Sony Ericsson W900i

[Quillz]

Sony Ericsson W900i Specs:

• Dimensions: 4.2 in. (width)* ? 1.9 in. (length) ? 0.9 in. (depth)
  
• Weight: 5.2 oz.
  
• Screen Type/Size: TFT, 256K colors / 240 x 320 pixels, 1.2 x 1.7 in.
  
• GSM Coverage: Tri-band (900, 1800 and 1900 MHz bands[should work in most parts of NA, EU and Asia]i>
  

*when closed (6.4 in. when opened)[Remember that this is an unlocked GSM phone! As such, it requires a GSM provider to use (such as Cingular.) For those of you in the USA, Verizon is not GSM based!i>[/b]b>

The Sony Ericsson W900i was released a few months ago, and is currently the premier mobile phone of thexxxi> series. As it has not yet been released in North America, I imported an unlocked model from the EU. As the mobile phone is tri-band, it will work with all GSM networks throughout most of the world, such as Cingular or T-Mobile in the USA. The gadget cost me $680, but I feel it was worth the price for all that is packed into this powerful device.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/Nidoking/w900i/sonyericsson-w900-00.jpg[/imgPackagingb>

The W900i comes in a large plastic box, nicely displaying the phone and the included remote. The box itself plays on the orange Walkman theme, and while nothing special, it's certainly nice to look at. The packaging includes, specifically, the W900i, the remote, instruction manuals, Disc2Phone software, and the usual yada-yada warranty and legal info.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v45/Nidoking/w900i/01.jpg[/imgFirst Impressionsb>

When the mobile phone arrived via UPS, I took one look at it and wondered if I made a mistake. The phone seems to be very large, and appears like it might be heavy. But, as I've learned time and time again, you can't judge a book by its cover. It onllooksi> big and heavy. Once you hold it, it's actually quite comfortable, and not all that heavy. The physical dimensions of the gadget are 4.2 in. (width)* ? 1.9 in. (length) ? 0.9 in. (depth), and it weighs 5.2 oz.

Edited May 25, 2006 by Quillz

[BroChaos Veteran]

nice review and sweet phone. my buddy was thinking about picking one up, but i think he's gonna go with the samsung i310.

[Quillz]

nice review and sweet phone. my buddy was thinking about picking one up, but i think he's gonna go with the samsung i310.

Thanks for the compliment. I could completely understand why someone would choose the Samsung i310. It's a much more "traditional" candy bar phone. I think that, unfortunately, a lot of people are turned off by the perceived thickness and weight of the W900i.

[Manson_AAN]

Hey man its a good, of course there's always room for improvement, but for now I think its fine (to my standards) keep up the good work! I have a w800i and I really like it :) 512mb, and i hope to get a 8gb sandisk and upgrade the firmware when it comes out, so the capacity of 2 nanos in a phone ^^ and with the 470 intermal memory for the 900i its amazin. 8.5gb nearly once a 8gb sandisk comes out.

[Rahul]

NO YOU DONT

the best of the best in the walkman series is Sony W950i a Symbian operated touchscreen phone with 2gb internal flash memory & a 8gb Memory stick . Notice that it is not 3G

[Manson_AAN]

haha wow impressive, any info on the release date?

[S1RHC]

Rahul, no camera :( that's enough for me :p

A happy owner of a W900.

[Quillz]

NO YOU DONT

the best of the best in the walkman series is Sony W950i a Symbian operated touchscreen phone with 2gb internal flash memory & a 8gb Memory stick . Notice that it is not 3G

YES I DO :p

Yeah, I know about the W950i. But it removed a lot of options that I liked in the W series, such as the camera. Also, I can't say I'd find a touch screen to be very practical. Therefore, to me, it's not as desireable as the W900i, and it's my review, so... ;)

Edited May 20, 2006 by Quillz

[REM2000]

YES HE DOES

he does because the W950i isn't released yet, he actually does have the phone, so it is the best , as i can bet there will be a replacement for the W950i in the future aswell.

[SomeAzn]

Does Sony place a limit on the number of songs you can put on the phone? I remember that the 800i had a limit (something like 120 songs). So, even if you had 8 GB of memory, you could still only put a limited number of songs on there, which would really kill the mp3 aspect of the phone for me.

[Quillz]

Does Sony place a limit on the number of songs you can put on the phone? I remember that the 800i had a limit (something like 120 songs). So, even if you had 8 GB of memory, you could still only put a limited number of songs on there, which would really kill the mp3 aspect of the phone for me.

Hmm... I'm honestly not sure, as I only have about 75 songs on mine right now. Seeing as the W900i is the "evolution" of the Walkman line, I'd like to say the limit has either been raised or removed entirely. But it may not have been. If I do find a limit, though, I'll edit it into the review.

[Martyn]

Awesome review Quillz (Y), you certainly spent a lot of time on it :)!

I love Sony Ericsson (I have a W800i myself - and love it), the W900i is really cool especially with the remote and built in memory, and W900i is meant to have better sound quality and generally better than all other Wxxx model's available at the moment. I am not a big fan of swivel phones, but I have to agree it looks pretty hot!

NO YOU DONT

the best of the best in the walkman series is Sony W950i a Symbian operated touchscreen phone with 2gb internal flash memory & a 8gb Memory stick . Notice that it is not 3G

Thats a pretty cool phone. But touchscreen? I would probably break that screen within a week, ewww finger marks. Nice though.

Hmm... I'm honestly not sure, as I only have about 75 songs on mine right now. Seeing as the W900i is the "evolution" of the Walkman line, I'd like to say the limit has either been raised or removed entirely. But it may not have been. If I do find a limit, though, I'll edit it into the review.

Well I have 500 songs on my W800i, so I presume it has no limit. I know the Motorola Rokr with iTunes on has a limit of 100 songs which is kind of pathetic.

[mail]

I'm waiting for the W850i .. wish it had more internal memory though

[MLIFE]

I have the W900i, its ok, no biggy. Will next time go for a PPC/Phone instead. Regardless of that, do you know how to ehum unlock the phone?

[Quillz]

I'm waiting for the W850i .. wish it had more internal memory though

The W850i looks very cool, as I'm a fan of slider phones, myself. But yeah, it would be nice if it had more internal memory, though you can always add more externally.

I have the W900i, its ok, no biggy. Will next time go for a PPC/Phone instead. Regardless of that, do you know how to ehum unlock the phone?

I myself don't know how one would unlock a phone to work on any GSM network. I would assume that most people purchase unlocked phones new from Amazon or eBay or something. You pay full price, but it's worth it because it will work with any network, and usually anywhere in the world.

[mail]

The W850i looks very cool, as I'm a fan of slider phones, myself. But yeah, it would be nice if it had more internal memory, though you can always add more externally.

I myself don't know how one would unlock a phone to work on any GSM network. I would assume that most people purchase unlocked phones new from Amazon or eBay or something. You pay full price, but it's worth it because it will work with any network, and usually anywhere in the world.

Can you skin the UI of sony phones ?

[AQUaDeX]

Can you skin the UI of sony phones ?

Yeah sure, the whole interface can be changed, in fact Sony Ericcsson has themes for you to download from their own website:

http://www.sonyericsson.com/fun/wxhtml/dow...ad1_1?files=600

I agree, great phone, but way too overpriced, I got the Nokia N91 instead, has 4GB internal MicroDrive, and support for Microsoft PlaysForSure Subscription.

[gaurav]

Can you skin the UI of sony phones ?

sure you can!

to OP, nice review! I really like the phone. and Sony Ericsson makes great phones (my father has P910i, which he got for free from office :p ).

[Guol]

W900i seems to be a great phone.

As my iPod kind of died I've been looking for a replacement, but something like this would be just as great IMO..

And yeh, its tri-band so I'm guessing its supported in Australia!!

Might just wait until it's cheaper though.. :)

[Manson_AAN]

yeah Guol, it'd b a good phone, unless you're too used to your entire library on your phone then sorry I can't help you :( but yeah w800, w810, w850, w900, all are good phones, choose one to suit your taste, if you want memory, as you can see the w900 is the way to go, 470 internal, go buy a 2gb sandisk and walla 2.5 gb of storage space for music ( but leave soem space for photos and movies) :p

[Quillz]

W900i seems to be a great phone.

As my iPod kind of died I've been looking for a replacement, but something like this would be just as great IMO..

And yeh, its tri-band so I'm guessing its supported in Australia!!

Might just wait until it's cheaper though.. :)

I believe Australia and New Zealand use the 900 MHz band, so this phone should work fine. In fact, it should work fine throughout the entire world, save North America, where some Latin American countries use only 850 MHz.

[Guol]

yeah Guol, it'd b a good phone, unless you're too used to your entire library on your phone then sorry I can't help you :( but yeah w800, w810, w850, w900, all are good phones, choose one to suit your taste, if you want memory, as you can see the w900 is the way to go, 470 internal, go buy a 2gb sandisk and walla 2.5 gb of storage space for music ( but leave soem space for photos and movies) :p

Yeh thanks.

Sony Ericssons are awesome phones.

Just need to get a part-time job and save up some money, though :pinch:

I believe Australia and New Zealand use the 900 MHz band, so this phone should work fine. In fact, it should work fine throughout the entire world, save North America, where some Latin American countries use only 850 MHz.

Yay that's great..Thanks :yes:

[pyehac]

After reading the review, it seems like its similar to my Motorola v635 phone. Can anyone else justify the almost $700 price tag?

(BTW, great review though)

[Quillz]

After reading the review, it seems like its similar to my Motorola v635 phone. Can anyone else justify the almost $700 price tag?

(BTW, great review though)

I unfortunately bought the phone from Amazon, where it's more expensive. (But I wanted the A-Z Guarantee.) You can get it from places like Plemix for much less. (I've seen it for as low as $580.) Looking at the Motorola V635, it appears that while it has EDGE, it also does not have as good a digital camera. Also, the V635 only has 5 MB of internal memory, and can only (seemingly) support up to 256 MB of external memory.

[tony-inpo]

Great phone, great photos, I want one