The phone's GPS capability enables a range of familiar navigation tools, such as Google Maps and NearMe, which provides you with information on local businesses, events and so on. They both work as expected once the satellites finally locate you, but using them tends to run the battery down. If you subscribe to Wisepilot, you can benefit from turn-by-turn directions, even if the phone's tiny screen reduces the app's potential.
Widget-rich
Social-networking fans will be pleased to know the Elm offers widgets that make it easy to keep an eye out for updates, minute by minute. Offering quick access to Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, the relevant widgets can be permanently embedded on the home screen. Initially, the interfaces can be rather fiddly, but you'll be tweeting away in no time as updates scroll on by from the people you're following.
Despite these useful widgets, the Elm's proprietary, Flash-based user interface can be sluggish, due to a slightly under-powered processor. The 'activity menu' is a one-stop shop for a number of shortcuts, including a link to an adept Web browser and a list of running applications. That's right -- the Elm supports multi-tasking, but it's rather unconvincing, due, again, to the processor.
Form and sound
You navigate the Elm's user interface with its responsive direction pad, and its alphanumeric keys respond to presses with a pleasing click. Made from rubber, the keypad's convex shape provides grip and allows for easy dialling. The keys are joined in threes (1, 2 and 3 sit on one button), however, making quick texting an art to be mastered.
The Elm utilises Sony Ericsson's new 'noise shield' feature, which aims to filter out background sound, so you can have clearer conversations. Testing this feature besides busy roads and in bustling shops, we sounded clear to the person on the other end of the line, although some surrounding noise could still be heard.
The audio quality when playing music is similarly impressive, with a full media player offering rich sounds and full bass. Unfortunately, that propriety port strikes again, limiting you to the inferior out-of-the-box headphones. You could connect a Bluetooth headset, but it's about time this proprietary-port business was committed to the bowels of mobile-phone hell. Nevertheless, this blow is ever so slightly softened by the presence of the SensMe feature, which displays your music on a graph of happy/sad and fast/slow, and TrackID, which can identify songs based on a short clip.
The Elm's battery life isn't quite as impressive as that of the Naite. But, with moderate texting, calling and app usage, it should still last a good few days without needing a recharge.
Conclusion
Sony Ericsson's Elm aims to woo eco-conscious folk with its green credentials, but many will view its 'eco-friendly' apps as mere gimmickry. Thankfully, the handset is lifted from the compost heap by a competent camera, decent music features and useful GPS integration, as well as easy-to-access social-networking widgets. But its slow user interface and proprietary port make the Elm feel like a compromise.
Edited by Charles Kloet
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routemaster87 19 April 2012
Good: Nothing.
Bad: Over complicated. Impossible to upload pictures onto PC
Comment: Unfortunately I was sold this Pup on an upgrade. I don't do much with my phone. I use it as a phone and take pictures. I have tried every which way to up load the pics onto my PC, even uploading their rubbish Studio suite. Not a hope. Luckily my trust little Nokia is still working which uploads pics easy as falling off a log. Mr Elm is now my spare, to be used only when my Nokia needs repairing. Don't buy this rubbish
Shady Janzeir 4 February 2011
Good: Size, design, and user interface
Bad: GPS and LED flash functionality limited by poor software; please stop telling me to unplug the charger!
Comment: It's easy to like the Elm when you're flipping it around at the store, and the rather reasonable price makes buying it that much easier. But beware - if it's just a phone you want, you'll love the Elm. If you're one of the few who take their phones seriously, the Elm will drive you mad.
It's a great little thing, what with the (almost) complete feature set and those widgets that the socially mobile (no pun intended) adore. But it's when you actually try to use the phone's other features (namely the GPS and camera) that it starts to come undone at the seams.
The C702 I had been using for almost two years had its GPS operation separated from the functionality of GPS-based applications like Google Maps and Tracker. The Elm, by comparison, is a step backward. The same functionality is there, but the user can no longer control and monitor GPS operation independently of the available applications - to start GPS, you must run at least one application, and there is no way to monitor the progress as the phone tries to find and latch on to satellites. Worse yet, you can't get coordinates, speed or heading information (you can only get speed and graphical heading information through Tracker). The death knell is dealt with the fact that when you come to a stop while monitoring your position with Google Maps, the GPS receiver disconnects from the satellites it had taken so long to latch on to, and will only reconnect after you manually reactivate the Maps application.
And good luck trying to take photos in the dark. The LED comes on only briefly to help in focusing, but not long enough for you to compose the shot. And you cannot switch it on or off with the # key like you used to on older SE phones.
The Elm is a great phone if you're into style and have your whole life hanging out for people to see. But if you tend to use your phone to within an inch of its life, you will be disappointed. I wish I had spent the money on refurbishing my trusty old C702.
SOphiee 6 November 2010
Good: everything I have read about it seems good,I like the way it looks like the C902 but a newer version of it.
Bad: I haven't really heard anything bad about this phone so far.
Comment: I'm getting this phone next week and I'm looking forward to it hopefully everything goes well with it.
See all 5 user reviews