Motorola i560 Specs, Features & Reviews

I've had my i560 for 3 months now and I love it. I get great signal, except for one place(my Music class in a huge concrete building which I guess I shouldn't be on the phone there anyways).

This phone has been very durable so far, as I am a clutz, I've dropped the phone about 5 times so far and there's hardly a scratch on it.

I do wish there was more rubber coating, but I suppose Motorola knows what they're doing.

The phone doesn't come with a calculator, but you can download one quite easily.

Oddly, the phone does tend to power itself off and then back on. This usually happens when I take the phone out in the rain.

The battery life is also not so great. I am on the phone about 3 hours a day and I can barely make it to the end of the day. This might be because I didn't run the battery down before charging it when I first got it, but I am thinking about upgrading to the high capacity battery.

At the price it is offered for, this is the best phone you can get for your money. The i 580 is WAY overpriced.

Just a reminder to all those shopping for Nextel phones, be careful that you base your judgment on the price before the rebate, as Nextel takes 10-12 weeks to send your mail-in rebate back. So any phone you get you can expect to pay for shipping PLUS the $50 for the rebate you may or may not get back in 3 months.

Visalia, CA 93277 Reception here & all over the San Joaquin valley is good with the usual bad/ dead spots outside the city.

I got this phone because it was supposed to be durable & I couldn't quite afford the i580 I wanted.

When I got home with it I saw: Cons- I knew the screen was small but realized its an *STN* not a *TFT*, it's low contrast, low brightness, and med-low resolution.

The battery cover is plastic with rubber accents to give the *appearance* of durability. My i850 while not marketed for durability has a metal cover (though a little thin.)

The rest of the case is thick metal *BUT* it is exactly the same construction as the i850 except with rubber accents
(The i850's hinge looks a little less sturdy)

All in all a good phone but rubber accents, a small STN screen, plastic battery cover- virtually identical construction wise to the i850- makes for an over-priced, over-hyped phone. If you want durability-or at least all rubber armoring, for better shock, vibration resistance then go with the i580. You can get it as low as $149 with a plan on the web.

This is by far the best rugged unit (until the i580 releases). The new os software used improves reception and offers great features like Direct-Talk and Group-Talk. For the people who need a rugged phone (work or clumsiness) this is worth switching carriers. The unit is easy to use, very customizable (from ring tones to the size of text on the screen) and VERY DURABLE.

PROS:
1) Improvement to i530's lack of external caller ID, better reception, lighter and smaller.
2) Direct Talk / Group Connect
3) Bright easy-to-use color internal screen
4) All the options of your typical GSM unit
5) Loud standard ring tones
6) Both speakers are of industry leading quality

CONS:
1) No Camera (but thats not why you should be looking into a rugged phone to begin with - if needed see i580)
2) Max battery life is 2 days with normal use (if an issue purchase the extended battery and battery door (black only) model# NNTN4655)
3) Slow data transfer (but faster than i530) - data isn't Nextel's strong point

Overall: A-

This phone is worth every penny.

I work as a Firefighter/Paramedic and I need a simple rugged phone. I just upgraded from the i530 (simple and rugged) to the i560 (more complex). I've only had it for 2 days and have not used all the features but I really like it a lot.

Key Features:
Phone, Direct Connect, Direct Talk, MyInfo Send(send other users your name and phone #s), MMS (replacement for SMS)

The Box:
1 Phone, 1 Battery, 1 Belt Clip, 1 Travel Charger, 1 Manual, 1 Quick Start Guide

The Phone:
Good build quality, I like the screen on the front, the color screen I could care less about, but its OK. The speakers are great. The menu system is good and easy to reconfigure, but get ready to read the manual.

Features:
There are more ways to contact people than on any other phone. I can call you, D/C you, send you a SMS (now called MMS b/c you can attach multi media objects), or use the Direct Talk feature (off network walkie-talkie similar to the FRS radios). How cool is all that. Oh it runs Java stuff too (I could care less), can download ring tones (not for me), download pictures (not so important) and do GPS locations (might use this). The MMS (replacement for SMS) is REALLY easy to access, compared to the i530, and can send messages to other phones, or email (I opted out of the Instant Message package) a very handy feature. Also the Datebook is handy as a back up reminder. Unfortunately I can't easily download it to my PC, that would make it too cool.

The important features for me that set this apart from the i530 are: 1) Direct Talk (off network), 2) MyInfo send.

Dislikes:
Only minor ones, 1) charger flap - gets in the way of the charger (I like the i530s better), 2) volume buttons on side - not tall enough feels like 1 button, 3) Speaker/Hang up button on top - kinda small.
BUT these are minor issues, I really am very happy w/ my new phone, it was all the options that I wanted, and not too many more ie photo ability.

I think this is the phone to have and it is solid because it is a phone and not a high tech portable computer.i wanted a phone and this one is it,i enjoy all facets of it and it is very durable and has great battery life.i rated it with the best of them.

This phone is okay. I can't really say that this phone is good or bad. Why? Because this is not good or bad this phones has good feature and some not as good. For example the phone has good battery life and picks up good reception and is strong to keep it for damage if you drop it and the speaker is loud and clear to. Here are some of the bad things. For example this phone is big and bulky. The phone is made with weird colors and the keys are messed up. The phone is really for people that use walkie-talkies a lot or the people that use them on constuction sites.This phone is ok not the best but not the worst. Believe it or not the phone in ways is alot better then the motorola v710.

I had the i760 from Nextel switched mine and my wifes phones to the i560 black and my wife got the yellow. Love em. Better sisnal more durable , all around better phone.

The phone is physically tough, should last for a long time.
It has a bright screen making it easy to view. Font size is adjustable and includes LARGE DIGIT DIALING.
The buttons are large making it usable by almost anyone.
The phone rings loud so it can be heard by all.
The phone is also light weight and relativly compact.
For somone looking for 'just a phone' this would be the phone I would suggest.

I think this would be Batman's phone. He could Direct Connect with Alfred back at the Bat-cave to make sure the tea is hot and the explosives are cool. :) Just don't use the phone near those blasting caps, eh Alfred! (a general warning not to use your cellular telephone near explosives or flamable gases - better safe than sorry don't you think?)

I own a i530 and while it's a kickass phone, it lacks that color screen I had gotten used to. Lo and behold, I get a i560.

The i560 is a very nice upgrade of the i530. The i560 is quite noticeably thinner than the i530. I carry the i560 in my pockets and it's not as bad as the i530, which feels almost like carrying a rock.

The color screen is a good ol' STN which is jaw-droppingly easy to read even in direct sun! It's amazing. The outer LCD has a white backlight and it's easy to read as well.

Reception-wise, the i560's RF is a little better than the i530's, but both phones have excellent RF.

Sound quality is top-notch, crystal clear. The gargantuesque speaker is loud as hell, and it fixes the i530's stupid design mistake of the unprotected speaker, as the i560 has a metal grid on the back faceplate, so it's protected.

Hmm, what else to say...? Oh yeah, battery. That's the only slightly negative thing I could say about the i560. The battery lasts a laughable 3 days, and with moderate use, make that two, and with heavy use, bring your charger. I'm not sure if aftermarket batteries do better than the pathetic iDEN phone batteries, it's worth a shot.

So in short, the i560 retains all of the best traits of the i530, while improving on the flaws of the i530. Two thumbs up for the i560.

Well i had this phone for about 3 months after 2 of my i710 phones broke. The 2nd week i had this phone i got a crack on the front of of the phone. A couple weeks later i came to find out that the hinges for the top part were loose but
i didn't think about how a month later the whole top part of the phone would fall off. Funny thing is, is that i can still make phone calls i just have to put speaker phone on to hear the other person.

So as for my rating i give it a 2.5 for
PROS --- being indestructible (for the most part)
CONS --- Bad reception (nextel/SW Florida), and although it wont give up on phone calls it falls apart