Sony Ericsson W910i Mobile Phone

The Age

Thursday March 6, 2008

Asher Moses

Sony Ericsson W910i mobile phone

$999

sonystyle.com.au

4/5.5

It's official: the award for the most gimmicky mobile phone feature unveiled this year goes to Sony Ericsson. The latest instalment in its Walkman series introduces a "shake control" function. 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 press one of the navigation buttons on the handset.

Thankfully, the built-in motion sensor on the W910i has another, more useful application. As in the iPhone, the handset automatically switches between horizontal and vertical screen orientations depending on how you hold it. Horizontal mode is useful for movies and playing the bundled games, both of which you will want to try with the large, crisp 6cm screen.

This model is made for music. In Walkman mode, an elegant PlayStation 3-style menu interface lets you browse through media and create playlists, just like a dedicated MP3 player. And the built-in FM radio tuner provides fresh tunes should you tire of your own collection.

The general design of the phone is pleasing, apart from two glaring oversights: the keys are well-spaced horizontally but too close 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 mobile phone much wider in your pocket.

The sliding mechanism is smooth and controlled but photos taken with the 2-megapixel camera are underwhelming: the lack of a flash and auto-focus feature mean images often turn out dark and blurry. -- ASHER MOSES

© 2008 The Age

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