3G mobile phoneIt's official: the award for the most gimmicky mobile phone feature unveiled this year goes to ... Sony Ericsson!
The latest instalment in its successful Walkman series has plenty of neat features, but the first to get a plug on the W910i product web page is the so-called "shake control" function.
Sony Ericsson's publicity reps were so rapt with the feature, its W910i information packs were sent to media encased in a cocktail shaker ("Now you can shake it with ...").
So how will this whizbang mobile innovation revolutionise the way you use your phone? Get this: holding down the W910i's Walkman button while tilting the handset left or right lets you cycle through songs when in music player mode.
It's cool for the first five nanoseconds, before you realise it's easier to - wait for it - press one of the navigation buttons on the handset instead.
Clearly, shake control is right up there on the 2007 mobile gimmicks ladder with the LG Shine, whose claim to fame is its ability to morph into a mirror when the screen is switched off.
Thankfully, the built-in motion sensor on the W910i has another, more useful application. Like the iPhone, the handset automatically switches between horizontal and vertical screen orientations depending on how you hold it.
Horizontal mode is particularly useful for watching movies and playing the bundled games, both of which you'll want to get stuck into after experiencing the large, crisp 2.36-inch screen.
But as its name suggests, the W910i is made for music. In Walkman mode, an elegant Playstation 3-style menu interface lets you browse through media and create playlists, just as you would using a dedicated MP3 player.
The built-in 35MB of memory doesn't allow for too many tracks, but included in the box is an expansive 1GB Memory Stick Micro card that can be upgraded down the track. Furthermore, the built-in FM radio tuner stands by to provide fresh tunes should you tire of your own collection.
Included in the box is a Memory Stick Micro adapter for plugging the storage card straight into a regular computer USB port, bypassing the need for a special card reader. Tracks are then loaded on using Sony Ericsson's intuitive new Media Manager software.
Uniquely, a feature called SensMe automatically sorts music based on the mood it evokes (happy or sad) and the tempo (fast or slow), plotting tracks on a dual axis graph. It's more of a novelty that anything else but aids in building playlists - for instance, when making a playlist for exercising you'd pick songs that are both "fast" and "happy".
The general design of the phone is pleasing, save for two glaring oversights. Keys are well-spaced horizontally but too close together vertically, so it's easy to hit the wrong key when bashing out an SMS.
And the headphone port, typically found on the top or bottom of most music players, is inconveniently located on the left side. With the headset plugged in, this makes the phone significantly wider in your pocket.
Some slider phones feel cheap and fragile but the sliding mechanism on the W910i is smooth and controlled. At 50mm, it's wider than most newer models but the handset makes up for its waistline blowout by being fairly thin (12.5mm) and lightweight (86 grams).
The W910i is a 3G phone but, of course, 2G networks are supported as well. For those on 3G, a camera on the front of the handset lets you make the most of the extra bandwidth via video calls.
Photos taken with the 2-megapixel camera on the back of the device are underwhelming - the lack of a flash and auto-focus feature mean images often turn out dark and blurry. More serious photographers would do well to check out Sony Ericsson's Cyber-shot phones, which rival basic stand-alone digital cameras.
Sony Ericsson's spec sheet says the W910i's battery will last through nine hours of talking and 350 hours when on standby, but talktime drops to 3.5 hours on 3G networks. With moderate use of the camera and music playback functions, we had to charge the phone about once every two days.
Bottom line: Gimmicks aside, the latest update to Sony Ericsson's Walkman range is a powerful, if expensive, multimedia phone that could replace your regular MP3 player in a heartbeat. But don't throw out your digital camera just yet.
credit : www.smh.com.au
Sony Ericsson W580i Gray Phone (AT&T)
