Product Review: Virgin Mobile Flare Prepaid Flip Cell Phone

The Flare prepaid cellphone from Virgin Mobile is a low-priced, barebones flip phone. The Flare has a suggested retail price of $19.99, and can often be found a few dollars cheaper at big box stores, as well as online. This phone is marketed towards users who need a phone to toss in the glove box, give to a child who will likely damage it, or for those who don't want to pay for features they'll never use (such as a camera).

If you're interested in this uber-cheap cellphone, read on to find out what features are provided and any problems you should be aware of.

Features

The Flare has a 1.8" LCD screen, which is large enough to max texting easy, but isn't large enough to make web browsing easy. There is a speakerphone that is easy to use, and is loud enough to use in a car or across a room, but sounds a bit tinny. If you don't like using a speakerphone, there is also Bluetooth, which is available only for hands-free accessories like ear pieces and headsets.

Web surfing is available, but you are forced to use Virgin Mobile's cheap WAP browser, which is slow and doesn't work well. Social networking is also available, with connectivity to a variety of websites, including Facebook, Myspace, Flickr, and Virgin Mobile's Mobile Lounge, which is connects the Flare to different blogs and forums.

The last feature of this cellphone is the Buddy Beacon, which is Virgin Mobile's feature that uses GPS to let authorized people (such as friends and family) to see your current location, and that allows you to see their location also. You can turn this off if it creeps you out as much as it does me.

Conclusion

The Virgin Mobile Flare cellphone is a decent choice for those who need a cellphone for a low price but want whatever features they can get. You shouldn't expect much from the Flare-it is a $20 cellphone, and you will get what you pay for in this case. I recommend the Flare for young teenagers and children who are prone to losing or damaging the device, or as a backup for emergencies.