Sony Ericsson W950i - the Verdict

So i ask this. Is it worth it replacing my N91 for the W950i? Will i be missing much?

Currently, i feel safer with the vast amount of s60 3rd party software and the cool Nokia developed apps that have been surfacing recently. Podcasting (audio/video), catalogues, Nulsoft streamer, and barcode reader...to name but a few.
Is there an equally progressive community for UIQ, especially from sonyericsson's labs?

Camera i can try to live without, but Wifi may be a problem since i use that alot. Is there scope for bluetooth internet passthrough using one's broadband?

"Is there an equally progressive community for UIQ, especially from sonyericsson's labs?"

You could try taking a look at the applications available for UIQ3 on the software catalogues on All About Symbian and My-Symbian.com, that will give you an idea of how vibrant the development community is. UIQ3 is taking a bit longer than S60v3 to roll out however, so it's still early days for the format.

Although UIQ smartphones sell in smaller numbers than S60 ones, their owners tend to buy more software so that makes up for some of the difference.

Like the M600, the form factor of the W950 makes it very attractive for most users not just experienced Smartphone users. SE should really pack the HBH-DS970 with this device.

Nice review Steve. I've enjoyed reading that over the last week or so. It seems to be something of a love-hate relationship you've developed there. Mind you, there isn't a 1st generation device that hasn't had it's quirks. It's quite good that the W950's quirks all seem to be firmware related and, therefore, so easily fixable. If it had awful radio reception or cr@p battery life then it would be a real problem. But a 4GB MP3 player with built-in smartphone for �100 on a contract seems almost too good to be true.

Could this finally be the device that lures me back over to Symbian? 😊

Bassey: Eh? Now't to do with me. Ewan Spence has been the reviewer for this series of W950i articles.

8-)

Steve