Sony Ericsson W880i

Camera

The W880i has a 2MP non auto focus camera and an alternate VGA camera in the front for video conference calling. The 2 MP camera doesn't work wonders like the non autofocus camera of the W700/W850, and you don't have to expect a lot as one expects from the K550i. The image quality is very acceptable. The night mode has a handicap as there is no LED or flash light provided, but that cannot be helped considering the slimness factor. The camera supports a maximum image size of 1600 x 1200 pixels. You can choose to click images in VGA, 1 MP, and 2 MP formats, though it is not possible to zoom in while working with 1 and 2 MP. The other standard options like Night Mode, Burst, Frames, and Panorama are just the same. You can also add effects like Negative, Sepia, Black and White and change White Balance. 4 Shutter Sound options are provided but no option to turn it off, so the only way that's possible is to put the phone in silent mode.

The camera records video in the ancient QCIF resolution which I strongly believe Sony Ericsson should change to CIF. The same standard options seen in the still images are also available in the video mode.

Connectivity

The W880i is loaded with connectivity options. Sony Ericsson faced a lot of criticism when their W800 didn't have the EDGE connectivity, now they have learnt and implemented from customer feedback. The W880i has GPRS as well EDGE, both of which are Class 10. It also has HSCSD connectivity, supports 3G services as well but won't do much good in India with no 3G services available. The phone has Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP support. USB connection via the FastPort is USB v2.0. The phone is a mass storage device and doesn't require drivers to be installed. It took roughly around 3 minutes to transfer a 130 MB album, which is quite acceptable.

Battery Life


The W880i has a Li-Ion battery which has a rating of 950 mAh. The battery is expected to deliver 6 hours 30 minutes of talktime and a standby time of over two weeks. With standard usage, the phone lasted me 3 days where the phone talktime totaled to just 2 hours while music playback was for 5 hours.