Audiovox MVX-475
Feb 15 '00
If you are looking for a cellular phone and happen to see a used Audiovox DON'T get this model. I bought one used for $49.99 (rip off) when I was in the process of moving recently. I guess this could be an all around "tale of hell" since I also got a $10.00 pre paid cell card from Air Cell. Here is some advice on that; don't buy a card, pager or cell phone from a place that is located inside a .99 cent store. Enough said?
As far as the phone itself; the battery is very durable (for about a half hour that is). You can either get a plug in charger or a stand up base. I have never had much luck with car cigarette lighter adapters since they always seemed to pop out or not connect at all. If you seen any of my other reviews you can gather that I have a "death touch" when it comes to electronics, cameras and kitchen products.
The phone is small, too small to rest on your shoulder when you are talking. It slipped several times when I was calling the movers. The buttons are inset and stick very easily. Since I bought this used there was no instruction manual with it so when I accidentally locked the service to protect it from my kids I also locked myself out and couldn't unlock it since it also cut out the tone button.
You can program it to save numbers and names but this takes a degree in engineering that I don't currently have. The ringer on it is comparable to the shrill of a cat being thrown in water. You can remove a small plastic membrane and use a headset for hands free action. The antenna is about 4 inches long and bends very easily, not a good feature with kids around. The ringer is on top of the phone so if you have it in your purse or knapsack chances are it will get muttled. There is also an auto answer button that can really cause trouble if you accidentally turn the feature on while you are playing with all the buttons. If you have a regular calling plan and not pre paid this could rack up your air time in a very big way. As far as I could judge the reception was good, I did get some static in the house but I think that was due to the bent antenna.
The one good feature is the screen. It is pretty big for such a small phone. It displays four lines of information. If you are smart enough and have a few hours to kill you can program your most commonly called numbers and names into the memory bank and they are retained even if the battery dies. However, I never got to try that out.
The pre paid cell card has long since run out and I have no plans of getting it recharged. The owner of the store spoke little English and couldn't figure out how to unlock the phone. He refused to give me a different phone or at least a new card. When I bought the phone I asked for the card to not be activated until I had my home phone service terminated; I asked this because the pre paid cards usually have a 30 day period in which you have to use them or you lose the time. He ranted that to activate the card a special technician needed to call it in. Wow, when I called the toll free number when I had a question about the cost of an out of state call all I got was an automated computer. The cost of the service was . 50 cents per minute. For that amount of money I expect some heavy breathing and my daily horoscope (extreme sarcasm) in addition to a clear cellular connection.
If anyone wants a free cell phone I would be more than willing to go digging through my sons toy box. $49.99 for a phone that is now a toy. A hard pill to swallow but I hope this helps someone from making the same mistake.
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