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Nokia 6560 Phone (AT&T)

Nokia 6560 Phone (AT&T)

List Price: $199.99
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Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not Nokia's best, but not their worst either
Review: As a Suncom subscriber, I find this phone to be a great color ombile phone. One of the best things about it is it's compact size and incredibly light weight. Even at such a small size, it's easy to press the buttons and make calls. It very rarely drops or gievs me static.

A lot of people are giving it bad reviews and complaining about the lack of software for transferring their contacts. This has nothing to do with the phone, but rather their service provider, and shouldn't reflect in a review for the quality of the phone. Suncom/ AT&T do not allow use of downloadable ring tones or the Nokia PC Suite software, so if you have a plan with them, you'll have to transfer all of your contacts manually, and do this again when you get a new phone.

A couple of flaws I've noticed with my phone, is that it has no headset connection. Instead, it comes with a "speakerphone," that allows you to press a button and route sound to a built in speakerphone. When I heard about this, I thought it would be great for using in the car. I could just lay the phone on the seat next to me and talk without holding it. However, the speakerphone is pretty much worthless. Whenever I use it, it acts more like a walkie talkie, because the quality of sound is too poor to hear people, and the microphone is so weak that no one you talk to will be able to understand you unless the phone is a few inches from your mouth. Forget about laying the phone down in your car or on your desk and talking.

Another downside is the incredibly crummy ring tones this phone comes with. There is not a single normal sounding ring tone. you can't set your phone to a default "ring ring." Literally every single ring tone is some kind of wierd futuristic song. With the exception of the Nokia tune, none of these songs are common songs like the William Tell overture or Beethoven's 5th. They're all wierd songs that sound like noises that should be coming out of a robot. If you wear a suit to work, you probably want to set your phone on vibrate to avoid the stairs of your co-workers when someone calls you and your phone starts playing "Electric Eel" or "Futuristico." The other problem is that half of these tones start out softly or very slowly, so they're not very practical as ring tones. By the time the melody of the song starts and gets loud the person wil have hung up.

Lastly, the power-off button on the phone is almost impossible to use. I don't ever cut off my phone so it's not really a problem, but if you like to a lot, make sureyou have long fingernails. This is great for me because it prevents my phone from acidentally cutting off, but when I do need to use it, I actually have to use a letter opener or my keys to depress the button and activate it.

Despite these design flaws, I really am very satisifed with this phone and won't mind using it for another year until my contract is up. If you are a Suncom or AT&T customer and are currently thinking of a new phone, I would recommend upgrading to one of the better models that both of these plans now offer so you can get something that can use the Nokia PC Suite.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Not Nokia's best, but not their worst either
Review: As a Suncom subscriber, I find this phone to be a great color ombile phone. One of the best things about it is it's compact size and incredibly light weight. Even at such a small size, it's easy to press the buttons and make calls. It very rarely drops or gievs me static.

A lot of people are giving it bad reviews and complaining about the lack of software for transferring their contacts. This has nothing to do with the phone, but rather their service provider, and shouldn't reflect in a review for the quality of the phone. Suncom/ AT&T do not allow use of downloadable ring tones or the Nokia PC Suite software, so if you have a plan with them, you'll have to transfer all of your contacts manually, and do this again when you get a new phone.

A couple of flaws I've noticed with my phone, is that it has no headset connection. Instead, it comes with a "speakerphone," that allows you to press a button and route sound to a built in speakerphone. When I heard about this, I thought it would be great for using in the car. I could just lay the phone on the seat next to me and talk without holding it. However, the speakerphone is pretty much worthless. Whenever I use it, it acts more like a walkie talkie, because the quality of sound is too poor to hear people, and the microphone is so weak that no one you talk to will be able to understand you unless the phone is a few inches from your mouth. Forget about laying the phone down in your car or on your desk and talking.

Another downside is the incredibly crummy ring tones this phone comes with. There is not a single normal sounding ring tone. you can't set your phone to a default "ring ring." Literally every single ring tone is some kind of wierd futuristic song. With the exception of the Nokia tune, none of these songs are common songs like the William Tell overture or Beethoven's 5th. They're all wierd songs that sound like noises that should be coming out of a robot. If you wear a suit to work, you probably want to set your phone on vibrate to avoid the stairs of your co-workers when someone calls you and your phone starts playing "Electric Eel" or "Futuristico." The other problem is that half of these tones start out softly or very slowly, so they're not very practical as ring tones. By the time the melody of the song starts and gets loud the person wil have hung up.

Lastly, the power-off button on the phone is almost impossible to use. I don't ever cut off my phone so it's not really a problem, but if you like to a lot, make sureyou have long fingernails. This is great for me because it prevents my phone from acidentally cutting off, but when I do need to use it, I actually have to use a letter opener or my keys to depress the button and activate it.

Despite these design flaws, I really am very satisifed with this phone and won't mind using it for another year until my contract is up. If you are a Suncom or AT&T customer and are currently thinking of a new phone, I would recommend upgrading to one of the better models that both of these plans now offer so you can get something that can use the Nokia PC Suite.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Don't buy a Nokia phone
Review: Dispite having a IR port Nokia said "We regret the frustration you have experienced while attempting to locate the PC Suite software for your Nokia 6560 phones. We are happy to assist you with your inquiry.

PC Suite will not be available for the Nokia 6560 phone. Please check www.nokia.com/us for other enhancements available for use with this model phone. "

This is reprehensible. They go on to say ""The infrared (IR) port on your Nokia 6560 phone is used to transfer business cards to another Nokia phone that is IR equipped. A business card may consist of a name, phone number, and text entry. You can save received business cards in your phone book"

Which can only be done one entry at a time.. AHHHHHHHH.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Great features, average performance
Review: For those of us who either have to travel, or live in an area where the GSM network isn't superior, this phone solves the problem a lot of AT&T customers have felt as far as phone envy goes. With TDMA coverage, you're sure to get reception in most places that many other brand phones won't, and have the option of analog roaming in the less populous areas of the U.S.

The screen is big with vibrant colors. The menus are intuitively easy (a breeze if you've used a nokia before), and has a good selection of wallpapers and polyphonic ringtones. Other than slow menus, this phone can stand toe to toe with other high-end phones, aside from having a camera.

The reception is great, and the speakerphone is a welcome addition to a nokia phone (eliminates the need of the earbud while driving). I wish the volume controls were on the side, rather than the middle directional pad, as sometimes it causes you to hit other options. The real only drawback is the audio quality. Sometimes, the phone is either too loud, or too soft when hearing other people talking. There is an equalizer, but it really doesn't seem to do much as far as clear it up. But if you're using this phone for general use, in my opinion, it does the job admirably. Not for business users, but regular users will find plenty to love about this phone. It's about time the TDMA users got to have some fun.

Note: at this time, there was no PC Suite support or XPress covers available. Hopefully they'll expand the features for this phone in the future....

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Great features, average performance
Review: For those of us who either have to travel, or live in an area where the GSM network isn't superior, this phone solves the problem a lot of AT&T customers have felt as far as phone envy goes. With TDMA coverage, you're sure to get reception in most places that many other brand phones won't, and have the option of analog roaming in the less populous areas of the U.S.

The screen is big with vibrant colors. The menus are intuitively easy (a breeze if you've used a nokia before), and has a good selection of wallpapers and polyphonic ringtones. Other than slow menus, this phone can stand toe to toe with other high-end phones, aside from having a camera.

The reception is great, and the speakerphone is a welcome addition to a nokia phone (eliminates the need of the earbud while driving). I wish the volume controls were on the side, rather than the middle directional pad, as sometimes it causes you to hit other options. The real only drawback is the audio quality. Sometimes, the phone is either too loud, or too soft when hearing other people talking. There is an equalizer, but it really doesn't seem to do much as far as clear it up. But if you're using this phone for general use, in my opinion, it does the job admirably. Not for business users, but regular users will find plenty to love about this phone. It's about time the TDMA users got to have some fun.

Note: at this time, there was no PC Suite support or XPress covers available. Hopefully they'll expand the features for this phone in the future....

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Good, but not great (near miss)
Review: Having solid performance from my 8260, I expect a lot out of my phone. I was counting on the PC Sync software and IR to move data in and out of the phone. I was disappointed to learn (after I bought the phone) the software will not be available until around April, 2004. Still, I figured I could send vcards from Outlook to the phone via IR. What a pain that is to do! The IR signal is interrupted all the time for no reason. It took a while, but I got it done (a little faster but no less frustrating than keying). The speaker is nice to have and will be used along with voice commands. The signal is better than the 8260 but the battery needs to be boosted. I will be happy with the phone for the next year but will be looking for marked improvements from Nokia in the GSM arena. And AT&T needs to leverage the wirless modem feature of this phone. What a let down.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Superior Phone
Review: I am an avid cell phone user and this one takes the cake. it is a great upgrade phone. perfect color and all around amazing phone! I am so impressed. I had a 6360 and happy with its family upgrade...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: nokia is still the best
Review: i have had 3 nokia cell phones and all of them have been exceptional. the only problem with nokias is that they are quickly outdated and are replaced by newer better phones within a year.this phone however is not as durable as my previous phones. it is very fragile. i have had mine for less than a month and the faceplate has already gotten a spiderweb crack over the screen. this sucks but... what can you do?

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Another great Nokia phone
Review: I have had several brands of phones over the years, depending on specials, etc., but when I don't have a Nokia, I crave one, and when I do have one, like the 6560, I feel very satisfied. I have vowed never to stray from Nokia ever again. Now to the phone itself. I got it with AT&T service, which I also have enjoyed without problems for nearly 4 years. This phone is very small and light, but very well designed and easy to learn. The tiny battery life is amazing. Unlike the last Ericsson that I had to charge every day even with just standby used, this Nokia gets charged once a week and it is on for 16 hours a day and I make about an hour or so of calls a week. When the backlight is on the screen is wonderful, but in screensaver mode or non-backlight mode it is impossible to read without intense sunlight. The only other negative is the difficult on/off button which is somewhat hidden in the design stripe along the top on the opposite side of the IrDA window. I loved being able to transfer names and addresses from my Palm to the phone wirelessly and not have to type in a single one. The ring tones are great, sound is as loud as needed, the earbud addition is nice for handsfree. Wish it had bluetooth and a camera, but then it would be bigger like the 6650, which I also tried out and liked very much. All in all this is an excellent phone with amazing and rapid sensitivity to signals. Only negatives are the screen without the backlight and the on/off button.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: I give it a 4.
Review: I have had this phone for about a year now. The features are pretty good. You get to use profiles, which i would say is the best thing about nokias in comparison to other phones. The phone's construction is very good, I have dropped it at least ten times, in the road, on the sidewalk, etc and it has held up well. It seems flimsy at times (but not weak) because the "xpress" covers are very thin, so you get some rattling and noises when you press the buttons every once in a while. The phone may also come apart if you drop it but it is very easily put back together, and everything has always worked fine. I am currently switching to a samsung flip phone (i miss the flip), but i am definitely hanging onto this phone because i have a feeling i might end up wanting to switch back. I'm not going to talk about "reception," because that depends completely on where you are and what company you have, as long as your phone isnt a complete piece of garbage.


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