Looking for a simple cell 'phone.

J

J&J13

Joined
Jul 22, 2003
Messages
196
Look, I know this is the Gadget place, and I love'em too, but things are going a little too far for my tastes. Betcha a few of you can relate.

T E L E P H O N E.

See, I don't wanna play video games, or surf the net, or download cartoons; I'd just like to make a call.
Maybe some big buttons, too, I'm getting tired of using a toothpick on the right side of this button, fingernail on the left of that one + the center of those two to get to the address book; hey, I've got a pad of paper and a pen for that.
(well, come to think of it, guess I am b*tching, after all)
I've checked Consumer Reports, any other ideas?

Oh, yeah, remember push-button car stereos? More cool simple. Whatdaya got now: Let's see, sound and light show in the dashboard, 16 pre-sets for the EQ, custom graphics, um...where's the manual for this thing...DITCH! (Honest, Ossifer, I was trying to adjust my baud rate and the tree just jumped out in front of me)

Hope I'm not getting off on the wrong foot here, but is there anywhere to get new-old stuff?

Thanks.
 
I have a Nokia 5160. It's a basic phone, and the biggest hunk of garbage I've ever used. I could go into details if you care, but just stay away from that series phones and you'll be better off. I don't know how many times I've wanted to smash it with a sledgehammer. It's pure krap.

Sorry for the rant.
 
This is very dependant on what phone company you are using as they all seem to use different models. When I bought my last one I knew I wanted somehting that had the best reception in fringe areas after the previous 2 dropped calls like crazy. If you search google groups you will find there are groups dedicated to the various mobile service providers. Go to one that you use or are interested in and run a search for best reception. I have Sprint and use a Sanyo 4900. It has been a very good phone and the best receptionog 4 Sprint phones that I have used. There are more current models out there of this same line but I don't need the bells and whistles.
 
This is pretty simple: Decide which wireless company you want, then get the cheapest phone they offer. Good phone companies...Motorola & Samsung.
 
THIS I can relate to!!:grumpy: I,too, only want to
use a cell phone as a phone! To that end I will use
my old Nokia 2160i until my phone company prys it
from my cold dead fingers. NO DROPPED CALLS!!

While the Nokia 2160i is both analog/ digital it
soon will be fully obsolete when the new GSM phones
come on line.DAMN!:mad: So with GSM in mind we may
all be stuck with the tinker toy phones made for
kids to use for the foreseable future. :barf:
 
What service are you going to use as I have a few phones I need to get rid of.

If you are using Cingular I have a 2 nokia the 3590 and the 6590i. both phones are like new.

Let me know what you think I'll trade both for a nice watch. The go for about 150.00 apiece without contract.

Let me know,

Mike
 
"Till they pry my Nokia from my cold, dead, fingers", indeed! Glad I'm not the only one that gets frustrated.

Guess things are different here, being mostly the Heidleberg and Mannheim area. You buy a phone, then buy that brand's cards in vending machines to reload your calling time (minutes). Anything close there?

Deutsch Telekom offers a plan like most of you've described, but the hardware's what's bugging me in general. I know that you have to sell to your market, and if the kids want more gizmos, they'll cater to 'em, but sometimes it's enough to make me want to run a string between a couple of soup cans or something.

Maybe by the time we get back home in a few years they'll have wristwatch phones and all this will be for naught. Long live technology, hail hail.

Thanks for your replies.
 
Car stereo... bah... you need a louder exhaust! I suggest glass pack mufflesr, of thrush origins. One up by the motor, one down by the rear axle!

VAAARROOOOMMMM!

:D
 
sorry, dude, i walk everywhere with my tactical dufflebag, like a real man:p

yeah, remember thrush; how's about mopar, holley, cragars, posi-trac rear end, and a real-by-golly v8 for the pre-amp? 'bout the only thing i can hear in our current "individual tarnsportation module" is the durn hamster wheel squeaking. still, it has lots of places to plug in the nintendo-phone...

time to go sharpen the kitchen knives, thanks lots.
 
Hell Yeah !! Heres a thread I can relate to !:D I had a Samsung but threw it out of the car window (45 Mph) after i almost wrecked trying to dial with the miniscule buttons. A long time ago, Erikson (sp) mad e a HUGE cell phone. It was rubber armored and waterproof. The thing looked like a walkie talkie with a short, stubbie antenna. Does anyone know of a source for these?
 
Originally posted by Persuader
A long time ago, Erikson (sp) mad e a HUGE cell phone. It was rubber armored and waterproof. The thing looked like a walkie talkie with a short, stubbie antenna. Does anyone know of a source for these?
Click to expand...
That's the Ericsson R310. It's been around for 3-4 years already, but it showed up briefly in the new Tomb Raider movie.

For what it's worth, my (huge) Ericsson A1018 from a very long time ago was an indestructible tank of a phone. The battery would fall out if I dropped it on a hard floor, but nothing would be harmed. I'm still looking for a current, smaller phone that's indestructible in the same way.

I'm not sure if the new Sony-Ericsson phones are as tough as the old, larger Ericssons.

Them durn new-fangled phones, too many fancy-shmancy kiddie features and dainty little swivel/fold/rotate opening hinges. Back (5 years ago) when I was a kid...
 
My Qualcomm 2760 was indestructable. I don't know how many times I dropped that phone. It even had a hot-swappable(no need to turn off the phone) battery. Unfortunately I lost it in a club. :mad:
 
Ericsson CF768
No nonsense, very small, great reception and can be found on ebay cheap.

I signed on with T-mobile, got the free phone, then swapped the card into the nice little ericsson. It's my beater.

N2
 
i have had good luck with motorola flip phones, and both my wife and mother can use them (though not check messages/etc, lol) so they must be fairly simple. i use a nokia and dont have any probs w/dropped calls/etc, myself.

any one remeber the "side thrush pipes" from the 70's? talk about crappy looking lol lol lol, a bud had some on a '70 Z/28 and when he sold it the first thing removed was the side pipes.

i had a '70 nova SS and for a while just had thrush header mufflers, no pipes, talk about LOUD. (had a 383 small block w/lots of stuff), then i got some "purple hornies", also loud but looked kinda neat, then grew up a little and put on the old corvair turbo muffs and 2 3/4" pipes all the way out, my parents loved me for it.

greg
 
So glad to be in good company here and glad for the advice. Meanwhile, my wife suggested I look for gadgets for handicapped folks, what with the big buttons and simple interfaces. Hmmmmmmm, I'm not THAT old already, am I?

So, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung. Oh, and Holley, Thrush, Dana, too. Thanks again.
 
i just got a panasonic GU87 which is neither simple or big. or cheap i might add but id oes kick butt. digital camera. email. color graphics. gsm. the whole lot. plus it makes it easier for the man to locate me.

you have to kill me to take it from me though.
 
go for Nokia. It's got a very user-friendly interface. Get predictive text msging capability as well. FYI, Singapore has one of the highest number of cell phone users per capita - even kids in primary schools tote their cell phones (here, we call them handphones or mobile phones) to school.

me, I'm just using my friends' old ericsson. my Nokia 8250 was stolen twice. sheesh.
 
We have met the enemy, and he is danfisher. It's all your fault!
:)
No, really, I'm sure you're a great guy, glad you have what you like. Hey, can I borrow it for a minute? What, this hammer? Um, nothing...
 
stay away from audiovox.

got a cheap phone 2 yrs ago, 2 band digital... has net and text messages, though I don't pay or use either one, my comp covers that...
echos like a bit&#99h, batt lasts 3 days on standby, no calls, or about 45-50min of talk time... or about 30-40min of button pushing.

upgrading to motorola in about 2 months when I have cash to play with again. next phone is going to set me back 250cdn.
 
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