Category: Geeks r Us
I've just found out that Nextel came out with a phone that's believed to be able to be able to support the mobilespeak software, unfortunately it's a flip phone, and I'm not good with those. I've heard some people on this list say they've had flip phones and been satisfied with them, so could someone please give me some tips on how to become used to using one?
At this point it takes me a pretty good while just to dial one number.
I don't see what's so different about flip phones versus regular phones. In fact, flips seem to be better because the number pad is way far away from the screen on another part of the phone in itself! The only problem I have with cell phones nowadays, flip or not, is the contrast they use for their buttons. I was lucky that the Motorola V180 had silver buttons on a black background because most of the phones in the Cingular store I saw were either silver on silver or black on black. Those razor phones are awful because it's just one flat panel and there's no raised up buttons for anything! The only other difficulty I've seen someone have with a flip phone was a friend of mine who can only move one hand, so she had to find a way to nudge the phone with her chin to get it to start to flip open and then let gravity take its course flipping it open the rest of the way.
Good evening Juliet. I have used both flip and bar phones and really this comes down to what is easier for you. Bar phones are great because there is nothinkg to open however many people dislike the fact that it is easy to press keys while the phone is in a pocket or purse. I have actually had an associates phone call me and leave a message and all that was on the message was his conversation with his wife about what would be for dinner. Okay I enjoyed that one because I just love dinner. There are keyboard locks to prevent this however many people forget to use them. flip phones are nice because wehn closed the screen and keyboard are protected however opening them with one hand is a bit difficult. Motorola has a phone out carried presently by TMobile that can be opened with one hand due to a unique magnitic hinge. it does not support any of the talking softwaers. Also, you will want to pay attention to the buttons. Many flip phones such as samsung have the keys very flat and it is difficult to feel the difference. I have gotten used to this but many people dont like that. I use a motorola v551 and well now you would get the v557 same phone with some other silly features. this phone has very distinct buttons and is easy to feel and use. again, it doesn't supprot the talking software. I would say go look at some phones and decide what you need it to do. By the way, My flip has been dropped, kicked, and stepped on and works fine so they are quite durable.
John, thanks for that input. As Juliett knows, I'm now a Nextel user with the I355. I came to it kicking and screaming because I find many people who use the Walkie Talkie feature have the thing so loud that its really annoying. I'm glad to hear the things you said about the flip phones on the positive side.
Lou
Motorola V180's are only durable for about two years or so. My dad's a trick driver and he wore his phone on a belt clip and it often got banged around while he was climbing in and out of the truck. One time, the clip broke and his phone went skidding across the truck yard and that popped the battery cover off and the battery out. He was able to reassemble it, but it slowly died on him, so we now have bar phones, Nokia 6030's. I think I forgot to mention that the Motorola V180 flip phone had easily distinguishable keys by feel. the framing around them was hard plastic while the number keys were softer. The menu keys weren't as soft and were flat, but I think they had dots on the arrow keys so you'd know which arrow was which. My Nokia 6030 bar phone is all black with the numbers written in white paint and has chrome arrow buttons and a big black OK button in the center. The other menu buttons are a bit hard to distinguish though. They're black and flat with the exception of the top two having blue markings on them, the bottom left having a green marking on it, and the bottom right having a red marking on it.
I have a phone that doesn't flip. It's a plain phone. I like that kind better because I'm used to the cordless phone at home, and I use it the same. I'm not sure but the regular phones look more durable than the flip phones because if you open the phone just a little too much, snap! The phone will snap into, I think. I can tell one button from another and I use a joystick that acts like arrow keys.
I personally prefer flip phones better to the candy bar style alternatives, although I did use a Nokia 6620 for about a year and a half before receiving my AT&T 8525 PDA a couple of months ago. I have never had many problems using a flip phone, even when relating to their keypads, the buttons on which some people might find hard to distinguish. I was even able to, after awhile, learnn to feel the buttons through the plastic overlay of a protective case (The nibs on either side of the five key after awhile made slight indentations in the plastic with which I could orient my hand to the rest of the buttons). I am guessing that the fact that I have small hands has probably helped me in this respect, but it could still be possible for those who don't to learn the keypad with a little practice.
Oops, the "better" was not supposed to be in my last post...
I had a flip phone before, and I had no problem with it. The buttons were easy to tell apart, but it didn't talk like this new one does.
I use a flip phone from versioon that talks and I've had no problem with it.
yes, I remember that phone treky4. It had a nice natural sounding voice.
Note: for Amethyst Moon For your friend who is having difficulty using two hands on a flip(I realize this post was a while ago) the motorola Pebl can be opened with one hand. The keyboard is the flat kind sorta razer like so that might be a problem but when holding the phone in a hand sliding the dront part of the flip down it will spring open. it uses magnits to hold it closed. it's the best sounding phone I have ever used. I use now the TyTN which is the unlocked unbranded version of the cingular 8525. If I didn't need the PDA functionality i would go back to the PEBL. Fantastic phone.