which enables you to effortlessly forward your wireless calls to your land-line phone.

Messaging, Internet and Tools
The V557 is a messaging and wireless Internet powerhouse. Support is built in for sending and receiving pictures, text, graphics, sound and video via messages. When used in combination with the phone's built-in still and video camera, MMS opens up a whole new world of messaging fun. Instant messaging is also supported via AOL Instant Messenger and the phone ships with a built-in email client with support for POP3, IMAP4 and SMTP protocols (Cingular messaging charges apply). There's also a built-in web browser for MEdia downloads and mobile web browsing. iTap 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.

Cingular's MEdia service lets you receive and send emails, read news headlines, get weather updates, download games and ringtones, and more. And now, with Media Net 3.0, you'll get an even richer experience. Now you can customize the content delivered to your phone and receive it quickly and easily. Want sports and entertainment news? Choose to have that information delivered to your phone, ready for access at the push of a button. Or, choose financial news and weather. The content combinations are up to you. Plus, you'll get Media Net's live ticker service that delivers news, sports, weather, entertainment, and more right to your phone's main screen.

Getting on the Internet is easy with the V557. It supports the GPRS protocol, as well as the new, high speed EDGE data protocol. When used with a Cingular data plan and the phone's Bluetooth or USB data capability, the phone can be used as a wireless modem for laptops and PDAs.

A number of handy software tools are bundled with the V557 including a voice memo recorder, a calculator, a calendar and an alarm clock. Use the V557's Bluetooth capability to set up a wireless link with a Bluetooth accessory or connect to a computer or hand-held device to exchange and synchronize data. The phone also supports the SyncML PC synchronization standard, which means it can be used with Motorola's Mobile Phone Tools PC application to manage and synchronize contacts, calendar and other data with your PC.

Imaging and Entertainment
The V557 shines in the entertainment department. The phone's VGA camera can capture stills and clips with up to 15 seconds of video, both of which can be sent to your friends via MMS messaging or email, or to your PC via USB or Bluetooth. The phone is capable of MPEG4 video playback when you receive a video message. Meanwhile, an included image-editing application lets you modify the pictures you take before you send picture messages. The V557 also supports custom graphics for wallpapers so you can dress up the phone to suit your fancy.

Support for gaming is built into the phone and games are available for download via the Cingular MEdia service.

Vital Statistics
The Motorola V557 weighs 4.23 ounces and measures 3.5 x 1.93 x .97 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 3.75 hours of digital talk time, and up to 225 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the 800/900/1800/1900 MHz GSM/GPRS frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.

What's in the Box
V557 handset, lithium-ion battery, travel charger, user's manual.

Product Description

Finally a phone that offers what you really want… updated news, sports, weather, entertainment and more! The V557 delivers up-to-date information with zero clicks. Did we mention it's also a world phone with video capabilities and Bluetooth® technology?

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Phone for Phoning, March 16, 2006

By 

Brad Shorr "Brad Shorr" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Motorola V557 Phone (AT&T) (Wireless Phone)

Pros:
1. Clearest, most consistent reception of any Cingular phone I have used (metro Chicago).
2. Intuitive, flexible navigation typical of Motorola.
3. Loud ring and earphone volume.
4. Reasonably large and high-res screen.
5. Easy to access and get detail on recent calls and messages.
6. Battery life is fantastic.

Cons:
1. As other reviewers have noted, the news "Ticker" takes up lots of screen and doesn't tell you all that much.
2. Web navigation is s-l-o-w and clumsy.
3. Vibrate mode is weak.
4. Screen colors and themes limited.

If you want a phone to make phone calls, the V557 is a winner.

85 of 93 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good Phone, Recomended!, January 5, 2006

By 

Cherie L. Wasson-reinheimer "grullotobiatyaho... (Kansas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Motorola V557 Phone (AT&T) (Wireless Phone)

Topeka, KS, Cingular service. Just got the phone yesterday, but I've played with it enough now to be pretty pleased with how it is working. The other reviewer has an axe to grind (he put the same low rating on ALL motorola phones!)

Back to this phone... very nice fit and feel, love the non skid surface it has, and also like that it has some weight to it. Camera is adequate, but not great, but as others say, buy a digital camera to take nice pictures and get over it. I do not have a problem with the volume button on the side, but I am able to put it on 'soft' which does not alow you to adjust it from the outside. Vibrate and other options probably will help, I don't know what someone would do if they need it on loud.. my SO has one also, and we will see how he gets along with his today.

Keys are big and easy to use, the center 'mouse' is very easy to use, personalizing the keys is easy.

Reception is crystal clear, and signal strength is equal to or better than the nokia 6340i that I had (TDMA/GSM quad band phone)

I'll know better when I do my 3.5 hour run to Nebraska in a few weeks, and will try ou the speaker phone then as well.

Both inside and outside screens are nice and clear and easy to read. I've turned the brightness down to the lowest setting, and it is plenty bright. The menu is different, but pretty intuitive, I am able to find and personalize most things without the manual. I'm not taken by the ticker...on the fence on that one, but I get my news fix from the Net on a computer. Seems to have quite a few ads on the ticker so far.. bleah.

Acessing the net for the channels on the ticker is very easy. There is a pause between accessing, but not as bad as my s l o w phone connection at home.

Not much for ringtones, but I'll get it figured out how to add some, hopefully without a ton of money spent.

I'm going to try the blue tooth headset.. haven't yet.

Checking out the battery life, but there are quiet a few options, screen saving, turning off the ticker, etc that would probably extend it.. like having the options to do that.

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love this phone!, March 24, 2006

By 

Jamie Scudera (SW Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Motorola V557 Phone (AT&T) (Wireless Phone)

I love this phone! I originally made the mistake of buying the sony ericsson z520a and hated it. I have always been a motorola fan and always will be. This phone looks great, has killer reception, and is very well made (it is really solid). I am very picky with my phones and this is by far one of the best phones I have had. My husband is very jealous for he has the new nokia flip phone and is not too happy with it. I would recommend this phone to anyone who wants a quality product that truly shows. This phone has made me a motorola fan for life!