Samsung R220-Old but Worth~. Review on Samsung SGH R220

BLUE--is the word which comes to my mind whenever I see my Samsung R220 around. It has been over one and half years now since I have been using this fone. It remains close to my heart since it was the first cell phone which I got. At the time of purchasing, I was quite reluctant to buy this piece becoz I saw Nokia everywhere and thought that I was taking a risk by purchasing Samsung.

Well I was wrong and it is giving great performance even after this much time and use. I got it for Rs.6500/- at that time and its cost has now become Rs.4300/-!!Well Its definitely worth a buy at this price tag with a lot of features which its competitors don?t offer. I think Its old and common model now but it was very popular at the time I purchased it. Its a Dual band phone.

LOOKS: SEXY! Definitely there is no second thought; this phone is damn good looking. My phone even though old looks new and people still give a look at it. The phone weighs only 99 grams and has the dimensions 110 X 46 X 23.5mm (Small fone). The fone is not at all big and fits in pockets easily. But one disadvantage is the External Antenna which measures about 1.5 cms. Although small but still there is always a threat of breakage of this antenna.

I must tell you that I don?t think there is any need of this antenna becoz the phone works without the antenna itself (although its removal may cause dust particles entering the fone and damage its display). Looking at the fone makes it look divided into two parts: There is a silver frame on which the Display and speaker rest and other part is Blue coloured body on which the keypad and mic rest. A network light is also present at the top left side of the fone which keeps on blinking continously with diferent colors.

KEYPAD: The keypad isnt made of rubber. Its made of some metal material like aluminum. Its a breeze to use the keypad and keys are placed at proper distances from each other. The numbers and symbols are embossed on the keys so u need not worry of the numbers being erased any time. The fonts are large enough and easily visible. The backlight is Bright blue in colour. The top of the keypad consists of two keys exactly below the display. Below them are the call accept and power keys. A third key: cancel is placed in the middle of these two keys. The arrow keys are placed in the middle above these keys. Next come the number keys.

Key Functions: The top right side key directly allows u to access the Phonebook in the idle mode. The Top left key allows accessing the menu. The arrow keys provide menu navigation. The Call Accept key is placed below the menu key and is green. Next to it is the Call reject/cancel key which also serves as a shortcut key to access the WAP browser of the fone. The power key (red) is located next to this key and it serves dual purpose. Pressing it continuously will turn on/off the phone and it can also be used as a Cancel key by pressing once. The silent mode can be activated directly by using # since R220 doesn?t provide the facility of different Profiles as in Nokia mobiles.

BATTERY: The battery is Li-Ion which can work up to 120 hours in standby model (the company says so), and upto 3.5 hours when talking. It works for 3 days easily when fully charged keeping the standby time less and using the fone maximum for calls and SMS. I didn't change the battery of the cell till I sold it. Although now its talktime has reduced but still is working fine.

DISPLAY: The display is monochromatic and graphical. Its resolution is 128x64 pixels (Big Screen Display). Four text lines and once extra line for service needs can be displayed at once. The display?s backlight is Blue and is so strong that it can be used as a torch. So we can say that the display provides 2 functions!!

MENU: The main menu can be accessed by pressing the top left key. Animated icons are present. All sub-menus are arranged in lists. Key number navigation is supported. Press the c/@ key will access upper menu level. Menu scrolling is done with the help arrow keys.

There is no separate menu for phonebook or contacts so the menu can directly accessed by the left key which allows to store, edit, copy, delete, set alert etc. one key does all the functions.

Call Records: The first menu item is Call Records. It provided a list of Missed calls, Rcved Calls, Dialed Calls, Call time, Call cost. 10 entries with Date, Time and cost(if set)are stored in each sub menu.

Messages: 15 SMSs can be stored in the phones memory. SMS storage capacity is low if compared with today?s models. Predictive text input T9 is present. Msgs can also be sent in Symbols, Number, English, French and Dutch languages. The fone allows picture messaging and can store 10 pictures. Predefined 5 templates are present which can be modified. One disadvantage here is that when u receive a forward msg u cannot edit it but can directly send it. The fone allows downloading Picture msges, Screensavers, Ringtones but no Operator Logos can be downloaded.

Tones: R220 has 20 preset monophonic ringtones and space for downloading 3 tones. 2 empty slots are there for composing our own ringtones. Melody editor is present. The ring volume is quite low compared to other models becoz of which the fone is difficult to hear in crowded places. U r sure to miss calls in crowded places. But I must also say here that Vibrating alert is quite strong and can feel it easily. 10 sms tones are there. The vibrating alert can be turned on first, followed by the ringtone. I kept this mode on everytime so was able to attend all the calls. The ringtone and the vibrating alert cannot be turned on at the same time which is a disadvantage. Also ringtones can be downloaded but they cannot be sent to other mobiles.

Settings: This menu contains all the settings consisting of Phone, Network, Security, LCD and Browser settings are present here. The reset setting is also present here. The LCD settings consist of display settings, screensaver settings etc. The display contrast can also be adjusted which is plus in this phone.

Organiser:Here we find Reminder settings, Alarm settings, Calculator, Time settings and Clock settings. Alarm tones are 5 in number and Alarm can be set once, daily or weekly. Alarm volume is pretty much louder then ringtone vol.

Games: The phone has 3 games ? Casino, Mole and Hexa.

WWW Services: Internet surfing can be done if ur cellular operator supports it. Here the homepage 5 bookmarks can also be set.

The phone has worked fine all the time but I faced one prob which was there till I sold it. The phone wasn?t receiving network even in the areas of strongest reception I mean I couldnt make calls recieve them et.c Even though the network showed full I couldn't get through any calls. When I took it for repairing I was told that this particular model suffers from this problem quite frequently.Although I got this problem after 1 year of usage but I thought to tell u bt it so whenever u go for buying this fone just inquire what ur dealer tells you. Lastly Its a sturdy phone and has given me no problems until now except the described oneone and so I m very happy owning it!