An artist’s Sony Ericsson w850i review:
By JoeTokyo
History
Well let me start off by saying this: I’m a huge Sony Ericsson fan. SE first caught my eye over half a decade ago with the ever successful T68. Unlucky for me, I was a young high school student without the necessary funds nor know-how to purchase a phone not readily available in the United States. Downtrodden and heartbroken, I went to a local cell phone store which was run and operated by Asian people. I struck up a conversation with the sales lady and let her know how much I was a fan of the T68. She told me that T-mobile was offering the slightly lower end model of the T68, the T300 including a camera attachment. I was sold, and within the week, I was an official Sony Ericsson owner.
Fast forward a few years, I find myself trying out Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, then back to Sony Ericsson with the k750i. I was using a Motorola RAZR trying to get out of the habit of switching up my phones almost every 6 months, but the camera and the panorama capability intrigued me quite a bit. You see, I’m an amateur photographer, and have been for almost the same amount of time that I first fell in love with Sony Ericsson. I scooped up a pretty beat up k750i on E-bay for which I overpaid due to negligent sellers, but nicks and scratches aside, I was in love with the phone. The user interface that SE has perfected was unlike any other that I had ever known. Very intuitive and easy to follow, I was using the phone like an old pro within the first couple of hours. I changed the housing to a cleaner w800i housing and kept now w750i for almost a year.
Nearing the 1 year point of ownership, the Sidekick3 offered by T-Mobile was released. Being the tech geek I am, I had to have it right away. I quickly sold my w750i for a good price and picked up a Sidekick3 at an even better price. But alas, I was quickly dissatisfied with the Sk3’s lack of customizability and even weaker camera.
I sold the Sk3 within 2 months of ownership and was back on the prowl for another SE. The k750i had made me a fan for life of SE. A little while after selling the Sk3, I made an excursion to the Philippines. While there, I picked up an unbranded and unlocked black SE w810i. The flash menus blew me away; the w810i had everything the k750i had plus more! I loved the phone and felt exclusive with it for a few months, when Cingular decided it would carry its obsolete dumbed down version of the w810i. Soon enough I was seeing spoiled high school kids and other people walking around with my phone. In retrospect, I should have bought a white one to keep the exclusivity of it. I was coping with my sadness of having a “common” phone when I found a great deal on another SE. I quickly and impulsively bought an unlocked and unbranded k800c. The phone was fantastic, and the camera absolutely amazing, but for some reason, I felt empty with it. Sure the phone was exclusive, in my 4 months of ownership, I only saw 1 other person with it, but it just didn’t feel right.
I knew what it was; the phone didn’t fit my personality. I’m an artist, a fashionista, a life style aficionado, and a bit of a showoff, I needed something a bit flashier, something with a bit more substance. I admit the k800c’s design was a bit demure. Black, a bit of grey, and more black. It was also a bit large and clunky, and so it was decided, off with the k800c!
I quickly found myself drooling over the newly released w850i, especially in pearl white. Never much being a fan of white phones, the w850i was something else, a bit of an anomaly to me. Although being an impulsive buyer, I was a bit reserved when it came to the w850i. I know what you’re saying, “If you didn’t like white phones, why didn’t you just get the black w850i?” It wasn’t that, I was in love with the white w850i’s look, in fact, I thought the black w850i was a bit ugly. What was holding me back was the camera. Sure it was a 2.0mp just like my old k750i, and I knew it wouldn’t hold a candle light to the 3.2 of the k800c, but no auto focus or macro mode? Would a photographer such as me be pleased with it? I decided to take the plunge figuring I could quickly resell it if I was displeased with the performance of the camera.
Three business days later after purchasing the phone from Saber Point, the w850i pearl white was mine. I felt like a giddy little schoolboy, I wasn’t even this excited when I initially got my t300, k750i, w810i or k800c. The phone sat in my hand, it felt smaller than it really was, but strangely comfortable. I charged it, input my sim card, and loaded in my multimedia, the phone was officially mine now. I decided to hold off on writing a review until I had spent a decent amount of time with it, and 3 weeks later, it’s time for a review.
Review
The w850i, what’s left to say? It surely gets looks and stares, but does it perform? You want my opinion? Yes. After comparing it to every phone I’ve owned, the w850i edges out the competition from this artists’ stand point. Sure the camera isn’t as nice as the k800c, but I’ve got my DSLR for that. I’m more concerned with grabbing the fun from a situation than creating art with my phone. The walkman is indeed a great feature; I use it more than I thought I would, which is another plus to me keeping this phone. The design, absolutely amazing, the buttons are well placed, feels great in my hand, and the textured back is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Well played Sony Ericsson, well played. So let’s start.
Design:
The w850i is very appealing to the eye, the white with gold accents compliment each other very well. Little hits of grey and black are here and there, but everything flows smoother than a babbling brook in the spring time. The slide mechanism feels real good. I was never really a fan of sliders due to the fact that they don’t feel very solid, Sony Ericsson must have read my mind. The slider feels very solid when opening and closing, albeit a bit of play when opened or closed, but that’s due to giving enough clearance between the two solid hemispheres.
The buttons feel great; I always felt that the buttons on the k800c were too tough and too close together. When text messaging, I would always tap two or three buttons at a time when trying to tap only one. The w850i’s buttons are spaced just right, making texting a breeze. Button feel is another plus on this phone, the k800c’s buttons seemed too tough to push, it required much effort, and the w850i’s feel very smooth, very soft against the fingertips. My only gripes with the buttons are that the 1 2 3 buttons are a bit too close to the bottom of the front portion, and the internet and back buttons are a bit close to each other. When texting furiously, my thumb slides against the angled portion of the phone, or sometimes when I’m trying to return to the previous screen, I end up opening the web browser.
Also different was the addition of the directional touch pad rather than the traditional joystick. I’ll admit, the w810i’s directional pad was a lot easier to use, the buttons on the w850i’s keypad are a bit stiff, and the down button is difficult to use, especially considering it’s also the most used button.
The back of the phone is amazing. What other cell phone manufacturer has textured finishes? Nokia has designs on the phone, but for the most part, it’s just glossy. Sony Ericsson is not afraid of taking chances, and this chance was one well taken. The back of the k800c had a bit of a rubbery feel, sometimes it made my hand feel a bit icky. That’s not the case here with the w850i. The rivets feel nice against the palm and it’s made of a hard plastic surface which doesn’t retain stains, which is very important for a white phone, who wants a dirt colored phone?
By JoeTokyo
History
Well let me start off by saying this: I’m a huge Sony Ericsson fan. SE first caught my eye over half a decade ago with the ever successful T68. Unlucky for me, I was a young high school student without the necessary funds nor know-how to purchase a phone not readily available in the United States. Downtrodden and heartbroken, I went to a local cell phone store which was run and operated by Asian people. I struck up a conversation with the sales lady and let her know how much I was a fan of the T68. She told me that T-mobile was offering the slightly lower end model of the T68, the T300 including a camera attachment. I was sold, and within the week, I was an official Sony Ericsson owner.
Fast forward a few years, I find myself trying out Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, then back to Sony Ericsson with the k750i. I was using a Motorola RAZR trying to get out of the habit of switching up my phones almost every 6 months, but the camera and the panorama capability intrigued me quite a bit. You see, I’m an amateur photographer, and have been for almost the same amount of time that I first fell in love with Sony Ericsson. I scooped up a pretty beat up k750i on E-bay for which I overpaid due to negligent sellers, but nicks and scratches aside, I was in love with the phone. The user interface that SE has perfected was unlike any other that I had ever known. Very intuitive and easy to follow, I was using the phone like an old pro within the first couple of hours. I changed the housing to a cleaner w800i housing and kept now w750i for almost a year.
Nearing the 1 year point of ownership, the Sidekick3 offered by T-Mobile was released. Being the tech geek I am, I had to have it right away. I quickly sold my w750i for a good price and picked up a Sidekick3 at an even better price. But alas, I was quickly dissatisfied with the Sk3’s lack of customizability and even weaker camera.
I sold the Sk3 within 2 months of ownership and was back on the prowl for another SE. The k750i had made me a fan for life of SE. A little while after selling the Sk3, I made an excursion to the Philippines. While there, I picked up an unbranded and unlocked black SE w810i. The flash menus blew me away; the w810i had everything the k750i had plus more! I loved the phone and felt exclusive with it for a few months, when Cingular decided it would carry its obsolete dumbed down version of the w810i. Soon enough I was seeing spoiled high school kids and other people walking around with my phone. In retrospect, I should have bought a white one to keep the exclusivity of it. I was coping with my sadness of having a “common” phone when I found a great deal on another SE. I quickly and impulsively bought an unlocked and unbranded k800c. The phone was fantastic, and the camera absolutely amazing, but for some reason, I felt empty with it. Sure the phone was exclusive, in my 4 months of ownership, I only saw 1 other person with it, but it just didn’t feel right.
I knew what it was; the phone didn’t fit my personality. I’m an artist, a fashionista, a life style aficionado, and a bit of a showoff, I needed something a bit flashier, something with a bit more substance. I admit the k800c’s design was a bit demure. Black, a bit of grey, and more black. It was also a bit large and clunky, and so it was decided, off with the k800c!
I quickly found myself drooling over the newly released w850i, especially in pearl white. Never much being a fan of white phones, the w850i was something else, a bit of an anomaly to me. Although being an impulsive buyer, I was a bit reserved when it came to the w850i. I know what you’re saying, “If you didn’t like white phones, why didn’t you just get the black w850i?” It wasn’t that, I was in love with the white w850i’s look, in fact, I thought the black w850i was a bit ugly. What was holding me back was the camera. Sure it was a 2.0mp just like my old k750i, and I knew it wouldn’t hold a candle light to the 3.2 of the k800c, but no auto focus or macro mode? Would a photographer such as me be pleased with it? I decided to take the plunge figuring I could quickly resell it if I was displeased with the performance of the camera.
Three business days later after purchasing the phone from Saber Point, the w850i pearl white was mine. I felt like a giddy little schoolboy, I wasn’t even this excited when I initially got my t300, k750i, w810i or k800c. The phone sat in my hand, it felt smaller than it really was, but strangely comfortable. I charged it, input my sim card, and loaded in my multimedia, the phone was officially mine now. I decided to hold off on writing a review until I had spent a decent amount of time with it, and 3 weeks later, it’s time for a review.
Review
The w850i, what’s left to say? It surely gets looks and stares, but does it perform? You want my opinion? Yes. After comparing it to every phone I’ve owned, the w850i edges out the competition from this artists’ stand point. Sure the camera isn’t as nice as the k800c, but I’ve got my DSLR for that. I’m more concerned with grabbing the fun from a situation than creating art with my phone. The walkman is indeed a great feature; I use it more than I thought I would, which is another plus to me keeping this phone. The design, absolutely amazing, the buttons are well placed, feels great in my hand, and the textured back is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. Well played Sony Ericsson, well played. So let’s start.
Design:
The w850i is very appealing to the eye, the white with gold accents compliment each other very well. Little hits of grey and black are here and there, but everything flows smoother than a babbling brook in the spring time. The slide mechanism feels real good. I was never really a fan of sliders due to the fact that they don’t feel very solid, Sony Ericsson must have read my mind. The slider feels very solid when opening and closing, albeit a bit of play when opened or closed, but that’s due to giving enough clearance between the two solid hemispheres.
The buttons feel great; I always felt that the buttons on the k800c were too tough and too close together. When text messaging, I would always tap two or three buttons at a time when trying to tap only one. The w850i’s buttons are spaced just right, making texting a breeze. Button feel is another plus on this phone, the k800c’s buttons seemed too tough to push, it required much effort, and the w850i’s feel very smooth, very soft against the fingertips. My only gripes with the buttons are that the 1 2 3 buttons are a bit too close to the bottom of the front portion, and the internet and back buttons are a bit close to each other. When texting furiously, my thumb slides against the angled portion of the phone, or sometimes when I’m trying to return to the previous screen, I end up opening the web browser.
Also different was the addition of the directional touch pad rather than the traditional joystick. I’ll admit, the w810i’s directional pad was a lot easier to use, the buttons on the w850i’s keypad are a bit stiff, and the down button is difficult to use, especially considering it’s also the most used button.
The back of the phone is amazing. What other cell phone manufacturer has textured finishes? Nokia has designs on the phone, but for the most part, it’s just glossy. Sony Ericsson is not afraid of taking chances, and this chance was one well taken. The back of the k800c had a bit of a rubbery feel, sometimes it made my hand feel a bit icky. That’s not the case here with the w850i. The rivets feel nice against the palm and it’s made of a hard plastic surface which doesn’t retain stains, which is very important for a white phone, who wants a dirt colored phone?
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