Sony Ericsson W995
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Looking at Sony Ericsson’s line of phones over the past few years, you get the impression that it’s a firm that almost has too many ideas on the go at once.

The popular Walkman brand - established with cassette tape players in the ‘80s but now sadly eclipsed by the iPod generation - soldiers on with grim determination, and the Cybershot line - which is focused on giving snap-happy mobile users a phone that is capable of capturing a half-decent photo - continues to pump out handsets with ever-increasing megapixel counts.

Sony has recently stated that such multi-brand malarkey is coming to an end as the manufacturer seeks to unify its struggling mobile phone division, so there’s a strong chance that we’ll no longer see complex beasts like the W995 again.

Like so many of SE’s recent projects, it’s confused about what it wants to be and who it wants to appeal to. It’s part of the Walkman range and proudly displays that iconic logo on its casing, but it also packs an impressive 8.1 megapixel camera with LED flash, which wouldn’t seem out of place on a Cybershot product.

Putting this rampant line-blurring aside for a moment, the other most striking aspect of the W995 is the relatively large 2.6-inch screen. While this obviously isn’t a match for touchscreen devices such as the iPhone, it’s quite big for what is essentially a traditional “pad and buttons” handset, and dominates the front of the phone.

The W995 adopts a slider format, with a thin section sitting atop a far chunkier bottom portion. The build quality is a mixture of both positive and negative elements: the metal casing feels reassuringly solid, yet the battery cover looks like it would fall off at the merest knock, and the keypad feels like it belongs on a budget product.

By far the most puzzling aspect of the entire package is the flip-out kickstand, which allows the phone to be rested horizontally so you can watch movies on it. It’s a neat idea but the stand has a habit of catching whenever you insert the phone into your pocket, and it doesn’t take long for you to wish it wasn’t there.

Elsewhere, this balance of good and bad points persists. While the W995 showcases SE’s latest media player software and improved connectivity with other devices (getting your tunes onto this baby is a damn sight easier than it’s been in the past), the menus feel disappointingly old-fashioned, especially when compared with the operating systems currently sported by other top-of-the-line handsets.

Still, if you’re a music fan then you’re likely to be thrilled with the W995. Not only does it possess a loud and bass-rich speaker (located at the bottom of the phone, where you’d normally expect the charging port to be) but it also comes with its own dedicated speaker stand.

This small set of speakers effectively turns the W995 into portable mini-jukebox, and considering their slight dimensions they’re capable of belting out some impressive sounds. The only downer is that when the speakers are plugged in there’s no way of hooking up the phone to the mains as both the charger and the speakers use the same Smart-Port.

Staying on the music theme, you’ll be glad to know that SE has finally embraced the concept of the 3.5mm headphone jack, which means you can plug whatever set of headphones you like into the device.

In terms of gaming, the W995 continues the manufacturer’s trend of producing phones that are capable of providing thoroughly decent entertainment experiences. 3D gaming is fast and smooth, the built-in accelerometer allows for motion control, and the responsive D-pad lends itself to action-packed titles. If you’re a keen pocket player then you’ll have little reason to be disappointed with what’s on offer here.

It’s difficult to offer a definitive verdict on the W995 because it’s a phone of puzzling idiosyncrasies: it has elements that stand out as praiseworthy but it's bogged down by some strange design choices and a striking lack of flair, which is something we’ve come to expect from even the lowliest of mobile phone handsets.

In summary, it’s not a bad phone and in many ways represents one of the finest Walkman entries we’ve seen (the camera is undoubtedly the best you’ll find on a Walkman device). However, it’s probably a good thing that Sony is looking to amalgamate its mobile brands - with a little more focus, the W995 could have been great. As it stands, it’s merely decent.

Sony Ericsson W995

The W995 is a fantastic gaming phone and will keep music fans happy, but the overall package doesn’t hang together as well as it should do. Let’s hope that Sony’s new approach to mobile phone design will result in less confused products
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Damien  McFerran
Damien McFerran
Damien's mum hoped he would grow out of playing silly video games and gain respectable employment. Perhaps become a teacher or a scientist, that kind of thing. Needless to say she now weeps openly whenever anyone asks how her son's getting on these days.