Siemens S46
Average Ratings
The S46 looks good on paper but the reality is...
This phone promises a lot of features in a small package but in utilizing the AT&T network it fails to deliver on them. My primary reason for purchasing this phone was for data access. I later found out that AT&T's software did not support this phone and Siemens offers no support either. AT&T told me in April it would be a month for the update, as of today 5-22-02 there is no update available. As for coverage, unless you are in a strong GSM coverage area, I would avoid this phone. The phone does not seamlessly switch between GSM and TDMA. It will not automatically switch to TDMA even when the GSM signal is too weak to complete the call. Another flaw is that voice mail and text messages do not follow from the GSM to TDMA side, in fact, callers trying to reach me from a Bellsouth land line were often routed into someone else's AT&T voice mail box instead of my private voice mail. As mentioned in an earlier post, the phone has a way of powering off without warning if it loses a signal, not an idea feature when you are expecting an important call and later find that your phone has been off. In the end I tried two Siemens phones and after 30 days I gave them back to AT&T and switched back to TDMA. None of these issues had been corrected when I returned the phone even though trouble tickets had remained open for several weeks. I find the coverage and reception to be far superior using the Motorola V60. In conclusion, I would wait at least a year until AT&T works the bugs out on this one as this phone should still be in beta tests, even the engineers are just beginning to realize the multitude of problems experienced with this new service.
