Review: Spintastic Sony Ericsson W900

Sony Ericsson W900

Sony Ericsson W900

Sony Ericsson W900

Much to the market's anticipation, the Sony Ericsson W900i was announced a year and a half after the S700i. It was to be the flagship model for 2005, though it wasn't a hit at launch, as the firmware was not reliable with streaming services offered via portals like Hutchison 3 and Vodafone 3G. Three months later, a lot of the network compatibility problems have been addressed by firmware updates, the price is dropped a bit, and we are finally seeing an increase in popularity. Today we will be looking at whether the W900i is worth the money and the hype.

Physical Aspects

The Sony Ericsson W900i spots a similar design and a similar size to its predecessor, measuring 109mm x 49mm x 24mm (4.29" x 1.93" x 0.94") and weighing 148g (5.2oz). This might be too big for a lot of people. The smooth, glossy plastic finish makes this expensive device look like a toy, but it also makes it feel lighter. The outer surface is prone to fingerprints, but not to scratches - even the screen. My only concern is that dust might get in between the screen and the protective plastic cover.

The W900i has one of the largest keypads I have ever seen - the alphanumeric keys measure 1.2cm x 0.6cm (0.47" x 0.23"). Tactile feeling is toward the soft side, but much improved from the S700i. The white backlight looks very attractive in the dark, and the large d-pad glows in Walkman orange. The contour between the swung opened keypad and the d-pad is more leveled than on the S700i, and thus usage is much improved.

The three shortcut buttons between the d-pad and the number keys are for internet, video calling, and the activity screen (similar to that on K750i). The sub camera is above the screen, whereas the main camera is next to the battery and the speaker grille holes at the back.

Sony Ericsson decided to keep the highly praised sliding hold button on the left side, and you can also find the Walkman shortcut button, LED signal, and Memory Stick PRO Due slot here. The volume keys, camera shutter button, and IrDA port are situated on the right. The power button is located below the number keys.

The overall build quality is very solid, and the half-auto swivel mechanism is very sturdy. I am not worried about durability at this point, as the parts just seem to click into the exact right places. Simply looking at the keypad and the swivel mechanism, we can see that the W900i has addressed many of S700i's design problems.

Sony Ericsson W900

Sony Ericsson W900

Sony Ericsson W900

 

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