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I don't have to tell you that in terms of today's phones, this one is ancient...However, it has a LOT of value for the money, and I'm going to briefly lay out a few pros and cons, hopefully, you'll find this review useful. 1) Simplicity. The menu system is brilliant and hassle-free. Spend a few minutes with this phone, and you'll master the layout and functions easily. It's a shame they don't make phone menus this easy any longer. Interestingly enough, the UP & DOWN arrow keys do double duty...UP gives you recently dialed calls, DOWN arrow gives you access to the phonebook. 2) Battery Performance. One word pretty well describes it. AWESOME! I get at LEAST a week out of one charge. A couple of tidbits of advice here...The battery that is packed with this phone is at least 9-10 years old, but since it is a Ni-Mh battery, they survive well for years at 0VDC, which explains why all of mine (I bought 4 of these phones) charged up perfectly fine. To take care of these batteries, and make them last a long time, you MUST fully charge the battery the first time, and do not interrupt it. Then, run the battery all the way down until the phone beeps and shuts down from low battery. Repeat this procedure 3 times. The battery will increase it's performance over time. Once a month, run it all the way down, then recharge. The rest of them month, you can do partial charges if you need to. This will prevent internal dendrites (shorts) from forming, and will properly calibrate the battery gauge in the display. You should get anywhere from 500-1000 charge cycles this way. Batteries can be had here on Ebay for 10-20$ each (Li-oN replacements). 3) No Net browser. Sorry, folks. This phone is a great way to "disconnect" from email and social networks. Yep, proud Luddite here:) 4) Flawless Activation through T-Mobile, (though the sales agent at the store had never seen one of these phones before, and was equally puzzled as to why I asked for a full sized SIM card.) There were undoubtedly a few snickers and laughs after I left...I had the last laugh, with a brand new phone, paid for, and no contract! NOTE: The original 16K SIM card packed with the unit will NOT register on the network, and be sure that the SIM you get is no more than 32K in memory size, as a 64K SIM will cause the phone to go into an endless boot sequence (the phone can't handle the bigger card.) Ask me how I know. 5) Accessories. They can be had, I looked around the Interwebs for quite a while. I found the following: The leather case (CSL-1) The car charger (LCH-9) Do not get the LCH-12 charger, the phone will refuse to charge, as it puts out too much DC voltage for the battery to handle. A Plantronics headset with the proprietary Nokia connector on it (City Ordinance requires hands free use). Batteries are available, I bought 4 of them. 6) Please be aware this phone is a mono-band unit (1900Mhz only), so sometimes the phone will drop a call. Remember, cell phones are basically a walkie-talkie, for the most part. 7) Last but not least, the alarm clock on the phone can be set to wake you up, try turning off the phone. When the alarm time comes around, the phone will turn itself on, and sound the alarm at the chosen time, saving battery life. All in all, I'm very satisfied. Good Luck!Read full review
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
I bought this phone on Ebay several months ago for a friend who wanted something that was "Old School." Being this phone is only 1900 it is only usable with T-mobile for the most part. But... If thats not an issue then you will love the way this phone works and responds. Its built Tough, like FORD tough! tha batteries slide on and off (like on a Camcorder) and they hold quite a charge. The controls are very simple to use. It has the ability to recieve SMS messages, Sorry, no Multimedia messages. Works wonderful with T-mobile ToGo and T-Mobile post-paid and T-mobile Flexpay. Uses the very common Nokia ACP 7U charger, easily found on ebay. However, it WILL NOT work with the Nokia ACP-12U charger. The Phone does well where my Nokia 6340i cannot get a good signal. Its only Black and white display isn't a problem for the main task the phone does, Making and recieving calls. The phone does not have a calendar applet, Nor can you do internet on it either, it does have an alarm clock and enough ringtons (approx 40) to satisfy almost anyone.) I liked the sucker enough to two of them.Read full review
Pros. -Cheap -Easy to use -Sturdy -good range -modular -Quick startup -Easy sim card access Cons - No Internet - Old mic - Chunky - Slightly heavy - Talk and text Only Conclusion: It's a good first phone for a kid or people who don't need any features. Due to its low price you don't have to worry if you lose or break it and replacement parts a readily available.
Verified purchase: Yes
The 5190 is a good basic phone with good audio quality, decent reception, and an easy to use keypad. Battery life is OK with the standard NI-MH battery, and great with Li-polymer batteries that are available and which are also thinner and lighter than the standard NI-MH ones. For us, an essential and unusual feature of the 5190 is that an external antenna can be plugged in to the phone. We use this to orient our external antennas for the best signal strength in a remote location.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Unfortunately local grown phones just dont seem today to offer the plain styling and rugged construction and plain old versatility of the 5190 from "Nokia". Ive owned mine for seven years now and have been tickled pink with it. Lots of battery life from a single charge. You can leave it plugged in every night and you never have to worry about it in this respect again till you re-charge as needed. They just dont make them like they used to. Mine cost me $100 in 2000 and came with some free airtime. Id happily pay that same amount for it today given ts quality however Id pay twice that if it said Motorola USA on it.