What exactly does $600 buy you these days? If you're looking at Sony Ericsson and you live in the States, the answer is now this, the Walkman-branded
W995a, which we've had a chance to play with in advance of its July 6 date with destiny. Charging $600 for
any phone -- much less a non-smartphone -- is a tough proposition to be making (particularly in a not-so-hot economy), but the company seems to be very cognizant of the fact that it's putting this out there strictly for the niche enthusiasts who like their hardware totally uncrippled and without a trace of carrier branding inside or out. We'd even go so far as to say that this'll be a loss leader for them -- it's not designed to make money so much as it's designed to keep Sony Ericsson in the hearts and minds of shoppers, keep folks aware that they've got hot hardware available, and take advantage of those who do buy it to evangelize the brand. Read on!
Enough philosophy, though -- what of the phone? Historically, so-called music phones have gotten a bad rap as poor substitutes for their dedicated PMP cousins; Sony Ericsson is positioning the W995a as its flagship Walkman handset, and surprisingly, we came away with the impression that it's a totally appropriate way to brand it. The sound through the 3.5mm jack was simply stellar, perhaps thanks in part to the phone's Clear Stereo and Clear Bass gizmos for improving stereo separation and a great kick in the pants on the low end. Granted, we conducted our testing on a pair of exquisite Shure SE530 buds equipped triple-flange sleeves, but we use these on virtually every music phone we test -- and we can say without hesitation that the W995a provides the best sound we've ever heard from a phone. Sound was rich and well-balanced, but perhaps more importantly, there was virtually zero hiss or other unwanted electronic interference. In fact, we'd go so far to say it's among the best sound we've heard from any portable media player.
Enhancing the phone's multimedia-centric image are stereo speakers that are creatively positioned at either end, top and bottom. Stereo speakers in a device this small are gimmicky by nature, but Sony Ericsson's done the best it could by separating the two by as much distance as they could possibly be -- and they're clear enough to rival some notebook PCs. Notebooks aren't renowned for audio quality by any stretch, true, but for a phone, we thought that was a fairly impressive observation. We could've used another notch or two of volume, but it was acceptable for casual listening and speakerphone duty.
The jury's still out on the camera. Because the W995a isn't quite as camera-centric as the C905 Cyber-shot (which also has an 8.1 megapixel sensor), it lacks the C905's automatic lens cover, but that's not our real concern -- we found that the cam had trouble focusing, particularly in macro mode. It'd frequently tell us it had focused with a reassuring "beep" and a green AF box, but you could clearly see in the viewfinder that everything was fuzzy. We were using a pre-production unit so we're hopeful this'll be resolved -- camera problems often are -- by the time phones find their way to shelves.
Anyone familiar with modern Sony Ericsson feature phones will feel right at home with the W995a's user interface; there's nothing wild, wacky, or new here, and the well-respected
NetFront browser appears to make a return in this model. It's among the best browsers you can find outside of a smartphone; it'll never top S60, Android, or an iPhone for raw browsing power or speed, but it does a commendable job with desktop-grade websites, and the W995a's automatic screen rotation is a nice touch.
The browser actually serves as a nice segue into our complaints with the phone, of which there are two biggies: one, the screen's just not high-res enough. For a phone in this class and with this spec sheet, there's no good excuse for it to ship with a QVGA display; had they bundled a VGA or WVGA screen at, say, 3 inches instead of 2.6, it would've made for an entirely different experience, particularly when trying to use the internet. Secondly, we found the numeric keypad and the volume controls to be a little fiddly for our liking. The keypad doesn't have much feel and the left side required particularly hard presses -- another issue will chalk up to the pre-production wrinkles -- and the volume rocker is ridiculously small, wedged between the music controls and the camera shutter on the right side.
All being said, the W995a is a hell of a device that does its job as a non-smartphone multimedia powerhouse with aplomb. Problem is, the "non-smartphone multimedia powerhouse" target demographic is getting smaller by the day, encroached on by ever-cheaper models from Nokia, HTC, Apple, and others that make the W995a and its contemporaries an endangered species. Sony Ericsson seems to understand that this phone is for a very unique, very hardcore group of people -- but they've also got to take to heart that the real action going forward is going to be up in the trails being blazed by the Satio and the Aino, and we'd be thrilled to see similar efforts to bring those kinds of models to the US. Seriously, Sony Ericsson, we appreciate your effort in bringing the W995a to market for those who want it -- and for the sake of the future of unlocked handsets in this part of the world, we hope the effort doesn't go unnoticed at the register.
posted Jun 3rd 2009 3:02AM
ooooohh, they should have put android on this. instant sell-out. :')
Oh, just stfu, you android fanboys are getting just as annoying as the mactards.
Wow! That's unbelieveable....
Really unbelievable this, uh, thing is even being talked about with WWDC just around the corner and the fever pitch of a really exciting device is just beginning.
no wonder they're losing money. every damn phone looks the same.
Can't wait until July 6...
I'd settle for ATT actually releasing the C905a
i'd rather sony release the c905a unbranded like they're doing with this. this pretty much mean i'm going to be getting a W995a even if at&t releases the c905a.
I just got the new HTC. Almost wish I held out for this.
I had the w380, GREAT music phone. Getting music on my HTC is like pulling teeth. I miss the simplicity. Even after only 1 day. It's nice to see Sony added a regular jack for headphones. Too bad it seems access to the memory card is still under the battery cover. That was an annoyance. Especially when watching movies. Having to take the cover off to switch out cards.
the w760i is a great music phone... M2 is accessable from the outside, and hot swappable. I sent back the samsung eternity I got free, and reverted to the 760 iI was replacing. its durable, and I really like the UI and walkman ui. I got it for $30 back in Dec. 08 on contract from AT&T... i replaced a w580 with it, and at first I thought it was a million times better, and I already loved the 580...but wanted 3G. Then I debranded it it and put the INTENDED firmware on it...WOW...what a difference! The sony firmware for this phone is awesome... I was actually hoping the 995 would come to AT&T so I copuld get it and do the same.
I have a W760a;how do you "debrand"? Having software issues with this phone (black) just like the red one I returned. I also have the W580i which I liked until the 3G W760a came out. Have at&t and I really don't have problems with service.
If I were to buy a dumbphone it would be a Sony-Ericsson. This phone has everything most smartphones these days have minus the OS. That being said, the lack of an OS is the ultimate dealbreaker for a device like this.
I personally don't see a point in having a resolution any higher than QVGA for a screen of it's size. There's no real benefit to having VGA or higher resolution unless it's with a 3.0" or better screen.
A $600 dumbphone for "unlocked purists" should've had support for both AT&T and T-Mobile USA 3G bands. This phone is not worth that price.
THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUUU
$600 for a phone that looks the same as their entire lineup. they lack creativity just like the struggling motorola. at least they put better specs in their phones than motorola.
wasn't the N97 priced at $603? this is way too overpriced!
Can we please stop with the "QVGA", "WVGA", "VGA" nonsense? Just spell out the damn resolution, it doesn't cost that much more typing.
what's so hard to understand? vga is 640x480, qvga is one quarter of that (320x240), and wvga is wide vga, 800x480
@pimpin So that's what they mean! Thank you very much for that clear and direct explanation. That's bothered me for so long. (Granted, I probably could have looked this up with just a few minutes of googling if I weren't so lazy, but it's always nice to have info handed to you.)
There's nothing "hard to understand" - but as Normal (and I) experienced, those numbers are not at the top of my recall and I would've had to look up the numbers of that was actually something I really wanted to know.
I would counter with "what's so hard about typing 320x240 instead of QVGA" - so it's 3 characters more, but EVERYONE would know what you meant. Labels/names have a place - "Android" is a lot easier than "the Linux-based operating system developed originally by Google and open sourced, centered on a language descended from Java" - but that's a cumbersome case. This is not, and if you look at the Mac world for example, these terms have rarely (if ever) been used.
its decent, but its not really that good as a smartphone. I keep wondering why they include wifi in it if it doesn't have a good browser... Sony ericsson's OS is crap. Its always been the same old thing since 2004!
If it had symbian or winmo or android, i'd definitely be more interested.. This is, after all, one of only FOUR Sony Ericsson phones that have a 3.5mm Audio Jack... even Satio lacks it! :(
That's your opinion about everything. I have been a long time user of SE phones and have different opinions:
I like the UI... it has lots of options for shortcuts, the softkeys, the d-pad is customizable, and there's a dedicated shortcut menu.
There are hundreds of themes for the UI, just look. And the walkman software is great... my favorite for any media player I ever had, including standalone mp3 players... SE didn't make a phone with music features, it is two very independent devices in one that share resources and integrate extremely well. The XMB style media menu is a great feature. I am not an itunes user...I dont like the entire ecosystem of itunes. I think this blows away itunes. Plus it has easy to use RSS features.
There are a ton of JAVA games available, but there are also some great exclusive games for this phone, that make use of the accelerometer, and the dedicated buttons for gaming (which also navigate pics and media)
As far as the screen res... it makes a huge difference. It may not be the biggest , but the sharpness and detail are noticable, so much so that I would rather use this phone for web than the Samsung Eternity. And I can see the inclusion of wi-fi... I use my phone for casual web browsing all the time at home, and work, and it would be nice to not relay on spotty 3G sometimes.
The w995 is the hardware I've been waiting for... I just hope it lands on AT&T for a cheap subsidized price. I think AT&T has built a following for SE walkman phones since way back, and it really caught on with the w580, the the w760. Too bad they cripple some of the best features with there horrible firmware, or SE could really have something.
winmo? WINMO? You're kidding me, right? After spending time with winmo on my touch pro, I'd never let that abomination of an OS go on ANY device.
WebOS, Symbian, Android or AppleOS are all infinitely better than winmo in every respect of the word. God...
doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo....
SE makes such sexy hardware...
That's almost exactly what I was going to post. Every time I see a higher end SE handset... damn. I would have to say that SE is the only phone company that consistently impresses me with their hardware design. I especially love the squared edges on many of their handsets. So much more appealing to me than the rounded edges that you find on most hardware. Just my opinion. =)
If you aren't going to tell me the storage capacity, don't waste your time telling me about anything that plays music.
Memory card. Next.
A memory card won't serve my needs. I'll pass.
It comes with an 8GB M2 card.
I don't understand why SE phones fare so bad in US. They are the best non-smartphones these days, hands down.
they're very popular in asia.
Here in Brazil also.
I blame Apple.
"superhobo @ Jun 3rd 2009 3:02PM
Oh, just stfu, you android fanboys are getting just as annoying as the mactards."
QFT
any chance that this might support tethering?
All unlocked SE feature phones of recent memory have support tethering vis USB & bluetooth.
ALL SE phones can tether;that is what I am doing now!! Using the Z750 with the SE PC suite software. Just follow the setup. It is so simple that someone like myself who is not tech savvy can do it. I just worry about the really smart ones,they probably don't have the common sense to follow instructions. Plus you can use the phone as a modem in Bluetooth if your pc supports that (meaning if your laptop like mine has Bluetooth).
"ragetek @ Jun 3rd 2009 2:10PM
its decent, but its not really that good as a smartphone. I keep wondering why they include wifi in it if it doesn't have a good browser... Sony ericsson's OS is crap. Its always been the same old thing since 2004!
If it had symbian or winmo or android, i'd definitely be more interested."
ROFL, talk about stupid clueless yet loudmouthed comment...
...SE's OS *IS* Symbian, you retard, stop spreading your ignorant BS.
Sony Ericsson definitely makes the best dumbphones out there. I just wish they would make one featurephone with a qwerty keyboard. The SE OS (unlocked or hacked) is one of the best one out there for a non smartphone: PIM, excellent JAVA Apps integration (including Mobipocket), POP/IMAP support, and a great NetFront browser. Add in the excellent tethering ability, great battery life, great reception (at least on AT&T), and nice multimedia features and you have a killer phone with crappy input options. Having said this I still haven't updated from my SE z750a because I haven't found a better phone out there. I probably wouldn't go with this one, but that is mainly because it doesn't offer anything more than my z750.
Stop selling them unlocked. Sell them locked with a carrier discount. Who is going to pay $600 dollars for this. Isnt Sony Ericsson having financial problems?
SE is the shit... sony kills anyday... i spent $400+ on a k750i here in india in early 2005, promptly went and bought anther one for my bro within two months... am still usin it today... bros still using it as his secondary... none of us r gonne give up on it till it just dies... have not found anything good to replace it with in the sub $400 bracket... se runs li-pol batteries on their phone and dont even brag about it , u shuld see the way asus and mac go around yelling, and that 4 years down the line. mine lasts me 6 days with min usage1 hr or less per day.. and at least 3 days with 2 hrs plus everyday... and htats after 4 years... i hate using other phone where i go running for a port at the end of a day or even within 36 hrs.... the os is clean and simple for a basic phone (its much much more in any case) it cant be beaten... the freakin thing is so fast that i punch in most commands and sequences before the screen has time to react... i know thats due to a light os and will never ever be possible as phones get heavier and heavier but its such a fulfilling experience... the camera is brilliant... better than most 3.2 cams form any other company today... plus why cant other phone manufacturers show battery percentage... WHY???... so fu***** irritating.... i know exactly what my phones gonna do and how long i can stretch it... unlike the guesssing game u play with nokia and other manufactureers.. WHY IS THAT SUCH A DIFFICULT THING TO DO.. dont they think that consumers want to know when their battery's gonna cop out... asses i tell u... this very factor has lost nokia at least 20 customers that i know and god alone knows how may others.. i myself have often thought about buying a 6300 or a 6700... but weak (pathetic actually compared to my k750) battery life and lack of percentage indicator have lost noka those two sales... i hope theyre reading and at least take this under consideration.... im talking about a base phone jus in case any o u all get hopped up and start taklin bout stuff thats more capable in many other ways.
color screen... small... exceptional battery life... decent music and camera... very fast and light os (like the one i got)... candybar... black.... industrial desighn... or thereabouts... u got any contenders in mind lemme know... will appreciate it.... sub $300 preferably... can stretch to $400...
What?
The line between smartphones and SE dumbphones is very thin. The only feature SE phones lack compared to smartphones is an email client with HTML support. Maybe, someone will come with a cool Java app that can do that. SE feature phones also lack active standby screen like S60 or WinMo have. But then, iPhone and Adroid phones also lack this even though they are considered smartphones.
Many things SE phones (W995) can do that some smartphones may lack:
1. Multi-tasking
2. Several hard-keys to launch apps.
3. Excellent camera with flash
4. Best Music Player that can actually replace the need for MP3 player.
5. Ability to easily change the look of the interface with themes.
6. Motion sensing games.
7. Push Notification
8. Google or other Calendar using SE's SyncML.
9. On camera photo editing without the need to purchase 3rd party apps.
10. Ability to hack and customize the hell out of phone using something like A2Uploader.
P.S. There is a JAVA app to make your standby screen Active too. It can display Calendar items and Tasks.
The Sony Ericsson W995 is a Walkman phone, hence the W designation.
Good:
1. Good call reception
2. Decent media player, 3.5mm port included!
3. Decent camera for day or close-up shots, includes AF/LED flash
4. Wifi/3G
5. Relatively sturdy build (currently)
Bad:
1. Pricey!
2. Camera is not good for night or long-distance shots, NO Zenon flash
3. Controls are still small
4. Proprietary Fastport
5. Proprietary M2
6. Limited themes (4)
7. Basic games
8. MediaGo software SUCKS - SE does NOT know how to create media software for their phones!
9. Questionable reliability since it's new
10. SE name on front faceplate is a sticker and NOT stamped into medal faceplate!
11. Facebook key is NOT replaceable for another app!
12. Media CD is NO longer included (as SE is NO longer shipping CD software with newer models)!
Overall, it's a decent, but slightly overpriced, phone with a decent media player and camera.
A 3.5mm port is FINALLY included for the media player =;)
Rating 7/10
BTW...
W995a difference is that it's made for the Americas (North and/or South America) hence the "a" designation and it's modified for the network frequencies in said locations.
Otherwise, the W995 works globally, as well, with the same features!
The designation, i, is supposedly no longer used for "international" when a phone is created for international markets outside it's home market, which is generally Asia!