Sony Ericsson K550i

For those of you who’ve seen the advertisement on TV with the guy taking a picture of a lightning bolt, exaggeration is an understatement. But Sony has always been a favorite with me in terms of product quality, though I haven’t quite liked too many of their phone models. The K550i is a sort of an upgrade to the ever-popular K750i.

Form Factor
I do like the design, it’s sleek, slim and it just plain looks cool. The black and silver give the K550i a certain edgy but sophisticated look. What I don’t like are the tiny keys. I’ll admit it takes getting used to, but that doesn’t happen too soon. Give it a week or so. I’m a bit disappointed that it doesn’t have a joystick, which I think would have simplified navigation but the 5 way navigation pad with the ridges for up and down are alright.

On the rear you’ll find the 2.0 megapixel camera hiding behind the silver lens cover. The cover is rather tight so it doesn’t slide down too easily (I’m hoping it’s not a general problem but just with this piece). The two LED bulbs just above the lens gave me the impression that the phone was looking at me with a rather beady set of eyes. Pull the cover down and it’ll seem like it’s grinning at you.

On one side you’ll see the volume / zoom keys and the dedicated camera key. You’ll also notice two small levers embedded into the main body with a symbol of a lock inside. That’s actually the locking system for the rear panel. Simply slide them back and the rear panel will pop open. Now that’s neat. The hot swap mini SD card slot is just underneath the panel on the other side.

On the other side there’s the dedicated music player key and the all-in-one connectivity slot for the USB, earphones and charger. Why can’t they have a simple 2.5 or 3.5 mm pin system? And on the top is of course the power key and infrared port.

__PAGEBREAK__Features

Let’s see now, it’s supposed to be an upgrade of the K750i right? But how different is it? I did a little real time comparison with regards to the features and a few other things. So the main menu is different. I mean instead of the old icon of those old fuddy-duddy cameras for the camera selection, there’s an icon of a digital camera now. Woah! An upgrade taken literally (even though both models have a 2mpx cam). But Since the K550i has a larger screen (1.9-inches) that provides plenty of room for larger icons and information, it’s well utilized.

The sub menus do seem a bit cramped but that’s due to the large fonts. This isn’t a drawback; on the contrary it makes it easier to maneuver through the menus. A few other features which have been added to the K550i that set it apart from the K750i are the options for displaying a larger clock on the main screen. Also when you go into the Picture folder you have the option of viewing all the contents in both the phone and SD card together or you could simply check either one by itself. The K550i also has an RSS reader.

The LED flash can be used as a torch if necessary and to take it a step further there’s also a setting that allows the LED to signal in Morse code an SOS, in case of emergencies. There are also plenty of voice command functions to choose from. For example there’s an option for answering calls and even dialing numbers by calling out a contacts name. Of course this is nothing new. It also has an option of calling out a caller’s name, but I couldn’t seem to get that to function for some strange reason.

Media
For K750i users the only difference is that the speaker is louder. Other than that the K550i is no different from any other Sony Ericsson out there. It may not have the Walkman symbol on it but nevertheless it’s a Sony. So the sound quality is quite good. It’s not too loud when you compare it to other music phones like the Nokia 5300 though.

The TrackId feature is great for those times when you so want to know the name of a track but can’t remember. Simply turn on the TrackId feature while the song is playing and after a few seconds the information captured is sent via GPRS to a particular server, which will in return send you a message telling you the name and artist of that particular song. But you will need to have your GPRS/WAP service active.

The acceptable media formats that the K550i is capable of reading are -MP3/AAC for audio and MPEG4 for video. It’s also equipped with an integrated FM radio with RDS and I had no problem with getting signals anywhere. And lets not forget the ever-popular voice recorder that’s always a handy tool to have around for those great ideas you can’t pen down.
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Camera
So now let’s talk about what the phone is all about. The camera. The K550i’s 2-megapixel camera, in all honesty, is just good. Not great but good. There are plenty of options to select from for shooting in different modes. The pictures themselves are quite clear.

The close-ups in macro mode show up clear but just a wee bit grainy. But the colors seem to be captured accurately enough, although the greens do appear a bit on the bluish side. But the yellows and pinks are quite good. So in fact, the close-ups on the whole are quite decent.

Outdoor pictures are really good if you can hold your hand steady enough. The K550i manages to take pictures with a decent amount of clarity however; there is a visible amount of pin-cushioning around the edges of the images.

Although for I’ll admit it’s great having so many settings for the camera, the interface for choosing those options remains unchanged and if I were a first time user, it would be a bit complicated to find the right settings. It is a Cybershot though, so it’s expected to have settings for various shoot modes including burst, panorama and quite few odd frames to have fun with. Scene modes include settings for shots that you can take in twilight landscape or portrait, beach, snow, and even a sports mode. You also have the option of choosing the picture size from VGA to 2megapixels. The K550i also has a self-timer option and effects like - black and white, sepia, negative and solarize. You can even adjust the white balance for various light settings. You even have options for metering mode and inserting the date and time. Like I said, plenty of functions.

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Tech and Memory
The Sony Ericsson K550i is a Quadband GSM phone. With regards to connectivity it’s right up there with any other in its class. It’s equipped with EDGE for quick connectivity to the net and it has Infrared, and Bluetooth (2.0) capabilities. Since it also has A2DP compatibility you can use a Bluetooth wireless headset for music or making and taking calls. That works out just fine. Another great feature is that you can directly blog your images using GPRS or EDGE, so images can be shared easily.

The K550i comes with 64MB of internal memory but you can always add more using a Memory Stick (M2).

You can also use the PC suite software to back up important schedules and data and synchronize the phone with your PC.
Battery

The K550i has a standard Li-ion battery but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised that I managed to get almost a full 6 hours of battery life. The indicator was empty but I still managed to squeeze about 15 minutes of usage out of the phone. It lasted me for 2 days on a single charge. And lets just say my usage was not minimal. From talking pictures to using the internet and even listening to a little music and making calls here and there.

__PAGEBREAK__Conclusion

So… here we are at the Bottom line again. This is the part where I let you know if this is a phone worth your investment. And let me say, it is. The camera, in all honesty may not be superb but it is good. The media player and FM radio are good too and connectivity is no problem. So you’re pretty well covered from connectivity to media. And don’t forget, it runs for a long time on a single charge. My recommendation is, for a price of around Rs. 10,900 go right ahead and get one. The K550i may not be a phone that gets a fantastic rating but it meets all your needs with a sense of ease.

Specs

| Sony Ericsson K550i