Cingular 8525 PDA Review
The
Cingular 8525
cell phone (now AT&T) is the first UMTS/HSDPA smart phone in
the US. It debuted in Europe as the HTC 8525. In addition to these
broadband cellular technologies, the
Cingular 8525
has one of the highest resolution cameras (2-mega pixels) available in
a cell phone. Bluetooth 2.0 as well as Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11 b/g)
technologies are also featured in the 8525. The predecessor to the 8525
is the Cingular 8125. The Cingular 8520 is the same as the 8525, but
comes without a camera.
Being a Pocket PC phone,
the Cingular 8525 is not a razor thin, sleek cell phone, but at
4.4x2.20x0.8 inches, it’s not a brick like some of the other Pocket PC
cell phones on the market. The 8525 weighs in at 6.2 ounces. A 2.8 inch
(diagonal) touch screen provides a rich display of 64K worth of colors
and a resolution of 320x240 pixels. The viewing experience is easy on
the eyes with text and graphics sharply rendered. You can navigate the
features of the smart phone either via the touch screen or available
controls and shortcuts. If you don't like the controls, there is also a
scroll wheel, which makes navigation a snap.
The
screen slides out to cleverly reveal a full QWETRY keyboard. The bubble
style keys have a nice tactile feel and are large enough for people
with bigger hands. The keyboard is backlit making typing in low light
situations possible. Texting on the keyboard is smooth and doesn't feel
cramped.
The camera has eight capture modes:
photo, video, MMS video, contacts picture, picture theme, panorama,
sports, and burst and four still photo quality settings: basic, normal,
fine, and super fine. There is an 8X zoom and a self-timer. You can
also record MPEG-4 video clips with sound. The video quality
is certainly not equal to a camcorder, but will serve if you need
capture a fast-breaking news event. Where the camera really shines is
with the quality of still photos. The images are sharp and the colors
sparkle.
Let's also not forget voice performance
-- after all, this is a cell phone. The voice clarity of the Cingular
8525 is excellent and people at the other end of the call will often
not be able to tell you're on a cell phone. The
sound quality of the speaker phone is also quite good. The GSM
quad-band support allows you to use the Cingular 8525 both in the US
(GSM 850/1900) as well as Europe (GSM 900/1800). However, UMTS coverage
in the US is not fully rolled out so you'll want to check with
AT&T to see if your region is covered.
Specifications:
- Processor
- 400MHz Samsung processor
- ROM - 128MB
- SDRAM
- 64MB
- Operating System - Windows Mobile 5 Pocket
PC Phone Edition
- Bundled Applications:
- Microsoft
Office Mobile suite with full editing capabilities and a
PowerPointpresentation viewer.
- ClearVue
PDF viewer
- Calendar, contacts, tasks, and
notes.
- Battery
Talk Time - 4 hours talk time; 8.3 days standby time.
- Cellular
Protocols/Bands - GSM 850/900/1800/1900; EDGE; UMTS; HSDPA
- Dimensions
- 4.4" L 2.20" W 0.8" Thick
- Weight - 6.2
Oz.
At a retail price of $399, the
Cingular 8525 is certainly not cheap. However, if the features it
provides are not frivolous toys or gimmicks either. Broadband
connectivity speeds, a powerful processor and full-featured smart phone
OS bundled with corporate quality productivity applications, and not to
mention entertainment features such as the MP3 player and video
capabilities makes the Cingular 8525 is a worthy companion to
high-achievers on the go.
You can save quite a
bit on the Cingular 8525 by receiving a
$150 rebate from
TIMWireless.com:
Details. There are also some great
deals on new and used Cingular 8525 phones at eBay. Check out some the
of the auction listings below for these deals.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Cingular 8525 (HTC) | US $175.00
 | End Date: Thursday Jan-08-2009 22:19:40 PST Buy It Now for only: US $175.00
|
|
|
|
|
=>View More Cingular 8525 Items On eBay!