Sony Ericsson’s K810i is a mid-range mobile phone with a fairly neat design, lots of features and an emphasis on photography. It is a tri-band GSM handset with 3G and it has a front facing camera for two-way video calling.
The main camera sits on the back of the casing and is accompanied by a xenon flash. Xenon produces a more powerful flash than LED, so this camera performs that little bit better than its LED-toting counterparts when it comes to indoor photography. The lens is protected by a sliding cover and uncovering the lens starts the camera software running.
The camera itself has a maximum resolution of 3.2 megapixels, and so is not up to the standards of the market-leading 5-megapixel camera-phones, but still it coped well during testing. There is a macro lens mode which we found to be perfectly serviceable, and image stabilisation can provide some assistance to those with shaky hands.
Two narrow silver buttons above the screen provide some camera-specific features. One of these takes you to the phone’s photo library as thumbnails, and switches scene modes when the camera software is running. The other runs you through shooting modes when the camera software is running, and gives you full screen views of photos in the phone.
Of course the K810i does more than just take photos, and among its other features is the obligatory music playback. It is a pity that Sony Ericsson continues to rely on a proprietary connector for its headset, and that this connector shares the main power and USB PC connector socket.
When will Sony Ericsson decide to build 3.5mm headset connectors into its phones so that users can take advantage of their own earphones? The built-in FM radio requires the supplied headset to be attached as this contains the antenna, but a two-piece headset offering a 3.5mm connector past the hands-free microphone would be ideal.
The built-in Web browser does a fair job, and the RSS reader is a nice additional touch. The phone can share calendar and contact information with your PC thanks to the software provided.
Physically this is a tidy mobile phone: the number keys are small silver dots in a black surround. They are not the best for fast texting, but are OK for number dialling. Between these keys and the screen is a bank of shortcut buttons and a mini joystick to give you access to the phone’s features.
The small and neat candybar design means this phone is light. It weighs 103g and measures 106 x 48 x 17mm, so should not trouble any but the smallest of pockets.
Company: Sony Ericsson
Contact: 08705 237237