Motorola C290
Average Ratings
Terrible phone - don't waste your money
I've owned this phone for about 2 months. After two weeks of normal usage it started messing up on the text messages, would show that there were new ones but wouldn't let me access them, would show symbols instead of letters, wouldn't let me get into options. The following day it started rebooting itself, to the point that I couldn't do anything with it. It was replaced by Sprint because they couldn't fix it. The second one is at sprint right now being 'fixed' (I've had it about 4 weeks). Same problem: normal usage, worked great I really had no complaints about service/reception, sound quality etc. and then started turning off/on on it's own, shows there are unread text messages but won't let you access them etc. I've been told by the sprint rep that even if this second phone needs replacing I CANNOT get a different model, so until this one becomes obsolete I am more or less stuck with it. I am definitely NOT a happy customer. Don't get this phone - you will regret it!!!
Great Cheap, Basic Phone
This is my second cell phone. I previously had a Nokia with Cingulair a few years back.
To start, I am not a cell phone expert or connoisseur. I basically wanted the smallest phone I could find that functioned as well as any other as a phone. This works out perfectly. It serves its function well. The sound quality is very good. It is very small. I can slip it into my pocket without lots of bulk. I forget it's there unless it rings. It does have a nice, solid rubbery feel. The LCD display is a good size, and it's operation is intuitive and easy to learn. The one thing I'm not crazy about is the layout of the keys....kind of chaotic and confusing looking, no nice little rows like normal phones. I'm getting used to it.
It's considered basic but has more features than I will ever use anyway. If you want a small phone that works well for its intended function, this one is perfect. If you want a digital camera, a video recorder, a GPS device, a printer, or a phone that will vacuum the house for you while you are sleeping, you will probably need to consider a more expensive model.
Overall, no complaints. The C290 is a nice little phone.
Replaced Nextel i830 with Sprint C290
This is an excellent phone. It's microphone is very sensitive and can pick up my voice from the passmark seat while driving in the Speaker phone mode. I must admit that the Speaker isn't as loud as the Nextel Motorola i830. Nextel's Speakerphones are amazing in bass in the voice. Had to change Networks due to drop calls on the Nextel area on Northern Long Island. I was losing 8 out of 10 calls, Now with the Sprint c290 have not had one drop call at all. The phones in my opinion are not a good feature. I already have enough digital camera for that! Buttons are easy to use and the Menu is so User Friendly. For a basic phone, I love it and would reccommend to anyone. If you want the Mercedes of phones, I'm sure this one isn't for you. As long as I can get all three network (2 digital and one analogue) then I'm happy with no drop calls. And the Speaker-phones works good, I'm happy. I still can access the web and use text messaging. MY opinion the size is right, it feels great and it's transmission clarity is excellent as well as the receiving clarity. I'm in a very hilly terrain on the North Shore of Long Island. If it can work here, it can work anywhere!! Excellent phone in my opinion and I've owned everything from the top of the line ones to the cheapest of the cheap. For $30 bucks for a 2 year contract it's excellent.
Cool!!
It looks cool and the feel in my hand is really great. It's less than 30 dollars, and never seen a phone feeling this good but this cheap.
Phone book is a bit hard to understand at the first time, but it can store 500 numbers!! Also the speaker phone is so loud that I can really use this in my office for a conference. Usually no other phone has a real "speaker phone" function although they say they do. I can also easily change the volume of calls by using the keys on the left side of the phone. I already have over 90 contacts in my phone book, and it moves so quickly that I can easily find any numbers. Also I can press any letter to find the contacts.
Mostly, it's cool and I would recommend my friends to buy this phone.
Fatal Error
I really, really wanted to like this phone. I'm not looking for anything fancy, just a basic reliable phone with decent memory and sound quality. Unfortunately the "reliable" part doesn't describe this phone.
The problem with my phone was that three times in as many weeks, it refused to connect and displayed "your phone is not registered on a network". From then on it simply would not connect or receive calls. So I powered it down - woudn't you? Well, guess what happens then: it won't power on again unless I remove and replace the battery. The last straw was when I powered it down and it locked up. Unfortunately I didn't know it locked up until I picked it up an hour later to find it warm and the battery almost dead (I had just charged it). No amount of key pressing would do anything, and I had to do the battery remove/replace thing again. Not my idea of fun. This one's going back to Sprint. I will not consider another Motorola phone. Moto, are you listening? If this is how you want to introduce yourselves to the Sprint market, you lost this customer for good.
Pros:
- Good reception, not one dropped call yet.
- Good ear volume, and it seems you hear your own voice through the earpiece as you're speaking - I think this is known as "sidetone" and keeps you from shouting. Nice touch.
- Good voice quality.
- Compact construction, seems well built. No wonder I wanted to like this phone!
Cons:
- Speakerphone is barely adequate.
- Battery life indicator shows full charge for a long time, making me think it had great battery life. Unfortunately it plummets dramatically: two bars become one then none very quickly.
- Included ringtones s__k. None of them sounds anything remotely like a ringtone I'd want to listen to. Yecch.
- You can record your own ringtones: record them as a "voice memo" and set them to a ringtone. Good! Unfortunately (there's that word again) you can't record them a loud enough volume to be useful as ringtones, and the recording quality is poor.
NOT AGAIN!!!! DREADED Moto c290
I purchased this phone from Sprint and it is my first and second Sprint phone:
I started noticing a fading signal after two weeks, but I thought it was just the network... then I started missing calls and getting voice mails since the phone would not ring. You name it this phone does it... drop calls, no signal, fading signal, short battery life (average 48 hours)... no service in my own home where the other line on our account has full service (all bars). This phone is useless and not worth a penny. That was only the start of it... the mail-in-rebate check that we received for our other phone (Sanyo) was the same check number that Sprint said they sent for my c290.
I finally got tired of having a phone that I could not use and sent it to Motorola after exhausting all my local resources. More than a month later Motorola contacted me with the information that they had lost my 1st c290, so they would send me a new one.
I was pleased to receive the new phone... until I started having the exact same problems two weeks later. So my 2nd c290 has become just as worthless as my first one.
I would recommend this phone to nobody, not even Satan himself should put up with such a piece of junk!!!
Whatever you do... do not get a c290... its not even worth getting paid to take one!!!!
-wolvz_07
HORRIBLE HORRIBLE LITTLE PHONE
I just got this phone last week from Sprint. Now I understand why it was free. I have to take the battery out and put it back in at least 7 times a day. I have dropped calls at 3 times a day. And I keep getting the message, not registered on the network. What's up with that? I guess i got what I paid for.
Anyone considering this phone.........DON'T!!
Horrible Motorola Product
Pros
-Good Look
-Solid Built
Cons
-Poor Signal
-Screen to dim in bright environments
-Sound quality on earpiece is horrible
-Sound quality on speakerphone is horrible
-Interface is too slow
-Phonebook interface is horrible
-Lack of feature with text messaging
-100 contact phonebook
-No alerts for instant messaging
-Non stop errors wit SPCS Vision
1)"Parcer Error"
2)"Connection Failed"
-Poor Battery Life
Upon first impression, I though the c290 was a pretty well built phone. The outside, although lacking the external caller I.D., was a rubbery feel to it...seemed like it would uphold to scratches and drops and what not pretty well. The flip was pretty good and the antenna was decent. Okay, the only flaw that I didn't like about the appearance of the phone was the absense of a charging port protector (like Nextel phones). They have prevented water entering my phone on numerous occasions. The absence of the external caller i.d. wasn't a big deal for me, as I really never used them anyway.
Overall, this is a poor Motorola phone. Props to Sprint for trying to get back with Moto (since they have the Nextel agreement), but I mean damn...if you're going to do it, do it right. I would not recommend this phone to ANYONE!!!
Spend the extra ten dollars and get the VI2300!!!
Ringtones
After testing, this phone will accept an AAC ringtone, midi ringtone and what Sprint PCS sends this phone(Somewhere between an AMR or QCP with a handler). An AAC ringtone can be set as a ringtone but will not play from the phone's native audio player. I guess that's one way to make a cheap phone.
