Customer Reviews

Siemens S56 Phone (AT&T)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

Hello, I am adding this to my previous review: I have noticed that a lot of people are having huge issues with this phone. I have owned one since July and I still love it. I have only had a few of the minor problems such as it shuts off while navigating menus but that has only happened twice and all my phone book entries were deleted once but if you put them on your SIM chip (have to specifically choose that option) instead of in the phone they are easily recovered. My phone still has all the buttons including the earpiece (I have never majorly dropped it though), gets good reception, and I have not had any echoing problems in the earpiece. I do however find it strange that so many people are having problems with this model when I have had none. Sounds like Siemens needs to work on the craftmanship and warranty coverage of their phones since some of this model seem to be poorly done.
I just got this phone after a lot of searching (it has been discontinued in my area) and I love it. It is a great size for me but not for someone prone to losing things. Also important to note, it is a bit outdated compaired to new phones coming out. Screen graphics are not up to par with newer phones nor are the ringtones so if that is what is important to you, dont get this phone. It is packed with some great features, more aimed at a business person but works for others as well (I'm a grad student). I love the organizer feature, it will remind you of appointments minutes, hours, or days in advance with an alarm even if the phone is off! Does birthdays/anniversaries too! It also let you see the time in various cities around the world, has two cute games, and easy ways to personlize the display. It is true that the ringtones are not very loud and is the one thing I would change about the phone, the choices in the phone are awesome and unique, but there are some great ones available for download at siemens-mobile.com, along with more wallpaper pictures (the wallpaper choices already in the phone aren't that great). At first I was disappointed in the battery but if you read the manual it says to completely charge and discharge five times for best battery life so I did that and now the battery life is excellent (had it on for two days straight with normal usage and only a fourth of the battery meter is down, I use the engery saver setting instead of the screensaver though). I was also a little concerned with signal meter since I don't get a full signal at my house so before my 15 day exchange period was up, I drove through a section of a neighbouring town where cell service is typically not possible. I took three different friend's phones with me (a nokia, a LG, and a motorola) and surprisingly the siemens did the best! At one bar I could still make a call clearer than the other three phones and no drops. I asked the person who sold me the phone about it (she has had for a year and loves it) and she said that three bars on this phone means it is a good signal and rarely will you get all five. One warning, after you make a call with only one bar and disconnect, it will do a network search but it holds onto a signal while you are using it, I've never dropped a call but had it go dead for a few seconds after a call has ended. All in all I am very impressed with this phone, lots of great features packed into a small, stylish unit. You have to consider that the phone I was coming from was not very good so this phone is a relief to me, I'm probably biased.

I've had this phone for two years now and it has served me well.

The internet works well, I havn't noticed the volume problems many other people seem to have experianced, and although the buttons are small, after the first couple weeks the navigating came pretty naturally. The size is an added bonus for those with small pockets or purses.

Note: There IS a vibrating setting which I use constantly, even with the ringer turned on because the ring volume is not very loud.

The only problem I've had with this phone is that the batterie does not hold a charge as long as it used to. This may be becuase I am constantly dropping the phone etc. Still, it wroks well in spite of the abuse!

Overall, I love my tiny phone, and hope it will last for many more years!

I've had my S56 for about 18 months now and I'm pretty pleased with it. The battery life is very good, it's small enough to drop in my jeans pocket, the features (that I use) were easy to figure out w/o reference to the instruction manual. It's also pretty durable - I recently crashed my motorcycle, going off the road at 65 mph, tumbling head-over-heals for @ 75 feet with the phone in my jacket pocket and it survived almost totally intact; only the little chrome cover over the speaker popped off. Full protective gear left me in good shape too, but the bike is a different story...

Only a couple of things to criticize about the phone: the normal volume doesn't go quite high enough in some situations and the keypad is rather small, making it a little difficult to manipulate if your fingers are big. Overall, I think it's a good phone.

Note: As of Oct. '05, Cingular (Houston) no longer provides support for parts on this model.

I used this phone for about a year as my main phone, I think it is one of the coolest looking phones ever made. It supports downloadable ringtones, games, and graphics. It also has wireless internet. It has a color screen although it can only support 256 colors. It also has a speakerphone that can come in handy when wanting to talk handsfree. Overall I love this phone and would definatley recommend it.

I've had the Siemens S56 on AT&T Wireless since June 2004 and have had no problems whatsoever with the phone. If I can, I plan to get the phone unlocked so I can use it on the Cingular plan when we have to switch plans due to the Cingular takeover. This is actually my second Siemens phone and I would recommend the brand.

The Good: I purchased this phone because it was one of the few offered by my provider (Cingular) that could sync with my Macs via Bluetooth. The Bluetooth feature works as advertised, and I'm able to keep my contacts and calendar synched with my Macs very easily.

The Bad: Unfortunately, Siemens apparently did not design this phone with actual usability in mind. The two side buttons (volume/environment and voice recorder) are placed so that it's very easy to press them when you are holding the phone to talk or even just picking it up. I don't know how many times I accidentally invoked the voice recorder just by picking up the thing. Because of these issues, I have to leave the phone locked unless I'm making a call. In addition, the buttons are very tiny and sometimes difficult to press properly.

The Ugly: The feature of this phone that I find the most annoying is the low maximum volume level. Whether you are listening in regular mode, speakerphone mode, or through an earbud, the volume will only reach a certain level - one that's lower than any other cell phone I've ever owned. This makes the phone practically useless when you're trying to talk to someone while on the highway or in a crowded mall. I find it unfathomable that a cell phone manufacturer could produce a phone with such a low volume level.

The Conclusion: A couple of weeks ago I fell while hiking and crushed the phone. It still works, but the display is ruined (although it does have a cool purple and yellow psychedelic design now). You can bet that I won't be replacing this phone with another Siemens model.

If you are thinking about purchasing this phone please do not. I currently have one and only after a few months of owning it the power began to shut off at random times and when I would turn the phone back on all my Ringtone settings will have been changed. Many times the phone will ring and no one will be calling and the only way to get the phone to stop is to turn it off and turn it back on again. Another extremely annoying problem is that after about a month of owning the phone the top oval shaped button fell off and now, having had the phone for nearly 10 months, the one, two, three, five, and six buttons have completely fallen off my phone. Though still on the warrenty, Siemens tells me that if a button falls off they cannot do anything about the phone being a piece of crap. I could continue you on with the numerous problems I have had with this phone but take my advice and if you are ever buying another cell phone do not buy a Siemens. Spread the word.

I have had this phone for 6 months and I am about to have to spend more money and get another phone because I can't deal with this one anymore. The ringtones are not loud at all, it is constantly "network searching" which means I get no signal, even sitting in my living room. But what topped it off for me was last week, when it erased all of my phone numbers and address that I had programmed into it. I called Siemens and they said that this model Number has a tendencey to do that, it goes corrupt and starts deleting everything and I would have to reenter all of my numbers, well I don't have all of them now because some were just entered as I would see someone that I hadn't seen in a while. I asked if there was a recall on this phone and they said there was nothing they could do for me. So I would never recommend this phone or any Siemens product to anyone.

i have had this phone for 4 years and ever since i got it i have stood by my decision. this is a great phone. it is still a lot smaller than most people i know's phones and has all of the same capabilities. it even has speakerphone!

I've had this phone for a year and so far it's been okay. The volume could be better and the speaker phone feature is useless because of it. The memo key is a pain because it's sensitive. It gets ready to record everytime I pick it up.