Sony Ericsson P900
P900 Interactive Review
Sony Ericsson sent me a P900 to review. 😁 (I told them I don't do individual phone reviews, but they sent it anyway.) Since I don't have time to do a full, in-depth review, I thought I'd try something different - an "interactive review". My initial impressions are below, but they're not intended to be a full review.
The idea is basically to make this a Q&A thing - you ask questions, and I'll answer them as best I can using the P900 I have. Before you ask a question, please read the rest of this post, and check if someone else has already asked the same question.
First Impressions
The first thing that struck me about the P900 out of the box is the design. I really like how this thing looks! Of course I'd seen the photo...
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The idea is basically to make this a Q&A thing - you ask questions, and I'll answer them as best I can using the P900 I have. Before you ask a question, please read the rest of this post, and check if someone else has already asked the same question.
First Impressions
The first thing that struck me about the P900 out of the box is the design. I really like how this thing looks! Of course I'd seen the photo...
(continues)
...
Assuming you use a hands free device like a Bluetooth headset, does the device operate in "PDA" mode with the flip open while on a call?
Is there a simple way to capture and send photos to another wireless phone or email, or, is it a complicated messs?
Is the earpiece volume good and loud?
Thanks!
Is there a simple way to capture and send photos to another wireless phone or email, or, is it a complicated messs?
Is the earpiece volume good and loud?
Thanks!
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MegaBit said:
Assuming you use a hands free device like a Bluetooth headset, does the device operate in "PDA" mode with the flip open while on a call?
Yes. You can access pretty much everything during a call - flip open or closed. With the flip closed, it's a pain to get to the applications menu, but you can. With the flip open, everything's right there.
There are some limitations. Naturally, you can't play music during a call. You can open the music player, but it stays paused. You can't record or play video, although you CAN take a still photo and of course view those. I assume the video limitation is due to processing power... 😕
Is there a simple way to capture and send photos to ano...
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The inability to capture video while you are on a call is the same reason why you cannot play the music player or record sounds while talking.
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MegaBit said:
Assuming you use a hands free device like a Bluetooth headset, does the device operate in "PDA" mode with the flip open while on a call?
I just discovered something really neat that's kind of related:
If you're just using it held up to your ear, and you open the flip, not only can you use the PDA features, but it automatically switches to speakerphone mode, and switches back when you close the flip. Cool! 😁
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Thanks, Rich. I do have another question or two:
Have you had a chance to try the browser? I currently use a PalmOne Tungsten T3 and really like how it renders html web pages. Does Opera do a reasonable job?
It may be too big to throw in a pants pocket but would it look geeky to carry in a belt horizontal-style pouch case? 🤭
Have you had a chance to try the browser? I currently use a PalmOne Tungsten T3 and really like how it renders html web pages. Does Opera do a reasonable job?
It may be too big to throw in a pants pocket but would it look geeky to carry in a belt horizontal-style pouch case? 🤭
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MegaBit said:
Have you had a chance to try the browser? I currently use a PalmOne Tungsten T3 and really like how it renders html web pages. Does Opera do a reasonable job?
I've only tried the built-in a browser so far. I need more time with it, but so far I'm not impressed. It does do HTML, but the rendering isn't great. It even screws up some WAP/WML pages (including Phone Scoop mobile ☹️ ).
The only nice things are that it has a full-screen mode, and the jog dial makes it a joy to scroll up and down.
The jog dial's other functions don't make much sense, though. "back" doesn't map to the browser's "back" function, and pressing in doesn't select a link - I'm not even sure what it does. It seems to s...
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Megabit:
If I am to understand your post correctly, you are using a T3 with Bluetooth, together with a cell-Bluetooth telephone to connect to the internet. Further, am I to understand that the web pages are appearing in your T3 for viewing and manipulation?
In other words, is the telephone providing the connection and the T3 the interface? As I have not found an acceptable Palm/telephone, I may go this route, or wait a few long months to see if what I want comes out.
I am not partial to the present crop of Palm/telephones. I do not like the clutter of a keyboard, and the Samsung 500 works only on Sprint, has old Palm software, and has no memory card slot. The others are too big. The Samsung 600 would be ideal, except that it ...
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If I am to understand your post correctly, you are using a T3 with Bluetooth, together with a cell-Bluetooth telephone to connect to the internet. Further, am I to understand that the web pages are appearing in your T3 for viewing and manipulation?
In other words, is the telephone providing the connection and the T3 the interface? As I have not found an acceptable Palm/telephone, I may go this route, or wait a few long months to see if what I want comes out.
I am not partial to the present crop of Palm/telephones. I do not like the clutter of a keyboard, and the Samsung 500 works only on Sprint, has old Palm software, and has no memory card slot. The others are too big. The Samsung 600 would be ideal, except that it ...
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I'm thinking in getting rid of my iPAQ and SE T300 for this baby... but it is fast? How much time it takes to open a word document, or a powerpoint presentation? or to open an ebook (i think I'll use mobipocket reader for p800 for that - old apps are still compatible, right?) And how durable is the body? Does the screen scratches too easily?
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It's no speed demon. Just doing general stuff, it's fine, but since you mentioned Office documents, I did a quick speed test vs. an iPAQ 1945. Here's how long a couple test documents took to open on each device:
Small (23k) Word doc:
P900: 7 sec
iPAQ: 1 sec
Large (446k) Excel doc:
P900: 27 sec
iPAQ: 10 sec
Small (149k) PDF:
P900: 10 sec
iPAQ: 1 sec
...now that's just using the P900's biult-in viewers, which are very basic (no full-screen mode ☹️ ). 3rd-party software might provide better performance.
But still, I'd say it's a safe statement that the P900 does not have anywhere near the speed of a newer Palm or Pocket PC device.
Small (23k) Word doc:
P900: 7 sec
iPAQ: 1 sec
Large (446k) Excel doc:
P900: 27 sec
iPAQ: 10 sec
Small (149k) PDF:
P900: 10 sec
iPAQ: 1 sec
...now that's just using the P900's biult-in viewers, which are very basic (no full-screen mode ☹️ ). 3rd-party software might provide better performance.
But still, I'd say it's a safe statement that the P900 does not have anywhere near the speed of a newer Palm or Pocket PC device.
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Can you compare the photo quality to other vga camera phones eg Nokia 7650/3650?
The quality on the P800 was unacceptable, the 7650 barely acceptable, the 3650 was acceptable - wondering whether they've improved it at all?
The quality on the P800 was unacceptable, the 7650 barely acceptable, the 3650 was acceptable - wondering whether they've improved it at all?
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Photo quality, overall, is slightly below the Nokia 3650.
In good light, quality is comparable, but color tends to take on a yellowish cast in most conditions. In poor light, the P900 is not as sensitive as the 3650, even in night mode.
The P900 does have a much larger array of manual controls, however, including brightness, contrast, "backlight", and color balance. It also has the typical resolution and quality control, plus a self-timer.
One neat and unique feature - in theory - is a mode that lets you take a flicker-free photos or video of a PC or TV screen. But I didn't notice any effect when I tried it. Perhaps that's not yet implemented in the version of the software I have.
Regardless, I wouldn't make any final judgment ab...
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In good light, quality is comparable, but color tends to take on a yellowish cast in most conditions. In poor light, the P900 is not as sensitive as the 3650, even in night mode.
The P900 does have a much larger array of manual controls, however, including brightness, contrast, "backlight", and color balance. It also has the typical resolution and quality control, plus a self-timer.
One neat and unique feature - in theory - is a mode that lets you take a flicker-free photos or video of a PC or TV screen. But I didn't notice any effect when I tried it. Perhaps that's not yet implemented in the version of the software I have.
Regardless, I wouldn't make any final judgment ab...
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Tried both the P900 and 3650 outdoors today. Got some interesting results. I take back my comment about P900 photos being too yellow. Now I'll just say the P900's automatic white balance - in my software version - is "unpredictable". 😉
Like they say, pictures are worth 1000 words, so here are the sample photos:
P900:
http://www.pscp.net/img/misc/P900_sample.jpg »
3650:
http://www.pscp.net/img/misc/3650_sample.jpg »
Another thing - as you can see, the P900's field of view is narrower than most camera phones - it's not as wide-angle.
Personally, I think it's better. I think most phones are a bit too wide, and I have to get really close to get it framed right, but then you're so close it's distorted. With the P900, you have t...
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Like they say, pictures are worth 1000 words, so here are the sample photos:
P900:
http://www.pscp.net/img/misc/P900_sample.jpg »
3650:
http://www.pscp.net/img/misc/3650_sample.jpg »
Another thing - as you can see, the P900's field of view is narrower than most camera phones - it's not as wide-angle.
Personally, I think it's better. I think most phones are a bit too wide, and I have to get really close to get it framed right, but then you're so close it's distorted. With the P900, you have t...
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