REVIEW: Kyocera Slider Remix (aka the KX5)

[berry_lthird]

Hi, all!

I have been a happy Cricket customer for over four years now. I have owned most of the company's flagship phones, including the Audiovox 8900 and the Kyocera Koi.

I must say that when I first learned about the Slider Remix I had been looking forward to owning one ever since. I remember talking to a local Cricket rep about how worried Cricket was about offering such an expensive phone. But I assured her that I would be one of the first customers to have one, and I was!

After having owned my Remix for some months now, I can attest with confidence that this is the coolest Cricket phone I have ever had the pleasure of owning.

The Remix is thinner smaller than I expected, but not too small. This does not hinder the phone from having an exceptionally large and bright screen, with very clear resolution and bright, vivid colors. The Remix is also more rugged than I anticipated: I had dropped my first one several times onto hard pavement (mind you, I am 6' 7" tall, so that is quite a ways to fall! ), and the worst that happened were scratches on the silver trimming and a loosened slide action. The phone continues to operate flawlessly, even though I purchased a new one just for vanity sake.

Ring tones and music are loud, although the phone boasts only one speaker. But you will have no trouble hearing it when it goes off! (Low volume was one of my biggest complaints about the Koi.)

The Remix handles MP3's quite well: The only limitations I have found so far to the playlist are certain characters in the names of the songs (like quotation marks), that the file system doesn't recognize for some reason. But a simple re-naming of the file fixes that. And speaking of re-naming--there is no more need to re-name an .MP3 that you want to use as a ring tone to .MID--you can set ANY saved sound as a ring tone! And what's nice is that when you receive a call, the music pauses, allowing you to answer. When the call is finished, you have the option of picking right back up from where the music paused or starting from the beginning. Very slick!

Concerning MP3 playback: Be aware that you will need to purchase a TransFlash media card before you can use the phone as an MP3 player. (More on this below.)

I can't say I have any real problems with the phone. If you are a conservative gadget freak like me, i.e., someone who doesn't want to carry several different devices and would prefer all to be rolled into one, then the Remix is well worth the investment. I do not regret my purchase one bit!

With that said, here is my take on the pros and cons of the Slider Remix:

PROS:
--Surprisingly small
--Feature-rich
--Expandable Memory via TransFlash Media Card
--Great MP3 functionality
--LOUD!
--Bluetooth wireless technology
--Rugged (for me, at least )

CONS:
--No Tetris
--Poor camera quality with indoor lighting (to date, the Audiovox 8900 had the best camera of any Cricket phone I have owned)
--Camera has no lens cover (I got spoiled with the Koi), but then, very few camera phones have a lens cover, so this con really shouldn't count
--Limited Bluetooth functionality: You will need special tools to access the phone's filesystem, i.e. you cannot bluetooth multimedia files (pics, music, ring tones, etc.) directly from your phone to your computer or vice versa without using BitPim or some other file browsing tool. You can exchange vCards between phones, computers, and other devices, however.
--Awkward key placement--you will find yourself pressing the front-face keys by accident a lot
--Faulty rubber hinge for the headset jack: Wears quickly and eventually doesn't plug the hole anymore. This is a real bummer! (I simply removed mine.)

Trust me; these cons are nit-picky compared to the overall value of the phone.

I recommend the following accessories for your Remix:
--Cary case: Keep scratches from happening. The silver trim on the front can scratch very easily!
--Extended battery: The extended battery is nothing less than exceptional. I am able to talk for hours and STILL have enough battery power to listen to my music and watch videos, etc. The only problem is that the extended battery makes the phone thicker in the back by almost 50% more its normal thickness! But the extended battery life is definitely well worth the additional size.
--At least 512 MB TransFlash card: ESSENTIAL if you want to listen to music. I have music and movies on my 512 meg card, and I am hard-pressed to fill it all the way up! Keep in mind, too, that you can set the phone to record all sounds and pictures to the TransFlash card instead of its internal RAM. This is extremely handy knowing that you won't run out of space any time soon.
--USB TransFlash adapter: Makes it a snap to transfer music and pictures from your phone to your PC. No data cable needed!
--USB Bluetooth adapter: Allows your PC to communicate directly with the phone. And, using tools like BitPim, you can manipulate the phone's filesystem without having to physically connect it via the USB data cable. However, to date, sadly, I have yet to make the phone work the the suite of Mobile Phone Tools via Bluetooth.

Ounce-for-ounce, pound-for-pound, the Slider Remix is definitely worth the investment.

[SINOLOCO]

anybody wanna buy my razr????? lol i want a slider remix now!!!! lol i really like the flash card!! thats great im so getting this phone lol thanxs for hte info!!!

[berry_lthird]

No problem!

Oh, I almost failed to mention: You are going to need the headphone adapter to get stereo output as well.

If you have the money to spend, the Remix is a great investment. But do understand that the package is not complete without all of the accessories necessary to make the phone fully functional.

Cricket sells a multimedia bundle, I believe, that includes a data cable, 64 MB TransFlash card, and the headphone adapter.

So be warned: Buying the phone itself is only half the excitement. You will need to invest in the right accouterments in order to get the most value from your Remix.

[cricket]

Wow, great review! Thanks.

The slider remix sounds like a really cool phone. I had no idea it had that much functionality.

[alexsktbrdng]

nice review man, very in depth. I was wavering about whether to buy the remix or not, but now im pretty convinced. Just a quick question, where did you buy all the accessories (namely the battery) does cricket carry all those?

[berry_lthird]

nice review man, very in depth. I was wavering about whether to buy the remix or not, but now im pretty convinced. Just a quick question, where did you buy all the accessories (namely the battery) does cricket carry all those?

Got the extended battery from my local Cricket store.

Your local Cricket store may also have what is called the "Multimedia Kit" or "Connectivity Kit" or something like that, which consists of the USB data cable, headphones with headphone adapter, and a TransFlash card that is 64 MB, I think. I don't know the price.

Again, I failed to mention: You will need the headphone adapter to listen to the Remix in STEREO. The cool thing is that the headphone adapter features in-line playback and volume controls! Even cooler, you can plug ANY 1/8" inch headphones into the headphone adapter! The stereo headset adapter also allows hands-free operation of the Remix.

One cool thing that I do for my car: I bought an FM radio adapter that plus into ANY 1/8" headphone jack and broadcasts music over the radio. That way, I can listen to my music, but the coolest thing is when I get a call, I can hear the call through my stereo while using speakerphone!

This is also possible through a Bluetooth-capable car stero, but if you don't want to spend the money for that, this is one way to go. Also, I don't know if you can get stereo sound from the Remix via Bluetooth.

[berry_lthird]

Small and easy to use, the music dock allows you to fully experience your music while making the connections to keep your phone up to date and ready to go.

- Connect your phone to external speakers or headphones(Not included) and listen to your music in full stereo.

- Connect with a PC and synchronize your files and contacts over USB. (Software for communications with PC sold separately on Web Store.)

- Safely charge your phone while pumping out tunes. Charges in approximately 2 hours.


Introducing the Kyocera K500 Gamepad designed to work with the Slider Remix KX5 phones. Kyocera partnered with gaming expert Alienware, to create a compact, comfortable and familiar ergonomically designed gamepad. Try the K500 Gamepad and you will love the "true gaming experience".

Key Features:
- Easy to use key layout
- 8 directional pad
- diagonal buttons not featured on phone
- Portable size and form factor
- 3D gaming replaces 2D gaming on cell phone
- Self powered with 3 AAA batteries (Not included) does not use or drain phone battery
- 18 hrs play time, 30 hours standby

NOTE: I think you might be able to use the USB adapter on the joypad accessory as a USB data cable as well, but I'm not 100% sure.

Fore more:

http://store.kyocera-wireless.com/pr...nt_name=KWCWEB

[cricket]

wow, that gamepad is too cool. How come I never knew how much that phone could do? I have seen it in the store but never really gave it a second thought. Looks like that was my mistake.

[mrzool]

never buy the slider..i used to work for cricket... i had so many people talk bad about thsi phone. It has a 6 month life. after that your screen would go black. the buttons will not work. the buttons will start coming off..... not kidding... the speaker stops working

[lilkim]

I just got a kyocera remix, becouse they didn't have any nokia 6165i's to replace mine that got broken.