Sony Ericsson Z525a Cell Phone

I'll admit, I don't ask for anything too flashy in a cell phone. I'm a little more technologically advanced than my mom, who couldn't find the camera on her phone if her life depended on it, but I still don't use most of the available features.

I've had the Sony Ericsson Z525A for nearly two years now, and it's gone above and beyond my fairly modest needs.

The most basic needs: This phone rarely drops calls. (and I have Cingular/AT&T, so the dropped calls I have are likely their fault and not the phone's) It gets solid reception...much of my family lives in rural areas, and my phone gets as good a reception as any I've seen when I'm out in the middle of nowhere. I don't usually have any interference or problems hearing whoever I'm speaking to.

Weight and feel of the phone: The phone is a little heavier and bulkier than some. I'm fine with it, but you can definitely find a more lightweight model if that's important to you. Its antenna is inside a strange thick loop around the back of it. (The phone is a flip-phone, if you can't tell that from the picture.) I find the antenna thing odd, but at least you don't have to worry about the antenna breaking off. The phone feels good in my hand when I'm talking on it and doesn't give me hand cramps like some of those tiny phones do. The keys are easy to push and don't stick or anything.

Ease of use: The menu is easy to see and pretty darn obvious. The little envelope icon leads to text messaging, the little camera leads to the camera, etc. The numbers on the phone and the text on the menu are a decent size, but if your vision is poor you'll probably want to go with a different model.

Features and capability: The phone has most of the standards gadgets phones come with these days. There's a camera which takes still shots and short videos. The video obviously isn't much, but the still shots are quite good for a cell camera. This was also my first phone with Bluetooth. I became fascinated with the idea of sending things from my phone to my computer, and I didn't find it at all difficult to do so.

The speakerphone is probably the weakest feature of the phone. It's of pretty poor quality. If the other person you're talking to is also using a speakerphone, you're not going to be able to understand each other.

I don't use the Internet on the phone much, but it works decently if you're in a pinch and want to look up some news or a sports score.

The phone does have Push to Talk capabilities, but I don't use it and don't know much about it. Unfortunately, there's a PTT button on the side that I accidentally hit all the time and get annoyed by.

Durability: I've had this phone about a year and a half, and I've had no problems despite the fact that I've dropped it several times. I have read online of a problem that a lot of people have had, where a "White Screen of Death" appears on the phone. I've had no such problems, but it has of course made me a little paranoid.

Battery: Stays charged forever if you're not talking on the phone much. If you are, it'll last through 3-4 hours of conversation. It charges pretty quickly...30 minutes will get it mostly charged. I've had the phone a year and a half and am still on the same battery. I can tell a charge doesn't last quite as long as it used to, but it's still lasting long enough for my purposes.

Quirks: All phones seem to have their little quirks. This one has two: 1. The aforementioned Push To Talk button that I accidentally push all the time, causing the phone to ask if I want to initialize PTT. 2. It takes awhile to turn on, and you have to hold the button down for a long time to get it to come on. And then sometimes it doesn't quite turn on right, freezes or something, and you have to turn it off and back on.

Overall: I got this phone for around $40 after a mail-in rebate, and I have to say that I'm satisfied. It's not a flashy phone, but for the cost it was a solid choice.