Sony Ericsson K750i review

Features
Where many current handsets fall down with regard to images and music is memory, but the K750i does better than most with 34MB of internal memory and a 64MB Memory Stick Duo combining to provide an immediately available 98MB of storage.

The camera shoots images at three resolutions -- 160x120, 640x480 and 1,632x1,224 -- and has a macro mode for close-ups. You won't have seen one of those on a camera phone before, and its presence is related to the autofocus feature that kicks in as you half depress the shutter button, just like on a full-blown digital camera. When it's okay to take the shot, the handset beeps.

There are other useful camera features including a self timer, image effects such as sepia and black and white, a mode for shooting at night, a three-shot panorama assistant, a range of 24 frames, a burst mode, and white balance settings for conditions like fluorescent light and cloudy outdoor conditions. These all help to make image quality much better than we are used to seeing from camera phones.

You can also shoot video at resolutions of 176x144 and 1,280x960, and many of the still camera settings apply here too -- including the macro mode shooting.

The K750i has some truly lovely touches. In dark conditions, the camera shutter button is briefly illuminated by the same white light that provides keypad backlighting, so you don't need to fumble for it. Another is that you can use the LEDs as a torch.

There's little doubt that the star of this particular show is the camera, but the K750i has a good deal more going for it.

Music playback also impressed us. The sound quality is good, though at the very highest volume levels there is some distortion. You change volume using the same rocker button that zooms the camera, which saves on button-clutter around the handset.

Too few handsets have FM radios built in. The K750i does, adding RDS capability so it can show the name of the station you are tuned in to, and automatic tuning to find the strongest signal for your current location. There are 20 presets. If you can't be bothered to set your favourites up, just get the handset to auto scan and then use the joystick to flick through. It takes just seconds to set up a range of stations in this way.

The headphones have a proprietary connector, so if you don't like the fit or the sound quality, you can't change them for your favourites. You can't charge the handset while using the headset either, because the power adaptor uses the same connector. You can send sound output to any device that has a pair of standard audio-in sockets if you buy the accessory -- and that uses the proprietary connector too.

As for the rest of the software provided, there's an email client, diary and contact book, PC desktop software for file and data sharing (connected via Bluetooth or the provided cable), and several additional applications including Music DJ, a rather groovy four-track composer you can use to create ringtones. There are picture and video editors too, and three games: 3D aircraft-based shooter Aero Mission, Super Real Tennis and Puzzle Slider.

Performance
In general use this handset performed very well. Call quality and reception were both good. We could hear people perfectly well, but sometimes they said we were too quiet.

Battery life was very impressive. We got through a working week of use without charging if we were light on music and radio, but did manage to deplete the battery much more quickly when using those features a lot.

Edited by Mary Lojkine
Additional editing by Nick Hide