Nokia 5185i
Average Ratings
Great basic phone
This was my first cell phone when my wife and I signed up with Verizon Wireless back in the fall of 2002. My wife and I are definitely *not* cell phone junkies, evidenced by two facts: 1) we shared this phone, and 2) we just recently retired it by means of an upgrade in May, 2006.
We don't own a cell phone to be trendy, take pictures, listen to music, or text message, and so the Nokia 5185i fit our needs just fine. The reason we upgraded wasn't because anything was wrong with the phone at all, we just were eligible for a free upgrade with phones that now have significantly more (useful) features and even better call quality than our Nokia.
Having said that, the Nokia's quality is great. Just during the past few months I had started to notice very occasional buzzing or echoing of my own voice when calling someone, but this was minimal, maybe 1 out of every ten calls, and this would only happen for a fraction of a second. The display is easy to read in both bright daylight and darkness thanks to the backlit LCD screen. If you're OK with no color and lo-res, you'll love it. Another advantage this phone has over many newer models is that it's tough. By today's cell phone standards it's big & bulky, but the tradeoff is a phone that can handle being dropped or abused by little kids (although you may want to make sure the antenna is retracted if your toddler is fooling around with it).
Battery life was fine for us, but as I stated before we're not cell phone junkies so it was no big deal to have it recharge overnight when the battery got low. I've read other reviews which say in comparison to other cell phones this one is very slow to charge up. For us it would take about 4 hours to charge from 1 bar back up to a full 4 bars.
If you want a nice basic phone for Grandma or anyone else who won't care about all the bells & whistles, I highly recommend the Nokia 5185i.
Outstanding Reception
I use this phone in my boat with simple-freedom pay as you service. I have made calls in heavy rain out in the gulf without any problem.
Pros:
*Good display of signal strength and battery power.
*Buttons are large and menu is simple to use.
*I was able to buy a LI vibrating battery with a capacity of 3800mah! Try finding that with the newer phones. My talk time can be up to 23 hours and standby of 24 days.
Cons:
* Clunky, but still fits in case with belt clip
* Can't block unwanted numbers.
Old Faithful
Pros
-GREAT reception
-Loud and clear
-Turns on and off in a flash
-Great Keypad
-Nightvision
Cons
-Brick
-Menus take some time to getting used to
-Short battery life
This phone is the best. Iv had this thing for 5 years and it never fails me. The reception is Great. Seriously, if you get lost in a mine 100 feet under; whip out this baby and ur ass is saved. I love it, This phone really put meaning about old stuff being made to last; I dont think Ill need to get a new phone for about 5 more years. It's discontinued now, but if you ever see this thing on Ebay; get it. The ringtones might not be up to date and the games get boring after a while. But if you dont care about all that crap, this one is for you!
This phone is very reliable!
I got this phone a while ago and I thought it was VERY clunky. But, over the years my father found me great covers to go with it and a nice carrying case. For most people, you need an expensive phone that is small and things like that. But this phone is very easy to use, has nice covers and most of all its durable! Its also very good for beginners.
Awesome phone but time to update
I absolutely love my 2 yr old phone. I've dropped it hundreds of times, my niece slobbered on it when she was little, I've gotten it wet various times (little splash here or there, or water on my hands) and it is still great. My battery has worn out over time and I need to get a new one now and then, but overall, this is the best phone I've seen. It has a lot of features that are basic (text mssging, voicemail, caller id, etc) but I need to update. After working for a cell phone insurance company for 9 months, I'm almost afraid to get anything new for fear it won't hold up if dropped once....I think Nokia needs to update this exact phone with more features and possibly a color screen and I'd be set... I've never had a problem with service. I've been through a good portion of eastern Kansas and even when I'm roaming, i get good service. In cities such as Wichita where Alltel has no service, I still have no problem with getting a signal or sending calls. It's great.
Shotty phone
this phone works and can take pounding if dropped but its bulky and I have not had any good signal strength when I owned one.
Its Skriaght
Well dis phone is skraight if ya lookin for a basic phone wit downloadable ringtones, caller ID, 1- touch dialing, 99 phone book space, emailable features and junk like dat. But if i were you, I would go wit the Nokia 3390 (Voicestream) b/c this phone has more GRAPHIC opitionz and just like dat but dis phone iz very dependable.
