The Perfect Phone K700i
I have used many phones in the past but there was one which truly stands out. The Sony Ericsson K700i. This is the upgraded version of the popular T610 with many similar features.
Screen
65k colors, very bright screen with blue keypad lights. Screen measure 176*220 pixels. Can be easily seen in sunlight unlike the T610 screen.
Compact and light weight measuring 3.91.8.8 inches and weighing 93grams
Tri Band supports GSM 900/1800/1900
Camera
This phone comes with a .3 mega pixel camera with night mode. It can also capture video clips until the memory is full. There is also a bright white light next to the lens for even more light in low/no light conditions. The pictures and video clips taken when there is ample light is very good for a VGA camera phone. Lot of noise (grains) in low light conditions. I would recommend using the camera only for day time shots.
It has 42MB internal memory. The memory is not expandable
Connectivity
Phone comes with Bluetooth, infra red, WAP, and GPRS for connectivity
Radio
There is a radio on the phone which works only if the headset (included) is plugged in. It picks up all the local stations and gives stereo sound.
Mp3 Player
The best part of the phone is the MP3 player.
You can listen to mp3, wav files with the headset or using the speakerphone function.
Quality sound/call
Sound and call quality is excellent and on par with other phones.
Build quality
The phone is pretty sturdy and it can take a few falls. Since the screen is big it can get scratched easily. The keyboard is just ok, and might not be liked by text message fanatics.
Battery
Battery life is not very impressive and gives a talk time of about 5-8hrs and standby time of 3-5 days.
For more detailed features of the phone goto https://sonyericsson.com, choose your country and then click on products>k700i
Overall
I would give this phone a 9/10. The memory is not expandable and people who listen to mp3?s will find this as a drawback. Battery life could be better
I bought this phone for $300 USD (including shipping) from https://myworldphone.com
Make sure you get atleast 1 Year warranty with the phone.
Also note that the K750i is going to be released in a few months time so wait for 3-4 months and the price of the k700i will drop even more.
For those who have this phone please read the part about the firmware below.
Firmware
I have seen many people complaining about the phone crashing and other software problems. This can be fixed by upgrading you phone?s FIRMWARE. Take it to your nearest Sony Ericsson store and ask them for a firmware upgrade.
This will be FREE if your phone is still under the warranty, else they might charge you a fee. You can also do the upgrade from ONLY IF you have the DSS-20/25 Sync station and a BROADBAND internet connection. Doing this from home WILL VOID your warranty. Goto https://sonyericsson.com and click the support link for more info about the firmware.
To check what version of firmware you have follow the below steps. (Do not look at the screen UNTIL YOUR done with the below steps.)
First goto the main screen (the one with your background wallpaper)
Then ><<<* to check your firmware version
> is move the joystick right
< is mover the joystick left
1 is press the 1 key
Now look at your screen, choose Service Info and then software info. The first line should show your firmware version (the latest version is R2AE033).