Shoot high-resolution stills with the 3.2 Megapixel K800i and K790i Cyber-shot phones; snap leisurely with the 1.3 Megapixel K510i; and get your groove on with the W300i clamshell.
Sony Ericsson K800i review summary
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Sony Ericsson K800i
Score: 90% When: June 2006 Worth: €475
Read the full article » Although more susceptible to camera shake than a low-end digital camera, the Sony Ericsson K800i is in fact capable of replacing just such a product; a considerable feat, even though the vast majority of users will not want to rely on it for preserving precious memories. Its imaging prowess is backed up by strong performance in the areas of calling and messaging, while its browser is of the rather mediocre sort; handy, then, that the overall impression is picked up by the inclusion of a stereo FM radio with RDS, a RSS reader and even a sprinkle of stereo Bluetooth audio for an otherwise unnoteworthy MP3 player. Read the full article » |
Sony Ericsson K800i preview
Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome the first real camera phone. Granted, Nokia's N90 came close - but at 3.2 Megapixels and with stunning picture quality, the Sony Ericsson K800i blows the competition out of the water. Fitted with autofocus, an Xenon flash and a camera-inspired user interface, it also boasts 3G, Bluetooth and Memory Stick Micro expansion to boot - all in a compact, stylish and ergonomically pleasing candybar design. Bonus point: the BestPic burst mode which snaps four before-and-after shots in the course of a second. One word: splendid.
Photo blogging on the go
Scoring a world first, Sony Ericsson has also managed to integrate photo blogging software compatible with Google's popular Blogger service into the K800i, rendering the act of sharing drunken shenanigans with the world that much easier. Users simply snap a picture and choose to send it to their blog, subsequent to which the image is resized to a suitable size and uploaded. Blogger accounts can be setup straight from the phone, and once posted, users can display their works of art in the phone's HTML capable microbrowser. Say cheese!
Specifications
- 3.2 Megapixel Cyber-shot camera
- Xenon flash
- Burst mode taking 9 full-resolution pictures in rapid succession
- Photo blogging with Google's Blogger service
- 3G connectivity with video calling
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- Bluetooth 2.0 with stereo audio streaming
- USB 2.0
- Memory Stick Micro expansion
- Internal memory capable of storing approximately 100 pictures
- 2-inch high-resolution display
Price and availability
Slated for introduction in the second quarter of 2006, pricing for the Sony Ericsson K800i has yet to be announced.
Sony Ericsson K790i/K790a hands-on impression
Like many other handsets in Sony Ericsson’s lineup, the enabled K790 looks a bit boxy, although it scores points with its slick-looking keypad and detailing. The 262,000-color, 240 x 320 pixel display is predictably gorgeous, with plenty of detail, and we’re still smitten with Sony Ericsson’s smooth, animated menus. The back of the phone is styled to look like your garden-variety Instamatic, complete with the Sony Ericsson logo and a lens cover. Unfortunately, our thumbs had a tough time with the smallish, shim-shaped keys and the tiny joystick. Still, at 4.1 by 1.8 by 0.9 inches, the phone fit snugly in the palm of our hand, and felt solid but not unreasonably heavy at 4.1 ounces.
Like its bigger (and faster) 3G brother, the K800, the EDGE-enabled K790 lets you create and post images to blogs created on Blogger.com; while we couldn’t test the actual blog functionality on the show floor, we saw the familiar “Blog this” option in the camera drop-down menu. Also impressive was the 3.2-megapixel camera’s BestPic feature, which takes a total of nine pictures in quick succession; when reviewing your images, you nudge the joystick to switch from one image to another, the click the one you want to keep. The camera is also armed with a Xenon flash, an image stabilizer and autofocus, all the better for taking on-the-go snapshots. Finished snapping photos? The K790 also includes an on-board MP3/AAC player, Bluetooth, a Memory Stick Micro expansion slot, and PictBridge functionality.
Price and availability
Slated for European introduction in the second quarter of 2006, pricing for the Sony Ericsson K790i has yet to be announced. The Sony Ericsson K790a is slated to arrive in the U.S. in the third quarter of 2006, with a retail price of $499 (which will likely drop to about $250 once it’s offered by a stateside carrier.
Specifications
- Tri-band GSM
- EDGE for semi-high speed data
- Video recording
- Auto red-eye reduction
- PictBridge support for direct-to-printer output
- E-mail client with P-IMAP support
- RSS reader
- Music player with MP3 and AAC support
Sony Ericsson K510i
Dialing the resolution down a couple of notches, the K510i sports a 1.3 Megapixel sensor and loses the Cyber-shot branding and user interface in favour of Sony Ericsson's standard camera functionality. A tri-band handset with GPRS, other features include 28 MB of onboard memory; Bluetooth; an e-mail client; exchangeable covers; a WAP 2.0 browser and an RSS reader.
Price and availability
Due out in the second quarter of 2006, pricing for this handset has yet to be confirmed.
Sony Ericsson W300i
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Sony Ericsson W300i
Score: 76% When: July 2006 (AT&T) Worth: €275
Read the full article » Delivering music on the cheap, Sony Ericsson's W300i delivers something of a contrast-filled out-of-box experience with a first-rate interface and sound quality - offset by low storage and an otherwise anemic feature set. Fortunately, memory expansion and a friendly price tag saves the day, making this an excellent alternative for those desiring a mix of solid call and message handling and excellent music capabilities. Read the full article » |
Sony Ericsson’s first clamshell Walkman certainly looks the part, what with its smooth, molded silver case, mirrored buttons and black-and-gold color scheme (a white model will also be available). The 262,000-color TFT display looked sharp and vibrant to our eyes, although the monochrome external LCD was a disappointment. The phone’s keypad is especially impressive; the smooth, perfectly round and overlapping keys are so striking, they almost made us forgive their slippery feel – so slippery, in fact, that you can barely feel whether you’re pressing the right key. At 3.5 by 1.8 by 1 inches and 3.3 ounces, the W300 felt light and comfortable in our hands, and it easily fits in a jeans pocket.
Walkmans are all about the music, and the W300 doesn’t disappoint. Our sample tunes sounded great, and we were especially pleased that the music player has an on-board equalizer with five presets. That said, the W300 lacks controls on the front of the phone, which means you can’t pause or skip tracks while the phone is closed. The EDGE-enabled phone also comes with an FM radio, a 256MB Memory Stick Micro card, Bluetooth, and an IrDA port.
Price and availability
The Sony Ericsson W300i is due out in Europe in the second quarter of 2006; price unknown. Expect the Sony Ericsson W300 to arrive in the U.S. in summer 2006, with a retail price of about $250 (or about $100 with rebates once a carrier picks it up).
Specifications
- Clamshell Walkman phone
- Quad-band GSM
- EDGE
- Walkman music player
- Memory Stick Micro expansion port
- Bundled 256 MB card
- 0.3 Megapixel camera
- Stereo FM radio with RDS
- USB 2.0
- Bluetooth.
Sony Ericsson Z530i, K310i
Also announced today were the Z530i and K310i low-end camera phones, both of which offer basic feature sets including 0.3 Megapixel cameras, music players with MP3/AAC support and and Bluetooth. Offering respectively 28 and 15 MB of onboard memory, the two handsets also feature RSS readers and WAP 2.0 browsers, and are slated for availability in Europe during the second quarter of 2006.
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