Sony Ericsson W902: finally a good-sounding Walkman phone
Sony Ericsson has announced the Sony Ericsson W902, a premium Walkman phone that for once focuses more on sound quality than on features. The W902 comes with sound quality that's apparently best in class, which you'd rather expect in a phone with a Walkman badge on it. Unfortunately, that's not always been the case, with most Walkman phone only offering average sound quality, so it's nice to see a new Walkman phone that can, er, walk the walk, as it were!
More details and pictures of the Sony Ericsson W902 after the jump.
Sony Ericsson W902 overview
The Sony Ericsson W902 is a high end Walkman phone, and so it's not just great sound quality you can expect from the device.
The W902 also comes with a 5 megapixel camera, 2.2" QVGA screen, an 8GB Memory Stick Micro that'll store up to 8,000 tunes, video playback and HSDPA.
And, er, that's about it! In their press release, Sony Ericsson bang on quite a bit about "...pioneering features that take Walkman™ phones beyond music and expectations...", but turns out to be just the camera and the video. Not exactly innovative!
The W902 does come with Shake control, which lets you change to a different tune just by shaking the phone, and SensMe, which matches the music it selects to your mood, but these have already been seen in other Walkman phones, so again, nothing particularly innovative.
It's a good looking phone, without question, and with its range of features it'll do most things that you'd want from a music phone. I'm just not sure it's as innovative as Sony Ericsson are making out! If you want a really really high performing Walkman phone, you'll need to wait for the Sony Ericsson W980, which apparently will be announced very soon. Of course, that'll be a much more expensive phone than the W902, so the choice is yours, I guess.
Sony Ericsson W902 press release
No longer do you need to make a choice between music, media and imaging when picking your next phone. Compromise is now a thing of the past thanks to Sony Ericsson’s new W902 Walkman™, a phone that goes beyond music and gives users everything they need in one pocket-sized stylish device. Downsize your bag, free your pockets and leave your music player and camera at home - use the premium W902 phone to play your favourite tunes, snap those precious moments or watch crystal clear video on the bright, scratch-resistant 2.2” QVGA display.
“We all want more from our mobile phones than ever before.” said Ben Padley, Head of the Music Category at Sony Ericsson, “If you love music but don’t want to compromise on imaging and video, we have used our expertise as music phone specialists to give users a truly multimedia experience with this latest phone. The W902 is one of our most high-performing phones yet and perfect for those who want it all.”
The W902 delivers music as it was meant to be heard through Sony Ericsson’s revolutionary clear audio experience. With crystal clear sound quality and a dramatically richer bass, together with Sony Ericsson premium headphones, HPM-77 included in-box, your favourite tracks will sound better than ever. The W902 features the same superior sound quality as the W980, about to launch shortly, which was rated ”best audio experience” this month, in a trial conducted in Germany by TESTfactory**.
List of features
- Outstanding music sound – Clear Stereo + Clear Bass+ premium headphones = clear audio experience
- Retro music navigation keys – skip forward, back, play and pause with the push of a button
- Crystal clear video playback
- 5 megapixel camera – snap your stills and videos
- Scratch-resistant 2.2” QVGA screen and lens - made with mineral glass
- 8GB Memory Stick Micro™ (M2) for more than 8,000 songs
The Sony Ericsson W902 release date is scheduled for Q4 2008.
