K750i (UK, Black)

The Camera is outstanding it has the kind of functions and features you would find a mid range digital camera, white balance, 4x Digital Zoom varying effects including Black and white. The Video recording function allows you to record high quality video (Better then Nokia or Samsung phones I think) and the recording time is limited to you memory Card size (over 1hr) with the standard 64mb card supplied. It also comes with 32mb onboard phone memory. You get a USB cable to connect to your PC for transfers and editing of images video etc. The phone also has a Video and Sound DJ junction allowing you to edit Video, capture frames etc....

This phone is easy to use, someone really put alot of thought into this. Menu actions: Joystick, Cancel and Back button, Home Button, Two menu buttons, Media centre button, Take picture or Snap button, Voulme/Zoom in and out button. Radio and MP3 play back through the stereo headphones supplied is of a very high quality (sony engineered i guess), even turning on the built in speaker it sounds awsome.

To conclude, I was a Nokia user and now have switched to the K750i as it speaks volumes in quality is easy to use and has media capabilities we have been waiting for. Strongly recommended.

When it came to upgrade time, I thought to myself, what would I want from my mobile? Perhaps MP3 playing capability? How about a decent camera? These are things that have been hinted at to date but now finally realised with Sony's new wonderphone.

The camera on this beast is really solid, flick open the protective cover and unleash the 2 megapixel glory. In daylight it performs just as good as any dedicated digital camera. 4x zoom and autofocus mean you can set up and capture some quality shots. At night, arguably the time when phone cameras show their limitation, and it performs almost as well. I say almost because without night-mode, the light on and a steady hand ... you'll still be subject to slighty grainy/blurred pictures. But hey! Its the BEST I've seen a phone do in no light quality. You can get your pictures playing as a slideshow, add a soundtrack, you can switch to movie mode and record MP4 film. Various qualities of film/pictures are available depending on your purposes. Low qualities for using in messaging, high quality for those who may want to Bluetooth their results to a PC.

Now we come to MP3 playing, well for one you will need Sony mobile handsfree kits to get things playing in your ears. The standard headphones are decent but VERY uncomfortable. Better quality than the Nokia ones though. Where the good news lies is with the Fontopia design handsfree kit being an accessory to be released in the near future. The standard Fontopia headphones are frankly ACE and to have these for your mobile would give you a really strong MP3 playing device. Couple this with the phone being able to take up to 4GB Memory Stick Duo cards and you've got some real scope here. The Media Player section allows you to structure playlists to your desire.

The rest of the phone matches up the likes of the Nokia 6230, you can sync your phone on the PC with the PC Suite software. The USB cable is ace, transferring data AND recharging your phone, its just a shame that the software currently does not sync to Lotus Notes. You can pick up your emails if you tap in your ISP settings and the phone generally goes out of its way to offer just as much functionality to each phone function as possible. You can navigate through the menus via the jogstick/keypad, and additional options appear in the form of dropdowns. Its certainly a busier approach to the simplistic and easy to use Nokia phones, but this does not interfere with the actual usage of the phone and is certainly intuitive. Besides, it will take a LOT to contest Nokia's for ease of use.

You can get plenty of downloads for the phone, new themes, wallpapers, ringtones. It takes Java applications and my one came with a pretty swish fully 3D driving game!

Also on the market is the D750i, Tmobiles currently exclusive version of this phone. It is styled differently, in a very nice lilac, and has a different lens protector. Other than that it is the same phone. Soon to come is the W800i, again the same phone, but bundled with a bigger memory stick than the 64meg you get with this phone. Between that and the 32meg onboard memory, however, you'll be fine for now! The only thing I wish this phone had was replacable facias. One it helps for resale value and two you'll need to keep that screen in good nick, you're only going to get one!

I'm well chuffed, I really haven't come across anything this fantastic since I stumbled across the Nokia 6230. With this and the new 6230i out, there are clearly only two decent contenders in the mobile market right now ... all you have to do is make your choice. This one was the winner for me.

I won't bother going into all its features as other reviewers have done that for me. Suffice to say, what it claims to do it does well.

At the time of writing this the phone is selling for £239 on Amazon and at that price I would say you would be better off getting it on a cheap contract (sorry Amazon) as you'll only pay slightly extra over the 12/18 months period and get all the talk time and texts bundled in too.

I also know that the W800i (the next model up from this one) is selling for only £30 more just now (on contract) and for this you get 512MB memory card as opposed to 64MB with the K750i, as well as superior headphones on the W800i. Worth upgrading in my opinion. The W800's also come with an adaptor which will allow you to use any normal headphones with a 3.5mm plug if you wish to do so. The only other difference is the appearance (which might actually put you off?!). The W800 is the official 'Walkman' phone so is orange and grey. You can also use the W800 as an MP3 player without having the phone switched on (presumably for use in planes) which you can't do with the K750i.

To summarise, all round good phone and I think you'll be happy with whichever one you pick.