Find Me A Phone!!!

[font=Comic Sans MS:6d28a2e989]Where are you located, Dan? (Hint: Update your profile!)

Different cell carriers have different geographic strengths. When you buy a cell phone (or get one "free") you also hook up with a carrier, so what you really want to consider is the combination. Getting the perfect Prius Bluetooth cell phone is no good if there isn't a carrier for the phone in your area.[/font:6d28a2e989]

 

Good idea re posting your location...... could make huge difference.

Frankly, if I had to start from scratch and wanted a relatively cheap phone that is almost 100% compatible with our cars (including phonebook transfer) coupled with a decent carrier, I think I'd go with Cingular and either get a Siemens S66 from them (around $99) or a new S56 off ebay (roughly 60 bucks).

But then I'm with Verizon, have a V710 and, thus, haven't tested either Siemens phone. On the other hand, I don't recall reading anything negative on this board about the Siemens phones in terms of connectivity, build quality or sound quality. Of course, if you happen to prefer flip-phones (as opposed to candy bar types), then I think you're pretty much stuck with a Moto product.

Here's a link with some options which you might want to peruse:

http://toyota.letstalk.com/bluetooth/bt_userguides.htm

 

What's wrong with the LG PM-325 which is offered by Sprint but not included int the link mentioned by tag? There is much info on the phone on this site which can be found by a search. I can't get my phone until August but am wondering the same thing as bandgeek.

 

When I get home tonight, I'm going to check the 3GP version of "Raiders of the Lost Ark" I was working on. A 1-minute sample I loaded into my Nokia 6230 (Cingular) last night plays acceptably, and if I can justify buying a 1GB MMC card to hold "Raiders" (looked like it would come in at 160MB or so) and a bunch of songs, the phone will have moved from great to amazingly great.

Of course, the Nokia 6882 would be a lot better, but it's not out yet...

 

Hi -- I have a Nokia 6620 (cingular). Several people have noted here that Nokia's have some "funky" characteristics. Once you get the set-up done, it does work well. The worst problem is that you have to transfer phone book entries one at a time. It works but is a real pain and is a funny procedure. Your question was about starting anew. My sister also has cingular service and has a Motorola V-600. I did the set-up, transferred the phone book, etc. in about 5 minutes. It has worked consistently and well ever since. I really like my Nokia phone, but I honestly think that Motorola has it's act together with bluetooth.

 

I am very happy with my Nokia 6820 from ATT Wireless (now Cingular). Its most interesting feature is that the section with the number pad folds up over the display to reveal a QWERTY keyboard. It makes the occasional alpha entry much easier than the old press a key to loop through the letters on the key method.

As I recall ATT/Cingular have very good coverage in the SE.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Fredatgolf\";p=\"90791)</div>

There have been a number of posts on the PM-325. The posts I've read indicate the phone works fine with the Prius but does not have the ability to transfer phonebook entries to the car.

As I mentioned, I have a V710 with Verizon's service and would have had absolutely no problem recommending that phone in this thread IF it also did not suffer from the same problem as the PM-325 (i.e. no phonebook transfer to the car).

 

http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/finder.php might help...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Fredatgolf\";p=\"90791)</div>

I have owned the Sprint LG PM-325 since mid December. It is an OK phone, but is not fully compatible with the Prius. I got it because the PM-325 is the only current non PDA Sprint phone which features Bluetooth and I did not feel like spending close to $600 for the Treo 650 or the other PDA phones which Sprint offers. We subscribe to Sprint mostly because we get a 25% corporate discount, through my wife's employer.

With the LG PM-325 the MFD does not display signal strength and it always show that the phone is on the Sprint system even when it is roaming.

The phone does not ring through the car's audio system. So far, I have never missed calls as the audio system mutes when the phone is ringing and I can hear the phone ringing in my pocket and then answer the call using the steering wheel button.

The sound quality during call is good on my end. The other caller hears what we normally hear when someone uses a speaker phone to talk to us.

Unlike the better Bluetooth phones, this phone also does not automatically transfer a call to or from the car if you are in mid conversation as you start or turn off the car; there is a command on the PM-325 "in call" menu that allows you to manually transfer calls between the phone and the Handsfree system.

The most disappointing factor is the inability to transfer the contact list from the phone to the car. That is especially problematic since the Prius' system does not allow manual programming of numbers. I have found a go around method of saving some (up to seventeen) numbers in the "One Touch" list. You can save numbers to that list from the incoming (if the call has caller ID) and outgoing (if you manually dialed the number using the MFD) call logs. However, there is no way to add a name to the number in those entries and the numbers themselves blank out while the car is in motion. Thus, while driving you can only dial out if you remember the position of the number of the person you are calling on the One Touch dialing list.

One non Bluetooth related shortfall is a lack of missed call or message waiting indicators. There is no light that flashes on the phone to alert you to that if you did not hear the audio signal (or vibration). I have finally got in the habit of sliding the phone open every now and then to see if there is a message to that effect on the screen; my previous phone had a flashing LED to alert me to those situations.

The Sprint message boards are rife with information that Sprint will eventually update the phones' firmware (it is now done over the air) to fix these shortfalls. It is anyone's guess as to when this will happen.

If your highest priority in a phone is Bluetooth, I advise you to go GSM (T-Mobile, Cingular or AT&T Wireless). That platform offers many fully functional Bluetooth phones, most of which can be used around the world.

For more on the PM-325, you can go to www.sprintpcsinfo.com and browse the forums.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(IsrAmeriPrius\";p=\"90875)</div>

I think I have re-discovered how to cause the PM325 to ring thru the car audio. try the following:
menu; setup; setup/others; auto-answer; carkit/headset.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hschuck\";p=\"90893)</div>

Thanks. I'll give it a try.

 

Thanks to IsrAmeriprius for such a detailed answer. I don't think we have T-Mobile here and I can't find enough info from AT&T on the internet. Which Cingular phones do you recommend?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bandgeek\";p=\"90859)</div>

[font=Comic Sans MS:43fe2f7f14]
You CAN buy a phone and service separately, but then the service provider can always say it's your phone that is causing a problem, not their service, and if the phone does go bad, you're out of luck for a replacement. Also, since the provider will try force you to sign a contract and will offer you a heavily subsidised or free phone in return, it's usually better to get your phone and service at the same time from the same provider.

I can say that my Sony Ericsson S710A with service from Cingular works fine with my Prius, phonebook population and all.[/font:43fe2f7f14]

 

Okay, I admit it. After reading up on the S5710A that Bill recommended and discovering the price, it is obvious that I have to come right out and say I am looking for the least expensive phone that will work with the Prius. The Motorola v551 looks like a "best buy". Is there a better one?

 

[font=Comic Sans MS:3fa669eb3f]My wife's Mv551 works with the Prius just fine too, though I haven't tried to load her phonebook.[/font:3fa669eb3f]

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Fredatgolf\";p=\"90956)</div>

Nokia 6230 from Amazon will cost $99 up front but they still have the $150 rebate offer available. Two months after service starts, you send everything in with your 2nd bill showing you paid for the first month, and (I hope) they send you the money.

Takes a few days of waiting for Cingular to approve the deal, so you have to ignore any Amazon order info that says you need to change your order. Why they know this but don't fix it annoys me.

$50 covers the activation fee and stuff, so IMHO it's a good deal...