Customer Reviews

PCS Vision Picture Phone Sanyo PM-8200 Blue (Sprint)

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Let's just say that after working at Verizon for a while, that I have come to realize that their phones are pretty shoddy compared to Sprint's.

While Sprint's total coverage area of america isn't as good as Verizon's, we're here to talk about phones rather than service (although i could argue for Sprint's superiority)...

So after going Sprint, I saw this phone and saw the price. At first I thought I was seeing things, because a feature-equivalent Verizon Wireless phone would sell for easily one hundred more dollars. Well, after the initial shock, I did some research on this little phone, and after purchasing it, verified some things...

Incredible battery life (advertised as 3.5 hours talk time, 12 DAYS standby); although I haven't tested these numbers, I've had this puppy on for a long time and have yet to go under two out of three bars of battery life!

Compact and lightweight...It's a LITTLE smaller than most phones I've encountered, yet the buttons are not too close together at all for someone with big fingers, nor is the screen too small for people who cannot see well.

Nice looking to boot! Definitely the nicest looking phone I've seen in a while (only one that maybe compares is the LG VX6000). It's sleek, and the blue looks really sharp both up close and far away.

Now onto the best parts...The features!

Ready link...Not that I use it, but it's great to have such a thing included if I ever decide to go ready link.

Speakerphone! One of the nicest features about the phone, the speakerphone is VERY loud compared to other phones I have used, and as far as I've been told, I sound pretty decent from my end.

Camera...Has a flash, zoom capabilities, the ability to send picture mail, link a photo to a caller ID (so you see the photo when a particular person calls), etc etc. It's got all the camera features you'll ever need!

Quality of sound...I don't know what other reviewers are talking about, because whether I'm using my plantronics headset, using the speakerphone, or just talking normally, everyone sounds crystal clear! Very rarely will you get some distortion in the way the person sounds, but that may just be a result of the service and not the phone itself. In fact, I would say that is likely.

Key layout...I couldn't rate this high enough! The speakerphone has a dedicated key, as does the camera. The buttons are all spaced out nicely and are big enough for those with big fingers. In terms of layout, this baby trumps all of the verizon phones I've ever used.

Menu layout...Superb! Everything is easy to get to, and the most commonly used menu items (settings, downloads, messaging, and contacts) have one button shortcuts built into the phone! The menu itself is really nicely put together, with every setting put in the logical place (unlike many phones i've used, unfortunately).

What complaints do I have about the phone?

Sometimes the button on the side that's used to answer the phone is a little annoying. Why? Because if you just press it quickly, it'll mute the ring (which is a nice feature). But if you press it quickly, because you're not used to it yet, you'll be sitting there struggling to answer the phone. It's just something that needs some getting used to.

I guess the only other thing I could possibly be disappointed about is that you can't have the date and your personalized 10ish-character greeting display on top of your custom background. You'll still see the time, battery life, service, etc, but not those two things. Why????? It should at least be an option to turn on/off.

So..to summarize...It's the nicest/most reliable/most fun phone i've owned, scoring high in every category. Battery life A+, features A+, layout A+, aesthetics A+, sound quality A (would be a + if I could verify the distortion I SOMETIMES experience is a result of sprint, not the phone).

Oh and one last thing: Unlike most phones you'll buy today, this one doesn't actually seem fragile; it has a very durable feel to it.

To be cliched, go get this phone now!

I don't have the kind of money where I can buy a new phone whenever I get tired of my old one. I'm a college student and need a phone that is reliable and can be on all day. I actually paid less than expected for this phone after all of the rebates!

The main reason that I got this phone was because everyone else had a Sanyo 8200. It was really the word of mouth and seeing the features demonstrated that made me get the phone.

I'm very happy with my phone. I can have it on all day and use it when I need to. I'm home before the battery even tells me that it needs to be charged.

The external color display is nice to have. I like having it over the LCD that my old cell had.

I have more trouble with silencing this phone, though. When the display says that the sound for the ringer was off, the sound for the messages was still on. This can be annoying when you're in class. I found out that I needed to take the volume down one more notch to "Silence All" and the problem was solved.

The signal for this phone is a lot stronger than previous cell phones that I've had. I still go into roaming on occasion, but I don't have the trouble with dropped called or the phone mysteriously shutting off.

Another thing that I really liked about this phone, was that I am able to use the accessories that I had for my Samsung A500. I didn't have to go buy a new car charger or hands-free device. (Though this phone does have a speaker phone option, there are sometimes that the hands-free device is just better.)

The camera is decent quality. I was able to take some pictures of a friend's wedding that I was able to share with her family and friends the next day. I also can take lots of pictures, upload them, then take more pictures. On high resolution, my phone holds about 20-25 pictures.

Perhaps the best feature in terms of the construction of this cell phone is that the plastic is blue all the way through. If the outside of the phone gets scratched, you won't have a cream colors line. (This was a problem with a Samsung phone that I had. It had been scratched after 2 years of use, and the silver paint was coming off. I had flat gray plastic on the edges of my phone.)

I went to an electronics store, and the wanted about thirty bucks more for the red or blue phones. However, if you get the phone from Amazon, there isn't a different in what you pay based on color!

One improvement that I wish Sanyo would make is to have colorful hard plastic cases (kind of like the ones Nokie offered for the Nokia 5100 series phones). Other accessories would be nice, but I would just like to have something neat to protect my phone and to change it's personality a bit.

First off, the color isn't blue, it's more of a cobalt, and I love the cobalt. The speaker on the outside is loud. I can actually hear this phone ringing as opposed to many other flip phones. The color LCD on the outside is just one of those extra things that you don't need, but is really awesome to see who is calling. The screen quality (for both screens) is amazing. Very sharp colors. The phone doesn't flip open and closed easily, it clicks... and that's good because it's not always falling open all the time and I'm not worried about it breaking the hinge.

My only quarrels with the phone are that it is sort of confusing at first to navigate around and figure out all the settings (since there are so many) and you are not able to change the default soft keys for the main screen.

I got a hold of this phone about a month ago and have to say that I am pleased overall. It is my 4th Sprint phone, and is my second favorite- a big boost over the old Sanyo 4500, but not quite the great reception of the Samsung 8500 (1st generaion Sprint phone). I have found that the reception is the problem of Sprint's network, and not the phone itself, so I cannot throw any fault at Sanyo.

Beyond the reception, the phone is stacked with features. The camera is a nice one, and I like to take pictures of places I am at and share them with people not with me before I erase them. The quality is not of a digital camera, but for someone just using them for kicks like I do, its alright. The zoom on the camera is a little tricky, but another nice touch, as is the flash and the frames you can put around the pics.

Another great feature is the speaker phone- it is way clearer than landline speakerphones that I have used, and is a great alternative to a clumsy headset.

Also, the screens are tight, with brilliant color and clear resolution. Still, what happened to some free screen savers and games. Even the games on here are trials - you get interrupted in the middle with a clever reminder that the game must be purchased using Sprint online. I am surprised sometimes that you dont have to pay a fee to just open the phone sometimes.

Another problem with the phone is the lack of accessories, partly due to its newness- I blew 30 beans on a Sprint leather case, but it can't hold a torch to the Bodyglove Ion or Cellsuit cases. Still with time this I am sure will be fixed.

I got the phone with a lot of rebates and think the cost/benefit is phenomenal. Still, I dont know about the 280 price tag. Overall, though, this is a great phone, as far as Sprint phones go, that is.

The last PCS cell phone I owned was the venerable SCP-8100 from Sanyo. It was a cute little phone that was the second cell phone from any U.S. carrier that could take pictures. (The first-ever model was the SCP-5300 also from Sanyo, released in July 2002.) The PM-8200 addressed two shortcoming of the 8100: 1) camera quality, and 2) speakerphone.

The 8200 sports a higher-resolution built-in camera. Picture quality is also improved. The old 8100's pictures often had streaks and distorted colors. The 8200's pictures look much better. The speakerphone is definitely a great addition for those of us who like to multi-task yet dislike headsets. The volume and clarity could be a little better, but given the compact size of this phone, it's not bad.

Reception on the 8200 is great, thanks to its external antenna. Battery life is good, unless you save a lot of things in memory, which depletes battery faster the more stuff it holds. The phone is attractive and can be customized in many ways, not to mention it comes in three colors. To Sanyo, I suggest you use the iPod Mini color scheme, because not many people like big red!

In summary, the 8200 delivers lots of improvements over the already-excellent 8100. If you have Sprint or plan to get Sprint, this is the phone. If you want video recording, check out the Toshiba phone for Sprint.

I was looking for phone w/ good functionality. I could careless about the bells and whistles. Custom ringtones, screensavers, games? Who cares! I remember when phones were just phones. But I must confess this time around I wanted a camera in my phone. I'm always using my digital camera but because it's so big and bulky (plus who wants to drag around a digicam when you're in a poolhall or bar?) I rarely have it with me. After doing my homework I settled on the 8200 and wow was I ever impressed! The camera works great but obviously it can't compare to my 4MP digicam. But whenever I need a camera I can always count on my phone being there w/ me. The rest of the phone is great. The menu is intuitive and very easy to use. The speakerphone is clear and web browsing just as good. Although navigation can be kind of tricky at times. Overall a very well balanced phone. I highly recommend this!

After having several cell phones, the Sanyo 8200 is definitely the best cellular phone. My last phone was indeed the Sanyo 8100 and Sprint has done a great job upgrading. By adding the speaking phone to the two-way radio, I have enjoyed this phone more than ever. Can you believe the phone even comes in three different colors to match your own style? The blue was a great choice for someone like me that drops his or her phone frequently. The phone has an awesome picture quality due to the built in flash. This allows the pictures to come out nice and clear. The menu is really neat with the large letters that makes it easy to see and cool pictures to make it fun. The text message has been a great improvement from the 8100 because now you do not have to log onto the net, you can just send. When listening with the flip open or close, the sound is great. You have a variety or sound levels that come out nice and clear. All of these things are hard to find in such a small phone, only 3.64 ounces. Your service as well gets better with the better phone. Believe me, you will love it.

Nice little phone. I find the sound quality to be very clear. To the reviewer who said all their calls sounded like the person to whom they are talking had swallowed a bag of marbles I would have to suggest they take it back to Sprint for a replacement. The only thing I would avoid purchasing is the "Voice Command" service at $5 a month. It actually takes you longer to call using the Voice Command service than it does using the voice dialling already built into the Phone. I love this phone. And the camera actually takes decent pictures.

This phone is great to look at, and works like a charm. The talk time allows for long conversations before recharging, the internet and messaging capabilities are very user-friendly, and setting up the phone book, calendar and alarms were a breeze. I hear callers clearly, and love the speakerphone option for hands-free conversations. The standard ringers, games and backgrounds are cute, but there is also a wide variety available for download inexpensively. The phone accepts ReadyLink calls (walkie-talkie capability) which I have yet to try. And the phone can be linked to one's PC for downloading the pics taken with its camera. Did I mention the phone has a ton of memory, too?
I LOVE my new phone. I'm sure if you buy it, you'll feel the same.

I got this phone only a few hours ago and I love it. I was looking for a phone with a camera and a speakerphone, it exceeded by expectations. I love the look of the phone; it's light and slim.The service is great and everything is so easy to hear. The camera works great as does the speaker. I downloaded a ring earlier thinking i was going to hear different beeps and was super suprised when I heard a bit of the actual song. This phone is great, I couldn't ask for much more.