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Release Date:
Q2 2003
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Released For:
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The Panasonic GU87 shows just how much the mobile phone has evolved. More than simply a device for talking, the GU87 is the complete communication tool which lets you send text messages, take photos with a built-in camera, and enjoy vibrant color images and sound. Don't think of the GU87 as just a mobile phone. The GU87 is a stylish and functionally advanced communications device that helps to bring a whole new world of image-rich communication to life... [Continue reading Panasonic GU87 Review]
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| 1. Posted by rmgolfcourse |
Thu Oct 09, 2003 2:03 am |
I've had the Panasonic GU-87 for a week. My first one was defective after 1 hour, the screen went white. AT+T said it was defective. The second one works great, easy to navigate, nice pictures, great ring tones and sleek, nice looking phone. If you want a phone that impresses people, this phone will. I consider this phone like a nice, new Corvette, without an engine. The phone is great, fun toplay with, as long as you don't need to make or receive phone calls. No matter where I go, the reception is TERRIBLE, I get a lot of echo when I speak, with a quarter second delay in voice echo, very annoying. I've had cheap phones like the Erricson 677, the Mitsubshi T-250 and several Nokia 5165's. The reception on them was far, far superior to the $399.95 Panasonic GU-87.
Nothing is more upsetting than when a company, especially a company like Panasonic, which makes excellent, high quality products, produces a high quality phone, and markets it before there are even accessories available like EXTERNAL ANTENNAS, external antenna adapters,so you can improve reception. I truly love the phone, but receiving calls is a nightmare and making calls is a nightmare. The voice dialing works well also. The poor reception and the echo is a major problem. Another upsetting factor is my employee has a Motorola V60i that he got for $40 and his reception is wonderful, and I can stand next to him with my $399.95 Panasonic GU-87 and have 1 bar and VERY poor sound quality during the same call. If you want a classy, really neat phone, and don't make or receive many calls, buy this phone OR if you want a phone to impress people BUT if you make and receive many calls, you will not like this phone at all. I'm sorry to say this and this is after I bought a ton of accessories for this phone on eBay too. I'm going tomorrow I think and get a cheap Motorola V60i, so I can at least make and receive quality calls and have 2-3 bars on my reception meter. 
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216 out of 268 people found this review helpful.
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| 2. Posted by Kevin |
Thu May 29, 2003 1:28 am |
I have had the GD87 for nearly a week and I'm still finding new things out about it. All the basic functions are there, albeit arranged slightly differently to European made handsets like Nokia, and with a little practice the phone actually is easy to use and navigate around.
Before buying I did some research online, and they seemed a mixed bag, mainly centering on a gripe about stored text messages being limited to 15 - 20 and all on the SIM. This is not true, at least for Orange users. I can store 200 msgs in both my inbox AND outbox, and all in the Phone Memory. I have done nothing to the phone to change this setting, that is just it's default setting.
Something I found frustrating at first was the inaccurate claim in the Orange booklet saying you can record your own sounds using the voice recorder and have them play as a ringtone or message alert (I used to have a Sony J5 where this was possible, and a great laugh with the right sound clip). Some reviewers on this site have also experienced this problem, and like me, have had it confirmed as a fault by the Orange helpdesk.
Well, you can have your own ringtones and message alerts if you follow these instructions: Firstly, you need to be aware that the file extension type for playable sounds on the GD87 is " .mfm " and NOT " .wav " or " .mp3 ". I had never heard of this file type before, and just presumed that Orange and/or Panasonic had disabled the feature on the handset so everyone would be forced to pay for new ringtones downloaded from Orange WAP Services or a Third Party Website..... it kind of makes sense from a business point of view - but no-one wants to pay for ringtones do they?
So to get around this all you need to do is change the sound clip on your PC that you want for a ringtone from a .wav (or whatever) to a .mfm file type.
You will also need a Sound or Wave Editor program like SoundForge or similar - most new PCs have something suitable bundled in with the software pack provided at purchase.
Three Rules to remember though:
1. Keep the clip/loop under 10 secs.
2. Make sure the format is 8000Hz - 16 Bit - Mono, if it isn't you should resample the clip using the Wave Editor program.
3.Save the clip with as much volume as possible without distortion (you cannot change the volume of the clip once it is in your phone and the vol. setting is already at max output!). A bit of trial and error is required here...
You can now transfer the new .mfm type sound clips to your GD 87 either by infra-red, USB cable, or even email them to yourself (under 50k) through Orange.net - if you have an account. Assign these new sounds as you would any other ringtone in the Data Folder, once you have located where you saved them to!
You can also send midi files to your handset and play them through the Melody Composer, but the result leaves a lot to be desired, even if you recognise the tune playing. Far better to have audio sounds playing in my opinion.
It doesn't take as long to do all this as it sounds and although I had my reservations about this handset and it's ringtones, or at least the disabling of the feature, I now consider it the near-perfect phone!
Also, the non-active flip is a bonus in my opinion - it at least gives you the chance not to answer a call if you don't want to.
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352 out of 476 people found this review helpful.
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| 3. Posted by jermainer601 |
Sun May 23, 2004 12:43 pm |
When you look at the Panasonic GU87, you'll probably see a great looking phone which appears to have many different features. When I first purchased the phone, I thought the phone would be a phone that I could keep. The camera is a great feature for the phone, but the picture display of an incoming caller is uncalled for. Just by looking at the picture, you would not be able to tell who is calling. The camera sound is annoying when you want the phone to be silent also. I've tried everything and there is no way to shut it off. The pictures you take are only good for wallpapers. NOTHING ELSE. You cannot send ringtones. I've also tried to send a picture to my mother, who's also with at&t, and she couldnt recieve it. The GU87 has a nice sized screen, so that is another great feature. But camera quality and screen size is about all when i comes to the pro's about the phone. If you enjoy downloading ringtones, I advise you not to waste your time. Some ringtones sound good on the phone but many other phones will make this phone sound like a junior high band against a college band. If you are in a loud place you might not hear your ringtones, just feel the vibration. The games are boring after a while, and you can't download anymore. NOW, for just the use of being a phone, it still lacks in performance. The reception stays low. Speakerphone is great for you, but everyone i talk to say they could not hear me. Overall, the phone should be worth $200. That's only because of the camera and screen size. You dont get what you pay for. I would not recommend this phone to anyone. I give it a 2 out of 5. 
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63 out of 98 people found this review helpful.
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| 4. Posted by amxguy1970 |
Tue Sep 30, 2003 9:25 pm |
great phone, my first camera phone, and it esily out does my frineds phone. there are three things i don't like, first is the print out quility of the photos, yes they are sweet on the phone, better then everyone else's, but still bad when printed. second, games, i am having a hard time downloading any more games. finally, my biggest complaint, is the inability to take silent pictures. i am in the process of trying to find a way to take them quietly, but so far no go. its just annoying and loud when taking them, maybe someone will have ideas? all in all it is a sweet phone, by far better then any of my frineds phones.
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105 out of 169 people found this review helpful.
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| 5. Posted by Airwolf |
Wed Dec 24, 2003 6:27 pm |
Okay.......... I personally have the Gu87 and I regret ever buying it!!!
Yes it looks kind of cool but Panasonic still ahs a long way to go. The signal strength on gu87 is terrible. My wife would always complin that she was unable to get a hold of me on the cellular. The phone was on but the signal bar read 1or none. Mean while everyone else with At&T and verizon, Nextel,cingular, sprint received 4 to full strength signal. Please keep in mind that I have AT&T. In addition to signal strength the camera sound is really stupid, especially when you can disable the sound. Last, the one thing I hate the phone for absolutely for is the photo album phonebook. I expect for the picture to apear the full size of teh screen or even 75% of the screen. Not the size of a pimple on your ass. You don't know how much that really pisses me off. So for all of you out there the GU87 isn't nothing compared to others. If you shall happen to see someone purchasing that phone just say "No" . I any of you get a chance take a look at the Motorola V750 , You'll be inpressed trust me.
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56 out of 97 people found this review helpful.
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| 6. Posted by WarningAT |
Mon Jul 19, 2004 6:27 pm |
Seriously, this is the worst phone I've ever gotten. Don't be fooled by how nice looking and light it is. AT&T service has gotten worse by the day since I invested a small fortune into this phone. My contract is up in a few days, and I'm definitely jumping ship to another provider.
As for the phone itself, the reception wouldn't be any better if I was trying to make a call from the earth's core. I've never been so physically disgusted by a phone before. The camera is a cool feature, but unless you have a friend who is also suffering through AT&Ts terrible service, you can't send the pictures to anyone.
Another HUGE issue I have with this phone is the volume. I'm talking ring volume and call volume here. Both are extremely low. If you are in a crowded street with this phone, be prepared to not be able to hear what the person is saying on the other end. Being in NY this has come up practically daily.
I truly can write about how bad this phone is all day, but I think I've made my point. Other than being able to pay Tetris (which I'm sure I can download on any phone) this phone should have never been made. Its so bad, they stopped making it...so don't pick it up if you see it in some small store. I think I'm about done talking about this phone now.
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41 out of 74 people found this review helpful.
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| 7. Posted by vanity18 |
Tue Mar 02, 2004 12:24 am |
I must say i too regret ever buying this phone. I bought this phone when it JUST came out, and after seeing all my friends' camera phones i thought "wow the image on this phone is such much better." Indeed a perk. This phone is awesome at everything but what's it's main purpose is for: COMMUNICATION. Before this phone I had the Motorola V60 which i loved. It worked great. Then I switched to this phone and what a disappointment. I had to switch networks. With the motorola I could use it almost anywhere and never had a staticy reception. But this phone; which cost me 400 dollars (gasp!- a rip off; i know.) is terrible. The calls are NEVER clear. I can only use it in about a 5 minute radius around my home. Other than that I have to go to Detroit to get a good reception which is a good 45 minute drive. It's just terrible that the entire tim ei use the phone it has a constant staticy noise int he backgroun. Needless to say something as simple as placing my hand over the antena makes my signal drop. Also the blue light that flashes on the phone while in use is ANNOYING... if the phone was good at being a phon ei would absolutely adore it. It holds an abnormal amount of pictures for any camera phone i've seen. But sometimes my signal will drop for no reason. Maybe even 2 or 3 timesin a 45 min conversation. And after a while the camera function got old to me. I don't use it anymore because i have a digital camera. Besides the photo quality was not great and I was not going to pay those prices to get on the internet and send pictures. It's time for me to get a new plan and I do not plan to continue with thise phone- but I'd hate to trade it in for only a portion of what I spent on it. But if i were you I would deffinitely look elsewhere for a phone.
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48 out of 87 people found this review helpful.
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Technical Specifications |
| Network: |
GSM 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| Form Factor: |
Clamshell |
| Dimensions: |
98 x 49 x 23 mm |
| Weight: |
103 g |
| Antenna: |
Stub |
| Navigation: |
4-Way Keypad |
| Battery Type: |
720 mAh Li-Ion |
| Talk Time: |
5.00 |
| Standby Time: |
150 |
| Memory: |
1 MB |
| Expandable Memory: |
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Imaging |
| Main Screen: |
65000 colors (TFT)
132 x 176 px |
| External Screen: |
3 colors (LCD)
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| Camera: |
0.1 MP / 352 x 288 px / 2X Zoom |
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Audio |
| MP3 Player: |
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| FM Radio: |
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| Speakerphone: |
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| Push-To-Talk: |
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Multimedia |
| Wallpapers: |
132 x 176 px |
| Screen Savers: |
132 x 176 px |
| Ring Tones: |
16 chord |
| Themes: |
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| Games: |
In-Fusio |
| Streaming Multimedia: |
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Messaging |
| SMS: |
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| EMS: |
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| MMS: |
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| Email: |
POP3 / SMTP |
| Chat: |
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| Predictive Text: |
T9 |
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Applications |
| Phonebook Capacity: |
200 |
| Calendar: |
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| To-Do List: |
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| WAP: |
2.0 |
| Voice Commands: |
10 names |
| Calculator: |
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Connectivity |
| Bluetooth: |
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| Infrared Port: |
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| High-Speed Data: |
GPRS (Class 8) |
| Wi-Fi: |
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| GPS: |
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| PC Sync: |
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More Information |
| Website: |
Product Website |
| Discussion: |
Manufacturers Forum |
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