Sony Ericsson have long been masters of producing state of the art technology, the questions is, does the Sony Ericsson W995 continue to push boundaries or has there been a recession in spec and aesthetical development. The answer probably lies somewhere in the middle of these 2 extremes so lets dive in and see if the Sony Ericsson W995 is market or meerkat.
It is instantly clear that the Sony Ericsson W995 has development somewhat in terms of appearance if compared to the popular C905. It is both smaller and slimmer and I’m sure this quality appeals as similarly as it would do to the opposite sex! Big is beautiful? Hang your head! The smaller design is supported with the classic slider technique, a mechanism that is strangely addictive when you have it in your palm. Well it beats smoking anyway! I guess to anyone familiar with other Sony Ericsson phones would agree that it really does have a classic feel to it, which in my mind makes it instantly easy to use.
Sony Ericsson’s ‘Walkman’ range certainly seems to appeal to a specific sector of the market and the SonyW995 is no different, it’s media capabilities will knock your (Burberry) socks off. Instant access to You Tube seems to be par for the course with the latest handsets but it is still a welcome addition whether you want to wallow in nostalgia of old cartoon clips or see the latest film trailers. Speaking of films, the Sony Ericsson W995 really sets itself aside from the crowd with up to 3 free film downloads per month*. This is certainly an interesting plus point and vamps up the old idea of a handset coming with a free film pre loaded. The 256K, TFT colour screen of the W995 does offer a crisp visual experience, with the only let down being the size, a slightly undersized 2.6 inches.
Lack of memory should never be an issue with the Sony Ericsson W995 as it comes with an 8GB memory card as standard. A generous offer from the manufacturer? Not really. To not include it would be like buying a Playstation 3 and not owning Pro Evolution Soccer, essentially having the tools, but nothing to use them on. In any case hundreds of tracks can be saved and played in absolute musical quality, a fantastic selling point that all Sony Ericsson ‘Walkman’ handsets have always been able to hang their hat on. The inclusion of a small attachable speaker/docking station is an unexpected inclusion that does have a gimmicky feel to it.
Sony Ericsson W995 really is very simple to use once you start using it. I can confidently say that I could give this phone to my un-technologically minded mother and I wouldn’t be bombarded with question after question about how to send a text or change the ringtone, it really is that accessible. No small feat Sony Ericsson have achieved here. Every element of the interface is ultra responsive and simple things such as calling and texting are nicely blended in with the more advanced media elements such as the Walkman and Internet browsing.
In an effort to making viewing that bit more enjoyable the manufacturers have equipped the Sony W995 with a ‘kick-stand’, offering you the option of viewing your film/clip of choice at a 45 degree angle.
I feel like I’m picking on the poor little Sony Ericsson W995 at the minute so we’ll look at something positive. The inclusion of a camera is part and parcel of the modern mobile phones make-up, however they shouldn’t be taken for granted, well at least a good one shouldn’t. An 8-mega-pixel specimen may not be an improvement on the C905’s capabilities, or up to the level of the 12-mega pixel beasts on the horizon, but it still delivers with undeniable quality. Having taken a picture of my colleague opposite, it really does pick up every glaring facial flaw (of which there are many). Although the screen is relatively small the quality of picture is still apparent and you would not be disappointed if you relied upon this to capture all your latest holiday snaps.
In conclusion it is fair to say that the Sony Ericsson W995 is certainly an appealing proposition to anyone looking for a handset that delivers on all fronts and while it doesn’t quite push the boundaries, it certainly give them a polite slap. Shimples!
