Sprint's Sanyo M1 gets reviewed

by Chris Ziegler, posted Dec 13th 2006 at 10:55PM

The Sanyo M1's unusually husky appearance might lead one to believe that it's the be-all, end-all solution to meet the world's high-function musicphone needs, but LAPTOP Magazine recently had an opportunity to put the clamshell through its paces -- and unfortunately, it turns out that carrying 1GB of internal storage in your phone isn't all fun and games. Though a solid gigabyte of space for music is all well and good, many folks consider that just a good start on their way to, say, 3 or 4GB in total. Problem is, the M1 lacks any sort of expansion slot, and we've got to agree with LAPTOP's conclusion that it's a nearly unforgivable oversight. Though the large external display, music controls, and A2DP are nice, they found that the phone's 2 megapixel shooter fell short with mediocre picture quality and an autofocus mechanism that took far too long to operate (and also far too long to disable). Add to that a cramped keyboard and internal display, a beefy 0.9 inches of girth, and the fact that the also-new Samsung m610 looks a good deal hotter for less dough, and... well, the M1's prognosis ain't great. So, owners (and secret admirers): what are your thoughts on Sanyo's latest effort?

[Thanks, Jennifer]

Filed under: Handsets, Reviews, Sanyo, Sprint, 1xRTT, EV-DO, CDMA

Tags: clamshell, flip, laptop, laptop magazine, LaptopMagazine, m1, music, review, sanyo, sprint, sprint nextel, sprint-nextel, SprintNextel

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Dan @ Dec 14th 2006 1:20AM

It is a wonderful phone. I can play media and surf the web or send a txt at the same time, something you can't do from the other Sprint phones. How can you have a "music" phone that doesn't allow you to do anything else while listening to music?

Honestly it is a phone you have to use for a few days to appreciate because it has so many small little things in it that make it a far superior phone than any I've ever used!

Neutral

flamer's grill @ Dec 14th 2006 1:42AM

I really believe that if you have more than 1GB of songs, buy an ipod. The battery life for phones just doesn't cut it to use it as your single dedicated mp3 player.

Same with the camera. Phones now boast 2MP cameras as killer apps, but even your grandmother would be embarrassed to carry around a 2MP point-and-shoot digital camera. Hell, that uber-expensive Samsung a990 is trying to pass itself off as a digital camera with a paltry 3.2MP CCD. Once again, using your phone as a dedicated camera is not recommended.

I sound like a Sanyo apologist (which, I admit, I am) but the review is way too positive for other aspects of the phone to let the lack of external memory get you down. Not mentioned? The ability to use the music player in the background while you do other stuff, like surf the web, send and receive text messages, or play games.

They loved the M1's dual stereo speakers, claiming the put those on the m610 to shame. I assume that also is the same for mp3 ringers. Also, the M1 has a smaller internal screen, but (according to the article) allows playback in landscape mode while the m610 does not. Also, the strong signal strength, a Sanyo staple, was praised in the review as well.

I can understand the gripe about the camera, and the crampled keypad woes (Sanyo just doesn't seem to understand we gai-jins have bigger fingers - every Sanyo phone I've ever used has had an undersized keypad). I'll even mirror the sentiment that the lack of removable storage kinda sucks.

But damning the device because it attempts to become a great convergence device while still being a great phone, and it succeeds in only becoming a DECENT convergence device while still being a GREAT phone?

I still buy my phones because they're a phone first and a media player second. The m610 is sexy and is a better media device, but as a phone it is lacking. Wait until you're out in the boonies and trying to make a call; your m610 will be searching for a signal while Dan's M1 will be making a call. Sanyo didn't get it perfect in this case, but they came decently close. M1 over m610 any day of the week.

Neutral

Jenifer @ Dec 14th 2006 3:46AM

Good phone, it has very much liked me wish to buy to itself same.

Neutral

GoinNuts @ Dec 14th 2006 8:45AM

3. "Good phone, it has very much liked me wish to buy to itself same."

Say What?

The M1 was almost enough to make me kick myself for recently leaving sprint, almost. The specs are very impressive. And reviews seem overall favorable. Especially on the points that matter most.

Neutral

Kevin @ Dec 14th 2006 10:48AM

While I agree on some of the negatives pointed out in the review I believe the positives seem to outweigh the negatives. Yes the cramped up keypad is a bit of an annoyance and I am sure that once my 1GB of internal memory gets taken up I will wish the phone had expandable memory but everything else on the phone has just surpassed any previous phone I have used. The camera quality is excellent for a camera phone. If you want to take wedding pictures or photos for national geographic get your self a digital SLR, if your interest is to have a decent camera available to take a shot and capture a moment then the M1's camera is great for that. Low-light pictures are better than any other Sprint phone I have used and when printed on a 4x6 the pictures are quite impressive. Most people wouldn't believe that they were taken with a camera phone. Reception and signal strength is top notch and what everyone would expect from Sanyo. The dual speakers are phenomenal. I believe the article states that it even put some built-in laptop speakers to shame. The ability to multi-task while listening to music should be in every phone and not one Sprint phone (aside from the PDA's) allows the user to do just that. Viewing multimedia in landscape mode compensates for the slightly smaller screen not to mention the well sized exterior LCD which can view anything from Media to turn-by-turn signs while using Garmin or Telenav. The phone is by far the best (non-PDA) Sprint phone I have used to date. I hate that the review focuses on the expandable memory issue because like someone said, 1GB (especially for people who know how to compress files without sacrificing quality) is enough for a phone. I have an iPod that I carry with me for long trips. The M1 is good for me to carry my top tunes that I would want to listen to on a regular basis. The review likes to mention how the M610 is cheaper by ($20) however they fail to mention that in order to make the M610 on par with the M1 out of the box one must spend an additional $150+ to get the same performance (long battery life, 1GB of storage and a USB cable to transfer all the data) not to mention the lack of a decent external LCD and a horrible all-in-one port for charging, data and headset. All in all I give the M1 a 4 out of 5.

Neutral

laursifer @ Dec 14th 2006 12:25PM

I'm not a Sanyo fan and I never have been. Like the Sanyo fans defending the M1 already here, my overall dislike for their phones does influence my opinion of the M1. Keep that in mind.

It's not a multitasking phone. You can do other things while listening to music, but that's it. You can't truly multitask with anything other than music. A nice improvement over past models Sprint's carried, but still not quite there. Further than any other phone, though.

The 2MP camera is a joke. Saying, "If you want good pictures, get a real camera," is a really cheap, pathetic shot at trying to defend a phone's crappy camera. Every time a camera phone comes out with a camera performance that is less-than-expected, this is the excuse people throw around. So what if you have a better camera (who doesn't these days, anyway)? Is that anywhere near the point? Absolutely not. A 2MP camera should perform like a 2MP camera, regardless of the package it's in. Same thing happened with the LX550's 1.3MP camera--it's the worst camera I've seen on a phone in years, and yet there are still people who defend it. They're just phones, people; swallow your pride and have the ability to admit its shortcomings.

The M1 is a... nice phone. However, it's gigantic and overpriced. How can a phone that big not have expandable memory? It was accepted with the A900 because the phone's slim. Now the even-slimmer M610 is out, with expandable memory. Sanyo would have been better to dedicate that whole 1GB to content downloads and throw in a microSD slot. I would have given the phone a fleeting thought if it had 1GB internal storage for downloads. Fleeting.

I'm not "dissing" the M1. It's a good phone. I will never buy one, but I can still admit it's a good phone; you guys need to pull your heads out of...and be able to admit when your beloved phone has faults. And be able to take it when other people talk down about it. Remember kids, IT'S JUST A PHONE.

A really big, chunky phone.

Neutral

flamer's grill @ Dec 14th 2006 12:55PM

"The 2MP camera is a joke. Saying, 'If you want good pictures, get a real camera,' is a really cheap, pathetic shot at trying to defend a phone's crappy camera."

I'm not defending the camera at all; I was actually criticising the entire camera-phone marketing phenomenon that demands consumers get excited over five-year-old technology.

I have only seriously used a camera phone for picture taking once - I went to vegas and used my a900 exclusively as my digital camera. It was a stupid, stupid mistake and I will never depend on a cell phone camera again.

And still, I don't think I came off as cheap or pathetic. I didn't even reference the m1's camera directly; it was more of a "don't ever expect your cell phone to replace your digital camera" sort of sentiment. I thought my entire argument was pretty eloquent, given the time of composition :/

Neutral

Waseem Hammoud @ Dec 14th 2006 1:09PM

I LOVE MY M1. Recommended to anyone who's been waiting for a good Sanyo All-in-one phone. Music player interface is sweet. =]

Neutral

Dan @ Dec 14th 2006 3:22PM

All I would like to add is that the M1 not being thin isn't a fault of the phone in my opinion. Though the "trend" is to have a thin phone so I can be cool, I don't want one. The size of the M1 is perfect for me, fits in my pocket, doesn't feel like I'm talking on a business card. I don't want a thin phone and I'm glad some manufacturers aren't afraid to make a phone that isn't thin nowdays!

Neutral

Ross @ Dec 14th 2006 9:38PM

I just got the phone and it's by no means HUGE, its not anorexically (pardon the spelling) thin but fills out the hand nicely. The camera is by no means atrocious and the phone is amazingly simple to hook up to the comp and transfer music or other files. you can record 2 hours worth of decent video and the screen is great. Sure i want an expansion slot but show me a phone that has everything?

Neutral

Kevin @ Dec 15th 2006 12:14AM

I've had M1 for a few days, dont see anything wrong with it. I have one word for it: practical!

It is thick, but feels solid. This "thin" phone trend is a bit of getting old, soon everybody carries a phones thin as paper, your M1 will be the king.

There is no need for a expansion slot, how many of you are going to fill the 1G? When that happens, you will need to get a new phone already.

I'm getting the M610 for the other line in my family, will see which one performs better. Stay tuned.

Neutral

GadgetFreak @ Dec 15th 2006 5:24AM

FG,

Just curious, are you basing this comment in fact or just guessing? With the recent roaming arrangements, my coverage in the 'boonies' is better than ever.

"Wait until you're out in the boonies and trying to make a call; your m610 will be searching for a signal while Dan's M1 will be making a calls"

Gadget

Neutral

Joe @ Dec 17th 2006 12:05PM

Gadget,

It's a proven fact that ALL Sanyo phones perform signal-wise for Sprint than any other manufacturer. Because Sanyo only makes phones for Sprint, they only have to worry about making the phone work for only ONE carrier. There's no second software version floating around for Verizon or Alltell, just Sprint. Granted their earlier models were a little optimistic when displaying signal strength, however, since the MM7400 the phones have been on-point on with reception. I'm an admitted cellular junkie who used to work for RadioShack and then Sprint and I've had at least one phone from every manufacturer in Sprint's line-up and Sanyo seems to do it for me. For example, there is a notorious dead-zone on Lake Mead Parkway here in Las Vegas when you're heading to the I-215 (it's because of Black Mountain, there's like a HUGE iron deposit in the middle of the sucker and it sucks any and all radio frequencies, my car radio goes dead too) and usually, i'll drop any call i'm on, except with my Sanyo phone, also I'll be in digital roam on my Sanyo while traveling to Phoenix while any other phone I've used will be searching for service and I dont known if you've driven to Phoenix, but that can be a pretty lonesome drive, a drive that I wouldnt want to be stuck on the side of the road w/o service for...

So, even though the roaming agreements look pretty promising... without good hardware, then yes your M610 will be searching for service while Dan's M1 will be making calls...

Neutral

PSBDallas @ Dec 17th 2006 8:10PM

I've got the M1 and have no complaints. If I wanted more music, I'll use my iPod. When I just want to hear a few tunes, I'll use the M1.

Neutral

modeaux @ Dec 21st 2006 12:56AM

I just ordered the m1 I hope i like it. I remember when i got my first phone feb-93, it was a motorolla flip, it was huge and every city I went to I had to put in a roaming code from a huge book they gave me. I've had many phones since the first one. they just get better as far as I'm concerned.

Neutral

Fay @ Dec 21st 2006 10:56AM

I just received my M1 yesterday and so far I have only one complaint. I can't figure out how to use my own music as a ringer. But other than that the phone is cool. I bought the phone because of 1G of internal memory and the lack of an expansion slot did bother me but I have a mp3 player so if I need more music than what I can listen to on my phone I will use my Zen. I have had several camera phone and have never really used either of them for pictures other than to use for my contacts list.

So far I like the phone and with 30 days to try it out I may change my mind but I doubt it.

Neutral

Brian @ Jan 20th 2007 11:56AM

Just purchased the M1 for $149.99 1/20/07. I had trouble holding Sprint PCS signals in the past with other models at my residence. The Sanyo M1 hold 5 to 6 bars of service steady and performs very well.

I noticed the puns about the camera, thickness, and the memory. Folks, this is a cell phone so get over it!!!!! I love the multi-tasking capabilites and being able to transfer my mp3 from my pc to the phone. The buttons are laid out perfectly, and the phone is worth every penny. If you are on the sprint network and having trouble with dropped calls, give this phone a try. Hats off to Sprint for adding such a quality phone to their line up.

Neutral

newmiuser @ May 15th 2007 8:50AM

I love the Sanyo M1. My only problem is I have copied 50 songs in the media and music folder under File manager. I can get one song to play then it stops. I can't get it to play them all in a row. I have it set so it plays all songs.
Any help would be great!

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