UK 3G Mobile Phones - Sony Ericsson W950i Review

Your Sony Ericsson W950i Reviews

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Reviewer: Vahid - London, UK
Date: 8th May 2008

It is the best.

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Reviewer: Eddie Moses - Accra, Ghana
Date: 3rd May 2008

My Sony Ericsson W950i touch screen has frozen & not working how do I reactivate the screen, please someone should help me out.

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Reviewer: Jamal - Pakistan
Date: 2nd May 2008

I am using Sony Ericsson W950i phone for long time but I could not add any theme in my phone I am using it in same boring Orange theme. I downloaded many themes & when I install it, it installs but don't again show UNKNOWN FILE I am sick of it if any body would kindly help me by telling me step by step to activate or add new theme from Internet. Thank you.

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Reviewer: Hayden - Bedford, UK
Date: 12th Apr 2008

I have had this handset on contract for almost 16 months & I am quite fond of it. I only have two complaints.

- the 12 button keypad is fiddly for people with thick fingers, but you can always use the virtual pad with stylus.
- It freezes on occasion but this is easily remedied if you switch off & switch on.

The music player has a good sound quality & this is also adjustable using the graphic equaliser function. Sound quality is further enhanced by the Sony headphones. Your music can be organised into various categories to suit different moods.

There are a host of functions that are user friendly. If you do not mind having a mobile without the picture messaging facility, try this one.

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Reviewer: John - Preston, UK
Date: 10th Apr 2008

Mint phone great with GPS great for music as well best buy ever.

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Reviewer: Rohit - India
Date: 8th Apr 2008

Hey. I am planning to buy this phone. I currently use the W810i which is awesome. The only reason I am making the change is no A2DP in the W810. So I am curious as it's not mentioned anywhere does this phone support A2DP I.e. Stereo sound through Bluetooth.

If you complained about one wire of the earphones being smaller than the other try using it around or behind your neck!

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Reviewer: Maxwell - Accra, Ghana
Date: 2nd Mar 2008

I have used W950i for three month now but I have a crack on the screen so the phone is not functioning well. Please what can I do to keep my phone in good condition? Can I get the screen to buy? If yes how much will it cost me? Please reply here.

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Reviewer: Catalin - Romania
Date: 11th Jan 2008

I have this phone from 3 months ago. It has wonderful Internet browsing with its Opera browser & its touchscreen. Also it has a very good radio sound in headsets & here the good things stop.

Problems & things that need to be changed, the menus are quite fuzzy as you may very easy call somebody without want it, the recorded sound is awful, the sound into Sony Ericsson HBH PV710 Bluetooth headset is the worst I've ever heard, it has no mini usb (you should use the ugly cable to connect it to a comp), it has no standard jack to use headsets (you need to use another ugly cable, with some very thin & fragile wires to the headsets, & one wire is longer than the other, why? ), the battery life is quite low. But don't tell anybody these disadvantages because I have not sold it yet :).

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Reviewer: Frans Keinsteinz - Indonesia
Date: 2nd Jan 2008

Good points:
- no camera
- 4GB storage
- well response touchscreen
- 3G
- never freeze
- good battery life than Nokia 9500
- short time charging (1 hour) than Nokia 3230 (2 hours)
- great sound using hands-free
- fantastic wheel when change music
- big keypad button than P1i
- very bright light
- manage shortcuts by yourself

Bad points:
- no wi-fi
- PC synchronization problem when using 'normal mode' (I use 3GB hyperthreading, 1GB RAM, 7200 RPM HDD)
- cannot upload video more than 60 MB
- cannot remove icons on standby mode
- few software, N-Series
- no phone color options
- loudspeaker must be set on when receive call
- cannot set screensaver times
- specific extension of mp4, wmv, rm.
- needs 50 seconds to boot
- cannot see pictures as 'filmstrip'
- no flash player

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Reviewer: Adam - UK
Date: 27th Dec 2007

This phone is wicked easy download software for it & easy install it is a bit of a brick & there is no camera but you can live with that.

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Reviewer: Andreas - Jakarta, Indonesia
Date: 5th Dec 2007

Been using this phone for 3 months.

Complaints:
- UI not too user friendly
- Phonebook search function not as good as newer Nokia
- Poor 3rd party software support (e.g. PDF reader)
- No Wi-Fi
- Flush keypad
- can't read under direct sunlight
- the earphones are not good

Good points:
- Form factor; nice to hold on hands. I also use Nokia 9300i communicator. The W950 is way easier to carry around.
- Solid.
- Battery lasts 2days under heavy usage (calls, sms, emails), that's 2x24hrs. Good enough. On par with 9300i.
- Handwriting recognition way better than iPAQ / O2 Atom / Dopod. But writing technique not as good as Palm, though.
- Quite stable
- Never freeze

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Reviewer: Ranjeet - Pune, India
Date: 4th Dec 2007

What's with this application, begins to open all the time & I have to go to the task manager to close them all the time. Ya some say it can handle. Well the battery cannot why the does the application just close when I want it to, man its very irritating the thingy in the phone & am going off it as soon as I have enough dough to switch back to Nokia.

950 oh or I may say Sony phones are bad.

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Reviewer: Dudi - Kigoma, Tanzania
Date: 23rd Nov 2007

Sony Ericsson 950i the best Smartphone ever. Sony Ericsson 950i is a Smartphone based on Symbian Operating system. I have been using this Smartphone for approximately 7 months now. A few people have posted their disappointment about this Smartphone, however it clicked to my attention that most people who complain about this phone have very little knowledge about the features of the phone, my advice here is take time to read the operating manual & do the right thing.

Only tech buffs can start using this phone straight away without consulting the manual, I find it very strange that someone complaining that the phone took a great deal of time switching on as he switched it off while on flight, this Smartphone has a dedicated flight mode feature, why on earth do you need to turn it off while on flight?

I never experienced the freezing problem with Sony Ericsson 950i, however in occasional cases when I opened too many programmes the phone restarted & notified me it did so as to increase performance, which if I find normal. This is more than just a phone, it can do so many things, it comes with so cool software, yet you can add third party software, I have dictionaries, 3D games, educational materials, great themes, you name it! & most of all I have installed agile messenger which keeps me online 24 seven.

I can't ask for more. Be it business or pleasure Sony Ericsson 950i will deliver.

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Reviewer: John Burrows - Stockholm, Sweden
Date: 15th Nov 2007

Here is my two pence worth. I use this phone for business reasons for lots of phone calls, emails & SMS etc. I use the music while travelling. The battery is a total disaster, lucky if I can get a working day out of it.

It boots up slower than my slow PC does. When you land at an airport & switch on your phone I can hear all the other phones clicking in with a network while my phone is still in the boot up mode. It hangs so often it's insane. I have to switch it off & on again at least 1 or 2 times during the day or it will grind to a halt. WEB browsing is also quite slow, I have a 3G connection though so not sure it is the phone or the network. The music works well BUT I need it for business purposes so I would steer clear if you need a business phone.

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Reviewer: Prash - Coventry, UK
Date: 13th Oct 2007

Superb music quality & very easy to use.

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Reviewer: Milos - Zrenjanin, Yugoslavia
Date: 12th Oct 2007

This is a great phone, mine is coming next week I will see is it true about the speed & other problems but all review from the net says it is a great phone. COME ON 4GB, touch screen, Walkman, yes that is a right choice.

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Reviewer: Greg - South Africa
Date: 7th Oct 2007

I would like to remind anyone who says such things like this phone is unstable & randomly shuts itself off. You obviously are another buyer who doesn't research or compare any products before purchase. This is a Smartphone & as such it has to be operated with a little more know how than your simple non OS phone.

Make sure you don't have an inordinate amount of applications open at once & upgrade the firmware. Just because this is a Walkman phone doesn't mean it's for every kid trying to be funky. After all it is based on a business phone the M600i.

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Reviewer: TB - St. Neots, UK
Date: 28th Sep 2007

Wow, the W950i is a top phone.

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Reviewer: Ddblargh - Australia
Date: 26th Sep 2007

OK got this phone 2 weeks ago. Its design is superb, as are all Sony products. BUT if you don't understand its design you will hate it. So, the fact it's a Walkman phone tells you that it's aimed at music. & it has a touch screen which means the keypad can be incorporated into the phone design as stylishly.

Camera Issue:
- the specs & pictures of the product show NO camera. It may disappoint some as this phone is in the pda family, but you can live without it.

Keypad/messaging:
- To people saying typing messages is hard, learn how to write! After two days anyone sensible enough can master the stylus & touch screen to write messages as quick as typing (this is hard to do when driving, but you shouldn't drive & text kiddies! ) :P

Battery:
- Some reviews on the net (with real-life tests) state that with moderate usage you get about 2 days of battery life, which I'd say is about right, but I am not expecting this in 8 months or a year's time.
- I tested the Walkman feature, playing music on the headphones & it gave me around 12 hours straight (the phone being in 'phone mode' & changing songs/using the phone for a few minutes every hour - test repeated 3 times in a week)

Walkman:
- the Walkman feature is why I got this phone. The key lock is bypassed by the main keys for playing/stopping & volume control (if you keep the phone in the pouch I find it helps to avoid accidently pushing the 'play track' button)
- You will DEFINITELY need a computer for organising music. It's tedious & annoying work sorting a thousand songs into playlists on the phone but, you don't need to use the software for transferring music, it just helps fill in the blanks in your song info (like track number, album name etc) & can encode it in lower bit rate to save space.

Overall, if you want a Walkman in a pda, this is it. If you can't live without a camera, get something else or wait for the ultimate - W960i! (I hope this helped someone, wrote this after reading too many other reviews from people not even owning the phone).

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Reviewer: Ladsoflazio - Viterbo, Italy
Date: 15th Sep 2007

Mac owners beware! Apart from its looks, I was keen to get this phone, particularly to use the MP3 & the UMTS with my computer. To my bitter disappointment, it is not compatible with Mac OS! I am gutted. Nowhere in the Sony blurbs or in reviews did I find out before hand. Sony Ericsson didn't even have correct information after I complained. No apology from them either.

Does anyone know where to find Mac compatible phones reviewed? Mac seem to promote only Mac.

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Reviewer: Paul - London, UK
Date: 12th Sep 2007

This is a great phone people! Just remember to upgrade the firmware regularly from Sony Ericsson's update service, it really makes a huge difference!

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Reviewer: Ar - Nyc, US
Date: 11th Sep 2007

Bought mine for $312 brand spanking new & in my opinion it is an ultimate apparatus for the money. Two main things not perfect for me are:

FIRST: Factory headphones sound VERY quiet (but aftermarket ones fixed the problem).

SECOND: I would love to be able to configure the main screen & clear it from the icons I don't need.

Other than that - OUTSTANDING! Recommend!

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Reviewer: Tony - Cheltenham, UK
Date: 1st Sep 2007

I have had this phone for over 10 months now. I have only had one problem & that was with the software crashing & it started to freeze, however that was one of the first 100 released in the country by Orange. Which when you consider the software glitches you usually get on a first batch phone I was really impressed.

Orange replaced it for me with no hassles, & the newer software which has had some of the instability issues dealt with is really simple to use. It displays decent 3Mpix photos with no problem at all & although people seem to always complain about its bulk when you hold it up against their phone it usually isn't that much bigger.

The only major thing missing for me is the camera, I haven't really missed it but there are just times when it would have been a little useful. Overall I can't recommend this bit of kit highly enough.

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Reviewer: Damien - London, UK
Date: 30th Aug 2007

For those reviews I have read here, my W950i came with an Orange UK contract & it kept on losing time & very frequently froze. Imagine phone restarting in the middle of a call. Then I decided to get rid of all Orange branding & Orange specific firmware, I debranded my W950i & changed the firmware to World Generic 1. Since then I have been able to get regular updates from Sony Ericsson Update service for firmware (remind you that no update was available with Orange firmware). 95% of the problems have disappeared since debranding especially losing time & hardly anymore crashes now. This is a super phone just get rid of your Orange, O2 etc brandings.

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Reviewer: Tamer Samo - Aleppo, Syrian Arab Republic
Date: 21st Aug 2007

PLEASE don't BUY THIS PHONE! You will feel so bad after 4 weeks max. About it, especially me since I bought it for $490! I regret ever even thinking about it! NO camera, slow, takes coffee breaks by itself & everything is so bad! Please people don't MAKE the MISTAKE I DID!

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Reviewer: Nick - Australia
Date: 19th Aug 2007

Cool phone I just think it's ugly.

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Reviewer: Matthew - UK
Date: 15th Aug 2007

Absolutely awful. Off to the shop tomorrow for an exchange. Steer clear, it's almost like a physical curse.

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Reviewer: Peter W - UK
Date: 14th Aug 2007

The W950i is the 4th high end Sony Ericsson phone I've had in a row. They just keep getting better & better. I've had my W950i nearly 12 months now & never had any problems with it. I've got Wisepilot SatNav installed which works great. I use the pop email client daily & the calendar features. The Walkman is great, especially when blue toothed to a hifi system, but the 4GB is nearly full with over 1, 500 tracks installed, so I am waiting eagerly for the W960i with its 8GB memory.

As an all round phone for business & pleasure I don't think the W950i can be beaten. If you're over 30 years old do you ever use a phone camera?

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Reviewer: Kivvin - Amsterdam, Netherlands
Date: 4th Aug 2007

I have this phone now for less than 6 months. In the beginning it looks like a nice phone, but then you discover that the interface is very very slow. The battery doesn't last for one & a half day from the start & now after about 5 months if fully charged in the night I have to be happy if it can make it till 20:00.

On top of that last week the touch screen broke wherever I touch it will activate the bottom 'Icons'. So clearly I hate this phone. Don't buy it you'll be sorry in a couple of months.

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Reviewer: Richard - UK
Date: 31st Jul 2007

I like the phone & it's easy to use when you get used to the endless menus. The Sony Ericsson has its problems though: I've had it just about two months & I've already lost the pen, & the purple casing is peeling off like a sticker, the phone is clogged with dust in places impossible to clean. & the phone takes ages to turn on like 5 minutes. Also screws are visible under the battery cover & it makes the phone look cheap.

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Reviewer: Has - UK
Date: 27th Jul 2007

This is a really cool phone.

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Reviewer: Goegre - UK
Date: 27th Jul 2007

The screen is amazing now to me all the other phones are bad, even the Nokia n95 & Sony 960i.

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Reviewer: Ronan B - Edinburgh, UK
Date: 25th Jul 2007

I've had mine for 2 months & really like it. The best bit is usability & not having to use the keypad. It does everything I need from a modern mobile & does it well. The worst bit is that the plastic on the front (around the screen) has started to bubble & crack. My O2 business contract instantly agreed to replace it with a new one, so top marks to them.

I got this as my annual upgrade from a Nokia N70 & it is way better. The N70 I never really trusted, it used to freeze or crash about once a week. The W950 never has, so I've come to trust it.

The w950i also looks great. I like the chocolate Orange effect along with the big screen & small keypad. Speaking of the screen, it's pretty good, but your choice of 'theme' will determine how easy it is to see in bright sunlight. I've chosen a high contrast one & it works well.

My main uses are for phone calls (obviously), as a modem with my laptop & for checking emails (both imap & pop3). It does all of these really well. The touch screen is great for typing, I much prefer it to pressing 7777 to get the letter S.

I also used its Walkman for a while, but the complicated headphone socket / cable just annoyed me. If you decide to replace the headphones the cable ends up a mile long. So I went & got an iPod. Much better.

The other annoying thing with the Walkman is that it can start up when the phone is in your pocket, the play key is not controlled by the keypad lock so it can start up playing via the loudspeaker at any time. Be warned! As a result I've turned the volume for multimedia down to 0 & keep it there.

Software-wise it's fine. The sync function with outlook works great but with one annoying feature: an all day event in Outlook generates an alarm on the phone: not so bad you might think, but the alarm goes off at midnight.

What I think could be better:
- Better plastic.
- A normal headphone socket.
- Key lock includes play button.
- A better web browser.

Overall it's great. I am annoyed by the bubbling / cracking plastic: but glad to be getting another one as a replacement. That pretty much sums up how good it is.

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Reviewer: Kerry Devenney - Omagh, UK
Date: 22nd Jul 2007

This phone is a complete nightmare! I've had mine now for about 8 months & it is driving me up the walls! The touch screen seems to have a mind of its own & the battery life is absolutely appalling! It randomly switches itself off 'to enhance performance' especially when I am in the middle of doing something! It is very slow when loading messages & browsing the Internet! To be honest I wish I had never invested in this model & I intend to get rid of it in the very near future! I would not recommend it to anyone!

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Reviewer: Blair - UK
Date: 14th Jul 2007

I got this phone about a week ago. I was contemplating this phone & the w850i when I was looking to buy. But I realised, what difference a camera is going to make. If I want to take pictures then I'll use someone else's phone or I'll take a camera! The texting is very good. You can use the keys, write your text, or bring up an on screen, touch, 'QWERTY' keyboard. The phone sometimes reacts slowly, but I only notice the slow speed when I have too many apps open. You should make sure that you close all your apps in the task manager or it will run slowly.

I have come across 1 or 2 small bugs in the phone but a lot less bugs than I would expect from a phone. Especially one that's almost like a PDA.

Only complaint about this phone is the keypad. The keys don't feedback as much as I would like them to but I knew that before I bought the phone. Personally I don't use the keys very much. I text mostly & I just use the touch options.

I hope this helped.

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Reviewer: Natalie - UK
Date: 29th Jun 2007

The Design Is Lovely. I Like That It's A Different Colour To Other Phones On the Market. However the Phone Does Not Have A Camera & Synchronisation Issues Are A Nightmare, It's Impossible To Link the Device Via USB?!?

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Reviewer: Alex - UK
Date: 29th Jun 2007

I just got mine & believe me, there is nothing wrong with it. People say the buttons aren't any good because they are too small. I have no problems with them & I have fat fingers. The phone is a bit slow to react, but then it is not so slow that it is a problem. The only problem I have with the phone is it took ages to connect when I first got it, but then that is a problem with Orange, not the phone itself. I would recommend it to anyone.

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Reviewer: Karen - Canada
Date: 26th Jun 2007

I understand this phone has good looks & memory, but THIS PHONE IS A NIGHTMARE!

- The phone is slow.
- The battery life is poor.
- Usability is awful. The system is so unstable, too many errors in the system.
- Hard to type message.
- The sound recorder is a disaster. It always shows that the recording is damaged, then the recording disappears for no reason.

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Reviewer: Dave - High Wycombe, UK
Date: 16th Jun 2007

I have the w950i on Three. After I ordered the phone & before I received it, I decided to read some of the reviews out there. Must admit I got a bit worried since many people are saying that the phone has some major problems. Now I have the phone I am really relieved. It's great!

Many people have complained about the low sound volume. I must say that I think it is fine. The sound quality is excellent & loud enough to listen to quite happily on the train. The headphones that come with the phone are pretty good. They fit in my ears really snug & act like earplugs that block out external sounds.

Another common complaint is that the phone is just not that user friendly at all. I totally disagree. I find that overall the phone it pretty well designed & usability is fine. Sure, the phone has been designed for use with the stylus. However, most of the basic functions: navigating menus, making calls, etc can be done using the scroll button on the right hand side of the phone. I think you have to be perhaps left handed to find this phone difficult to use. Text input using the keypad is fine, contrary to a lot of complaints out there. Trust me, it's easy!

Looks wise this has to be the sleekest phone I have ever owned. The pictures on the www just don't do it justice. Size wise, the phone is surprisingly sleek. I thought it would be a brick. I think Sony Ericsson have got it just about right. Also phone is very light, fantastic. I think that's all the main complaints covered. Oh yeah, some people have been complaining about the speed of the phone, crashing & freezing problems. Well so far I haven't had any problems. The phone doesn't take long to boot up, perhaps 20-30 seconds. Also put lots of music on the phone, used about 2Gb already & speed seems to be fine. OK, I'll admit this phone isn't the fastest out there in terms of navigating through menus. But when it does seem to pause momentarily we are talking fractions of a second. It is fine, nothing to complain about.

Then there's the Three branding. I thought I would try & debrand the phone & get all the original menus & stuff. Now I have the phone I can't be bothered. It's fine. The Three branding is alright, nothing really annoying. Track ID is still there. That was the most important thing for me. So overall I give this phone very high-resolution.

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Reviewer: Norbert - Budapest, Hungary
Date: 8th Jun 2007

Hey Guys! I can see how many of us are having this problem with hitting & missing the buttons as we text. But! You see those small protruding dots on each button? If you press your buttons EXACTLY on those dots, I mean exactly, you cannot miss! Okay? :) Great phone, isn't it :) mine's got an Osho wallpaper!

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Reviewer: Sa - Belarus
Date: 4th Jun 2007

It is so boring. It is like k310, awful.

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Reviewer: Watto - UK
Date: 4th Jun 2007

I havent bought it yet & so selected ratings based on other reviews. My contract is coming up for renewal this month & I am considering buying the w950i. Nice phone.

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Reviewer: Simon - Guildford, UK
Date: 31st May 2007

Major problems with synchronisation software & poor service from Sony Ericsson.

I have had my phone from the moment it was available from Vodafone in October 2006. I have been using it as full time all in one devise since then & as a phone & all rounder it is great.

If people have trouble using the phone itself, then they must be daft. I see some have said they can't text or keyboard with it, because the key pad is not user friendly - they are missing the point, doh. It is a touch screen devise with graffiti recognition & you hardly ever need the keypad. If you synch up all your contacts with your PC, you can simply dial up or text using the screen.

The biggest issue is the supporting sync software. It does not work or even install on Vista or XP64bit - my new PC is Vista, & I have another with XP64.

I have spoken to Sony Ericsson several times about it & they don't seem to care or have a solution in the pipeline. They clearly view this product as a stand alone telephone devise & not a smart phone at all. I must say I am confused as to how useful a 'smart' phone is that won't synchronise?

Given that Vista, the EPOC phone operating system & the phone itself have now all been around for more than 8 months & the Vista platform available for Beta testing form more than 18 months, I would have expected much better from Sony - a supposed technology company!

Come on Sony get your act together & sort this out.

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Reviewer: Jiji - Ksa, Saudi Arabia
Date: 25th May 2007

Sound more louder but perfect mobile.

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Reviewer: Martin - Viet Nam
Date: 23rd May 2007

I love the new phone.

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Reviewer: Luke Delaney - Hampshire, UK
Date: 20th May 2007

I have had this phone for about 4 months now & personally I love it. It doesn't have a camera but that is not important for me in a phone. The MP3 player is easy to use & although sound could be louder a more powerful set of headphones easily sorts this out. Once you get used to the interface & using the touchscreen it is a breeze to use & I honestly have no problem using the keypad. Texting is simple on this phone & you have a lot of choice for input, keypad, handwriting recognition or onscreen keyboard (which is a little small for optimal use but still can be used). Any way after 4 months I have no true complaints to make about this phone I think it's good to use, nice to look at & is an excellent phone.

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Reviewer: Syair - Tilburg, Netherlands
Date: 11th May 2007

I still have to get used to this one. What kind of keeps me wondering is how I put pictures in my music folders. If you view the demo installed, one would believe it'd be possible to upload the album cover onto the folder that's containing that album. Little help here?

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Reviewer: Doctor Mollusc - London, UK
Date: 27th Apr 2007

I am from the Nokia stable, & so there might be some points I make that apply to all Sony Ericsson phones.

Looks great, & definitely attracts attention (though I am not sure I'd call it 'purple').

The MP3 player part is designed excellently software-wise, & you can use your own headphones - which is great.

I have to say, though, that there are aspects of this phone that make me regret buying it.

1) The keypad looks funky but is really poor. On my phone it is hard to press the right keys, which combined with point 2 makes texting a nightmare. I suspect it's that the framework of the fascia prevents the keys from 'pressing' properly.

2) The predictive text drives me nuts. It tries too hard & the guesses it comes up with are often bizarre. When you want to type 'on' & it comes 5th in the list of options behind 'nowadays', you know something is wrong. Turn it off & you have to contend with getting even more presses right on the keypad

3) The MP3 player volume is too low.

Buy this phone if you want to look 'cool' & make your friends jealous. Just don't let them use it to text someone.

If you want an effective mobile telephone with an MP3 player, buy an old Nokia 6210 & an iPod. They both do what they're meant to much better than the W950i, & they'll last about 5 times longer between charges.

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Reviewer: Johno - Stoke, UK
Date: 25th Apr 2007

What's the best SATNAV package for this phone, at the moment?

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Reviewer: Anom - UK
Date: 20th Apr 2007

I have had the phone for a couple of months & the touch screen doesn't work anymore. I really liked the phone, but to be honest it's quite disappointing.

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Reviewer: Apollo - UK
Date: 12th Apr 2007

Please ignore the ratings above.

I just want to make one or two points clear though:

For those of you buying this model, & then complaining that it has no camera. READ the DESCRIPTIONS BEFORE YOU BUY! In no article or picture I have seen does it state that a camera is part of the specification for this product. How about we leave that little complaint out of future reviews eh? :)

Secondly, it is pretty apparent that users with the W950i who use the Orange, Vodafone & Three / 3 are experiencing severe difficulty with the branded software. (O2 do not supply branded software) Try flashing the device & removing the branding. For more info you can contact Sony Ericsson or simply search the Internet :)

Any further questions run a search for some of the above & see if my name comes up ;)

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Reviewer: Walyd - Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Date: 12th Apr 2007

I have had this phone for a month now as a free upgrade from 3. It took me sometime to get used to it (was more used to Nokia).

The phone feels solid & compact. Looks stylish & well made. Keypad is small & buttons are too close, hence texting, emailing & chatting take a while to get use to, but not that bad.

I have no problem connecting to 3G network (may be because its 3?), going online & navigating through webpages is a breeze! (£5 to surf as much as you want!). I have set up to get my emails delivered directly to my phone. No hassle.

No problem writing using stylus (make sure you get an overlay screen protector to avoid scratching your screen). I can write 'T' & 'K' with no problem at all.

For faster music transfer, put the phone to 'Fast file transfer' & you get full USB 2.0 speed! I have filled up 3 GB in no time!

The negatives:
- Battery runs out very quick for a heavy user
- Sound/music could be louder
- Can't put loudspeaker until call is connected (new firmware fixes this)

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Reviewer: Behnaz - Tehran, Iran
Date: 12th Apr 2007

I love my W950i, it's a great phone.

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Reviewer: Steve - UK
Date: 10th Apr 2007

I bought this phone with my eyes wide open about the lack of camera etc. However, I bought it as a phone. For me this model is really a PDA. You need to use the stylus for everything, it's very difficult to make calls when on the move, i.e. in the car. Whereas with Nokia it's very simple. The keypad is appalling, the keys are very close together & I have made so many dialing errors.

All in all, I hated this phone, luckily I have a 14 return policy on it so will be exchanging it today. If you want a PDA, then it's great, but if it's a phone you want then in my opinion there are many better options out there.

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Reviewer: Jonathan Sharma - Port Of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago
Date: 6th Apr 2007

I think people should stop wasting there effort & money on this phone & buy a Motorola phone. Its better & you get more reliability for your money.

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Reviewer: Peter Freeman - Brentwood, UK
Date: 2nd Apr 2007

I so desperately wanted one of these phones I had to change my service provider. My initial joy has faded fast. There are currently no bespoke replacement covers for the handset. The supplied one fell to bits in days & the one recommended by Sony Ericsson isn't good as you can't use it with the earphones plugged in! D'oh!

The handset freezes regularly & accessing 3G is hit & miss. I often have to turn the phone off then on to get it to work. The reboot time is dreadful. I suggest you do it when you're not going to use the phone for a while - soooooooo slow. Maybe it's just my contract with Orange but the cost of 3G access is disgraceful.

The stylus is dreadful - unless you are ultra gentle it's easy to bend or snap - the cost of replacements is extortionate.

The music player, in theory, is great. The reality is different. The transfer, from PC, takes ages. Worst of all is the feeble volume. You have to have it on maximum volume, in the case of my journey to work, & you can still clearly hear the sound of trains.

It's my first Sony Ericsson phone - & probably my last. I may even sell it on eBay & get one that works better. Sony Ericsson - sort it out!

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Reviewer: Geraint Morgan - Bridgend, Wales, UK
Date: 28th Mar 2007

I find it funny that people moan about no camera on this phone but my question is too you can you read what the box says?

Anyways regarding the phone its good, touch screen is a treat no problems with it at all, the sound is good too.

The only complaint I got is that it's made by Sony ;)

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Reviewer: Vinod Barot - Anand, India
Date: 26th Mar 2007

I really like the W950i phone & use it a lot, it is the best phone in town ever made!

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Reviewer: Nilesh - Pune, India
Date: 23rd Mar 2007

Using this Phone now for 5 days. Must Say have been learning more about it by the minute. Now that I've spent all this money buying it, I make it a point to resolve any problems I come across.

For example, at first I thought the only way to get to the contacts was through the Main menu. But then I found that if you press any key for 3 sec the contacts appear & you can select & call.

I have also found a way of changing the shortcuts on the screen to whatever you need most frequently. The shortcuts that I currently have at the bottom of the screen are : CONTACTS / CALENDER / CALL LOG / MESSEGING / MAIN MENU. Very convenient for me.

1 major problem seems to be when viewing photos, getting to the next picture can get tiring. Current solution is starting a slide show.

Messaging can take a while getting used to. I am still getting used to it.

The feature that I miss the most is the 4 way scroll button, a habit that I got into with my previous phone Nokia 3230.

From a usability stand point, I would rate the Nokia 3230 very highly, but I am optimistic about getting used to this phone as well. Maybe time will tell.

Is the ALARM function bothering anyone else, Rings at odd times. Solution is to Back-up the data & go for a MASTER RESET.

The volume could have been more. NO wish there was solution for this. I love my music LOUD!

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Reviewer: Nico - London, UK
Date: 20th Mar 2007

This is a phone for music lovers alone!

Good points:
- Good memory
- Looks
- No Camera; Camera phones are bad!

Bad points:
- Texting is an absolute nightmare. Keypad is far too small.
- Hand writing feature is a bit pointless. Difficult to write T's on it.

Altogether Good Phone, But a Bit Too Expensive. Personally I Think Cheaper Sony Ericsson's Are Better. Maybe the w550i (Cheap & Cheerful).

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Reviewer: Nige - UK
Date: 15th Mar 2007

I have several phones including the K750i & the K800i though this is the first real Walkman phone that I have owned, Its not the most beautiful phone that I have ever seen but looks isn't everything, Feature wise it has plenty but can be very tricky to use, its not really designed for anyone that likes to text a lot as it takes some getting use too, the predictive text can be a real pain in the butt! & as for the joggle wheel if you are like me when I press the wheel I sometimes catch the volume button on the other side which brings up the volume control panel! Key pad is not that easy to use either but with time I am sure I will get use to it, As for all those folk that bought this phone & complain about it not having a camera. Can you not read what it says on the box, yes it would be nice if it had a camera but it don't.

One of the problems that I really find with this phone & maybe there is a way round it that I haven't found yet, if someone beams a photo etc to the phone it goes into the text message which can be a bit of a pain when you want to save them into the picture folder or music file you have to go through several painstaking screens, the hand writing recognition is none useable! Well if it is I can't use it, try doing the letters K or T if you manage let me know how you did it. One other gripe that I have about this phone is that when it's powered down it would be nice if you still see the time like on the K800i etc. Now for the good points its feels nice in the hand even though its slightly wide it fits the hand well, screen is excellent, side buttons work well though could be positioned better, in all if you don't text a great deal & not too worried about needing a camera & like to have music when you travel well then I would say go for this phone.

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Reviewer: Iain - Swindon, UK
Date: 14th Mar 2007

I got this because of the great reviews but, in all honesty, it has been an utter disaster for me.

Battery Time: Laughable. It is permanently on charge. I changed the battery twice already & have only had it 3 months.

Headset: Cuts out during conversations, at times it's very hard to hear what is being said by the other party even with the volume cranked all the way up.

Usability: You have to drill down from the menu to get to the Contacts list. It's not the best designed setup. I know it's supposed to be a Walkman but why have they not left everything you need to make phone calls ON the FIRST MENU SCREEN!

Until I got this phone, because of my job, I was spending around £300 on calls. That's now been reduced to £60. I am actually using my home phone or my Blackberry because this is so bad. I literally HATE using it.

If you want a nice little casual phone with average sound for playing music then go ahead & get this. Otherwise steer clear.

I went & bought a K800i today & am hoping that will be better. Wish me luck! :D

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Reviewer: Ian Henderson - Coventry, UK
Date: 9th Mar 2007

I've had my W950i for about 2 months now & I am glad that I bought it. Sure, it has no camera, has very small keys & the software management is currently incompatible with Vista (but not I should add the Disk2Phone application which works perfectly under Vista allowing me to upload my music) but it is quite simply the most elegant phone on the market. Add to that the fact that it has 4GB of memory for either music (perfect for long rail/tube journeys!), movies or applications like Sat Nav & you're onto a winner.

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Reviewer: Brian - Newbury, UK
Date: 3rd Mar 2007

Nice design. More modern & compact compared to 900i useless touchscreen. Utterly useless. Writing an sms with the touchscreen pen will take you all day (try writing the letter t. LOL). & I still don't understand why mobiles try to be I-pods. Its just not gonna be beaten, buy an ipod for songs that's what it does. & the battery life is poor oh & did I mention no camera. Still if you've got money to burn & very small fingers then you will be alright.

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Reviewer: Livio - Dandy, Australia
Date: 28th Feb 2007

I can't really rate this phone because I don't own it. I am considering buying it but don't know if ill regret spending the highly expensive price for it.

I am also considering buying the n73 or k800.

Keep in mine I come from the down under & not all the top phones come out in Australia. Can some one guide my on this mobile journey?

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Reviewer: Lewis - UK
Date: 25th Feb 2007

Although this phone has a huge 4GB of memory (which I found very useful for storing music on) there battery life isn't amazing, although there aren't many phones that have phenomenal battery life (the k750i does).

I also had a problem with the interface of the phone & using it. Often the things I most frequently wanted to access would require me getting out the pen & tapping around for a while before I got to it. There are also some buttons on the touch screen that are far too small to touch with the finger & also require the pen coming out.

At first I thought I could do without a camera but I was wrong. With the lack of a camera you find yourself feeling that the phone can't really do much & it is at a bit of a dead end.

Also the usability of the pre hailed music player has been over-rated. It is not amazingly easy to use & takes a while to get used to it.

Overall I would say that this phone is definitely. If you want a normal leisure phone & ease of use phone this is not the one for you.

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Reviewer: Raxit P Raiyani - Rajkot, India
Date: 25th Feb 2007

Hi this is really it, I have this phone for a long time. This is a very cool phone. It has all the feature of mobile.

It has the power of music & ring tone. I like it more.

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Reviewer: Guy Earle - Kenya
Date: 21st Feb 2007

I think that you shouldn't bye this phone & should go for a better phone the Motorola z3 simply because the w950i is rubbish phone & I know it has all of the memory for storing songs but you can't access them through its rubbish system if you buy this phone then you are making a BIG mistake & just to warn you all of the other reviews the people are made up & they are just trying to sell you there phone! So take my advise.

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Reviewer: BC - London, UK
Date: 19th Feb 2007

First of all, how on earth can people submit a review & rate a phone that they clearly don't own yet !? !? It's not very sensible & doesn't give people a proper overview of the phone, some people !

Back to the phone, the W950i is very good however a few things that users should be aware of -

The phone can be a bit slow at times but it will get there. The quality of the music through the external speaker is not great but very good through the ear phones.

As has been mentioned, no camera & a major point. For those of you that like to keep up-to-date with technology. The software for this phone will not run on Windows Vista OS. So if you updated your PC like I did & have this phone you are now unable to put music on your phone.

Apart from that, an all round good music player & phone.

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Reviewer: Flood - Slovenia
Date: 17th Feb 2007

This phone is perfect if you want a business & a music phone. It lacks a camera but a good camera on a phone is very rare nowadays. I think I will buy a camera phone when the standard will be like 5MP!

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Reviewer: Haydn - UK
Date: 15th Feb 2007

Only had two days & think its great, was going to buy an I-pod, but decided to get this as free upgrade, 8800 is other quite brilliant phone. As an MP3 player this is great as is the touch screen. One major problem I can't solve is that the PC suite won't load onto PC, I am running windows vista premium & assume this a teething problem with vista. Can anybody help?

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Reviewer: John You - Liverpool, UK
Date: 12th Feb 2007

DO NOT BUY THIS PHONE!

Honestly this phone is a dog! Having used previous Sony Ericsson phones I expected this one to be good. The idea is good & yeah it could be used similarly to a pda having two in one BUT there are serious flaws with the software used! This phone is slow & the usability is awful, typing a message takes an age! If you're like me I tend to type with a combination of two fingers & what I was having to do was press the buttons with my left hand & use my right thumb to toggle the scroll wheel to select the word! I am not saying it's not do-able but seriously awkward. The key pad is rubbish its requires a good hard push before it even recognises you've pressed it! Not good when your a regular fast typer! The music player functions are to a good standard but I found the software frustrating to use & not the most intuitive.

Initially I was attracted to the pda style of the phone as I use one myself but I was very disappointed with the functions.

Functions such as calendar, organiser, email client are all more often than not very basic. The phone is nice & slim but the width of it is similar to a PDA but it does no where near anything sufficient. I understood at the time of buying this phone that it had no camera, but I thought if its good to use it wouldn't be too much of a problem. However anyone thinking of getting this phone I would tell you I can think of many phones that can do what this phone does but miles better & with a camera & in better size dimensions!

So the question is, did Sony Ericsson need to make such a rubbish phone, cos it doesn't fit into the current line up does it what with the fab w850i & p990i.

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Reviewer: Paz - Notting