The i850 is only the second camera phone offered to date; Nextel’s Motorola i850 flip phone is one sleek piece of technology. It’s rather heavy compared to other cell phones but just like most other Nextel phones it is very tough and works well. It has all of the goodies you expects when buying a new cell phone with all of the Nextel perks, such as Direct Connect walkie-talkie service, built in GPS, and the standard speaker phone. They have also added to this phone a stylish internal display, improved navigational controls, and a VGA camera. The camera may not compare with other camera phones but it still has one and most people who buy Nextel’s aren’t worried about the camera in their phone. The average Nextel user will ignore the fact that the camera isn’t top of the line and will be focus on the sturdy design and usefulness of the i850.
Priced at $400 for retail and $200 if you sign a contract it is one of the most expensive products Nextel offers.
The i850 isn’t your typical Nextel phone with no tough outer rubber coating, which surprised me a bit, but its hard casing and bulk are reassuring for those of us who like our phones to be durable. The phones dimensions are 3.5 by 2 by 1.1 inches and a whopping 4.3 ounces, the black and gray cell phone is rather on the heavy side. Some users won’t like this phone because considering it size and weight it won’t be that easy to carry around in your jeans pocket.
Even though the phone may have some excess size and weight it more than makes up for it in style. Most Nextel phones aren’t typically astatically pleasing but the i850’s grey and black stylish design holds its own. With the nice black panel with the camera lens strategically placed it gives the phone so pizzazz. The phone has a small exterior display, nothing fancy just shows battery life, time, signal strength, caller ID, and ringer mode. When you open up the phone to the inside display you will be in awe, it supports 262,000 colors, and has a 176X220 pixel screen that goes above and beyond most Nextel phone displays. The i850 has animated menus that are easy to use; one downfall on the menu is you will be required to hit the MORE option to get to other menu options where most phones you simply have to scroll down. This is consistent with most Nextel phones but still bothers me every time in each phone.
The key pad consists of large, flat and easy to push buttons, I love the large, five-way navigation added to the phone. They also have talk and end buttons, the menu key and a separate camera button for easy picture taking. The navigation buttons are also your shortcut keys to four user defined functions. The navigation controls are more spread out on the i850 than most Nextel phones, with the power button now below the keypad. One feature I think the keypad lacks is a clear button, instead you have to press the delete key to get rid of unwanted characters. This same key will exit all menus completely rather than just returning to the main menu, another function I wish they would eliminate.
On the outside of the Motorola i850 you will find the familiar rubber button for the push-to-talk service Nextel is known for. Of course the standard pair of volume keys are just above it so you can control the volume of the phone easily. There is also the standard flap that hides the 2.5mm headset port incase you want to insert some headphones. On top of the phone you find another standard of Nextel phones; the speakerphone button, and an end button to end your phone calls or reject unwanted calls. I like that you have the ability to answer the phone in speakerphone mode while the phone is closed.
The phone also has typical features of the Nextel phones including a 600-contact phone book with room for each entry to contain, email address, IP address, seven phone numbers, and a Direct Connect Number. Also a calendar with month and week views, 9 number speed dialing, a WAP 2.0 wireless web browser, voice recorder, call times, memo pad, text messaging, three-way calling, and onboard GPS. Also included is the Direct Connect walkie-talkie service (including Group Connect, which lets you chat with up to 20 others via PTT at once) and Direct Talk, which gives you out-of-network walkie-talkie chat with another Direct Talk handset at a range of up to 6 miles.
The camera phone doesn’t standup to the competitors in the market, it’s a relatively basic camera. It doesn’t have a flash, but it does have a 4X zoom, five resolution settings, two lighting settings, and a self timer with options of 10 or 20 seconds. The pics will be generic and most users won’t like the quality.
The phone comes with a few Java games such as demos of (Zume, Aces Hold’em, and BlockBreaker). If you want to play full versions you have to buy them though.
I would say the phone quality when in use is good; I have had no trouble with calls all over the US. Doesn’t really sound like you are on a cell phone and both sides are crisp and clear. Battery life was a little better than projected by Nextel, they promise 2.75 hours of talk time but I get about 3 hours of talk time. For standby I got 4 days on a single charge and they project about 3 days, so slightly above average but over time this is sure to decrease.
Overall a great phone, although a little big and bulky it makes up for its size in options and extras. For the price you probably won’t find a better phone offered by Nextel. If you want a camera phone with good quality I suggest a different phone. If you aren’t worried about the camera this is a great phone.
