A good all-round phone (Siemens M35i)

Member Name: ian22

Product:	Siemens M35i
Date:	17/04/03 (248 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quite cheap

Disadvantages: Tendency to lock up

I bought my Siemens M35 phone about a year ago. I was attracted mainly by its low price and sleek finish.

The BASICS

The phone is part black, part grey, and looks good due to its curvy shape. In terms of size, it is about 4.5cm wide and 12cm long, and weighs about 110g. It is therefore quite a nicely sized phone - ideal for slipping in your pocket. A fully charged battery can provide a standby time of between 50 and 180 hours, and a talk time of between 90 and 300 minutes.

RANGE OF FEATURES

Text-messaging is relatively easy thanks to a built-in dictionary which predicts words as you write. Words can also be entered manually. This is necessary when a word is incorrectly formulated by the phone's built-in dictionary.

In addition to the main uses, the phone has internet access and an e-mail facility. It also has four games (Wayout, Reversi, Quattropoli and Minesweeper), a chronometer, alarm clock, stopwatch and countdown. A calculator facility and currency converter are also available.

When a new text message arrives, a small closed envelope appears on the screen. This changes to an open envelope when the message is read. You can have up to 9 messages stored on your phone at any given time, but this should, in my opinion, be increased. Like text messages, incoming voice messages are shown by a small icon on the screen.

EASE OF USE

The phone is very user-friendly. Buttons are clearly marked, and the Menu allows users to navigate their way around the phone's various functions. It is also particularly useful to have a button for the address book on the main phone itself.

PRICE

I bought the phone from a One2One (now T-Mobile) shop. I didn't want to spend a fortune, so this was the ideal phone for me. It was about £70 in total.

DURABILITY & ROBUSTNESS

The phone must be commended for its robustness and durability. It has a hard outer case and is therefore
particularly resistant to knocks and scratches. It is also highly durable.

RELIABILITY

The phone is reasonably reliable, although it does have a very irritating tendency to lock up sometimes during use. This can only be resolved by removing and replacing the battery.

The phone's signal is also quite good, but poor underground.

OVERALL VERDICT

The Siemens M35 is good value for money, looks attractive and is easy to use. The range of features is very impressive, although the internet facility can be slow at times.

Summary: