Siemens S55 Review

Overall Rating

Size/weight, color screen, auto key lock

Battery life, inability to browse phone/SIM address book simultaneously, key pad is difficult to use, data suite is very clumsy, SMS profiles/set are not customizable

Main point: if somebody is accustomed to sophisticated Nokia phones (7110, 6310i), before switching to more light and small S55 (with almost identical technical features) think carefully. I have been using Nokia phones for more than 6 years. Visually and on a paper S55 looks very impressive almost same capabilities as Nokia 6310i (except battery life and color display). However, when you start using it, you miss a lot of advantages/comfort you are used to.
Software (Data suite) is very slow not working in real time mode (as Nokia data suite) you need to read out and transmit every time you make changes to your contacts or SMS.
You can not enter several mobile phone numbers in the address book (similar to Outlook where there is only one field for mobile) though you can mark several mobile entries as office/home/fax numbers and still use them.
It is more difficult to make conference calls (or Nokia users need long practice to get used to it!) or browse phonebook.
You can not any more use/retrieve phone numbers received via SMS (only senders number, but not the numbers contained in the SMS body text).
When you use T9 input, you can select a right word only moving forward, but can not roll back to previous
You can not send SMS directly to the number you selected in the address book, you need to go to messages first, write something and then select the recipients phone number
I didn't find so far capability to send SMS to a group of recipients (it may exist but I don't know how to do that).
It is not easy to select and setup ordinary ring tones if you are not excited with polyphonic tones.

For a new user to mobile phone market this small disadvantages may seem insignificant, however again I want to stress that my comments are for those, who are addicted to Nokia phones

Of course, former Nokia users wont face only disadvantages. You will like very much auto key lock feature (especially after using Nokia 6310i). S55 is very easy to carry in a pocket. Speakerphone makes your life easier when your hands are occupied while working at a PC.

Finally, I decided to wait for a new Nokia phones (e.g. 7210i) to switch back and give cool S55 to my family members with less technical expectations/demand

Members' Comments ongziro's Review

• xant14 on 13th Oct 2003

  Some of your comments on the S55 are very valid, however some i feel are unjustified. The data suite is like any new software, needs time to work out how thing tick, but then its second nature.
  conference calls are a breeze, make a call, press menu, conference, dial second number, thats it!
  so you gave your phone away to the less technically minded member of your family?
  And that is from someone who cant highlight and copy and paste (or phone) a number in SMS.
  It is soo easy.
  sending SMS to a group is similary easy task.
  the world is full of Nokia heads and Siemens heads. you are the former, and I am the latter.