Sony Ericsson P1i review

"Sample Images from the Camera (click through for full resolution):"

Holy cow Rafe, what do you get up to at weekends? 😊

Most of my sample photos are rather duller!

Well it was an unusual weekend... (and a few other days too). Some of them are from Loseley Battle Proms. Of course there had to be an obligatory cat and/or dog photo too.

req: pics of stand

Got to say though, this does look much more professional and attractive than previous P series UIQ phones, at least in my opinion.

The keyboard still looks a bit strange, but it does seem to work by all accounts, so it's just something to get used to.

Hello Rafe,

I was just wondering if you noticed a green tint on the right hand (usually lower part) of your photos. This seems to be a phenomenon with the first batch of P1i's and could be a CMOS defect since the green tinge shows up on the LCD preview also (hopefully it's not a hardware issue.). I have also confirmed this in my posts in Esato. I think I even see it a bit in you photos (though yours isn't as obvious). What do you think?

Sincerely,

Isaac Liao

I've got a Nokia E61 at the moment and a feature I use a lot is VoIP. How does the P1i handle this? Does it work out of the box without problems, or is 3rd Party software necessary? This is what I've been reading up till now. If it's right, then I can forget the P1i right away.

I can't say I've noticed a particular green tinge myself. I can't see anything obvious in my photos (sometimes you can convince youself something isn't there and vice versa).

As I said the camera isn't amazing, but this is all relative, much better than the P800 (no suprise) and a bit better than the P990.

Maybe you could take a picture of a white piece of paper? Should be pretty obvious then. Now I have to work out a way to convince myself my n95 has more free ram 😉

Hi Guys/Gals, Not too sure why people give this phone good reviews, I bought it but im definatly returning it after just a day. For the following reasons
* Its virtually identical to my M600i in terms of performance. Admitedly the build quality is alot better but its just an M600i with a camera and Wi-FI. and screen *slighly* brighter. Not entirely sure why its always compared to the old P series phones (good marketing on Sony ericssons part I guess). Because its an M610... well It should be called that anyway.
* Phone reception wasnt great. i know this is very subjective, but my N95 always has more bars and sounds better when used in the same locations
* the fonts on UIQ!!!!! When are we goung to get cleartype fonts?!?! S60 definately rules in this department...
* UIQ themes make symbian look like a Toy OS 😉 way too colourful and cartoon like... even the plain ones are coloutful.

Just my 2p...

Hi Rafe, could you talk a little bit about the quality of the camera, particularly as compared to other phones with 3.2 mPix or higher? Specifically, I'm curious about comparing the quality of this camera to the k810 and k800, as well as the N73 and N95.

Thanks!

SE should send free P1s for the ripped-off full price lemon P990 buyers. Anyways the P1 is the same obsolete 2005-2006 technology (what about HSDPA? quadband? 16M color TFT? 300+MHz CPU? etc.), just more RAM.

Btw still no call recording or any profile system. Is this a business phone?

Smythe,

As far as reception on N95 better than P1i - an explanation of cell reception copied from mobiledia

"Ever wonder why you don't get reception? For a simple answer, typically user load and tower placement are the reasons reception quality diminishes. Other factors may be terrain, modulation technology, weather, or the phone itself. However, call quality depends more upon network than anything else."

JDesigner

Hi Guys/Gals, Not too sure why people give this phone good reviews, I bought it but im definatly returning it after just a day. For the following reasons
* Its virtually identical to my M600i in terms of performance. Admitedly the build quality is alot better but its just an M600i with a camera and Wi-FI. and screen *slighly* brighter. Not entirely sure why its always compared to the old P series phones (good marketing on Sony ericssons part I guess). Because its an M610... well It should be called that anyway.
* Phone reception wasnt great. i know this is very subjective, but my N95 always has more bars and sounds better when used in the same locations
* the fonts on UIQ!!!!! When are we goung to get cleartype fonts?!?! S60 definately rules in this department...
* UIQ themes make symbian look like a Toy OS 😉 way too colourful and cartoon like... even the plain ones are coloutful.

Just my 2p...

Actually I found the performance to be better than a M600. I'll discuss this more in part2, but side by side its noticeably faster. I do see you point about M / P series, but then I always felt the M600 was really a different type of P series device.

Phone reception has been good for me. Indeed it got a signal in one place where usually I don't get one or have a low signal. You;re not alone though. I'll try and test this some more.

There are some nice themes from UIQ.com - like you I prefer my themes basic, but not a lot of people seem to agree.

Hi Rafe, could you talk a little bit about the quality of the camera, particularly as compared to other phones with 3.2 mPix or higher? Specifically, I'm curious about comparing the quality of this camera to the k810 and k800, as well as the N73 and N95.

Thanks!

This sort of thing is always a bit subjective. I'm not sure it measures up to the K810 though I dont have one to do a direct comparison with. I would say its simialr to the N73 in most situations (N73 maybe better in medium light). Its not as good as the N95. I included some sample photos so people could see for themselves. If there interest I can probably do some more.

SE should send free P1s for the ripped-off full price lemon P990 buyers. Anyways the P1 is the same obsolete 2005-2006 technology (what about HSDPA? quadband? 16M color TFT? 300+MHz CPU? etc.), just more RAM.

I think that a matter of perspective. As I noted in the review it is not cutting edge, but I do think it is mature as a platform. This is what a lot of people want. They want stability and the tried and tested stuff. I think this is also reflected in the pricing - which is very competitive and will grow more so in time. Still I would suggest this might not be the phone for the person who wants the very latest thing. Wait a bit longer for that.

Btw still no call recording or any profile system. Is this a business phone?

True, its just the silence option. Call recording can be added by 3rd party software I believe.

Interestingly I think these comments demonstrate how hard it is to keep everyone happy. All phones make compromises in some ways. It depends how much they impact you personally as to what you think of said phone.

I wonder how many people are using this phone on the T-Mobile network? Many of the websites mention T-Mobile as the site for unlocked phones. Maybe the performance is better on AT&T.

I disagree with the idea that the P1i is very similar to the m600 in performance terms - I've been playing with one for two days and it is MUCH faster than my M600. Screen is vastly superior too.

It is also of a far higher build quality and the kinks in the keyboard have almost all been ironed out - I'm getting the same sort of words-per-minute out of it as I do on my Blackberry.

SE have obviously decided to abandon the 'kitchen sink' approach taken with previous P-series phones and heavy Web users will have to think long and hard about how much they need g and HSDPA before buying. For the average user, the options available will be more than adequate even for downloading attachments.

My view is that, right now, if you are not interested in creating or editing large documents through your phone, then the P1i is a terrific option - certainly a step up from current Blackberrys, Moto's Q and Nokia's E61.

I think the P1 really reflects SE's decision to create a 'mass market' smartphone rather than trying to build something for the early-adopter/power user market. Nothing wrong with that providing you know what you are getting.

The UIQ interface is quite cartoon-like but I enjoy that. Some won't.

Finally, the idea that this is not a 'business phone' is a nonsense. I'm not important at all but I work for guys leading massive multi-nationals and you know what most of them use? Moto Razr's and numbered Nokias combined with Blackberry's they shove in their briefcases. Why? because they have neither the time nor the patience to devote to mucking about with smartphones! It's all about getting what you, the individual user, wants.

The lack of profiles on the P1 is a major irritant, as is the occassional need to reach for the stylus to hit a small icon. Otherwise, though, it's a top device if it's technology covers your needs.

More rants...

*When using UIQ, you cant simply use the jog dial to control everything. you have to resort to using a mixture of the jogdial, keyboard, stylus and your finger on the screen! surely even PalmOS sussed the the D-pad and touchscreen functionality with the first TREO650! i.e. you can completely control the device using *either* the dpad, *OR* the touch screen. we are in 2007 now grrr! 😉
* have also had a play with windows mobile 5.0 Smartphone edition (i used to own a Samsung i320). Its miles better than UIQ. looks better (fonts, themes, etc). The fonts on that baby are just beautiful.
* Like I said... I believe S60 is way superior to UIQ... Those UIQ guys need to shape up because it has so much potential. just add good D-Pad *and* touchscreen support. Dont force users to make a choice... (like the moto z8) just have a device that does both well.

Maybe im just a demanding user... but hey... PalmOS had all this stuff years ago (even good fonts).... but the Palm problems are another story... 😉

Hi Rafe

I have P910i; I don't know how big its screen actually is in pixels, but I see SE describes the 990 (same screen as 910i?) as being 262,144 & 240x320. They describe the P1 screen as the same, but it looks as though the P990 / 910i screens must be at least 15-20% larger with flip open. Are they larger? If so, does the p1 screen feel like a step backwards?

😊

Have to disagree with you about almost everything there!

- Almost everything can be controlled by the scroll wheel and finger-presses on screen. When you do have to reach for a stylus it's annoying but it's actually rather rare for all major actions (launching apps, calling, cahinging options etc). Of course you have to involve the keyboard if you are entering text or data.

Honestly, while not the most intuitive interface UIQ3 is far from the mess many seem to think it is: it does take more time to learn than S60, though.

- I've used Windows Mobile 5 for a year on an HTC TyTn and while the look of it is clearly subjective the idea that it's inherently easier to get to grips with than UIQ is, with respect, rubbish. It's not a bad OS at all but it has many of its own ticks, quirks and counter intuitive burying of key items. The fonts are fine but not a utility improvement on UIQ, just different.

WM on the TyTn is also not as stable as UIQ on my M600 and the inbuilt calendar and task apps are poor and don't fit with the rest of the device (tasks on the front screen? a calendar that knows the difference betwen an app and a reminder?) - in fact there are a liot of areas in WM where the various parts do not gel well.

I used it and once I got used to it, it was fine but it's not actually significantly better than UIQ.

Where we do agree is on S60: it's easily the best mobile OS around, balancing utility with aesthetic appeal and a low and easy learning curve. Someone needs to do a better job on E90 support but otherwise, its the current gold standard by a mile.

UIQ has a lot going for it but lacks in some areas and isn't intuitive. SE's move, with the P1i, to turn its touchscreen support into a finger-control option rather than requiring the stylus could well signal the way to make it a genuine contender.

Now, if only Palm would stop acting like a company that wants to commit suicide, we might really have a true S60 competitor out there!

Richard,

lol! Robust response... 😉 But I have to "Counter" disagree 😉

* By saying you can use "the scroll wheel *and* finger presses on the screen", you make my point precisely... 😉 you should just be able to use the scroll wheel *and maybe* the keyboard (soft keys) in isolation of everything else... The fact that there are no softkeys.. (even the top 1,2,3 number dial buttons could have doubled as softkeys... or something).. it quite ridiculous... There is even space on the device for softkeys... just below the screen. but its just bare wasted space. not everyone likes to poke thier screens just to click "more". And some buttons like the "easy access" dropdown on the top left are not that "easily accesible" with a thumb because its extremely small. Just put a D-Pad and softeys on the damn thing!... IMHO 😉

* Im not referring to Windows mobile 5 with the touch screen... I hear it can be hit/miss depending on what hardware you are running it on.I was referring to Windows mobile 5 "Smartphone" edition. (the one that doesnt allow for a touch screen). the implementation on the Samsung i320 is VERY good, extremely stable and looks beautiful... I dont even think there has been a rom update since they released it. I cant comment on the other windows mobile 5 devices though.

* Yeah I agree with you Palm swallowed a suicide pill along time ago lol. The Treo650 was ground breaking in its time... but I think theyve been taking too many bong hits since then. Not including 3G and/or alternatively WI-FI on their PalmOS phones (in the UK) in 2007 is absolutely crazy! Also.... theyve flogged the treo form factor to death I think... Its almost twice the thickness of the Blackjack. The PalmOS is not even trully multi treaded!!!!!!!!! Remember we are in 2007 where full blown UMPCs are not incredibley larger!!!!!!!

* Imagine a multithreaded PalmOS variant and running on a device the form-factor of the Samsung i320/i600 (blackjack) or Blackberry Curve with 3G and/or WI-FI (Yup im definately old-school 😉)... now that would make me drool... yum. ;-~)

I had exactly the same thought about softkeys and room for them on the chasis when the M600i came out. However it soon becomes second nature to just tap the screen and you really don't notice they're not there. The position of the arrow keys (left / right - going through tabbed dialogs) does annoy me a bit, but this is fairly uncommon in the interface.

That said I do wonder about the thinking behind leaving a D-Pad off. There's merits both ways. UIQ works very well with one of these as Z8 users will know.

I agree maybe we will begin to see better devices with UIQ3.1 now in the wild... i.e. with both good (consistent) D-Pad and Touch screen support.

Hello,

I guess you are lucky Rafe becasue most of the people at Esato forums that have the P1i have a green tinge on the lower right hand side of their photos. This indicates to me that perhaps the cmos is defective for that particular batch. It's unlikely that it's a firmware issue, otherwise everyone would be having the same problem. Additonally the fact that the green tinge comes up int he LCD preview gives creedence to the idea that it's a CMOS problem. The only other possibility is that the lens coating has some issues. What do you think?

Yeah, these things can happen. I've had another look and can't convince myself anything is there so maybe I got lucky (or maybe I am less observant)!

Can you tel me about P1i camera speed?
Especifically the shutter speed (lag)!
Thank�s

Whilst I agree with the gist of most of whats said above I've now been using the P1 for a good month and I've discovered some seriously BAD and ANNOYING features that are perhaps not so obvious when you're just testing it out and when you need to rely on it as your work tool:

* Reception (on this particular handset is VERY VERY POOR!!!) Beware if you live a low quality reception area because the P1 (I've got at least) just cannot see the signal! (I'm still running the old P910i alongside it and it shows FULL signal in every part of this building whereas the P1 wavers between 1 or 2 bars and nothing! A really disappointing and thoroughly frustrating disadvantage !

* Key lock timing (again on this phone) seems completely ERRATIC! This is also extremely frsutrating as you'll be holding the stupid thing for up to 20 seconds sometimes before the keylock kicks in - just when you are in a hurry! OR it can come on almost immediately before you've had time to even pull the stylus out of the slot! I've timed it! It really is erratic! VERY POOR Sony!

* This problem has caused me to accidently brush a contact name on the way into a pocket resulting, the other night, in the stupid thing calling one of my contacts abroad for 1hour 47 minutes and costing me €50!!!!

* Back button is temporamental at best. You have to really hold it in sometimes and even then it just wont unlock the page or go back!

* Minimising the radio or music player is not always obvious on every screen meaning you have to spend ages going back a acreen to spot how to make the player continue in the background.

* Power button: WORST feature of the phone! Its very flimsy and I can see it giving up the ghost quite quickly. Just today I was unable to turn on the phone and had to jimmy the button with the stylus. This is really badly designed for a new phone.

* Charging is also erratic! Some mornings you take it off charge and it hasnt sucked in a joule of juice since you plugged it in! Again bloody annoying if you're going out of the house for a long day when need the thing to be fully charged!

* Stored images: Another seemingly erratic feature! Where the hell are those photos I've just taken; you look in the image gallery and they dont exist. Search around a bit, come back to where you started and sudddenly they appear! What the chuff is going on?

* There are scores of other little annoying things too (like the number of menus you have to go thru to do a simple cut and paste; unexpected lengthening of one SMS message to 3 - a really OLD problem that was ironed out of these phones in the P800 days);....well the list goes on.

Am so so disapointed with the P1 (and although there are clearly issues with this particular handset) there are also design issues that are counter-intuitive and plain pointless or over-complex. Sorry to anyone reading that was involved in the design but it just seems like it has been put toegther by an elephant.

COME ON S.E. why dont you test this stuff PROPERLY!!!!????? (Your PC Suites are notorious for this - although I have to say at least this is the best one so far, despite having to call the service centre to get the connectivity issue sorted - even then they reckoned I had a dodgy port!

The 990 was a total failure, full of these kinds of bugs.....I'm really sorry to say at the moment (despite LOVIN the P series generally) I feel the P1 is the WORST phone I've ever had!!!! I wish I'd gone for that Nokia N95.

Thoroughly miserable Mark

I wonder whether the green tinge is because the production models use the more powerful BST-40 battery, whereas the earlier samples used the BST-33 model? Seems too much of a coincidence that the side of the CMOS sensor that is more affected is nearer the battery...

I want to ask how to set up the MMS and how to use the Wi-Fi because eveytime im trying to connect they ask for a "WEP KEY" ? does anybody experience the same thing? Thanks in advance.

A warning to P1i users. If you use the SE update service make a backup of the phone. If you don't you will be as pi**ed off as i am right now, as the update restores everything to default and wipes out all customised settings, contacts,files, programs etc etc. Right now i can't even get the bloody thing to synchronise with my desktop to restore the calendar!
Up till today I have been quite happy with it. As a previous P910i user i would have preferred a detachable keyboard and bigger touch screen but that's about the only problem. One tip: the Opera browser supplied is not the Opera mini browser that I used on my P910i. I had installed the beta version of version 4 of this on the P1i. It gives a much better landscape view, saves settings and more importantly reduces the download volume (and cost) considerably. For example front page of BBC news on the standard browser is 300k, using opera mini it is 50k.
Anyway i will now have to spend the rest of the day rebuilding it grrr
Mike vaughan