Plemix

Still remember the Sony Ericsson C902 which had taken a fad of its 5MP auto focus with face detection camera for a period of time. Now, they have another one joins the ranks of the Sony Cyber-Shot cellphone, Sony Ericsson C901. Well, that’s nothing special in the current market bustling with 8-megapixel snappers, and probing the boundaries at 12.Tell you, you are totally wrong! One of the simple reasons is that C901 is one of the few handsets out there sporting a Xenon flash. It is special enough to help it stand above the crowd of cameraphones. Check out more? Read on.

Standard stuff: a Battery, a Charger, a USB cable, a handsfree, CD and Manual.

The Sony Ericsson C901 is a compact candybar measuring only 105 x 45 x 13 mm (Slimmer than its previous one) that makes is small enough to fit in any shirt pocket or purse. Its high quality materials it feels quite robust to hold.

The keypad layout and navigation pad is clean and clear but a bit boring as it’s slightly different from the other Sony Ericsson device.

The right side hosts the slightly elevated volume rocker and the camera control.

Lanyard eyelet and connectivity port are at the left side of the device.

The 5MP camera lens and Xenon flash are at the back. They are protected by the dedicated cover. And the loudspeaker grill is just above the Sony Ericsson logo on the back.

Under the battery cover is the M2 memory card slot. It is hot-swappable and support up to 8 GB.

Standard Sony Ericsson Menu and icons.

5MP camera in used here. The images are with a maximum resolution of 2592 x 1944 pixels. It equipped with a xenon flash to assist auto-focusing in poor light conditions.

All in all, the C901 packed all of the standard mid-range features. It is unlikely to make it stand out, but the unusual camera certainly does. The surprisingly good processing of photo taking with this auto focus, face detection phone, brings out the best out of the Cybershot family. The UI which is combined with the Flash Media Center is very user friendly. That’s why the C901 is not a high-end phone but it’s not among the cheapest in its class either. It’s worth it.

It’s a new era for DSLR. It’s a cliché opening but it is true. (I know, this claim is even more cliché!) It used to take you much laboring to carry the DSLR around to shoot and now you can take the burden off your shoulder, literally. Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GF1 is another (We had Olympus E-P1 a couple of months ago.) solution to the heavy weight of DSLR. I am excited to see what it can do besides offering portability.

GF1 comes in four different colors (True Black, Active Red, Sleek Silver and Clean White) and here in the picture are two outstanding ones. The Active Red and Clean White are showstopper. Beside the LUMIX DMC-GF1 camera body, you get a shoulder strap, a battery pack, a battery charger, a USB cable, an AC cable, an AV cable, a body cap, a user’s guide and a CD-ROM.

Heralded as a portable DSLR, its light-weight body is the deal here. By adopting the Micro Four Thirds system, GF1 achieve the “Artistic Flat” body with the mirror box and optical viewfinder removed. When compared with G1, it is 35% lesser in volume and 26% lesser in weight. The good design does not stop there. It has a close resemblance to other LUMIX family members. I love the milky white color as it adds a modern and chic touch to it. It looks fashionable enough to be a hand-held accessory. It is really difficult to decide between the sleek GF1 and the retro aesthetics of Olympus E-P1. They are both killer design.

Another winning feature of GF1 is its stunning 460.000-dot LCD which is viewable from any angles. I guess I don’t have to go over buttons at the back with you but one thing I want to say is that it’s easy to navigate with the nicely arranged keys. The autofocus button gives you access to high-speed auto-focus (as fast as 0.3 second). You can choose between one-area AF mode in which you can freely move the focus area for special effects or the 23-area AF which ensures an accurate focused picture. This outshines Olympus E-P1’s slower manual focus (tho it works as great!).

The built-in flash is a surprise. Although you can’t match the gimmicky-looking (only the look that I am talking about here!) flash with the bulky professional one, it is more than adequate for social photography at low-light situation. It’s handy as well. It is just a reminder that flash is not available in Olympus E-P1!

This is the view from the top. You have got a mode dial, shutter release and video recording button there. You have got to look into the Intelligent Auto Mode (which is represented by iA on the mode dial). It automatically chooses the right scene; adjusts the ISO and exposure; removes red-eye and detects faces. It is intelligent. You can get a really good shot on auto even in back-lit or low-light situations. The video recording is also class. It’s recorded on AVCHD with much smaller files.

The cable portal is protected by compartment door.

Here you can see the battery compartment and the SD slot. A solid build.

Panasonic LUMIX DMC-GF1 is an over-achiever inside out. The design is stylish and handsome. As alluring as it is on the outside, it has not sacrificed its functionality for the compact and good-looking body. The noise control is good, the focus speed is excellent. The standard lenses have good IQ. One thing it may be overshadowed by rival Olympus E-P1 is that there is no built-in image stabilization. You have mega OIS in some of the compatible lenses, but you know the difference! All in all, it’s a good call from Panasonic and it goes pretty neck in neck with its rival Olympus.

Nokia 5130 XpressMusic is a new addition to the Nokia music phone lineup. It positions itself in the low-end market and yet comes with all the boxes in the basic spec list checked. Let’s take a closer look to see if it is a music phone for all.

You have got the 5130 phone, a battery, a charger, a USB cable, a handsfree set and a user’s guide in the package.

The phone is available in red and blue. It gives 5130 a youthful and dynamic outlook which is suitable for a music phone. However, it is a little bigger and heavier than its predecessor 5310 Xpressmusic. You just can’t help but wonder why 5130 takes one step back and embraces a less compact body when it has more or less the same basic features.

The keypad is a standard Nokia one with big, spacious and thumb-friendly tiles. It can never go wrong.

5130 has on board what a friendly music phone should have: a 3.5mm jack for your personal favorite earphone and a USB portal for quick and easy transfer of files.

You can find the volume rocker and the MicroSD slot on the right side of the phone. You can expand the memory up to 2GB. I would love to have a bigger compatible memory for a wider collection tho.

Now this is the highlight of the phone. The dedicated music keys on the right hand side are accompanied by discotheque-ish backlight. It steals the show.

The back is specially designed to match the backlight. Very stylish! The camera is a 2MP no-stunner, but you cannot expect too much.

The screen is a little disappointing. It’s a 256K-color one while its predecessor 5310 has a 16 million color TFT screen.

All in all, Nokia 5130 Xpressmusic is a music phone with good performance. The speaker is powerful. The sound is deafening and clear. There is also a built-in FM radio. If you want a lighter, slimmer and a little more high-tech (only a little morea) music phone, you may consider Nokia 5310 Xpressmusic.

Nokia 5130 XpressMusic Video Review