SONY ERICSSON K 850
Sony Ericsson K850 Specifications
Standard: GSM 900/1800/1900, HSDPA, UMTS 850/1900/2100
Display: TFT, 262144 colors
Resolution: 320 x 240 pixels
Camera: 5 megapixel, video recording with sound
Polyphony: 64-tones
Entertainment: MP3 player, FM receiver with RDS, Java 3D games
Memory: 40MB + Memory Stick M2 slot
Phone book: 1000 contacts, voice dialing
Organizer: calendar, file manager, to-do list, notes, alarm clock, timer, stopwatch
Communications: SMS, MMS, WAP, GPRS, EDGE, Bluetooth 2.0 A2DP
Battery: Li-Pol 940 mAh
Dimensions (edit): 10.2 x 4.8 x 1.7 cm
Weight: 118 g
DESIGN
Traditionally, the flagship of Sony Ericsson is a phone that sets new standards and trends. As for the K850, you cannot look at this device indifferently. He demonstrates today the things that we will see in most phones no sooner than a year from now. First of all, this concerns the 5-megapixel camera, as well as other new options, but I will talk about them later. Powerful and at the same time compact body, it looks impressive and weighty. However, it is quite comfortable in the hand and pleasant to the touch. The panels are made of plastic with glossy inserts and painted black, typical of the previous flagships K750 and K800. The body of the novelty is very easily soiled and in order to maintain a shiny appearance, it was necessary to wipe it with a dry napkin. Since the flagship belongs to the Cyber-Shot line of phones, the rear panel repeats the design of a digital camera, but here, unlike the K800, there is much more similarity to a real camera. A bright green line on the sides of the case, as it were, separates the two devices - a phone and a camera. There is a universal Fast Port connector at the bottom of the case. It connects to a charger, headset and all other Sony Ericsson branded accessories. Nearby is a sliding panel that gives access to the battery, SIM-card and Memory Stick M2 slot.
DISPLAY
As you would expect, the flagship has a superb TFT display. Compared to K800, the screen of the new item has changed insignificantly. The diagonal has increased from 2 to 2.2 inches, while the number of displayed colors and resolution remain the same. These changes did not affect the image detail in any way, and the brightness level is sufficient with a large margin. It is very convenient to watch videos and photos on the K850 display, especially since the flagship has received a number of software solutions for multimedia tasks, which I will discuss in the section "Entertainment".
ERGONOMICS
In terms of performance, the review is concise, as the tested phone was too raw for an objective assessment of ergonomics. Let me just say that the main innovations are three touch-sensitive keys and a navigator integrated into the numeric keypad. At first, there are problems with accidental pressing of neighboring buttons due to the non-standard arrangement of the controls, but a few days of active use of the device will quickly adapt you to the new system.
Another note concerns the silver-colored swing keys. In my opinion, they are too small and look ridiculous.
The interface of the new product does not differ much from its predecessor, the K800 model, and all Sony Ericsson terminals in general. The menu consists of 12 animated pictures, sub-items are separated by tabs. At the same time, fast access is supported using digital abbreviations.
CAMERA
The camera is turned on with a separate button, like a real digital camera. In fact, this is a camera, as the list of functions and capabilities of a 5-megapixel camera cannot be compared with any other camera phone.
The CMOS sensor allows you to shoot with a maximum resolution of 2592 x 1944 pixels. The flagship does not use optics from any well-known manufacturer, as Nokia and LG do. At the same time, the new product has several interesting functions, one of which is the BestPic serial shooting familiar from the K800.The camera takes 9 quick shots and then lets you choose the best quality frame. The built-in flash supports three modes of operation, including red-eye removal. An autofocus sensor is located nearby. Before shooting, you can select the ISO value (Auto, 100, 200 or 400), white balance, color effect, shooting mode and focusing method. With the help of the K850, you can take not only photos, but also videos. The shooting resolution is 320 x 240 pixels, which allows you to get a clip of more or less tolerable quality.
ENTERTAINMENT
The phone has a separate player built into the phone software, similar to the Media Center shell in Windows Vista. This solution is convenient because you no longer have to switch between photos, videos and MP3-player. Everything is in one application. Moreover, a special sensor allows you to automatically rotate the image on the display when you rotate the phone case. This feature has delighted all the people who have seen my K850. The flagship is equipped with an FM receiver with RDS, TrackID function, MusicDJ, VideoDJ, PhotoDJ editors and two fun Java games with 3D graphics and built-in gyroscope system. The phone is equipped with 40 megabytes of memory and a Memory Stick M2 slot with support for cards up to 4 gigabytes.
COMMUNICATIONS
The set of communication functions in Sony Ericsson K850 is rather modest. Apart from Bluetooth, the device has no other wireless protocols. There is no IrDA and Wi-Fi, but there is support for the USB 2.0 interface, as well as GPRS and EDGE. Internet access can be performed using the built-in browser or by connecting the device to a computer as an external modem.
WORKING HOURS
The standard 940 mAh lithium-polymer battery lasted four days without recharging in the mode of minimal use of multimedia bells and whistles. For a terminal like K850, this figure is very good. With active use of the camera, player and wireless communications, the operating time is reduced to two days, but even so, the flagship deserves attention as one of the best phones of this year.
TOTAL
Advantages: 5MP camera, excellent display, media player, 3D gaming
Disadvantages: Small answer and reject keys
ALTERNATIVE
Nokia N95
The first Nokia smartphone with a 5-megapixel camera appeared on the market much earlier than the K850, but, like the new flagship, it is a hi-end solution. Two significant advantages of the N95 are the built-in GPS navigator and the S60 3rd Edition platform.
Samsung SGH-G600
The phone has a slider form factor and is equipped with a 5 megapixel camera. In fact, this is the third device on the market equipped with such a camera. The G600 has a 2.3-inch display, 3.5G networking, as well as a memory expansion slot and a suite of multimedia applications.
