music on the go. There’s no full keypad for fast mobile emailing. At a retail price of $69.99, though, the slider phone – which initially hides its basic, 12-button keypad until you slide the phone open – is designed to “slice through the wireless monotony” by featuring:
a decent-quality, VGA cell phone camera
short-range Bluetooth wireless communications (i.e. for Bluetooth headsets)
a bright, full-color screen
access to the mobile Web
a built-in speakerphone
a decent amount of storage (499 contact entries with up to five phone numbers)
a Spanish-language user interface for Spanish-speaking customers
a paid content portal called VirginXL to buy various customizable goodies
text messaging (fast and easy texting called Autotext™)
screensavers
voice dialing

The only relatively different and unique addition to the Slash is a minuscule mirror on the back of the phone once you slide it open. The small mirror is designed to show you what its on-board camera is about the capture. Unless you actually have eyes in front of your head and behind like your mother always told you, though, you can’t see the mirror when you have it pointed at what you’re photographing. At 3.5 hours of talk time, the Slash’s standard battery neither screams out as an industry leader nor underwhelms. The talk time satisfactorily fits nicely in the middle of the industry’s current average. The Slash’s battery has a standby life of about 170 hours or seven days. At 3.8 inches by 1.8 inches by 0.7 of an inch, the Slash’s size is just right. The cell phone fits snug as bug in your hand and in your pocket. It’s neither too large nor too small. At a weight of 3 ounces, it’s perfectly light as well.
An extra battery costs $29.99, a car charger runs $24.99 and a cheap Bluetooth headset (there are many more choices) can cost you only $24.99. The Slash for $69.99 as well as its accessories can be purchased from Virgin Mobile directly. The phone can be coupled with various prepaid calling plans from Virgin Mobile with no contract as well as several monthly payment plans. As Virgin Mobile is an authorized Sprint reseller, all calls on its phones use the Sprint network