The Sony Ericsspn K850i

Sony’s Cybershot series is well known for its excellent camera quality.Sony released quite a few Sony Cybershot phones some time ago and they take inbuilt camera imaging ability to a new level. 5 megapixel cameras are becoming the norm these days.Sony Ericsson K850i is a 5 megapixel phone thats is glamorous and stylish.This phone gives competition to the likes of N95 and N81 but it loses out to them as the former are powered by symbian OS.

Sony Ericsson K850i specifications:

• Dimensions: 102 x 48 x 17 mm
• Display: 2.2″ QVGA resolution
• 40 MB inbuilt memory
• GPRS,EDGE,3G,Bluetooth with A2DP
• 5 Megapixel camera,Xenon flash
• FM Radio with RDS
• Motion Sensor

The specifications of the camera are just awesome but it would have been great if Sony had incorporated WiFi capability.A cool feature to look out for is motion sensor.This phone not only is a major addition to the Cybershot series but to Sony Ericsson series as well.

Design and Keypad

The design is one of the most eye catching feature of this phone.The phone has rounded corners and has a completely new redesigned D-pad which adds a lot more functionality to the phone.The four way navigation key has been added around the buttons which is an innovative idea as it saves space and gives way for a larger screen without making the phone’s dimensions bigger.A set of three soft keys have been placed just below the display.Also dedicated call and end keys are there.The back lighting on the keypad looks brilliant at light.

The battery,SIM and memory card insertion into the phone has become an ease due to introduction of push-to-eject mechanism.And good thing is that the card slot can read both M2 as well as cheaper microSD cards. The top of the phone has ON/OFF key which also acts as a profile switcher.Dedicated camera keys are rare on a mobile phone but this one features them saying lengths about work put into the camera department of this phone.The ergonomics are top class in this phone and that not only includes the keypad ergonomics but the phone ergonomics and general, though it will take some time to get used to the new layout of the buttons.

Display and Interface

The 2.2″ display is crystal clear and has a improved levels of brightness and contrast and so are the saturation levels.Also in direct sunlight the visibility is quite good but not comparable to its Nokia counterparts.

The interface has got a new look and it refreshing on the eyes.The interface has a Media center and flash lite theme support.Flight mode is not supported by the phone.Multi-tasking is possible on the phone which has been a grudge with user for a long time.The TrackID feature is supported which is exclusive to SE phones.

Camera and Music Playback

The 5 megapixel camera has Xenon flash with autofocus and automatic lens cover.The camera application interface has been completely rehauled and resembles the T-series of its Cybershot digital cameras.The Xenon flash is powerful and this boost the phone’s capability in low light conditions.Upto ISO400 is available and there are various other options to play around with which include AF light,picture quality,stabiliser,digital zoom etc.The picture quality is excellent and comparable to both N95 and the N81.Video recording at 30fps at QVGA resolution is a delight.

The music playback has not been compromised but instead it has been enhanced with the inclusion of Music Player 3.0.The supported audio formats include MP3, AAC, and AAC+, eAAC+, WAV, WMA, M4A and MIDI.The sound quality is very good but the bundled earphones are top notch.Music playback is enhanced by lighting effects.The motion sensor is another cool feature which detects rotation of screen to adjust the display.

Pros:

• Excellent 5 MP camera
• Good display
• Xenon flash
• Good ergonomics
• Motion sensor
• Great sound quality

Cons:

• Not symbian
• No WiFi
• Prone to fingerprints
• High learning curve

Final Thoughts

The Sony Ericsspn K850i is revolutionary in itself.The phones manages to bundle almost all features and make use of them efficiently.The phone gives serious competition N95 and N81. The excellent camera combined with great music playback makes it a hit with general consumers but symbian addicts will definitely skip this one.Its time for Sony Ericsson lovers to upgrade!