Sony Ericsson T650i review

Ever since i heard that at&t was picking up the k850, i closed the books on sofia and looked at the t650. i got it from phonesource. real customer service, reasonable prices, and package got in 2 days.

being a lifelong SE user this review is geared to users who have had SEs in the past. my last phone was a w850.

in the box
datacable
manual + software
weighted deskstand charger (allows you to piggyback a headset)
256mb m2
hpm-71 earphones
nylon form fitting pouch

eyecandy:

sexiest to date (nuff' said). slim, hefty, no chance for the dreaded squeak, matte surface resists fingerprints. eyecatching when you have it in your ear. i have the deskstand charger set up in the living room just cause it looks slick docked. i know looks are subjective, but this is a head turner.

ergonomics:

i do 2000-3000 sms/mo. this phone texters' heaven. number keys are all nicely spaced, and has the same tactile feedback as t68/t610. the WAP access button is positioned beside the "back" button. not good. ive had a ton of accidental keypresses backing out. phone is evenly balanced, the weight adds a sense of security in the hand. surface texture helps keep the phone in hand except if your hands are very dry-it becomes very slippery. battery cover a little funky. the whole back fascia comes off to access, batt/sim/m2. only time will tell if it will be a problem.

GUI

typically responsive through the menus, no sms lag. icons seem to have updated a tiny bit. more "smooth/cartoony". i noticed the the other 240x320 themes are not fully compatible. the highlights are shrunken lengthwise. 3 flashbased themes. one theme chages depending on the time of day and certain holidays mediaplayer is stripped down. sort by artist, tracks and playlist.

screen

bright, very detailed, good color representation.

audio

all in all at par with the w850. adequate, and clear in both incoming and outgoing calls. speakerphone is adequate as well- my test is if the other party does not know theyre on speaker (it passed). same as with other SE's music speaker is as loud as w850, no crackles, no hiss, no clipping. earbuds are good as well, "sounds whole". all in all the music sounds the same as any other SE. i will not run it through a spectrum analyser, or a decibel meter. if it does not sound "tinny" or "thumpy", its all good in my book.

RF

same strength as w850 (which is my RF king) but seems to poll the tower slower than the w850. its still typical jumpy RF meter but can hold and make calls clearly on 1bar. typical SE.

camera

not quite a cybershot but will take good photographs for 4x6 prints. camera lag is around 2 secs shot-save. 8 scene settings. i'll leave the judgements to the eye of the beholder (see posted photos)

conclusion

the phone is a perfect example of brains and beauty. its perfect for someone looking for sleek understated elegance with good accompanying features. this phone screams "class"

-a good upgrade for someone with a 2mp phone.
-a good SE starter phone for someone looking to jump in the SE waters
-spec heads, the phone is not for you.
-for people with 3.2mp phone, the phone is purely a change of scenery as it will not bring anything new to the table.

Thanks augustborn99

28.10.2007. 16:42