Created: 04/30/2008
Video description: Though its navigation controls and keypad aren't up to par, the Sony Ericsson K850i is one of the finest camera phones we've seen.
Sony Ericsson K850i Video Transcript
>> Hi I'm Kent German, senior editor at CNET dot com. I'm here today to show you the Sony Ericsson K850i. This is a 5 megapixel cybershot Sony Ericsson camera phone. Now that's a lot to say but it is one of the company's most powerful camera phones out there and as a camera phone, it does really well. As far as the design goes, it has a pretty standard Sony Ericsson design; basic candy bar shape. Pretty attractive though, I like the black color, kind of a green highlight around here on the edge which makes it nice. The display is great, Sony Ericsson usually does a fantastic job with the displays and this phone's no different. Very bright, colorful, really great color resolution. Menus are also pretty simple, easy to understand. The only thing I did notice this when we were opening some of the menus, especially the main menu page. It just opened a little slowly, not a really long lag but it is noticeable definitely. Unfortunately I wasn't in love with the phone's navigation controls. They're very unusual but probably a little too unusual for their own good. You can see here that down on the bottom, we do have some touch controls. You'd never know that because they're not really marked as such. I didn't mind the placement of these really, but you have to touch these in the right place which is just on that little white line. This isn't a touch display so you can't touch the display and use it; gotta touch it on that white line. Even when I did that, sometimes I had to press it a couple times; just kind of a funky interface there, didn't really love it. Navigation control is also odd. It is a green ring. This is interesting because while it's pretty easy to use, it is raised with the surface of the thumb, the 2 and the 5 keys don't work as any kind of menu keys so usually you know, you see these toggles, there's a button in the middle that actually opens the menu or does something like that. And the 2 and the 5 keys don't do that. Also the keypad buttons, they are raised above the surface of the phone which is great, and they're spaced pretty far apart but they're pretty small. Really not the best controls and I really held the phone back as far as getting any sort of editor's choice award. However the phone does have great ergonomics for a camera. See if you hold it up like this, kind of looks like a regular camera from behind. The lens does have a sliding cover. It opens automatically when you turn on the camera, also have a flash, no self portrait mirror, but pretty sad as far as a camera goes. Great features inside here, almost anything you might see on a regular camera. Another interesting thing about this phone is it does have a motion sensor that's a little similar to what you might find in the iPhone. It allows you to play a game by moving the phone. So if I move the phone forward, I can move certain things forward in the game. Onboard we do have bluetooth, we have everything you might need. There's a music player, there's messaging, email, all though high ends; organizer functions as well. So a really feature packed phone, good call quality, very good photos, and good camera, but it's really those controls that just hold it back. I'm Kent German and this is the Sony Ericsson K850i. [ music ]
Sony Ericsson K850i - black (unlocked) Review
Avg user rating
Very good
8.2
out of 10
The good: The Sony Ericsson K850i has a gorgeous display, a wide range of features, and desirable sound quality. It's also a fantastic camera phone with outstanding photo quality.
The bad: The Sony Ericsson K850i's navigation array and touch controls take a little getting used to. Also, the keypad buttons are rather small.
The bottom line: Though its navigation controls and keypad aren't up to par, the Sony Ericsson K850i is one of the finest camera phones we've seen.
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Sony Ericsson K850i - black (unlocked) User Opinions
9 out of 10
Excellent
I'm glad that CNET have finally reviewed this phone. I've had mine for about 4 months...
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3 out of
3 users found this opinion helpful
9 out of 10
Excellent
Great overall - worth the money, stereo bluetooth headset for music and phone calls...
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1 out of
1 users found this opinion helpful
9 out of 10
Excellent
I think itis the best phone available in the market. Before the launch of sony ericsson...
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1 out of
1 users found this opinion helpful
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Sony Ericsson K850i - black (unlocked) Specs
Manufacturer: Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications
Part number: K850i-silver
Smartphones Basic Specs
Product Basic Spec
- Band / mode
- WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900
- Short Messaging Service (SMS)
- Yes
- Combined with
- With two digital cameras / digital player / FM radio
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Sony Ericsson K850i - black (unlocked) Prices
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