The Sony Ericsson Satio is here and is it looks like it could be a real leading light in the movement of next generation mobile phones. Robot in disguise? No, but the Satio is certainly a prime example of a top class transformer, mobile phone by day, 12-mega-pixel camera by night! Now I’m sure that grabs the attention, but the question is does the Satio’s design and technological capabilities carry the same kind of impact?
The Satio’s design makes it instantly recognisable as a Sony Ericsson handset due to its uncanny resemblance to its predecessor, the Sony Ericsson C905. Those of you familiar with the C905 will deduce that the Satio is a peculiar beast with a curvaceous, yet cutting exterior. In the hand, it really does have a feel of quality and it’s sturdiness does offer some comfort to those of us who have been called ‘butter-fingers’, on more than one occasion. The jet black colour determines that it is fairly neutral and wouldn’t look out of place in anyone’s company while the mirrored finish to the screen is a nice touch that shows Sony Ericsson were committed to producing a final product that succeed in aesthetical quality.
There is no doubt that the 12-mega-pixel camera is the standout feature in the Sony Ericsson Satio’s repertoire. It really is an outstanding facility so instead of me boring you with my ramblings about how good I think it is; I thought I’d just give you the facts.
That really is an exhausting list of functions and they ensure that the Satio’s 12-mega-pixel camera is as good as anything else out there on the mobile market. It’s a real crowd-pleasing feature and no doubt plenty of people will buy it purely on that basis. The burning question is does it deliver on other fronts that will encourage consumers who want that little bit more from a mobile phone to buy it?
The most noticeable other feature is the Sony Satio’s compatibility with ‘Play Now’, a new online interface that allows users to personalise their Satio’s entertainment facilities. Anyone familiar with iTunes will no doubt notice Play Now’s uncanny resemblance. Having visited the site I was surprised by the wide-ranging amount of downloads available with music, games, apps, themes, wallpapers and ringtones easily ready for users to purchase. This kind of online interaction is another example of the Satio’s potential to exist as a real contender in the fight to be crowned the number 1 handset on the market. It also marks the first time a Sony Ericsson handset has been developed with a Symbian Foundation operating system. The 3.5”, nHD TFT screen proves more than sufficient to view downloaded films and video clips while 640*360 pixels deliver a good quality of resolution. Modern day users also want high end musical functionalities from their mobile and the Satio stands up well with a media player combined with MP3/AAC tones, a Bluetooth stereo, TrackID and album art.
The interface within the Satio is simply stunning and Sony Ericsson have incorporated some fantastic visuals. When reading a review, this kind of thing can seem trivial but these are the little touches that really make certain handsets a joy to use and set themselves apart from their peers.
Connectivity when using the Satio is made easy enough with the inclusion of built-in WiFi while Bluetooth facilities and a USB port makes sharing as easy as ever. The never-ending array of talents displayed by the Satio also includes location-based services such as A-GPS and Google Maps. This was of great satisfaction to me given the fact I’m not that well rounded in terms of geographical knowledge and any help in that area is always welcome!
The only real gripe I have with Sony Ericsson is the fact that they have undoubtedly produced a well-rounded handset in the shape of the Satio with outstanding talents, so why on earth only give it 128MB of internal memory? Having said that I would happily go out and spend £20 on a microSD card to give the Satio the memory boost it deserves.
In light of the knowledge that the Sony Ericsson Satio will not be the first 12 mega-pixel camera phone to hit the market it will be interesting to see how popular it proves. That said, the Symbian functionality coupled with Play Now is very exciting and does seem to give it a niche in the market when put alongside the camera. All in all there is no doubt that this is a top class handset and it could well send a shockwave through the market.
