Home > Consumer Reviews > EarthLink Mivo 350 Cordless E-mail Appliance

I actually purchased my mail station at a computer store in Orlando, Fla. I was looking for a laptop and was almost ready to spend more than $1,000 when I virtually stumbled across the Mivo 350 for [less]. That's the good part, the bad part is the salesman knew virtually nothing about this product and said I could actually get internet access in "text" mode on this, which was completely wrong. Also, the photo options on this model are highly overrated. Most photos I've sent to this unit have either too much data to download or can't be converted from html or what have you. ALso customer service on this thing is horrendous with earthlink. It took me several hours to get this set up and the info content I ordered still hasn't been programmed right and I've had this for over a month and I've tried to get it corrected three separate times. I still get weather forecasts in the 20s and 30s and I live in Florida. Now those are the downsides. The real upside is if you're looking for someway to transmit text with no frills, this unit fits the bill. I am a professional freelance journalist and I just used this unit to cover spring training baseball in Florida for the Associated Press and never had a problem. The spell check makes this unit complete as a no-frills word processer. But that's it. You do get some news content, but most of it is old news. It was oversold and questionably billed even on the box as far as it's true offerings, but then again, it saved me hundreds of dollars that I would have wasted on a laptop that I would have used for little more than sending text. And very importantly, I get e-mail in the field from editors as well as sending. SO that's a key issue. Overall, I really like this for my purposes. But the pitch that this is wireless is totally bogus too. So what, you can get e-mail anywhere in your house without being hooked up? Big deal. IF it were truley wireless in the field that would be great but it's not. I do like the fact the battery power is double A (AA) batteries. I use this unit often and virtually solely for my professional responsibilities in field reporting. It delivers as a utilitarian field piece and fits comfortably in my field briefcase/professional satchel. But don't be fooled by the frills, they're not worth it. I should have just shelled out[more money] for the Mivo 150, the base model that sends and gets e-mail only. That's all I needed. But again, if you need access to e-mail and are sending and receiving text only, this is a good tool....

We bought this machine in November thinking it would be a good way for our parents to have access to email. WRONG.
The problems began as soon as we opened the box and found the manual was missing fifty pages. That should be simple, just call and order a replacement manual. After two months and at least ten hours on the phone, we still do not have the manual and they just told me that it will take at least another month to get one because they have to order it from the warehouse. I don't know what happened to the orders that I have been placing for this since November, but they claim they don't have any available. This is even more frustrating because twice this week I was promised it would be mailed out the next day.
When one calls for technical help assistance, the information is contradictory from day to day. The level of expertise needed is sorely lacking.
So now we have a machine that is not functioning correctly, no manual and frustrated parents. A good idea that has gone very bad.
Some other problems that technical support has been unable to help with -
1. The capacity of an email message - we cannot send more than four or five lines without it being a problem.
2. Unable to send attachments - they advertise that you can send pictures and attachments. That cannot be done.
3. Get message -incorrect address on a regular basis even when responding to a valid email address.
The list goes on.
HOWEVER, PROBABLY THE MOST FRUSTRATING THING IS THAT AFTER WAITING AN AVERAGE OF 1 HOUR FOR TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, THEY HANG UP ON YOU IF YOU BECOME FRUSTRATED, RATHER THAN FINDING WAYS TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM.
So while the idea maybe appealing, the product is not

We bought this for my mother-in-law. We set it up for her and then shipped it to her. When she received it we walked her through each step until she sent her first e-mail. It worked very well and she is more than pleased.

My mother-in-law's PC recently bit the dust. We suggested a mailstation for her instead of a PC. The unit set up without a hitch. She has used it now for about a month and loves it.

She also takes it with her when she travels or visits, and has no problem in using it.

I just ordered a second unit as a alternative to ur PC. We will use it for travel or backup should our broadband service go down.

I think that the Mailstation is a great alternative to PC's. Many older pepole are frustrated by the complexity of standard PC's, etc. Simplicity and reasonalbe cost makes this a good choice.

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We bought a 350 last Xmas for my father, who had never before demonstrated any affinity for e-mail. The verdict: major success. It's a very reliable e-mail system with that added plus that it handles digital photos. One of the biggest pluses of all is the small footprint. That makes it much less overwhelming for the user.