Sony Ericsson Z520 / Z525
Average Ratings
Good "free" Phone
OK after reading some of the negative reviews I don't understand ... I have had this phone for almost 2 years now and have never had any problems.
Pros:
Phone works just like a basic cell phone should.
Display is easy to read.
Blue-tooth worked fine.
Camera is average at best, but what can you expect from a 1mp camera phone.
The sounds and lights profiles are a cool extra.
Cons:
Only 1 major problem with this phone I have had is the outside PTT button. You can't seem to disable it even if you don't use PTT. So it constantly getting pushed and making a beep sound.
Also the outside volume button is too easy to press and sometimes when trying to grab it you send a call to voice-mail by mistake.
rubbish
I have had this type of phone for over a year now. I have gone through 3 phones and every single one has broken the same way. the screen will all of a sudden stop working. otherwise these phones work great if you are looking for a phone for 4 months. Every time I have called cingular about this phone, they send a new one and it eventually breaks. Now that my warranty is up for the original phone, they won't send another one. hello T-mobile! main point: dont get it.
Excellent Phone
I have owned this phone for a year and love it even after trying a newer phone. I changed service providers and after reading several reviews I chose the Nokia 6263 to replace my Sony Z520. I used the Nokia for a little over a week and promptly switched back to my little Sony.
PROS:
*This phone is incredibly durable.
*Reception is great!
*You can PERSONALIZE this phone extensively!
*It does everything the newer phones do i.e. MP3's, real music ringtones, games, videos, pictures, bluetooth, etc.
*You can turn it up as loud as you need to! (Sometimes too loud)
CONS:
NONE!!!
Decent Phone
My husband and I purchased the same phone. My phone after a ton of use for a year and a half is still kicking, my husbands phone however has died. He rarely used his phone within the year and half time frame.
So based on that
Pros:
Great pick up
Decent size
Great ringtone option
Good speaker phone
Great light effects for rings
Great ring/ vibrate combo
Cons:
Hate the PTT button on the side since we don't use it- wish we could reprogram the button for a shortcut function as we can with the other menu buttons
Picture quality OK...do-able I guess
Oh and my husbands phone died after a year and a half with very, very little use
Not bad but it's got some quirks
I went through two of it's former models before it was updated, and then once it was updated, I went through two more. I was sadly disappointed by a few things.
Pros:
*Looks good, I like that I could change the faceplate on the phone if desired.
*Easy to maneuver.
*Camera is decent, but not the best.
*Sound quality was decent.
Cons:
*Backlighting goes out fairly quickly, I'm thinking within 10 seconds.
*Not a lot of screen options.
*Easy to lose calls if you're pulling it out of your pocket.
*Have went through two of the previous models and two of the current models because the screens go completely out.
*Battery life was not that great.
*Vibrate alert is soft, cannot feel it if it's in your back pocket.
*Not incredibly loud. Which if you have kids, is a must!
So, there you go. I like the phone, but it has some tweaking to do!
Love it.......
I have had this phone through Cingular (AT&T) for about l 1/2 years and Ive had minimal problems with it.
Pros
-camera
-blue tooth
-small yet "rugged" (its not nextel ugly)
-predictive text
-easy to use (hard at first)
-great reception, never had a problem.
-stylish
Cons
-The camera quality isn't the best (but what do you expect with a lower tier phone)
-screen flashes every now and then when you open it. (It looks like the WSD for a split second which freaks you out.)
Good phone, low tier.
Z525a - Terrible quality, but decent talk time
I'm writing this review after I am returning my 3rd phone. First phone blue tooth blew out after 2 days. 2nd phone the screen suddenly went white, but the phone could still make/receive calls (but of course you couldn't see anything). This last one the screen died AND the phone won't work either. Very frustrating! Our other identical phone that my wife has just crashed like #2 above, so I can't help believing that this is a common quality problem. Even before these screeen problems, the phones would occasionally "crash", where the call drops, and the phone completely locks up, and the only way to fix it is to hold the power button for 30sec to turn it off, wait for a few minutes, and then power it back up.
On the good side, the phone does get decent reception, although the signal strength fluxuates dramatically like some other people have mentioned. Talk time seems to be good, as I have been on the phone for several hours before and never ran out of battery.
All things considered, I'd stay away from this phone. Considering that AT&T requires a 2yr contract period and the phone only has a 1yr warranty, that's a problem. And when they replace a phone under warranty, they only give you coverage back to the ORIGINAL contract date. Hopefully my new Nokia 6555 will work better than this Erikkson Z525a did, it has to last me another year+ 73 days without another breakdown...
great phone
I have had this phone for about a year now, and I love it. The PTT button on the side is a pain since you push it every time you open your phone. The only other con is the camera is not the best. The menus are easy to use and the call clarity is great as well as reception range (I live in the boondocks!). I have even dropped this phone in the toilet and after 2 days of drying out IT STILL WORKS! Amazing. I love the looks of the phone and the light effects. All in all, it is a great phone!
Can't use a phone you can't read the display on
Pros: Loud ringtone, good camera, easy to navigate and just the right size
Cons: screen blanks out all the time
I was so impressed with this phone when it came out I got one for my boyfriend, within a couple of months I bought me and my daughter one each. After the first 6 months my boyfriends screen blanked out....sent for a new one 4 months later it blanked out again sent for another. Two months later mine blanked out, sent for another, a month later my boyfriends blanked out, sent for another. Mine blanked out again within two months of getting the last one, a month later his blanked out. I am on this web sight trying to find a differant phone cause Cingular only wants to give us this one and they have a defect to them. I have never had so many phones of the same type do the same thing over and over and they still wont call it a defect. Do not waste your money or your time!
Cheap cheap cheap Z525a
I have the Z525a. It workes good, my phone has not broken or any thing bad. I am going to get an upgrade phone and i cant wait. The Z525a is good at first but so boring. The camera is horrible and it is really thick. I cant wait for another phone. The z525a is so cheap and well boring. If your looking for a phone don't get the z525a, oh u cant because it is discontinued.
