This Nokia 3390 is a fun, shapely prepaid phone with several cool features,
including picture messaging, changeable faceplates (front and back), and
voice-activated dialing.

Here's the tale of the tape: the 3390 measures 4.4 by 1.9 by 0.8 inches, and it
weighs 4 ounces. This means the phone is slightly longer than a business card
and weighs the same as today's ultracompact phones. It also has an internal
antenna--which people either love or hate--though we never had trouble with call
reception. To us, everything about this phone is executed correctly; the keypad
is well-spaced, it has salient features (even though it can't access the Internet
wirelessly), and it's inconspicuous while in use.

Three buttons handle most of the menu navigation: a central oval-shaped key
activates the main menu and lets you select options as they appear; the
roller-bar navigation key scrolls through menu options; and the "C" (clear) button
jumps back a step and erases text-entry mistakes.

Menu choices are: Phone Book, Messages (SMS and voice-mail alerts), Call
Log, Profiles (so you can choose how your phone behaves in different
environments), Settings (for calls, phone, and security), Forwarding, Games,
Calculator, Calendar, Composer (for DIY ring tones), and Keyguard Lock. With
the backlit, five-line display (three lines of text, two lines of icons and indicators),
we found it easy to navigate through menus and make selections. And here's a
definite design improvement on the 8260: the 3390's power button, located on
top of the phone, is raised a bit so it's easier to use (and find).

Like other phones, the 3390 has a full roster of call and messaging features. If
offered by your service plan, it supports caller ID, call waiting, SMS, voice mail,
numeric paging, multiparty calling, and e-mail. Call logs maintain the last 10
dialed numbers, 10 most recently received calls, and 10 missed calls. PIM
functions include a clock, currency converter, calculator, calendar with room for
50 appointments and reminders, and a 250-entry phonebook.

But, as we said, the 3390 offers a couple of new features (at least for Nokia
phones). We stored eight different voice-activated dialing numbers (a simple
process), and logged on to VoiceStream Wireless's site from our PC so we
could download additional ring tones. The 3390 also has eight preset images
you can e-mail to your friends--but in order to take advantage of it both people
need to have a 3390 that supports picture messaging. You can also download
additional images from VoiceStream Wireless's site, provided your service plan
supports this action.

The front and back faceplates are separate, so you can have a two-tone phone
if you desire. It was a minor challenge to remove the faceplate on the first try,
but it was worth the effort. And while the phone's included games weren't enough
to take us away from PlayStation 2, we enjoyed Space Impact (sort of
Defender meets Space Invaders), one of the 3390's four new games. It also
features Snake II, Bantumi, and Pairs I.

The 3390 offers five basic security features: an initial phone lock, keypad lock,
SIM card lock, call-restriction modes, fixed dialing (allows you to store secret
numbers on the SIM card), and the ability to change access codes at any time.

The NiMH battery is rated for up to 160 minutes of digital talk time and 7.5 days
of digital standby time. In our tests, we got the phone to hold a call for just about
three hours, and it lasted for a full seven days in standby mode.

We highly recommend the 3390, and we don't want to give our sample phone
back. It looks different from the rest of the herd and has the features we want
and need on a daily basis--all for under $100.