Design
While there's no denying that the F305's appearance belongs to the Sony Ericsson family, it reminds us more of 3 Mobile's Skypephone Both phones share a glossy, porcelain-like plastic exterior reminiscent of a giant tic-tac squashed flat on its front and back. The F305 is a slider phone with a nice, slick-feeling sliding action.
The screen is a minor disappointment, featuring a below average 176x220-pixel resolution that appears noticeably duller than most Sony Ericsson handsets.
Controlling the F305 is good for the most part with its selection keys being widespread and easy to define. Beside the basic five-way nav key and selection buttons there are also dedicated gaming keys; one to access your game folder and two above the screen for controlling certain games. The numeric keypad below the slide could be better, this flat pad lacks definition and we've found it cumbersome to use when thrashing out a text message
Controlling the F305 is good for the most part with its selection keys being widespread and easy to define. Beside the basic five-way nav key and selection buttons there are also dedicated gaming keys; one to access your game folder and two above the screen for controlling certain games. The numeric keypad below the slide could be better, this flat pad lacks definition and we've found it cumbersome to use when thrashing out a text message
Features
The F305 is certainly not the PSP gaming phone suggested by the rumour mill for eons now, in fact, it's more than PSP, with motion-controlled games. Cleverly, the F305 uses the 2-megapixel camera on the back of the phone to orientate itself to calculate the movement of the phone, similar to the PlayStation's EyeToy.
All in all, there is about 60 games between those pre-installed and others ready to be installed on the bundled 512MB M2 memory card that comes with the handset. The games cover a range of gaming styles from a watered-down Sims 2 and Need for Speed, to puzzle games, shooting games, sport games, etc. Some of the motion-controlled games include a ten-pin bowling simulator, a fishing game and a pretty challenging horse racing game.
It's probably worth noting at this point that none of the games are that much fun. Some offer a once-off challenge, but the majority of those we've played are pretty dull.
Along with the phone and the memory card, Sony Ericsson has included a wrist strap lanyard for gaming, an alternative battery cover to customise the handset, and headphones that connect to the charging port of the phone.
Performance
All in all, there is about 60 games between those pre-installed and others ready to be installed on the bundled 512MB M2 memory card that comes with the handset. The games cover a range of gaming styles from a watered-down Sims 2 and Need for Speed, to puzzle games, shooting games, sport games, etc. Some of the motion-controlled games include a ten-pin bowling simulator, a fishing game and a pretty challenging horse racing game.
It's probably worth noting at this point that none of the games are that much fun. Some offer a once-off challenge, but the majority of those we've played are pretty dull.
Along with the phone and the memory card, Sony Ericsson has included a wrist strap lanyard for gaming, an alternative battery cover to customise the handset, and headphones that connect to the charging port of the phone.
Performance
As with most Sony Ericsson handsets, the F305 is a solid little performer. During our tests we had no complaints when making calls, and messaging is fine so long as you have tiny enough fingers to navigate the keypad efficiently.
The built-in camera is pretty rudimentary and the proof of this is in the lacklustre photos it takes. Without a flash or auto-focus we've struggled to take a photo that we'd use other than as caller ID pics for our contacts. The photos are barely worthy of being posted to Facebook, and that's saying something.
The F305 supports a decent range of music files including MP3, AAC, WMA and WAV and can also play MP4 and 3GP video files. Strangely, Sony Ericsson doesn't include a USB cable in the box with the phone so transferring media files to the F305 requires you to buy a cable or sync with Bluetooth.
Sony Ericsson rates the battery life at eight hours talk-time and 400 hours of standby life. During our tests we charged the phone every fourth day when using it for calling and as much as every other day when we played the games for an hour each day.
The built-in camera is pretty rudimentary and the proof of this is in the lacklustre photos it takes. Without a flash or auto-focus we've struggled to take a photo that we'd use other than as caller ID pics for our contacts. The photos are barely worthy of being posted to Facebook, and that's saying something.
The F305 supports a decent range of music files including MP3, AAC, WMA and WAV and can also play MP4 and 3GP video files. Strangely, Sony Ericsson doesn't include a USB cable in the box with the phone so transferring media files to the F305 requires you to buy a cable or sync with Bluetooth.
Sony Ericsson rates the battery life at eight hours talk-time and 400 hours of standby life. During our tests we charged the phone every fourth day when using it for calling and as much as every other day when we played the games for an hour each day.
This latest Walkman series phone will make you groove with its multimedia capabilities
Convergence is the buzzword and the Cyber-shot Walkman affair-turned-marriage is busy producing offspring. And hey, the young Sony Ericsson W995 sure makes the first-born W902 look like a helpless orphan.
Easily the best equipped feature phone of the house, Sony Ericsson W995, still more popular as Hikaru, packs in all there is to find at the top of the company portfolio. The full set of connectivity options, the biggest screen on a Sony Ericsson feature phone to date, GPS, Wi-Fi and the great user interface make a sweet enough package on their own.
But in the case of W995 they're just the perfect background for the unprecedented blend of music and imaging. The Cyber-shot line is graciously lending its 8 megapixel triumph, while the music dowry includes the latest Walkman 4.0 player, with all the bare Walkman necessities such as Shake control and SensMe. And there's more to make it even sweeter. We called it a marriage and Sony Ericsson have taken due care of the wedding presents. We don't know what else to call the kickstand and the on-board 3.5 mm audio jack.
Easily the best equipped feature phone of the house, Sony Ericsson W995, still more popular as Hikaru, packs in all there is to find at the top of the company portfolio. The full set of connectivity options, the biggest screen on a Sony Ericsson feature phone to date, GPS, Wi-Fi and the great user interface make a sweet enough package on their own.
But in the case of W995 they're just the perfect background for the unprecedented blend of music and imaging. The Cyber-shot line is graciously lending its 8 megapixel triumph, while the music dowry includes the latest Walkman 4.0 player, with all the bare Walkman necessities such as Shake control and SensMe. And there's more to make it even sweeter. We called it a marriage and Sony Ericsson have taken due care of the wedding presents. We don't know what else to call the kickstand and the on-board 3.5 mm audio jack.
The Sony Ericsson W995 is a slider, so you'd expect it to be on the chunky side. That said, they've kept it reasonably slim by keeping the top part to a svelte 4mm, delivering the vital statistics of 97x49x15mm and 113g. So it's still a fair old handful, but not bad at all considering what's inside
it's not the slimmest slider phone, but it does pack a lot of features
namely the six semicircles surrounded the circular D-pad on the front (call start and stop, plus two soft keys, cancel and the shortcuts menu), and the music controls on the right side, plus a volume/zoom rocker and camera shutter button.
On the left side there's Sony Ericsson's Fast Port power socket, a dedicated Walkman button and the Memory Stick Micro slot, though it's hidden under the back cover.
At the top there's a 3.5mm headphone jack (at last!) while on the back is the 8.1 megapixel lens (wot, no cover? For shame…), LED flash and a small metal flip stand so you can set it somewhere handy to watch video.
It's right at the end of the phone though and ours kept falling over until we realised it worked best with the slider open
At the top there's a 3.5mm headphone jack (at last!) while on the back is the 8.1 megapixel lens (wot, no cover? For shame…), LED flash and a small metal flip stand so you can set it somewhere handy to watch video.
It's right at the end of the phone though and ours kept falling over until we realised it worked best with the slider open
camera
The Xenon flash is downgraded to standard LED but most of the other Sony Ericsson features are there, including an image stabiliser and auto focus, as well as smile detection and the marvellous BestPic, which takes seven pics in quick succession, both before and after you press the shutter, to ensure you get the best snap.
There's also a 16x digital zoom, macro setting and panorama, though we found this didn't stitch the three images together as easily as some versions of this feature.
Pictures were great in comparison with lesser camphones, but not quite up to the top standard of the 8 megapixel brigade – close inspection revealed a modicum of blurring and a bit too much purple fringing on the edges. It didn't seem to handle bright light particularly well either.
Video provided better quality than we were expecting, though it's still a drop in standard from the still picture images.
The Xenon flash is downgraded to standard LED but most of the other Sony Ericsson features are there, including an image stabiliser and auto focus, as well as smile detection and the marvellous BestPic, which takes seven pics in quick succession, both before and after you press the shutter, to ensure you get the best snap.
There's also a 16x digital zoom, macro setting and panorama, though we found this didn't stitch the three images together as easily as some versions of this feature.
Pictures were great in comparison with lesser camphones, but not quite up to the top standard of the 8 megapixel brigade – close inspection revealed a modicum of blurring and a bit too much purple fringing on the edges. It didn't seem to handle bright light particularly well either.
Video provided better quality than we were expecting, though it's still a drop in standard from the still picture images.
Jet SetterThe Samsung Jet S8003 is a 3G phone with a 5.0-megapixel camera. It has a 3.1-inch clear and crisp touchscreen
Size----------------------108.9 x 53.5 x 11.9 mm
Weight-------------------110 grams
Memory------------------2GB, microSD
Battery-------------------Li-ion, 1080 mAh
Screen--------------------16 million colours
Talktime/Standby--------up to Up to 9 hours hours / up to Up to 500 hours hours
Bluetooth/Wi-Fi ----------Yes/Yes
Phonebook Capacity-------2,000
GPRS/3G-----------------Yes / Yes
Camera--------------------5.0MP
frequency------------------GSM 850/900/1800/1900
Others---------------------FM radio, GPS
Size----------------------108.9 x 53.5 x 11.9 mm
Weight-------------------110 grams
Memory------------------2GB, microSD
Battery-------------------Li-ion, 1080 mAh
Screen--------------------16 million colours
Talktime/Standby--------up to Up to 9 hours hours / up to Up to 500 hours hours
Bluetooth/Wi-Fi ----------Yes/Yes
Phonebook Capacity-------2,000
GPRS/3G-----------------Yes / Yes
Camera--------------------5.0MP
frequency------------------GSM 850/900/1800/1900
Others---------------------FM radio, GPS
Marine B2100It’s ToughThe Samsung Marine B2100, as evident by its name, is a tough phone designed to withstand rough handling and water.
Waterproof & Dust Resistant
• Complies with the IP57 (Ingress Protection) standard
• Submersible up to 1 meter for 30 min
• Protected against limited amount of dust and sand
Stylishly Rugged Design
• Slimmest submersible phone
• Comfortable grip and portable size
• Stylish enough for both work and leisure life
Outdoor-friendly Features
• Extremely loud external speakers
• Noise cancellation feature optimized for noisy condition
• Incandescent embedded flashlight
Multimedia
• 1.3MP camera with video recording
• Music player with stereo Bluetooth support
• FM Radio
Outdoor Features
- Temperature resistant – (-20 to +60 degree celsius )
- Noise cancellation mode
- Extra bright torch light
Voice guided GPS or A-GPS has become a very common feature for mobile phone as well and is handy while driving. The voice commands tell you the estimated distance of travel and where to take turns. It also guides you through the shortest route possible. It even recalculates the distance if by chance you dont follow the voice command.
Almost all GPS enabled mobile phones these days come with voice command. Also dedicated GPS devices have same features but are faster. A common feature of GPS is a location-based search commonly known as LBS. It enables you to search nearby Point of Interests (POIs) using GPS.
just imagine
GPS technology has a lot of advantages. In the near future mobile phones will also be able to hold/integrate a high-end 3D mapping GPS application. With further evolution, who knows one day your car might drive by itself using GPS and all you would need to do is sit back and relax. Wondering when this would happen? We wish... very soon.
As mentioned earlier maps form an integral part of a GPS system.There are numerous map providers like MapmyIndia, Wayfinder and Satnav in the market today. Garmin -- a satellite navigation equipment provider -- is also expected to enter the Indian market this year. Apart from that handset manufacturers like Nokia also provide their own maps on their GPS enabled devices. Most maps are either Off-Board or On-Board. On-Board maps are physically located on the phone and can be accessed through a mobile network to pinpoint the desired location. On the other hand Off-Board maps are located in the network server and are downloaded the moment GPS is activated. They take a lot of time to become fully functional, and may cost you extra for data access and network usage.Apart from maps one also needs to buy navigation licence to enable naivgation through the phones. One also needs to consider that along with the license, how many updations is the map provider offering in a year. One also needs to know the features provided in the navigation application like turn-by-trun navigation, voice guided navigation, padestrian navigation, etc.Another simple way of using GPS is through Google Maps. In this case directions can also be obtained but no voice guided turn-by-turn navigation is available. However, in case your phone doesn't have GPS, you can access Google Maps through GPRS, but without any other GPS features