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Handhelds Toys Hardware

Sony Ericsson P800 Reviewed 220

Posted by CmdrTaco from the get-your-lust-on dept.
Ch_Omega writes "For all those who have been waiting, there is now an in-depth and detailed review of one of the most anticipated connected handhelds of 2003, the Sony Ericsson P800, over at Infosync. Does it live up to the hype? According to the story, the answer is yes." I've been lusting after the t68i for awhile, but maybe I'll wait for this one. It just looks so cool!
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Sony Ericsson P800 Reviewed More

Sony Ericsson P800 Reviewed

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  • It's the screen (Score:2, Interesting)

    by metamatic ( 202216 )
    I was planning on getting a P800 until I discovered that the screen is smaller than a Palm.

    I figured if I was going to put up with a device with a screen the size of a postage stamp, I'd go with a t68i, which will at least fit easily in my pocket, and have a separate handheld computer linked via Bluetooth.

    I'm still looking for the computer part of the setup; the new Sony CLIE is looking promising.
    • ... the screen is also so much _better_ that the small physical formfactor isn't a problem.


      Having the handheld computer and phone in one device really, really, makes up for a lot.

    • Re:It's the screen (Score:4, Informative)

      by SecGreen ( 577669 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:12AM (#5301865)
      The screen is a bit larger than a postage stamp... It's resolution (when open) is 208x320 pixels, just a little lower than most PocketPCs (320x240) and much higher than the old-generation PalmOS PDAs (160x160).

      When compared with a PalmOS pda, the screen is smaller (about 60% the area), but it's still 2.5 times the area of the screen on the t68i.

      Devices like these have to make compromises.
    • I figured if I was going to put up with a device with a screen the size of a postage stamp, I'd go with a t68i, which will at least fit easily in my pocket, and have a separate handheld computer linked via Bluetooth.

      I already do this. I've looked at PDA phones for a while but I've never really been taken with them. I've used various Palm devices to make SSH connection to servers using phones over the past few years. I used to use IR but with bluetooth this is even simpler.

      The only neat PDA/phone is still the Nokia 9210i. I mean Doom and you can use a serial cable to connect to switches/servers, what more could a geek want?

      • I just got my T68i with bluetooth. And my wife already has had the T68i for a while now. (We live in Europe). The T68i rocks. Tonight when I got my t68i the salesman showed me the T800. Nice, but too big. I have gotten used to putting my phone in my pocket instead of the "geeky" belt protector. And with bluetooth enabled Pocket PC, what more do you want. Bluetooth really is a godsend, with the devices.

  • hey (Score:2, Funny)

    by odyrithm ( 461343 )
    it looks just like my ice box! kewl.

  • I have one (Score:5, Informative)

    by Troed ( 102527 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:50AM (#5301682) Homepage Journal
    ... and it's wonderful.


    It's a bit bigger than my last two cellphones, but it packs a lot of functionality. I've always had a handheld computer since I work in the embedded/telecom/handheld-industry, but I've never carried it with me. With the P800 I finally do - it's the perfect replacement for the cellphone/palm-combination.


    Oh, and Symbian OS is the meanest, cleanest, leanest wonderful little operating system to run - and code for. Really.

    • Re:I have one (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Rogerborg ( 306625 )

      Symbian is appalling! It's desparately in love with itself and its own idioms, and re-implements everything. "typedef void TAny;", for god's sake, not to mention the tortuous try/throw/catch replacement and cryptic error cleanup. The documentation is truly dreadful: everything returns "KErrNone or another of the system wide error codes", but no hints as to what error codes or under what circumstances, you have to use an undocumented feature to translate error returns to comprehensible values, getting network support in the emulator is a lottery, the develop forums are full of questions but no answers, you have to jump through hoops to fake global variables...

      Put it this way. If you never intend to develop for any other platform, then Symbian is worth investing in. If you only plan to live for one human lifetime, then get a P800 (they're superb) but don't waste your life trying to develop for it.

  • T68i is a step down.. (Score:4, Informative)

    by ltning ( 143862 ) <{ltning} {at} {anduin.net}> on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:51AM (#5301684) Homepage
    According to my own experience with the T68i, the build quality and usability of that phone is significantly worse than that of the T68. Sure, you can bring them to the same level firmware-wise, but the T68 is just more sturdy than the 'i' model. I had one T68 and two T68i's, and the T68 works nicely still (it's the oldest and has had the roughest treatment), while the i's have both broken down, and been repaired four times altogether.
    But I don't like any of them; they are just too damn slow. I mean come on - 2-3 seconds wait to open the address book? And what about typing SMS'es, by the time you wrote half the message you have to wait for the phone to catch up with you..

    I really hope this new one is faster, sturdier and more usable. Then I'll perhaps check it out.

    • Different OS - Re:T68i is a step down.. (Score:4, Informative)

      by monkey_tennis ( 649997 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:07AM (#5301830)
      Remeber the P800 is a completely different architecture and OS to the T68m/i

    • Not true (Score:3, Informative)

      by ciryon ( 218518 )
      I worked until recently at a company with close contacts with Sony Ericsson. We had many of the phones long time before they hit the market. The T68i uses much better plastics and is more steady than its predecessor. The T68 model doesn't feel very robust if you squeeze the phone. Still you can upgrade the T68 to get exactly the same software as the new model.

      To get back on subject the P800 is a really cool phone, a bit large perhaps but the best smartphone I've tried so far. The camera has really good quality and the phone has fast enough CPU to give smooth frames per secons - not at all like other cameras in phones if you've tried them.

      If only the P800 could sync with iSync I'd get one today.

      Ciryon

    • I agree that the T68 takes 2-3 seconds just to open the address book. However, this is not the case on the T68i model. The 'i' model is considerably faster for all the menu operations, typing, and just about everything else. I don't know whether they improved the software or the hardware, but I like it much more than the old T68.
    • I have to say that that han't been my experience of the t68i at all. Mine seems pretty snappy to use, and opens a book of 120 or so numbers in 1 seconds. The predictive text is much the best that I've used - vastly better than motorola phones', for example.

      It also has a large memory for numbers and text messages, and about twice the battery life of other phones I've owned (and of my friend's phones). And that's with bluetooth on purely for the natty blue LED.

      I'd have to agree that it's not the most strongly constructed, but that's what you get for lightness, I suppose. I'd add that I've dropped it several times onto hard surfaces, and no harm has come to it.

      If I had to critique it, I'd say that it could stand to be heavier (provided the size didn't change) in exchange for an even longer battery life, and the keys aren't all that great.

      Overall, though, it's the best phone I've owned by some way, and something like 50% of the people I know have bought them since the first ones started appearing amongst my aquaintances.

      And yes, I do know someone who had a more-or-less DOA, but then I know someone who had two from Nokia, so I'm not drawing any QC conclusions.

      Steff
      • I don't know, my t68i feels slow.. when I push the buttons (tap tap tap.. wait.. ah!) it reacts too slow, especially compared with a nokia 8310. The user interface is also a bit of a dissapointment compared with nokia's. But the feature's are cool.. to be able to use your t68i as a bluetooth remotecontrol for your computer for example.. and it syncs well via bluetooth with my mac. I wonder: does the p-800 sync with OS X or linux?

  • Yeesh! (Score:3, Interesting)

    by TopShelf ( 92521 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:51AM (#5301685) Homepage Journal
    "there is also a plastic stylus which looks quite silly and flimsy at first glance, but thanks to its flat, curved shape works surprisingly well. And just like Sony Ericsson, we suspect it to be easy to lose track of - which is probably why there are three spare ones included in the box."

    That doesn't exactly inspire confidence in the design team!

  • T68i (Score:3, Informative)

    by cdrudge ( 68377 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:51AM (#5301686) Homepage
    Taco - If you've been lusting over the T68i, you are going to be sadly disappointed. The reception sucks unless you are withing about 6 inches of a tower. The only plus it has is bluetooth. Do yourself a favor. Get the Samsung S105 if you can't wait.
    • I'm guessing you use AT&T with your T68i. I don't get your reception problems with T-Mobile....
    • See here [google.com] for all the problems that people have had. I probably should have said that your reception may suck. Everyone hasn't had problems, but many people have possibly do to the internal antenna.

      Whatever the reason is, I think that there are many better phones out there. The screen has an inferior resolution to most color phones out there right now, doesn't have polyphonic or better ringtones (if that interests you), or java applets/midlets. If you want to go spend 199 for the T68 or 299 for the T68i, go for it. I'm just telling you my experience. I thought that the $200 I paid for my S105 was a better deal.

  • Top right corner (Score:4, Funny)

    by quitcherbitchen ( 587409 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:53AM (#5301716)

    Pre-Reserve Now!

    To make sure you're one of the first to reserve one?

  • Howard Stern Is My Cousin (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Acidic_Diarrhea ( 641390 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:53AM (#5301722) Homepage Journal
    I've used this and it was okay - I don't really have any need for making constant phone calls so the dual purpose of the device isn't really of interest to me. What is troubling and why I wouldn't buy this is that the only memory expansion you can use is the Sony Memory Stick - a proprietary memory device. What this says to me is that Sony wants to control the price of any future add-ons for the phone and that, in all likelihood, they're going to consistently steal my money! In some instances, you're forced to deal with proprietary formats due to lack of other choices, but in this case, I'm sure I'll be able to find a PDA/phone that uses SD or MMC.

  • Killer App ?? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Bob Abooey ( 224634 )
    Looks good but is it the killer app that the industry is looking for to drive sales for new devices?

    With the economy still in the crapper it's gonna take a real killer "gotta have" device to make people shell out some dough right now
    • Picture messaging is the next mobile killer app. It is already huge in Japan. You (didn't) hear it here first!

      • Re:Killer App ?? (Score:3, Insightful)

        by mgs1000 ( 583340 )
        Picture Messaging is huge in Japan

        That doesn't mean it will be big anywhere else.

        Plain 'ole SMS has been huge in Europe for years, but people in the U.S. rarely use it.

      • According to another Infosync [infosync.no] article, someone has allready ported Doom to the P800. I would love to provide a link, but Infosync [infosync.no] appears slashdotted. :) Wait until the dust settles, and search for P800 Doom on infosync, and I'm pretty sure you'll find it.

  • Wow (Score:3, Insightful)

    by zaren ( 204877 ) <fishrocket@gmail.com> on Friday February 14, 2003 @09:58AM (#5301761) Journal
    I was originally going to be posting about how that's an insane price to pay for a cellphone, but after reading the review...

    damn, that thing looks cool, not just in appearance, but feature-wise as well.

    It still seems to be something of a steep price to pay for an integrated cellphone / pda (after not having a cell phone since getting rid of my TracFone last year, any price seems too steep for me), but it's still very interesting, and I wouldn't complain if one found it's way into my pocket.

  • LInux? (Score:2, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Can I connect it with my Linux box?

    • Re:LInux? (Score:3, Funny)

      by ites ( 600337 )
      Of course you can - all you need to do is get a GPRS connection on your phone, and enable your Linux web server via a WASP (wireless application service provider), then exchange your data over MMS. It's so simple that dozens, even hundred of people will do this by 2004!
      Or, you could just use a serial cable.
    • There are lots of people using it with Linux already. Just check out the Sony Ericsson forum on Esato [esato.com]. All of Ericsson's mobile phone products that talk the bluetooth protocol work pretty well with Linux. I've got mine to talk to the BlueZ Linux drivers on the first try... I can upload ringer tones, pictures, or sync my address book/calendar without much trouble.
    • "Can I connect it with my Linux box?"

      Of course you can! Start programming...

  • GSM coverage not great in US (Score:5, Informative)

    by asmithmd1 ( 239950 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:04AM (#5301809) Homepage Journal
    Check to see if you have GSM service [gsmcoverage.co.uk] It is pretty spotty in the US right now
    • Track your cell phone in real time?? I hope your not the cheating kind...although most slashdotters probably have enough trouble getting one girlfriend.
    • The official gsm site and maps is at: http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/index.shtm l [gsmworld.com]
    • Agreed it looks bad on a map, given that it doesn't cover anything but a small % of the area. However you have to understand that there are large areas of the USA where there's no population and areas with not even roads running to them.

      The coverage you see although it only covers a small percentage of the country, does cover most of the population and anywhere you're ever likely to go.

      • Agreed it looks bad on a map, given that it doesn't cover anything but a small % of the area. However you have to understand that there are large areas of the USA where there's no population and areas with not even roads running to them.

        The coverage you see although it only covers a small percentage of the country, does cover most of the population and anywhere you're ever likely to go.

        i find this just a little over optimistic. I own a house less than 10 miles from an interstate, and there is no GSM service at the house whatsoever. The house is within a town boundary ("incorporated land") and we are eligible for DSL. I can drive for miles around and still get no phone signal. When I head towards the nearest big city I come into range about 10-15 miles east of my house. Friends not on GSM get coverage at our kitchen table.

        • Well of course there are still places that aren't covered. I was just trying to counter the typical European response to the US coverage map being so poorly covered. It's a simple fact that most people from Europe don't quite get how empty the US really is. :-)
          • very true, however the area I describe is 3 hours drive from New York City, not somewhere remote. No doubt Voicestream is only a few more transmitters away from serving us. I'm looking forward to not paying the local phone company a fortune just to pick up my email!
  • That would be like a nerd's dream. Run a web server on your PDA..

    Oh wait.

    You CAN! [pdacentral.com]

  • Opera on the p800 (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Björn ( 4836 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:06AM (#5301826)
    According to The Register you will be able to download Opera for the P800 on Monday. Sounds cool, but I wonder about how the web will look on such a small screen?

  • Missing features (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Mattygfunk1 ( 596840 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:09AM (#5301842)
    Yet another phone that includes both a camera and bluetooth but fails to extend the features to the next logical step. The step? A webcam.

    To make the connection would involve only a small amount of code so why not? While they are at it, an FM radio is a nice (but largely ignored) touch. Also something that I have yet to see in a phone is universal remote control features for your television and stereo systems etc.

    All in all the 3 very useful features (IMO) would probably cost less than $30 to include in a $650 phone.

    -------
    Interior design making Australia [wallpaperscoverings.com] look flashy.

    • yeah ... but then the next 3 $30 cool features to add in the phone, and then the next 3, and so on and so on.

      Somewhere the line needs to be drawn.
    • Why couldn't you make that feature? It already has GPRS, a camera, and a decent OS that someone has even made a networkable doom game for it. How difficult would it be to make some webcam software?

  • P800 with Opera (Score:2, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward
    It's so cool that Opera is about to realease a P-800 version of their webbrowser...

    http://www.opera.com/pressreleases/en/2003/02/11 /

  • Wow (Score:3, Funny)

    by e2d2 ( 115622 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:16AM (#5301890)
    Quote from the description:
    Just in case the camera isn't entertainment enough, the P800 comes fully equipped with games, a video clip viewer and enough customizable features to keep you happy for weeks

    Wow, I can be entertained for weeks! And for only $650 US. What a bargain.

  • It just looks so cool!! (Score:4, Insightful)

    by ites ( 600337 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:22AM (#5301935) Journal
    Yeah, why not just carry a plastic replica if you want something that looks cool. Too small for a PDA, too large for a phone.
    I've been using a wireless bluetooth headset for the last month or two, and this is a much better indicator of the future of mobile phones.
    Split the headset from the phone, and you get something more practical: a larger box that can do more and that you do not have to lift to your ear like a small well-designed brick.
    And... which you can actually write on with your stylus while you are making a call.

  • P800 and T68i (Score:3, Informative)

    by thefinite ( 563510 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:25AM (#5301947)
    I know exactly where Taco is coming from, but I got the T68i anyway, because it was only $25 after rebate from Amazon. Now, you can get it for free [amazon.com](after rebates).

    I don't know where the other complaints about the phone here are coming from. Mine gets great reception, doesn't take 2 seconds to pull up the address book (it is slow, but not 2 seconds slow), and the way it syncs with my PowerBook over Bluetooth and iSync is a dream come true. I see other people carrying Palms and Handsprings and feel sorry for them having to carry bricks around in their pocket. Anyway, enough advertising. Just trying to balance out the reviews I've seen posted so far....
    • You know, the reason they may be carrying palms/pocketpcs around with them is so that they can get an internet connection with them via bluetooth. I was able to get mine working perfectly with the BlueZ tools and pppd... I could dial into GPRS and use internet just about anywhere the phone has reception. Makes it nice... I can keep the phone in my pocket, and the pocketpc in my hand and surf the web without expensive services!

  • Sony Ericsson fan page (Score:3, Informative)

    by kiley ( 95428 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:31AM (#5301987)
    This page [esato.com] has a bunch of Sony Ericsson forums and review links. Pretty good info about this.

  • You know, most of us had one a while ago... (Score:3, Funny)

    by UnrefinedLayman ( 185512 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @10:40AM (#5302062)
    Oh... I thought you said "TI 86"...
  • Does it run Java? That's the question
  • I've been evaluating devices like this for work (yeah, I know how did I get that lucky!). Per other comments around the T68i, it's build quality is lousy and BT and battery life are it's only big pluses (oh yeah and it's free from Amazon right now with contract). It is a nice companion for the Palm Tungsten T [palm.com], though since the Palm can leverage data services through the T68i over BT, dial the phone, etc. Hopefully Sony-Ericsson will make the 800 a bit sturdier.


    So far, I've been most impressed with the Danger Hiptop [danger.com]. It's not color but has a real crisp greyscale display. It's Java based and a SDK should be available soon. True desktop syncing with your PIM should be here shortly too, but the export to the T-Mobile website isn't too bad. It's been available for as little as $50 with rebates recently. It has it's own mail and can check other POP accounts (and IMAP in a limited/unsupported fashion), you can browse regular websites, it does AIM and overall can be considered a consumer version of the Blackberry.


    Another device to consider if you're a CDMA fan (Sprint & Verizon) is the Kyocera QCP-7135 [kyocera-wireless.com]. I don't have an eval unit yet as Verizon hasn't certified it yet, but it looks to be one of the best Palm/phone combos.


    It'll be nice to finally see a P800 after all this hype, but there are other good options now.

  • I know someone who works at Symbian, and he gets all the phones to test before they are released. In November I think, he had a P800 with him, and I had a play... and I thought generally, it was a very nice piece of kit.

    The thing that I think I was most impressed with was the handwriting recognition. I have really bad writing, and I've never liked any of the funny "Graffiti" methods or anything. All this had was some different strokes for "i" and punctuation really. But it works, quickly and reliably on my writing. That is very cool...

    ALso, if you do lose the stylus, at a pinch, your finger works. And you can ditch the flip keyboard and leave it off, since all it does is press the touch screen. I thought it was a good idea doing this.

    Still, I would never get one. I'm happy with my Trium 110, which does all I want it to, has two games which are better than other phones (useful for boredom on tube), and the battery lasts ages. It's taken a good hammering now as well, and works fine.

  • Handspring's [handspring.com] Palm phone, the Treo 300 [trip23.com], is far and away the best convergent device on the market right now. At least for my purposes :-)!

    It's got a killer color screen, an excellent keyboard that works really well, it runs every Palm 3.5 app I've tried on it, and it fits comfortably in my pocket.

    SMS, e-mail, browsing the real web, excellent calendar and contact management. The only things it lacks are:

    Expansion slot.

    Bluetooth.

    Better sound support (for music playback).

    But if you really need a wireless productivity tool in your pocket, this is the only option. Palm Pilot, Blackberry, and cell phone, all in one.

    And no, I don't work for Handspring :-)!

  • Alright, is this just the coolest phone accessory? A phone with a friggin' laserbeam [sonyericsson.com]?

    OK, yeah, maybe not...

  • Get on with it already. (Score:4, Insightful)

    by johnlcallaway ( 165670 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @11:16AM (#5302336)
    All I really want is a goddamn phone. I like my Palm just the way it is. And my camera.

    Did you ever notice that most cell phone commercials now don't even talk about the PHONE!!!! All I really need from my cell phone I got in the cheapest one out there. Then I bought a serial cable so I can upload/download phone numbers a couple of times a month. Sure, USB or Bluetooth would be nice, but data really doesn't change that much.

    What is with all this "Let's put everything into one device" anyway. How many of you geeks buy all-in-one entertainment systems? Or TVs w/VCRs and DVDs in them?

    Answer ... none of you, because then when the next-big-thing comes along, you couldn't change just that one piece. When surround sound came out, I bought a new receiver, and then slowly added more speakers. I just bought a new DTS receiver, and guess what ... my speakers, DVD player, VCR, CD player, and TV all work just fine with it. I looked at some of the all-in-one units and they stunk. They were all missing features that I could only get my buying the individual components.

    OK .. I'll admit the cheap TV/DVD over the hot tub is kinda cool, but you only use it a couple of times a week and can live without all the neat features. You wouldn't watch The Matrix on it, would you??

    So .. phone company...sell me a phone to make phone calls. I'll take care of finding the best for the rest.
    • Hmmnnn. Do I want to carry a phone, a palm, a laptop. OR do I want to carry a PhoneDA and a Laptop.

      My working life is spent with my laptop open on my desk, on my lap, on the train, in hotels etc - as such it is great. I connect into servers and configure stuff and fix problems - through my mobile or through a fixed phone line. But one thing it's crap for is storing my lists for shopping, phone numbers for quick reference and being used in cramped conditions - and I'm in those most mornings on the train to work.

      I've already ditched the lead from the laptop to the phone using Bluetooth and that's a big enabler - if you've ever tried plugging cables in or lining up IRDA devices whilst on your lap or holding both with one hand while you use a stylus in the other you'll know what I mean - but this isn't enough.

      I would dearly like a single device which keeps my in touch in the most basic ways - voice, SMS and email - and stores all the notes with a relatively big screen and easy text entry. A standard phone doesn't cut it but a PhoneDA does. I've looked at the Treo but it's a little clumsier than the P800 looks.

      As for replacing it when the next big thing comes about, I do that with a single PDA or phone anyway - it's no more expensive (£299 for the P800 - £298 for a Palm Tungsten T, phones are usually free for me)
    • The way you're bitching, you'd think that phone companies no longer make "normal" phones. That's simply not true. In fact Nokia just recently announced a phone (http://www.nokia.com/nokia/0,,4582,00.html) that is much MORE simple than any of the recent low end models of theirs. In fact, most phones of most manufacturers are very low end and doesn't have much more than basic features in them.

      Having said that, I think it's a little sad to see you being so locked on a word; "phone". Think of it as "device" instead. In addition to the low end models mentioned above, these companies also make some devices which not only have phone functionality but also other stuff. For example, they have a large screen to make using email and the web easier. They have a camera, so you can send picture messages with MMS to friends ("Look, we're here in Thailand. Doesn't it look nice? Too bad you couldn't join us!" or "The bar is crowded and we're having fun!! You should come here! Here's what it looks like right now!").

      Oh, and of course you don't HAVE to buy these devices. If you're happy with your old phone, just keep it.

  • P800: The Bad and The Good. (Score:5, Informative)

    by juuri ( 7678 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @11:16AM (#5302338) Homepage
    I've only had my P800 for a week. It is the Swedish release model with the most currunt stable rom. Overall I find the phone to be everything expected and a bit more.

    First the bad:

    * It is heavier than many of the current cellphones out and has larger dimensions. While it still fits in a pocket it feels like you are carrying a phone from '99.
    * Because you can install any number of random apps from the world the stability can be suspect thanks to installing some garbage (there is a signing feature but I have yet to see any signed apps).
    * The flip keypad actually just presses the screen. There are reports in the wild of people slapping the buttons hard and ruining their LCD screens.
    * The preferences are in silly locations, go ahead try finding where you change the tone for message alerts.
    * Doesn't seem to be a bluetooth networking protocol stack built in despite what some people have claimed.
    * The vibration isn't impressive for a phone of this size. My pager can outshake it any day of the week.
    * Reception is much better than the t68i but still seems prone to signal fade (then again maybe this is just something that happens extremely often with GPRS in tall cities).
    * All of the buttons are very small.
    * There doesn't seem to be a built in way to disable or reprogram the hard buttons on the right side of the unit (camera, internet).
    * You can use the jog dial to select and go into things but there isn't a hard button to back out, you must use the LCD.
    * Navigation of the phone without looking at it is nearly impossible.
    * Limited size and proprietary nature of Sony memory expansion.
    * Requires Outlook/Notes for address book sync.
    * Expensive dev kit for creating native Symbian apps. ... whoa that was longer than I expected and now the Good:

    * Oh Jesus, it is damn sexy.
    * Very powerful, one of the included games is a rather bland race car game that you can play networked. What is impressive about it is that it is all shaded polygons similiar to what one would see on the 1st gen of Atari Jaguar games. Nothing too special really but when it is in the palm of your hand, awesome.
    * The camera is much better than any one inclued in any cellphone so far. The max resolution is 640x480, there is no flash, but the camera seems to take pretty decent pictures. Comparable to any of the $75-$100 digital cams one can currently purchase.
    * You can use practically anything for a ringtone. In some strange conspiracy it seems to only not support using .mod files to announce calls or alerts.
    * Syncing (if you have msoft products) works well. Just hook up the phone and go. Combine with an external sync program like trusync and syncing through outlook to your favourite web service is a breeze.
    * Practically every midlet I have tried on it works.
    * Ports of games like DOOM and the emulator MAME if you are into that sort of thing. While they work I've found MAME to be more of a showoff than usable to play games. The stylus just doesn't lend itself to old arcade games.
    * The screen is bright and the clarity kicks ass.
    * Phone comes with 12meg Internal and one 16Meg stick, that holds a lot of stuff if you aren't trying to fill it full of mp3s.
    * Included headset (headphone/microphone) have suprisingly good sound.
    * Handwriting recognition is fast, accurate and easy to get used to.
    * Support for POP/IMAP. This is probably my favourite feature of the phone, there is something just damn cool about having the phone pulling your email for you every hour or so and replying wherever you are.
    * SMS becomes insanely more easy when you can just write out your responses.
    * Played with a beta of the Opera browser which comes out on Monday. It is a *real* browser in your hand.
    * Bluetooth file transfers with laptops seem to work well as does moving files from phone to phone. I can not get bluetooth syncing to work.
    * Did I mention it was sexy?
    * Speakerphone quality is amazing (and very loud).
    * In fact the phone is *very* loud. You can play an MP3 loud enough for an entire room to hear.
    * Easy to assign pictures to any contact info.
    * Quickdial screen features icons of pictures for your friends/family. Nothing like just touching someone's face to call them.
    * IRDA works.
    * Flight mode.
    * Better than expected battery life for such a complex device.
    * Great sound quality in calls.
    * ...!

    Okay I am tired. Suffice to say even with the downsides this is by *far* the best integrated solution to come along.
  • According to the web page:

    Audio formats supported by the P800 include MP3, WAV, AMR, and AU.

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't AU the ancient Sun audio format? I find it odd that they advertise support for that, but don't mention Ogg support at all.

  • Security lies in multiple devices (Score:3, Insightful)

    by panurge ( 573432 ) on Friday February 14, 2003 @11:22AM (#5302407)
    I really don't like the idea of entrusting my digital everything to one small box that has "steal me" written on it in big letters, (especially when you cannot use all the functions simultaneously). After a period of deep initial suspicion I've been doing some evaluation on Bluetooth recently and it seems to me like the connectivity idea in that is much more sound. Bluetooth headset, phone with sensible keys and a small, greyscale display giving excellent battery life, PDA with a decent screen and processor (it doesn't have the same standby power needs as a phone because it isn't always listening).
    And, as for cameras, even with the small image sensors of digital cameras you need quite a large zoom lens for good pictures. To me it makes sense for someone to produce a good quality camera for which you can use your PDA as the monitor screen, something better than the optically poor add-ons we have seen so far.

    It seems sensible to optimise the gadget for its function and enable the gadgets to talk.

    If they also had a common battery charger and interchangeable battery, I guess that would be functionality heaven. Your PDA would be able to use expensive mobile phone connectivity only when necessary, otherwise using the local wireless network: I can't see a phone manufacturer wanting to allow that any time soon. So, although this thing looks like a v. cool gadget, I remain unconvinced.

  • and it's painfull watching him use it.

    He's left handed, so I don't know if that's the main cause of the problems.

    1: there's no way to setup the UI for left handed people e.g. scroll bar on the left so you don't cover everything up with your hand.

    2: It takes him ages to input text, with lots of errors

    on the good side, the developer kit he got looks quite good, and the interface isn't that bad (apart from 1 and 2).

    I'm going to stick to a keypad for now, my handwritings so bad even I can't read it.
  • This is an expensive phone.

    If I were to purchase one for use with one network provider, what information do I need to get in hand to ensure that they don't lock it to their service? It's my understanding that many of the newer units work on multiple networks, so long as you retain one of the codes used when they configure the phone.

    At this price, I'd want to ensure that the phone's sale was contingent on my getting that code. I don't think many cellular resellers would hold back on that if it makes the difference of their getting a commission or not.

  • I just spent a week in Europe playing (well, working, really) with the t68i, P800, SPV and GX10, and I like the GX10 best, hands down.

    The screen on the T68 series sucks, badly. The joystick moves when I want to click, and clicks when I want to move.

    The SPV (Orange only, AFAIK) runs some form of windows, and it sucked... It *crashed* constantly, and the menu layout and function navigation was terrible. F'rinstance, from reading an SMS, it took no fewer than for navigation steps to change from one folder (eg. inbox) to another.

    The GX-10 has a great screen, intuitive navigation interface, easy camera functionality, great form factor, great controls, and was the easiest to configure and use. My only carp is that it's not great on memory - it refused to download MMS messages that the t68 had no problem with (but that may be due to greater color depth - 68k colors vs. 4096)

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