Can two become one?
Although Sony Ericsson wants to play with the big kids, its ringer the Satio won’t be gracing our palm until November 2009, in the meantime we’re quite content with the adolescent 8.1 megapixel touting W995 Walkman phone. Supposedly the last in the Walkman line before its fusion with Cybershot, the W995 does everything we’ve come to expect from a classic Walkman phone and a little bit more.
Vital stats
As with most Walkman phones such as the W902 and Cybershots such as the C905 this latest incarnation has a Ronaldo-esque solid torso. Unlike the cumbersome C905 this slider measures at 97mmx49mmx15mm and also weights a far sight less at 113g. The buttons aren’t for the faint hearted but much better than the likes seen on the Nokia 5310. It’s far from being a design classic but we couldn’t help whipping it out and showing off its snappy slider action. When it comes to the screen it’s a tad poky at 2.6-inches in size. Fine for day-to-day use, it’s not so clever when squinting to see catch up TV.
Walkman’s got skills
With 30 years experience under its belt Walkman knows how to make sweet music. As the first Walkman phone to sport a 3.5mm headphone jack, the W995 doesn’t let its aural side down. Clear Bass and Clear Stereo features as well as a five-band graphic equaliser leads to crisp sounds and saves your tunes from sounding like a wasp stuck in an envelope. There’s a dedicated button to zip straight to your library and the option to use the click wheel or the directional buttons to skip tracks once in your tunes mix. It’s classic Walkman.
Camera slightly obscura
There was a time where we would be weeping with joy at the sight of an 8.1-megapixel camera phone and for a Walkman to come sauntering into view with one we should be on the floor. Alas times have changed and although the amount of pixels are worthy of Cybershot status, the pics it takes are not. With the Xenon Flash replaced by a lack lustre Power LED snaps in low light conditions are a no-go. Although modes such as Face detection, BestPic, image stabiliser, autofocus and geotaging are all in tow the pictures lack the C905 snapping edge when it comes to picture brightness, contrast and sharpness.
Smartie pants?
When it comes to connectivity there’s no sign of scrimping here. Get connected using Quadband GSM, HSDPA, WiFi and 3G. All of which seem to make browsing a pretty speedy experience. The accelerometer is slightly sluggish when switching from landscape to portrait and the zoom could do with a bit of a boost as we found that a webpage took a fair while to reload.
The W995 is certainly a bona-fide Walkman phone with a whole load of extra junk in the trunk. Strip past the somewhat superfluous 8.1 megapixel camera and in its essence this is a fantastic music phone. Although the Walkman range may soon become a dinosaur of the phone world it’s certainly going out in style.
Link: Sony Ericsson
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