Long in the tooth, large in size (Panasonic G520)

Member Name: neinel

Product:	Panasonic G520
Date:	07/10/00 (208 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Price, signal/call reception, vibration mode, weight

Disadvantages: Battery life, physical dimensions, limited features

I bought a Panasonic G520 mobile phone in december last year and considered it a very good buy at the time. It was advertised for £80 in the Vodafone shop but, after giving them the old 'poor student routine', they knocked £30 off it. It is a basic phone but does include some nice features such as vibration mode and has sensible ring tones, unlike many phones of this standard that only have irritating, robot-like melodies. It has a limited but just about adequate range of features, including all the standard functions such as phone book, messages, security etc. The signal is always good, as is the reception during calls, but these are about the only redeeming features of the phone. The battery life is around three days when the phone is new but after a while it deteriorates to two and even one day before it requires recharging, unless you follow the instruction book from day one and wait for the battery to run low then recharge it fully. But what use is taking a 1/4 charged mobile with you to college/work/wherever and have it run out after three hours, just so you can be sure you are maintaining optimal battery life? This hinderance is due to the battery being of a low quality and is not a problem you have to deal with if you own a newer mobile (Ericsson T18 among many others).Visually, the phone is fairly appealing and it is quite lightweight for a phone of its size and length. That brings me on to another one of its drawbacks - length. It's very awkward to carry in your pocket and , while it is fairly slimline and narrow, this is compensated for in length.

The Panasonic G520 is not a terrible mobile phone but when compared to recently released mobiles, it seems a bit long in the tooth. Back in its heyday I'm sure it was a reasonably good phone but, inevitably, it now seems somewhat dated. I'm not saying that if you own one, you'd be better off throwing it in a river because I still use mine every day and it works satisfactorily. I
'm just trying to point out that its limited range of features, poor battery life and physical dimensions would make it a bad choice for someone presently looking to buy a mobile phone. I'm sure its price has dropped significantly since I bought mine, so it would be a good buy for those extremely short of cash but there are far superior models, such as the Siemens C25, available for as little as £60 and it would seem foolish to settle for a greatly inferior phone, like the Panasonic G520, for the sake of saving £20 - £30. The Panasonic G520 is basic but adequate, although I would not recommend buying one anymore.

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