Mobile Phones

Date: 06/03/2008
If you're considering a music phone, then the Sony Ericsson W890i should definitely be very high on your list in 2008. This is one of the best Walkman phones ever! The W890i is a superslim phone (just 10mm thick), finished with a sleek and strong metal casing and available in either silver or brown. The keypad is small but easy to use, and the 5-way navigation key is much easier to use than the joystick used on some other Sony Ericsson models.

The W890i is a very high-specification phone: it's 3G, with HSDPA for super-fast 3G connection speeds (up to 3.6 Mbps). The camera is a full 3.2 megapixels with a digital zoom and 3G video calling too. Only autofocus is missing, but remember that this is a Walkman phone, not a Cyber-Shot, and its focus is music. When it comes to music, the W890i doesn't disappoint. As well as an FM radio, the phone has the latest version of the Walkman media player. With a 2GB memory stick included, you can store approximately 500 tracks. The phone is compatible with normal stereo headsets and stereo Bluetooth wireless headsets too. You also have the option of using a USB cable to connect to a PC.

A definite step up from the older W880i, the W890i is one that we can recommend.

Features of the Sony Ericsson W890i include:

3G: HSDPA
Camera: camera with digital zoom
Video Camera: Video record, Video streaming
Display: 262,144-colour TFT, 240x320 pixel
Music Player: Walkman music player, SensMe™, TrackID™, PlayNow™, MegaBass™, FM radio
3D Java Games
Ringtones: Polyphonic, MP3 / AAC ringtones, Music tones
Connectivity: Bluetooth, USB
Memory: Internal memory 26 Mbytes, plus Memory Stick Micro (M2™) support
Messaging: SMS, MMS, Email
Internet: GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA 3G, Web browser, RSS feeds
Special features: Speakerphone, Vibration alert, Sound recorder, Flight Mode
Operating Frequency: GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900, UMTS 2100
Size: 104 x 47 x 10 mm
Weight: 78g
Talk Time: 4.5 - 9.5 hours
Standby: 310 - 360 hours
Colours: Sparkling SIlver, Mocha Brown

You can find the best online deals for the Sony Ericsson W890i at Shopping.com

£0.00	Free Sony Ericsson W890i on Mix & Match 300 direct from 3 Mobile UK	3
£0.00	Sony Ericsson W890i silver on T-Mobile Combi �35 12 months	Carphone Warehouse
£139.99	Sony Ericsson W890i on Vodafone Pay As You Go Mobile Phone	Prepaymania

Expert Reviews from other websites (1 review)

Sony Ericsson W890i Review at Mobile Phones UK (1 February 2008)

Sony Ericsson W890i Consumer Reviews (30 reviews)

Write a review of the Sony Ericsson W890i! Please share your experiences to help other people choose the product that's best for them. This is a review site, not a forum, so please don't just ask questions. Please do not use swear words or offensive language, and please, no advertising! Reviewed by Xenia on 28/08/2008
media manager (their music software) not mac compatible. that's simply just not good enough for a music phone.
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Reviewed by Nic from England on 27/08/2008
I felt the urge to write my thoughts about w890i. Having never had a SE before, I was dubious about switching to any brand other than Samsung, yet this one is fantastic. I have an ipod touch and a good digital camera, hence all I wanted was a light to carry and an easy to use phone. W890i is exactly what I wanted. Stylishly slim, functional, quick to respond. Brilliant to text and phone. Good quality photos in normal circumstances. It is a phone and it has achieved everything you would want from a modern day phone! It is understandable many mobile "expert" would want a lot more from a new-age phone, however, if you are like me who only wants a good mobile to do a phone's job, I'd highly recommend it. Best phone I've ever had.
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Reviewed by Super Kid on 27/08/2008
tbh. i thought this phone was alright. the buttons where abit to small but i liked the way it was set out. It annoyed me loads the way when you was texting it came up really slow, so id be texting and then id get it all wrong because i couldnt see the mistakes because it had slow texting delay. The camera annoyed me as well. I had to change from a good 3.0 mega pixel to crap vga or whatever if i wanted to zoom in. and on the camera album yeah the pictures looked brilliant and i loved the way it auto focused, but when i put them onto the pc they where really blurry. I also hated the size of the font, it was a bit to big for my liking. I did like the way you put in a number and it came up who it was from your contact list. Tbh ive never really found sony ericsson fones really entertaining to play with, they havent really got fun tools that loads of fones have, they just have basics, and im one of those people who will get bored easily and play with their phones and id just get bored playing with it because it didnt have much to do. Sony ericcson is brilliant for music, although i hate the earphones they come with. This phone also gave me some technicality with texting again. I couldnt recieve texts from any vodafone mobile, and their was no fault with the networks, so im sure a phone must haave some sort of setting where i can unblock a network? cause i know samsung do it. so why cant that? All in all, it wasnt to bad. it annoyed me, but i liked the style of it and the vibrating menu.
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Reviewed by Briggsy on 26/08/2008
RUBBISH. Cant get a signal on O2 three times now, just can't wait to chnge the model of this phone. It has put me off Sony Ericsson now which is a shame. Avoid this phone at all costs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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Reviewed by phone on 25/08/2008
wicked phone i recommend it totally to people who love music and love taking pics all i got o say aboutthis phone is its out of this world
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Reviewed by Cjlady on 23/08/2008
I have always gone for samsung phones which I have never had any problems with but I when my next upgrade was due I was recommended to change to sony ericsson but I am seriously regretting changing now! The W890i is a stylish looking phone & the keys are easy to use HOWEVER I have had loads of problems with the software: 1.) It conks out regularly & the red light comes on the back, it is difficult to turn back on again when it does this it deletes all my mp3 songs & photos 2.) It won't let me answer calls sometimes the answer key won't work or when you ring someone it rings they answer you can't hear them but they can hear you. 3.) PLUS it is difficult to charge up I have to wiggle it to get it to charge up & sometimes it won't. I though maybe it was just a fault with this particular phone but after visiting O2 I was informed that these are common fault with this model and in his own words it's a crap phone! Also it is out of stock so they can't replace it! (prob cos they're having to replace so many) but I will be following this up. I'm really disappointed as I have heard the earlier sony ericsson models are fab but this one is not good, I wouldn't recommend it with the problems that seem to occur which is a shame because it could be really good. DON'T BUY!
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Reviewed by Nikkos on 19/08/2008
I've had the W890i for a month, and love it! Anybody with reception problems obviously isn't on vodafone in Essex, 'cos mines better than any other phone I've had to date. All other features on the phone are outstanding, and the build quality has put my previous phones to shame. Buy it, it's great.
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Reviewed by dan on 13/08/2008
just been trying to find if there is a signal problem with these phones as my wife is on her second one and thats gone back 3 times already, vodafone say theres not a fault but there definately is, bottom line this phone is rubbish, steer well clear!
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Reviewed by Neil on 10/08/2008
In many ways a nice phone ruined by two major issues: 1. The signal reception is dreadful - my previous K610i was vastely better 2. Menus system is dim witted at best - slow and laggy meaninmg that one constantly overshoots and ends up in he hugely annoying "media" centre..... Am I the only person who just wants a small light phone that works? I'm not a slap happy teenager who wants a camera in my phone. I can afford a proper mp3 player so don't want my phone to play tunes. All I want is a phone that works as a phone. This isn't it.
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Reviewed by Dave Warner on 09/08/2008
nice compact phone.The problems i have with this phone are,consistant lack of signal,no flash for the camera and the ringtone isnt the loudest so miss a fair few calls.wouldnt not recommend this phone as it is cool,probably better suited for a office worker
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Reviewed by Roberto on 07/08/2008
This phone is the best phone i've ever had. It's unique colour makes myself envied by my friends. This is surely the best walkman and maybe the best phone ever created
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Reviewed by adam on 06/08/2008
the phone is really nice, the software is the most infuriating piece of junk i've ever used! should be simple to use to get your pics and music but is the hardest thing ive ever done! awful software! really has ruined this phone for me
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Reviewed by Abhay on 06/08/2008
Hey Kevin dude go to display settings and change startup screen ................... its the best phone ever made ........ It lags bcoz u dont have the latest software
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Reviewed by Mike McDade on 06/08/2008
Only weak point is the ringer, its so quit that on full volume when outside I often miss calls. Other than that its great though. The camera is average but good enough for most. Walkman music player is the best music player on any brand of phone including the overhyped iPhone. Battery life locked to GSM lasts over a week when I'm not using it as a music player and 3 days when I an. The Net Front web browser is good to, making it easy to send and recive email from any account without setting up push email on the handset. Slim and small but feels very strong (metal body panals), well set buttons, and very bright screen. If you don't need a top level camera this is the best phone you can get right now.
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Reviewed by Alan on 04/08/2008
I have had this phone for almost a month, as many other reviewers have said - switch from 3G to GSM for a useful battery life, clearing as much as possible out of the phone memory and putting it on the memory card seems to help as well. The phone it's self is superb, all the functions and features are easy to use and better thought out than my last phone (a Nokia). The only minor niggle is the size of the keys, but for texting the predictive text is so good that even this isn't a real problem. It is also the coolest looking phone arround at the moment.
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Reviewed by JG on 01/08/2008
Overall I think it's a great phone. Very user friendly and definitely eye striking with it's quality feel and look. It's not a PDA but for people who wish to have a good functional phone that looks and feels good, the W890i meets the requirements. Battery life is definitely better than all Nokia phones I've had. In fact I used to be a Nokia fan until I bought my first Sony Ericson W880i then my views an opinions about Nokia were'nt quite so great especially when it comes to talk time.
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Reviewed by SE-fan on 01/08/2008
Ok I've always been a sony-ericcson fan, first K750i, then K800i, then K810i. So I decided stick with them, and get the W890i, based on the review. However, I've had to replace the phone three times now, because it keeps switching itself off, then back on. Sometimes, I have to get the battery out, because I can't get it to switch off/on. It likes to do this particularly when I log onto the internet...anybody knows why? I have set to 3G. Apart from this problem, the phone itself has a good battery life, really small, light, well manufactured (metal casing), with a reasonably tactile keypad. Nice clear screen, and fast internet access (when it works). I like the fact you can now save your texts onto the memory stick, and I bought an 8GB stick for the phone and it worked, so have lots of memory. The music player is good, you can shift through the song quickly which I couldn't do on previous SE phones. I don't like the headphones, they're horrible. Camera is OK bu t as already stated by many, no autofocus, no light, no flash. So I think it's a good phone, but not exceptional, and certainly not as good as previous SE phones, which were much more reliable. I might try the C series, and see whether that's any better. Watch this space.
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Reviewed by makaveli on 21/07/2008
best phone eva se rocks !
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Reviewed by Darren on 18/07/2008
What's the point in a phone that cant receive a signal? Don't buy, phones4u 'updated' the software to sove this problem... didn't make a blind bit of difference. i've also tried switching to gsm only it helps a little in some areas but not good enough. Other phones on same network get a great signal where i get none.
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Reviewed by blubs on 18/07/2008
well, apart from the fact that I have to charge it up every couple of days, it looks nice. Apart from the fact that you can't see the keys, it also looks nice. This phone looks, well, nice, but if you want to, (a) have a charge long enough to dial a number, and (b) see the number or characters that you're inputting, then it's a bit of a disappointment! The strange thing is that if it's not active, the keys, although small, are decipherable. Once it lights up, you're stuffed!
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Reviewed by Gareth on 17/07/2008
Bad, bad phone! I've returned 2 W890i phones now with the same issues! Terrible signal, conversations cutting out and screeching and really tinny sounding when having conversations! I had the W880i before and that was the best phone I have had and I thought that the W890i would merely be a facelift! That it is not! Worst SE phone I've had by far! I had the W800i too! I'll be going back to the W880i for now!
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Reviewed by timotyy on 09/07/2008
This phone is not waterproof, I found this out the hard way
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Reviewed by W890i Loverr on 07/07/2008
THIS PHONE IS THE BEST! BUY IT... IT HAS AMAZING FEATURS AND EVERYTHING... DON'T LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE GIVEN IT BAD REVIEWS, ITS AMAZING. My friend has got the brown coulour and my other friend black. i've got silver. we all think this phone is amazing... if you even try this phone, you will be amazed by it! Once you get this phone, you will not want another phone. the keys feel so comfortable when you dial numbers or text. It has a wonderful 3.2 megapixel camera for people who take alot of pictures. it also has a great aplication called SenseMe. Get this phone and you wont regreat it:) you'll love it!
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Reviewed by Jim on 04/06/2008
Jim from Northern Island, I am having exactly the same problem with SE's PC Suite. If they send you a fix, can you e-mail the result on saint4sam@hotmail.com
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Reviewed by Sam on 04/06/2008
I was hoping this phone would be the ultimate in small phones. Yes its small, but the signal is poor, to say the least, very disappointing. I spend more time using my old N73. Overall phone is ok, does not seem to have enough options in the settings to ammend the keys, with "launcher" aka internet and "planet 3" being there in your face all the time. Only other issue, especially in this day and age, the Ericsson Suite does not work, USB just will not connect, its fine in bluetooth mode, but means you cannot transfer music. Overall, nice, I would give it 4 stars if they could fix the suite issue and it would get 5 stars if the signal was better. Get another phone, wait till there is a better equivalent
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Reviewed by bob on 14/05/2008
I really didnt like this phone. i sent it back within a week, the camera isnt good at all and i couldnt get signal anywhere!
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Reviewed by shed on 19/04/2008
Very poor signal reception on Orange network ,fails as you move around,or no signal atall unlike k800i
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Reviewed by Laura on 28/03/2008
This is probably one of the best phones ive had. The walkman is excellent and has very good memory. I would defo recommend to a friend. Only one downside is the camera however as prev stated it's not a cybershot.
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Reviewed by FARRELL NEYKAN on 24/03/2008
RHODRI WILSON I could give u a handshake right now because what you just said is the exact position im in now! The W810i sound quality is way better and louder than the w890i!
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Reviewed by RHODRI WILSON on 23/03/2008
WISH I NEVER HAD THIS PHONE, SIGNAL IS VERY POOR, CAMERA IS VERY POOR. WISH I NEVER CHANGED FROM THE W810I NOW
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