Kyocera Strobe K612 / SwitchBack
Average Ratings
Long lastng does have some flaws but relatively a great phone lasted me 3 yrs! and is still ticking
I agree with the last 2 reviews This phone although some flaws is actually a pretty great phone. I just wish I could get a good GPS service on it (and through revol, actual full music download not just ring-tone, and a bit better picture resolution). It has lasted me now 3 years and has been dropped numerously, left in hot stuffy purse alot or in couch etc lol, lost 5 times and I had to go get it back. Has had 4 kids always messing with it. I had to have the motherboard repaired 3 months ago but that was after over 2 years of having it and mainly cause well like I said being dropped alot and kids messing with it. The qwerty keypad is great for fast texting. And I played games on it easily. Sims city, 21 card game, CSI and more. It has been a tough cookie for me but now I want to upgrade to more advance phone and maybe different servicer. Revol would be really on top if they got more blackberry phones and that and GPS service. and better service range for ppl who travel alot. i don't so having extended service coverage ain't really a big thing for me. But it can be bought through revol and added to plan I guess. I give this phone props for it's durability, toughnes,and easy texting and gaming capabilities. As for it's picture and picture mail capabilities not so good but hey that's what they made digital cameras for right?
Well i think personally this phone should be brought back and just given some boost for better resolution and picture transfer capability and picture mail. As well be great if got gps then i wouldn't get rid of it but that's a long shoot esp in the next 30 days time lol.
S hopefully my little baby will find another owner to put it to use.
Until then she's sitting next to my computer.
Awsome phone
I was really sad that they stopped making this phone I never had any problems with that phone but the charging port went bad so thats why I still don't have it> The only complaints I have about this phone is the front key pad was way too small and the charger was impossible to find. other then that the phone was like a tank i dropped threw it aginst the wall dropped it in the bath tub and it was still working too bad they still dont make this phone it was awsome
Great keyboard for texting without spending much
If you want the best phone spend whatever a month and a few hundred and get an Iphone or blackberry, but if your concern about budget get a Strobe, I got one for my teen son about 9 month ago , he has dropped several times , I seen the dog walking with the phone twice and its still working great ,my son text all the time, really all the time, . I call my son and he never answers ,I text him and it seems as if i just hit send and hes replying, the carrier is Virgin mobile and their so good my son get free minutes all the time because he does something on line I still don't understand ,some rewards stuff, anyway I messed my Iphone (ATT) recently and had to use his phone for a day , I was very impressed (because I know how he treats it) on the speakers but more on the texting ,it was a breeze , I told him as a joke that I was keeping it and getting him another new phone , he was upset because he knew this phone is discontinued and could not get the same ,It would had been a great commercial for Kyocera, . I went on ebay and got one for me as a spare , for only 65 bucks with 3 accessories, unveliebable! I have an Iphone (3g brand new with att) and use this virgin strobe when i get frustrated and need to text fast
this phone sucks!!!!!!
i got this phone in November and it sucks i had it sitting next to the sink for 5 minutes i came back and the internal screen went blue i mean completely blue! if this has ever happened to you on this phone and you fixed it plz tell me how you fixed it!
This Phone is Amazing! Buy one if you still can!
Pros: QWERTY keyboard, TWO screens, well lit, great speakerphone, great sound
Cons: Fades out every once and a while
I got this phone from my friend when she got her new LG Scoop through Alltel. She gave it to me because she knew I liked the phone for a while. When she gave it to me, it was w/o a charger. When she had it, the charger blew. But after fidling around, i got another phone battery to fit so I can charger that. But the features are great, having the QWERTY keyboard is a very nice plus, and one big and one small screen is great b/c if the battery is running low, you can switch from the big screen to the smaller one. Bluetooth helps and web access is something I NEED! I've seen other reviews say that the screens blanks out and stuff dont work. If you take care of it, it will keep working. I had a Motorola C139 prior to this through Tracfone. BLAH! This has became a nice upgrade. Thanks Kyocera for something great.
This is the worst Phone ever
This was a great phone from the start but now i have had it for almost 2yrs and its horrible.I think that this phone was a big gimmick the battery life is not good at all.The phone has a mind of its own it turn on and off by itself.The best thing about this phone is the texting quality but thats only at first.(One time I forward a mssge to my friend and she resent it to me and it was in a foreign language something i had never seen in my life.)How strange.
I wouldn't advise nobody to get this phone it a piece of trash with a keyboard.
Strobe away from me!!!!!!!!!
I am very glad the people here at phonescoop know this phone sucks. I dont have to waste time. But my bro had this phone. It was cool at 1st. The way it looks and all. But no video. ANd the photo sucks. U dont know who u took a pic of. and it is slow sending a message. It turns off randomly. Do not get it. thanks bubuy. o and i gave this phone a .5 JUST because it has a qwerty keyboard
0 Stars
-I've had 2 of these phones.
PROS:
You can drop it and it won't hardly break
I would rate the speakerphone about a 5. It's allright.
CONS:
The camera sucks
It powers off a lot
They had a thing out a year ago where the phone was notorious for getting a piece in the charger[home or car] stuck inside the phone when charging. That happened to me and they wouldn't replace the phone or charger, even though I had only bought the car charger a little over 2 weeks from when it broke and used the charger once.
Not very good; but not too bad
so, i must admit that i'v gotten used to the phone becaus eive had it for almost two years. it was one of my birthday presents. but i learned that you cant just buy a phone for its looks.
when i FIRST got it, it wouldnt send picture messages. eventhough i HAD it in my network, but it'd freeze up so i would take the battery out since pressing end wouldnt do ANYTHING. this would happen constantly. and when i wasnt in a hurry i would just set it aside and wait till it unfroze. and, well, it stopped freezing after a while, but itd turn off when i would press send on a picture message. recently i can send picture messages with no problem.
i am getting a new--different phone this week because just recently a few buttons on the front stopped working. the two main buttons for the menu dont work. meaning, i cant take my phone off keyguard so i have to use the inside of the phone for EVERYTHING. the right button on the little circle thing doesnt work either. the green cll button doesnt work either. so to pick up my calls i have to open it first, press the green button and then close it again. ha!
i dont know how it got that way, i really dont.
though the phone has fallen in water, and
on the phone and stuff, and its very strong because the screen didnt get messed up or anything. one good thing about it.
the camera.... is okay. i really like the; "low light mode". thats great :)
the battery doesnt last very long and ive had to get about 5 new chargers for this phone.
they would just stop working or the little piece that you put into the phone would fall off or break. horrible.
i wouldnt recommend you get this phone. totally not worth the $200 i spent on its; good looks.
PS. the web browsing sucks, because you never have; "sufficient memory".
oh and the bluetooth is HORRIBLE.
not once have i been able to send ANYTHING through bluetooth. and it bothers me a hell of alot.
No Complaints ! !
I've had this phone for over a year now. I wanted "phone" features. So I don't take points off for the mediocre camera. I've got a good camera. And I've got a good phone.
I've got fairly large hands and I don't have any problem with the small keys. I can thumb text the Querty keyboard faster than some people can input on a full sized keyboard using all of their fingers.
The oddly placed keys on the front keyboard were just a matter of adapting. I don't have any problem dialing by feel. And I use it to text when I only have one hand free.
I use a Jabra bluetooth with this phone most of the time. Works flawlessly. Voice ID, Voice Answer, and Voice Dial enable me to use the phone for most phone purposes all day long without ever touching the phone. I love that.
I like the extremely small, compact, and very rugged design. It's more important than having larger keys and larger screens and more features. You can't have both so I don't take off points for the small and necessarily oddly placed keys on the front of the small Querty keys.
Internet capability was a pleasant and unexpected surprise which I find that I now use all day long. The limited memory capability of the phone places some restrictions on what you can or can't do with the internet, but I find it capable of negotiating many of the websites that I typically use quite well.
This phone has the best reception, sound quality, and signal strength that I've used to date. I'm almost always getting good reception and am able to make calls in areas where friends and associates using other phones can't even get a signal. As far as I'm concerned, that feature alone makes up for any shortcomings the phone may have in its accessory features.
I like it and if it croaked today, I'd probably go get another one. They're still being sold by Kyocera and my carrier.
