vB Easy Archive - Everyone like their S56 on ATT?

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Everyone like their S56 on ATT?
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Posted by: Davis2020

Well I just picked up the NEC 515 from ATT the other day and I am thinking about returning it...cool phone, great screen, but RF is just decent....I think I get the S56 and was wondering what everyones thoughts are... I have heard nothing but good things about it so any feedback would be appreciated!

Posted by: jedovaty

I just picked one up yesterday at best buy to replace my nokia 3590. I'm in orange county, CA. Interestingly enough, they (best buy) made me change sim cards. Why, I have no idea.

I'm not used to a phone with such small buttons; also, the keys are slippery for my right hand nails (classical guitar player), so I have to switch to south-paw. These are things, though, that simply take a little time to adjust, i have no problems.

RF seems okay so far, haven't really "used" the phone yet. Sound quality is far better than my old phone, still a little hiss.

However, I'm not very happy about the high pitched whine when the lcd is lit up.

jedo

Posted by: p010sp0rt8

phone itself is pretty cool.. easy to use... The reception isn't the best.. but it isn't dropping calls like a T68i... some quirks to the phone which i don't like.. Color Screen isn't up to par.. but for just a usable phone with a lot of features the S56 is for you..

Posted by: Tucker74

I had the S56 on AT&T for a couple of weeks. Battery life was horrible on my first phone. Returned it and the second held a charge for 2 days at the most with light use. RF was ok but not great. The keys were very small and lacked proper feedback (coming from Nokia phones). The screen was decent and viewable in sunlight. Bluetooth worked fine with my Jabra headset.

Overall, not the world-beater that some make it out to be but it is a serviceable phone. If it wasn't for the whole store alarm detector quirk (covered in another thread), I probably would have kept mine until something better and bluetooth capable came along.

Posted by: OCbrody

Quote:

Originally posted by jedovaty
I just picked one up yesterday at best buy to replace my nokia 3590. I'm in orange county, CA. Interestingly enough, they (best buy) made me change sim cards. Why, I have no idea.

Which best buy did you go to? Because they made me do that too at the one in Yorba Linda.

Oh, and I really like my S56. Its the only phone I've had lately that I didn't want to replace in like a week with a new phone. Why? I don't know, it's just a well built phone with good reception and voice quality. (for me at least)

Posted by: jedovaty

Yes, it is a well built phone. I was at the BB in costa mesa (right next to work). The day before I went to the one in mission viejo (closer to my home), the guy was going to just sell it to me, but they were sold out.

It appears my battery will last about 2-4 days, with me not turning off the phone. I haven't tried bluetooth yet.

Posted by: PeterKG

I just purchased the Siemens S 56 at the Best Buy in Costa Mesa on Thursday 7/31. I paid $149.00 plus tax. They did not activate the new sim card. I just swaped mine from my t68i.
So far RF seems better in my home, but today while on the 405 freeway, it was dropping calls.
I'm still getting used to the phone. The navigation is not very intuitive and I can't figure out how to scroll the phonebook quickly to get a number.
I bought it for Bluetooth which works great with my Mac and my Jabra. The instructions that came with it are limited and the mini cd won't work with my slot load drive.
So the jury is out. I bought it based on reviews here on these forums. I am about fed up with AT&T GSM or just live in a bad area for GSM. The Best Buy rep told me Sprint is the best service. I would love to know which provider really is better so I could switch.

Posted by: jedovaty

PeterKG: I've heard 405 is notoriously bad for dropping calls. I've only had problems on it in the past placing calls (system busy). Pretty much everyone and their mom has and uses a cell phone in the car there.

I'm a little frustrated here, reception appeared better on the nokia 3590 (full strength in the office versus half for the S56), but the audio quality is much, much better.

Posted by: OCbrody

Quote:

Originally posted by PeterKG
So the jury is out. I bought it based on reviews here on these forums. I am about fed up with AT&T GSM or just live in a bad area for GSM. The Best Buy rep told me Sprint is the best service. I would love to know which provider really is better so I could switch.

Yeah the jury is still out on GSM in OC, you're right about that. It is getting better though, and GSM 850 will only make it better. There are some major dead spots, a huge one being most of the newport pennisula.

Whatever you do, don't listen to Best Buy reps. I used to work there in the cell phone department, and they undergo no training really, they just want to sell activations and extended warranties. This forum is the best place to learn about cell phones, really. And if I would have to recommend a service provider in OC, I would say that Verizon is the best, based on feedback from many friends.

Posted by: andrew2k3

Quote:

Originally posted by jedovaty
PeterKG: I've heard 405 is notoriously bad for dropping calls. I've only had problems on it in the past placing calls (system busy). Pretty much everyone and their mom has and uses a cell phone in the car there.

I'm a little frustrated here, reception appeared better on the nokia 3590 (full strength in the office versus half for the S56), but the audio quality is much, much better.

the s55/s56 are great performers.
i think alot of people tend to go by the bars on their phones...
well to be honest, they mean nothing, ive owned alot of phones including the s55, 6590i, 8390, p280, v60g, ect...
and the s55 has the best RF out of all of them.
it would show less bars but the calls would maintain usable quality longer than others.

Posted by: JohnnyK

I second that bar thing

The S56 almost NEVER shows full bars...it only gets that one final bar when you happen to have a cell phone tower practically right up your butt.

But the sound quality is a delight.

Posted by: powertoburn

I just got the Siemens S56 but it most likely is going back.

The quality of the screen is just that not great

I got spoiled with the SE T616

I like the S56 since I got net monitor enabled I can see the 850Mhz channels in use in my area - I like the small size & weight of phone

I paid full retail $250 + tax since I did not want to extend my contract nor switch sim cards. But, I would definately keep the phone if I had gotten it on the BB special

My plan got messed up once with sim card change

I am on a very old plan and did not want to loose it