Customer Reviews: Read 16 more reviews...
  A fine flip phone and plan for people who need a cell phone for occassional use August 24, 2008
The Kyocera Marbl is the third phone I've had in six years with VM.
The Marbl phone is available for under $15 at the big box discount stores. The VM plan I'm on requires a minimum "top up" of $15 every three months. If you don't use up $15 of talk time in three months, it rolls over. (But in three months you need to "top up" again - regardless of how many minutes you have left.) Right now I have about $300 worth of minutes remaining - so you can see my phone doesn't get a lot of use.
The Marbl looks good - it's thin, sleek and lightweight. The features, including screen savers and wallpaper are cartoonish and juvenile. However, I don't use it much and the price is right - I can cope.
I was excited when I found VM was at last offering inexpensive flip phones with their plan. (There were always problems tossing the non-closing variety in my bag, since I'm not inclined to set the keyboard lock.)
The biggest issue with the Marbl seems to be the battery life. I carry the phone, but rarely make calls. The battery on this brand new phone lasts about 5 days; of course, that time will decrease as the phone ages. But at these prices it's hard not to just think of this as a disposable phone.
If I used a cell phone regularly it would certainly be worth investing in a more substantial phone with greater battery life.
For an ultra cheap phone on an ultra cheap plan - it's not bad! If you want to have a cell phone, but rarely use it, this is a great deal.
 Worst phone Worse Service ever July 24, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I purchased this phone with minutes on June 12. On June 21, I called Virgin Mobile because phone would not stay charged. Replacement phone received June 26. Activated replacement phone July 1, after 1 week, the exact same problem -- phone does NOT stay charged. Called Virgin Mobile again. Told me nothing wrong!! Box states standby charge = 9 days. Phone only stays charged 36 hours without use! Virgin Mobile NOT sympathetic, said nothing they can do, REFUSED to refund money for phone or minutes. Said we can only send you another replacement. Said it was "normal" to charge every night. I said "false advertising?" Virgin mobile: no comment. By the way, the service area for my location is fair to good. NO reason for battery draining all the time except its a piece of pure junk. Overall review is F- don't waste your time
 Not a great phone July 18, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
Battery really dies quickly even though there aren't many features to the phone. Easy to use phone and I like it but must be charged daily. I love virgin mobile and bought the Wildcard and love it.
Intolerably Slow!! Only use as a backup or if you absolutely cannot afford anything else. April 28, 2008
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
This phone is absolutely unusable. Depending on what you're doing there is a 2-6 second pause between actions. In other words, if you save a contact and then want to make a call ... you ... have ... to ... ... ... wait. Useless!! You've been warned!
 Virgin Mobile marbl (I have the Grass Green version!!) April 6, 2008
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Pro's: pre-paid, cheap minutes & texting fees, you can add plans (like, for ex; $5 a month for 200 texts, or $20 for 1000 texts). Virgin Mobile itself has really good coverage, it has a plan with Sprint for that.
I really like the phone, I like the 'flip phone' feature, I originally had a 'candy-bar' phone, I liked that one, but since upgrading to a flip phone, i like the flip way better! A lot of people have rated the VM Marbl really low, on many reviews. Since I have the green version (called "green grass--limited edition", perhaps that is an upgraded version? because I love mine!) The texting is fast, easy, and battery life is good. Of course, to get the maximum battery life, you have to completely drain the battery before recharging, this way, you conserve the energy, it charges faster and lasts longer. It doesn't have internet on this specific phone (other virgin mobile phones do) but then again, this phone is $15 in stores. I bought mine at Walmart. The minutes (called Top-Up cards) are reletively cheap. 200 minutes is $20, 400 is $30, and 1000 minutes is $50. TracFone is double that ($40 for 200 minutes, and etc. I don't mean to put down TracFone, I had them previously, and loved it! no complaints, just more expensive. Trying to weigh out the pro's and con's of both of them.
Its really light, durable, bright screen, the WORST ringtones i have ever seen, I bought some online, because...they were BAD... trust me. Online they're just 2.50...so not bad. the wallpapers are pretty good, but I still bought one online, just for fun... :)
Thats about it. I added pictures of the green version to the website page, so you can see it. it's a little greener in person though. it looks more teal in the picture... maybe it's just me though.
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