Customer Reviews

PCS Phone Sanyo SCP-8100 (Sprint)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I have owed the 8100 for about four months.

- The main lcd screen:
This screen is very bright. During a recent power outage, I used it to find my way around my house.

- The call clarity:
I used to make jokes about the poor reception I got with my Nokia 6185. With this phone, it sounds more like a land line than a cell phone. The first time my brother called my mom with the 8100, she could immediately tell that he had a new phone. The earpiece volume is adjustable, and can get very loud (almost sounds like a speakerphone).

- The camera:
Ok, so the image quality is low. But the features are impressive. You can assign images as caller id's for people in your phone book. You can email a picture to anyone immediately after taking it. I don't carry any family pictures with me. If I want to show pictures of my nephews and nieces, I can just pull out my phone. It even has a self-timer, so you can set your phone down and get in the picture.

- The Calendar:
I use this feature every day. You can set reminders (like: "take out trash") to repeat weekly, monthly, or annually. You can be alerted of events minutes or hours in advance. You can even assign a specific ringer as the alarm for an event.

- Ringers:
This phone supports polyphonic ringers, which are like normal ringers- except more "vibrant." It also supports ".QCP" ringers (which are actual sound clips) containing songs or voice. You can assign different ringers for individuals in your phone book.

- Games:
The games aren't "gameboy" quality, but they do come close to those little pocket lcd games. Using the keys on the phone as controls feels a bit wierd. Some games use the phone's vibrator as a "rumble"
feature. The selection of games available is adequate.

- Applications:
This phone supports some applications. I have installed and used a stop watch, an instant messaging app, the RealOne player (subscription service), and a to-do list app. I have yet to see any "full-motion" video displayed on this phone.

- Email:
After you sign up, Sprint gives you an email address that's attatched to your phone. You can send and receive text emails using that address (from your phone or their website).

- Misinformation:
When the documentation says it has "screensavers," that's not true. What they mean is that the phone uses images kind of like the desktop wallpaper on your pc. When the phone is not in use, the screen turns off automatically. When the documentation says "wireless internet," that is misleading. You can only view small html pages or specially designed "wml" or "wap compatible" pages. You can't view the amazon site the way it looks right now on your computer screen.

- Ways to use it:
This phone works even better when combined with some other services.
>Textamerica provides free "moblogs."
>Qualcomm "Purevoice converter" lets you turn your mp3 files into
ringers.
>Sites like 3GUpload let you upload images and ringers from your pc to your phone (for a small fee).
>Wireless internet sites like Mapquest and Hollywood give you driving directions, movie times, and more using your phone's browser.

This is a great phone. You'll have loads of fun with it, even if no one ever calls you.

The Sprint PCS 8100 is a terrific camera phone. It's the second camera phone to be sold here stateside. Size-wise, it could be a bit thinner like the Panasonic GU-87 GSM phone for AT&T Wireless; but, to be fair, the 8100 is already quite compact, and much smaller than the very first camera phone to hit the U.S. market: the venerable Sanyo SCP-5300.

Compard to the 5300 (which is still being sold by Sprint), this 8100 phone has a very bright main LCD, albeit slightly smaller (1.8" vs. 5300's 2.1"). Its 56k color range is very good, and did I mention it's super-bright? Definitely the brightest and clearest phone LCD screen I've seen so far -- and I've personally checked out lots of phones on sale in the U.S. and also in Europe. BTW, an interesting thing about the 8100's screen is that, even if you turn off the backlight, the main LCD is actually still backlighted (backlit?) at a lower level. So for the 8100, backlight on means very bright backlight, and backlight off means dim backlight. The main LCD supposedly uses some new technology developed by Sanyo that draws less power than other LCD screens even when it's backlit. (I read this on some geek website.) The external sub-LCD (on the flip cover) is squarish and also capable of 56k colors, but at 96x96 its resolution is quite low. One interesting use of the external sub-LCD (other than displaying picture caller IDs) is to use it for taking self-portraits. Since I'm an unapologetic narcissist, I simply adore this feature! :)

As a cell phone the 8100 shines, no pun intended. The reception is just exceptional! If you've read my other phone reviews you'd know I live in a basement apartment here in the outskirts of New York City. The 5150 and 5300 I had owned before used to get 2-3 bars on the signal strength indicator, but the 8100 regularly gives me 4 bars! I'd say 3-4 is my normal strength, occasionally it drops to 2, and very rarely it goes to 0-1. The built-in earpiece has good voice quality, and it's definitely the loudest earpiece of all Sanyo phones sold s far -- and better than other Sprint PCS offerings. Close to 20 high-quality ringers are included, ranging from simple ringing tones to melodies; they are pretty loud at the highest setting, although a perfectionist such as myself always thinks we can use a bit more volume.

The phone functions are easily laid out and responsive. The user interface is clean and simple. You don't need to read the user's guide to figure most things out, as the phone uses a pop-up menu system extensively. One nice touch is the "Mi Amigo" animated character. I won't tell you what it is, though, as you have to see the fun little thing yourself. (Hint: it bathes, exercises, sleeps, beams down from Mars, etc.)

Of course, the main draw of this phone is its built-in camera. Compared to the older 5300, this one's resolution is a step down, something like 172x220, vs. the 5300's true VGA (640x480) resolution. The 8100 also doesn't have a built-in flash like the 5300, and you cannot do special digital effects (e.g., digital zooming) as on the 5300. The picture quality is also lower than on the 5300.

On the other hand, you get two distinctive pluses vs. the 5300: 1) it takes surprisingly decent pictures in low light, so party photos should come out ok -- in fact I've seen a lot of users take party pics using their 8100s and many would come out surprisingly well, 2) it's much easier to organize and share (or upload) picture files on the 8100 than on the older 5300, and you can also store more pictures due to the smaller size. With each picture, you can upload to Sprint's free picture-sharing website, or you can save to the "picture wallet" folder, from where you can assign them to wallpaper or caller ID. Last but not least, you can simply keep your best on-the-go pictures and laugh silly at them on your commute!

It ought to be emphasized that you mustn't expect too much about the picture quality. It reminds me of the first-gen digital cameras that came out back in 1995. Fuzzy and distorted colors best describe the images. The quality is also very sensitive to hand shakes, so often I use one hand to hold the phone steady and the other to press the shutter button. This is especially true when you use the self-portrain mode. I personally find the camera work best in low-light settings like inside a bar, and also on beautiful summer days. The minimum distance to subject is around one foot in order to get a focused picture. The point is, the 8100 is more a fun toy than a serious (or semi-serious) digital camera. Snapping quick shots of people fighting outside Yankees stadium is fine, but family get-together photos are no-no on this.

Now a word of warning: in places like New York City cops have started arresting people who surreptitiously take pictures of girls' behinds and legs and whatnots. Please use your phone responsibly!

One more virtue of the 8100 is its affordability. In short, this is a terrific camera phone that you'll get addicted to easily. Many other users seem to agree: less than a year after its release, it's already the best-selling phone in Sprint PCS's entire history.

I bought this phone two weeks ago. It is very nice as a phone - compact, light, with enough volume in the headset so I can hear it with the car top down (but not at 80 mph!). The keyboard is logical and lightly backlit. All the set up and control functions can be accessed at the press of a button.

It has lots of really nice features. The 1.8" screen is bright and colorful, with good resolution. It has a built in camera which takes fairly good pictures which you can use as your screen's background. You can also e-mail and upload the pictures if you pay for the service. The battery lasts forever. The phone has PCS web access. You can also download games and programs to make the phone more functional. It has a built in calculator. You can use it as a modem if you purchase a USB cable and software (which Sprint no longer provides). You can upload the pictures to Sprint's web cite and then e-mail them. The pictures you take or d/l can be displayed as four to a screen thumbnails.

So, what's the catch? "Sprint" charges for everything. And the contract is for two years. You can upload pictures, backgrounds, ringers and software from your computer -- if you buy for the cable and software, which Sprint no longer supplies, but I can't find software to d/l my pictures directly to the computer. (The cable and software can be purchased separately, but not together! There are three sets of software -- again each sold separately!) If you want access to your pictures, you have to upload them to Sprint's web cite, and then download. Sprint charges for this service. I bought a USB cable to try to use the phone as a modem. I used it for a very short period, and had my phone turned off the next day because I ran up a bill of $80.00. In some ways, it is kind of offensive. At least they reversed the charge because I had two months free trial!

10/30/04 -- As an update, I have now had the phone for almost a year. I continue to be happy with it, although I think I might like one with a speakerphone built in. The battery has held up and continues to last for days. In addition, I have found that Sprint's coverage in Los Angeles and Orange County areas is very good, and I lose reception much less than I did with AT&T.

The sanyo 8100 is the flagship phone for Sprint's PCS network, with a plethora of features and lots of style points. As far as I know this phone will ONLY work with SPRINT - so keep that in mind. This is probably the reason many reviewers have chosen to factor the sprint service into thier ratings and into their reviews, which makes some sense, however keep in mind that the quality of service given by a particular provider varies greatly by region.

When first looking at the phone you'll notice it's very compact, and also very stylish. the design is top notch, it not only looks good but is very functional. The flip (clam shell) design is put to good use, with a smaller LCD on the outside and a main LCD on the inside. Both of these displays are color and fairly crisp. The outter LCD is used for caller ID as well as displaying wristwatch-like info (time, signal strength etc) while not being used. Buttons are a bit cumbersome for people with big fingers... but that's the case with most cell phones anyway. Navigating the menus is fairly intuitive, although entering letters and characters in the dark is a problem.

This phone is PACKED with features. You can browse the web in full color. However to anyone who hasnt used the web on a cell phone yet, dont expect an experience ANYWHERE near what you get on your computer. The small screen and akward charachetr input methods make surfing the www less of a hobby and more of a chore. That said this feature can be immensley useful. The phone has a built in camera, which takes decent, albeit small, photos. You can then email these pictures to friends straight form the phone, or you can opt to use them as "photo caller id" (the picture will display on the LCD when a certain person in your phone book calls. You can also customize your phone with full color wallpaper, animated characters, nice sounding polyphonic ringers, and a variety of games - all downloadable on the net, some for a cost however. There's also some built in aps such as a calendar with limited PIM functionality, a phone book that can store upto 300 entries, each with upto 7 numbers, an email addy and a web addy, there's a calculator, a world clock, and you can download aditional aps to provide a whole number of other uses and features (such as aps that use the phone's location features to give "onstar" like functionality). Of course there is text messaging, voice memos, and a bunch more.

You can use the web through sprint's PCS vision service to send/recieve email, or log onto AIM, MSN messenger, or yahoo messenger. This is a great convenience, but seeing as how none of these interfaces are very user friendly, and character typing is a pain - you'll quickly realise that this is more for use when you need to tell someone something really quick rather than recreational chatting. With AIM, the messages take a long time to load and it's a bit tedious to use because of the web based interface - too bad there isnt a downloadable ap for it, or built in capabillities, either or which would have improved performance vastly.

The phone's battery life is good, but not great, happily thanks to the travel charger you can talk while the phone is plugged in and/or charging. The antena extends to help you get a better signal, and the phone works on both digital and analog networks for roaming. The ringer and reciever are loud, which is good. A number of settings will probably overwhelm you at first, but offers a lot of power and flexabillity.

The only draw back is that the phone is directly tied to sprint, so if you dont like sprint, you wont have a good experience here (remember cell phone provider service quality completely depends on where you live). Sprint offers good plans and decent (though not great) coverage, though they like to nickel and dime you any chance they get, (PCS vision package is requiered for picture sending, email and or web access). The quality of the sprint network varies, call quality is ussually very good, but dropped calls can be a bit of a problem, particularly while on the go. Also if you want to synch ur phone with your computer you'll need to buy a kit to do so, however this kit also supposedly will allow you to use your phone as a mobile modem for a laptop - very cool.

All in all, I love this phone, and only have a handful of minor complaints or reservations about it. I havent seen a more complete, feature rich phone yet.

While you shouldn't expect this phone to replace your digital camera, there is something great about having the ability to send someone a picture on a whim. The Sanyo SCP-8100 would be a great phone even without the camera! The menus are very easily laid out, and very easy to read. The screen is large enough to read 9 - 10 lines of text off the web (I love reading SI.com's writers' columns). Adding the ability to take pictures just makes it better! I travel some with my work, so I enjoy getting pictures of my children while I'm on the road. Photos can be sent to up to 10 e-mail or phone addresses at a time. Voice messages can be sent along with the photo. Sprint's service even allows people to reply to the photo, so I can get comments attached to the photos.

The only reason I don't give this phone 5 stars is due to resolution for pictures. It would be nice if the resolution was a little larger, so you could print off small photos.

In spite of that, I'd certainly recommend this, along with the plans provided by Sprint. Great plans...great phone!

I bought this phone two months ago. It is very nice as a phone - compact, light, with enough volume in the headset so I can hear it with the car top down (but not at 80 mph!). The keyboard is logical and lightly backlit. All the set up and control functions can be accessed at the press of a button.

It has lots of really nice features. The 1.8" screen is bright and colorful, with good resolution. It has a built in camera which takes fairly good pictures which you can use as your screen's background. You can also e-mail and upload the pictures if you pay for the service. The battery lasts forever. The phone has PCS web access. You can also download games and programs to make the phone more functional. It has a built in calculator. You can use it as a modem if you purchase a USB cable and software (which Sprint no longer provides). You can upload the pictures to Sprint's web cite and then e-mail them. The pictures you take or d/l can be displayed as four to a screen thumbnails.

So, what's the catch? "Sprint" charges for everything. And the contract is for two years. You can upload pictures, backgrounds, ringers and software from your computer -- if you buy for the cable and software, which Sprint no longer supplies, but I can't find software to d/l my pictures directly to the computer. (The cable and software can be purchased separately, but not together! There are three sets of software -- again each sold separately!) If you want access to your pictures, you have to upload them to Sprint's web cite, and then download. Sprint charges for this service. I bought a USB cable to try to use the phone as a modem. I used it for a very short period, and had my phone turned off the next day because I ran up a bill of $80.00. In some ways, it is kind of offensive. At least they reversed the charge because I had two months free trial! And trying to get through to customer service to get them to correct the problem is an impossibility.

I tend to upgrade cell phones once a year, and this is my latest that I've had for a month. Relative to the "state of the art" a year ago, here's the pros/cons:

- Photo feature is very fun. I have no "real" use for it, but it is extremely amusing to have the photo of the person come up as their caller ID. Emailing a picture is slow. Picture quality is good enough really only for use on the tiny phone screen -- even on a computer the image looks lousy, and it certainly isn't good enough for printing.

- Range is a big improvement. I'm getting service in areas I didn't use to.

- Slightly thicker than not having the photo option -- so there's a slight "carrying cost" to the camera

- Sound quality is mixed. Even though the reception is stronger, for some reason voices sound a little garbled on this phone. You have to line your ear up just right too to listen.

Well first of all let me say when I first got the thing..i couldn't put it down...for three days straight..this phone is freakin awesome...most of the time...yes i have had the prob with the earpiece..the thing just doesnt direct sound very well is all..you realize you're off and adjust a bit and you're fine..i dont know what ppl are talking about when they say poor picture quality...what do you expect from a camera that's smaller than a dime..the thing is really quite amazing..and 640x480 really isn't something to scoff at..it'll take some great photos...where this phone has really failed me is reception and overall service..let me just say sprint is a pos...if at all possible..stay away from them...it's very unfortunate that such an awesome phone must be tied to such a horrible service...dropped calls all over the place..and that free and clear digital buisness? it just means that rather than hearing static, you'll just hear the phone cut out periodically..i don't know if their network is weak here in So. Cal or what but i can have to walk about 20 ft away from my house to get a signal. and the data transfer? FORGET ABOUT IT...I've never been so frustrated with my text mesaging in my life...the thing will lead you in circles and not get a single thing done..Personally I plan to switch to ATT mMODE will do the same things better than PCS vision ever could. The ring tones are awesome, but a bit of a ripoff at 1.50 a piece...the ringer itself i did have a problem with: when set to high, the polyphonic tones will crackle and come out sounding not all that great. Also one last note...the more things that are packed into a phone, the higher the chance that they will break...I used to have my trusty old-school nokia and i could dropkick the thing, dunk it, and it wouldn't phase it in the slightest..I left the 8100 in my pocket when i fell asleep and when i woke up, the screen was dead...when the screens did work though they were incredible..when i flipped open my phone for the first time the display took my breath away. The sub-lcd is pretty trick also; the photo color id is one of the coolest things the phone does...
overall here's what i thought of the phone:

Pro's:
Chocked full of features,
nifty camera takes nice pics
very vivid color displays, some of the best available.

Con's:
Horrible service and support
Questionable quality

Verdict: An overall great phone that just happens to be paired with a not-so-great service. If you don't absolutly need the clamshell, go with the Nokia 3650; you'll get a better service with ATT and it'll do everything the 8100 will and more...

i have owned this phone for more than 6 months now and well i have never had any complain of dropped calls, or poor signal reception. I find strong signals in areas where my previous samsung phone or motorola phona didnt have signals. the camera is okie nothing great, yet goodenough for camera wallpapers, but honestly you need a phone not a serious digital camera. The organization of menu and battery life is decent. Overall i love this phone, but wish it had infrared or bluetooth connectivity to my other devices.

This phone is very poor quality. It started to fall apart on me only about 6 months after I got it. One of the hinges snapped, so it wouldn't close correctly and the outside display would not come on. A few months later, the other side broke, and it was dangling by a wire. I would NOT reccomend this phone unless you only plan to have it temporarily.