Nokia 3650

Considering when this phone came out, this was the absolute best buy, feature-for-feature you could get. And it's still better than MANY if not MOST of the newer phones being put out today. It has/does EVERYTHING you could want except for the QWERTY keyboard.

So Why Good versus Excellent? This phone's major drawback is that everything is menu-driven. Thus, when taking pictures, the menu comes up, blocking the view of the image you intend to capture. So, you have to be sure you've got the image you want before entering the menu to tell the phone to take the picture, as you can't see any adjustments you might be trying to make once you've entered the picture taking "menu". (That would also mean, you need a steady hand once you've decided to take a picture - but, that's true of any camera). Likewise, if you don't have a steady hand and you do move before telling the phone to capture the picture, you won't be able to see that "change" on your screen as it's being blocked by the menu. Thus, you have no way of knowing what you're going to get, until after the picture has been taken.

All that being said, I've NEVER taken a bad picture with this phone and my memory is full of the pictures AND videos this phone has captured. The pictures/videos are sharp and can be sent from the phone.

While my earlier comment about being menu-driven might sound negative, the menus are VERY APPROPRIATE and Nokia seemed to have thought of everything. So the menus give you any/every possible option you should want while in a given screen.

This phone comes with Bluetooth, Infrared, and direct cable connection options when you want to use it as a data communications device. Few, if any of the newer phones give you all 3 of those options.

It has a large clear display and perhaps my favorite feature is that it allows you to add as much data to your contact's profile as you like. For instance, you can add as many email addresses, physical addresses, telephone numbers, etc., to a single individual, and that individual shows up only once in your phone, unlike many others where, if you enter more than one number for the same person, you also end up with multiple entries in your phone book for that individual. You can assign pictures and separate ring tones to incoming numbers, so, when your significant other calls, let's say, you can see "their picture" (that you took with your phone) and can assign a special ringtone so that when he/she calls, you know who it is just from the incoming ringtone. Then, you can see their pretty face, (or whatever other appropriate image you choose to assign to them) when you look at the display.

The call log is extensive... The list goes on and on.

This phone is well worth the minor inconvenience of the menu that comes up before you snap a picture. And after you've used it a few times, you'll realize that menu is not as big of a problem as it initially seemed.

I HIGHLY recommend this unit. I'd even buy another one, but this one is still serving me well, and I bought it when these phone first came out because feature-for-feature, there was nothing out there that compare to it, at that time. (Agreed, the circular keypad does take a little getting used to, but that's mental, not functional).

My other recommendation: upgrade from the 16 Meg memory card and regularly back up the phone's memory to your SIM.

This is one of the best phones that NOKIA ever made. The prices on this item are right on ebay, the features are great! Nice camera, not the latest and greatest, but just what I need from a camera phone. If I need better pictures, I can use one of my "real" cameras. You can unlock these phones very easily for international travel. I've used mine on several continents, and it accepted all the SIM cards that I bought abroad ... no problems! The 3650's dialing pad is also my favorite of all the phones I ever owned. When you dial with your thumb, you can easily navigate between all the buttons. After you use it for a while, the "normal" dialing pads seem to be awkward. If you can get a 3650 for around $50, with a reasonable S&H rate, BUY IT! You won't regret it.