Motorola V195 / V197
Average Ratings
Pretty Good
Can't wrong with this phone -- if you looking for a reliable phone - can't go bad with this.
Pros:
Rugged - I received this used .. the amount of beating the phone has taken is incredible but everything works.
Speakerphone : Loud and clear .. still
Signal: Excellent
Call Quality: Clear - never a problem
Battery: Better than any phone I have seen
Features: has everything you can ask for.
Cons:
Some menus could have been designed better but really not that bad. The ring tone selections could have had better navigation -- but it works, so why complain.
V195 - bulletproof phone!!
I got this phone as a free upgrade w/ T-Mobile 2 years ago (they immediately discontinued it for the revised V195S, MyFaves-capable. Arrgh! Still a great phone).
It has been the best phone I've ever owned. It's been used, abused, dropped, etc. over the two years I've had it, and except for a few scratches on the case, shows little wear & tear. The clamshell cover is still tight & springy.
PROS: very durable phone; bluetooth was nice to have at the time (still is); good battery life; better than average reception; great features - calculator, calendar, alarm clock, phone book, call log; Hi-Fi Ringers/Megatones; easy to use/navigate.
CONS: a basic phone, doesn't have a lot of bells & whistles as far as camera/video, music player, etc; speakerphone function doesn't work great; recently some calls received scratchy, w/ static - might be age of phone; Central Navigation ring-key acts up, locks one direction or another at times (just started - again, probably due to age)
The Pros definitely outweigh the Cons, most of which I think are age or wear-related. The best phone by far for a first-time C-phone user!
The best.
The Motorola v195 is nearly perfect, if not perfect, as a basic cell phone. In it's offering as a base line phone, or lower end phone, it has few equals.
It's basic phone functions have few peers against ANY cell phone. No, the phone does not have a Bose music system or 16 gig of memory, nor will it surf well or have a spreed sheet ect. But I just wanted a pure and simple phone. I had the Samsung sgh T219 and I would have been hard pressed to call it mediocure. I then tried the Nokia 2760 and the Nokia 3200 and they fell into the same catagory as the Samsung. Only one bar of strength at work (outside) poor battery life and a few other mediocure problems.
My wife's starter (bottom line- pay as you go)Nokia 6030 candy bar phone was an exception to this. It is everything the Motorola v195 is. I just needed a clamshell design.Both my wifes Nokia 6030 and this Motorola v195 offer phonominal 1100 milliamp batteries with long run times. Both phones offer clean clear recieve and transmitted calls with plenty of volume. I enjoy mostly full bars everywhere and glad to have the two phones. Both phones are very durable and stylish. Neither phone have much in the way of non phone googaws and gimics that suck up your money and distract you from the merits of a good basic phone.
I do not understand why Motorola and Nokia can't offer this same standard of basic phone excellence in every model they produce. Many of there higher end phones do not compair to the v195 and the 6030, yet to be so much more expensive. Do not put down the two phones because of what they don't have. That would be unfair as they were not designed for that market. Bottom line is that the Motorola v195 and the Nokia 6030 are both very excellent.
v195 outstanding
Excellent basic phone, if you don't need the fancy stuff this phone is rugged and dependable the battery life is second to none. Highly recommended for somebody that does not need a camera or Internet. Voice quality is also very good.
OVERALL GOOD
V195s Overall a very good phone for my intended use (as a phone - just a phone).
Battery life is OUTSTANDING 10-12+ days on standby and still 2 power bars.
Signal reception EXCELLENT (I live near international air freight hub and the towers play hell with most phones - BUT NOT THIS ONE -- also works well in and around the Franklin County, Ohio Courthouse which bristles with signal jamming equipment;; yes kiddies, it IS there they just don't publicize it. Speakerphone is iffy sometimes - but, it IS a cell phone. Audio voice reception can get?? once in a while but,, it IS a cell phone. SAR rating supposed to be high but so what - the govt. who dumped agent orange on me in the 60's now worrys abt. this --"lemme up, I can't get a breath"
Good phone lots of bang for the buck grab one from TMO TO GO while they'r still there ($39.99) flip your sim card and blather away - this phone reminds me of the old Camrys - get one and say "see you later" (while meaning Next Decade)
Great Phone EXCEPT for Voice Dialing
I researched Motorola phones for over a month before settling on the V197. I donât need a camera or all the âBells & Whistlesâ and this one seemed to have everything I needed and wanted. One thing that was important to me was Voice Dialing, Iâm a quadriplegic and itâs easier for me to speak the name than dial. I figured with 10MB of memory there would be no problem⦠WRONG! I just got off the phone with a Motorola supervisor who told me this phone only has enough âVoice Dial Memoryâ for five â seven numbers and offered me a whole 10% off a different phone if I wanted to purchase a new one from them. I purchased two of these phones and was only able to program 5 (five) numbers on both phones!
The phone works GREAT, but if you want Voice Dialing, this is NOT the phone you want!!!
Worth its price
Bought this phone last week from tmobile's website. Took UPS 3 days to deliver it to my address in Seattle.
Phone sells for 40 dollars with web instant rebate and is sent with a promo (at the time of this posting) refill card worth 25 dollars. That means you're paying 15 bucks for the phone which is a good deal.
Tmobile's shipping out the V195s which is the fixed version of the V195. The issues with the call static have been addressed. I spent almost an hour calling someone by speakerphone, headset and the phone itself and experienced no problems.
Excellent battery life. Excellent basic phone. Too bad it doesnt ship with the software so you could put your fave mp3's in it. Puts out a SAR rating of 1.6 though. The maximum legally allowed in the US. If you believe any of that stuff and the alleged danger it poses then that might be a concern.
Durable construction, rubber grip feel.
One more thing, there's a voice recorder thingy that's pretty useless. You cant listen to yourself.
Great Phone
I bought the V195s because I wanted a back up phone and I read the reviews on Phonescoop.com and decided to buy. I must say I was a little skeptical at first but I am very pleased with the phone. It doesn't have a camera but I don't need one, the call clarity is excellent and there's plenty of volume. Battery life is great as well. I also like that the USB and headphone ports are hidden under the phone and protected by the pull down, slide out cover. As stated before this phone does not have all the bells and whistles but if you want a basic phone for calling and texting this phone is a great buy. I paid $54.00 on the T-Mobile web site, had to extend contract but was well worth it.
