Sony Ericsson K610 review: Sure 3G choice

Plugged and unplugged

Besides 3G and GPRS for fast data transfers, video calls and streaming content support, the handset offers the usual connectivity capabilities such as the USB support and the Infrared port.

As we tested, the integrated HTML Access NetFront Internet browser is at a good level and it does its job more than all right. It has a lot of options - you can view the pages fullscreen with no menus showing and you can even browse your Web pages in landscape mode. It has WAP and picture modes. It supports content created for HTML 4.01, xHTML 1.0, CSS and Java script, WAP 2.0. The supported security protocols are SSL/TLS.

Regrettably, the display does not allow exploring the full abilities of the browser. Generally, the Smart-fit function of the browser manages well with fitting the web content into the screen.

NetFront web browser

The handset supports Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP profile which means that you could use a stereo Bluetooth headset with it and that is something you don't see in every phone nowadays. Another notable thing about the excellent Bluetooth support is the Human Interface Device (HID) profile which allows the phone to be used as a remote control for PC and other Bluetooth-enabled devices. Further on, the phone could be used as a Bluetooth modem for Internet access of a PC or a mobile computer.

The phone has support for local and remote synchronization of contacts and calendar events. The local one is with Outlook and a PC while the remote synchronization is with remote servers. The USB connectivity of the phone has two modes - one for file transfers and one for USB Internet or to put it simply - the second one is for using the phone as a modem. A great feature that we see in every new Sony Ericsson phone nowadays is the capability to update the firmware version of the phone over-the-air, meaning you can download the new version through the phone itself.

Doing your business

This phone offers many time organizing features. There is an Organizer icon in the main menu and it contains several applications: Calendar, Tasks, Notes, Alarms, Calculator, Synchronization, Timer, Stopwatch, Applications and Code memo. The Calendar offers monthly and weekly view. As we have mentioned above, when you add a birth date in the phonebook, the phone asks you if you wish to add it in the calendar.

Organizer menu • Calendar monthly view

Tasks can be two types: simple Tasks and Phone calls. Reminders can be put as Subjects. Notes are written as messages; there even is the T9 to assist writing. There are five alarms available. Each one offers a lot of options - you can choose to repeat it on chosen days of the week or everyday. Furthermore, you can add text and a picture to the alarm as well as set its behavior in case the time that the alarm is due to go off comes while the phone is in silent mode.

Alarms menu

As far as the applications are concerned, an interesting and funny one is the FaceWarp application which is used for manipulating portrait shots by adding funny faces and grimaces.

Our friend Dexter in FaceWarp: boring, bigface, professor

Some other applications include Video DJ, Photo DJ and Music DJ, Remote Control and Voice Recorder. Video DJ is for making video clips from scratch using special transition effects and even by adding background music. It's a very amusing application. Photo DJ is for editing images and by the way offers some rich features and Music DJ is a very simple application for creating polyphonic melodies. The Remote Control application is for controlling a PC via Bluetooth. The Voice Recorder allows unlimited recording.

To play or not to play

There is one preinstalled game on the phone: QuadraPop. It's a Tetris-like game which can be rather amusing if you are in the right mood.

QuadraPop

Final words...

This phone managed to impress us with its user-friendliness. It's nothing flashy in looks but it's a work horse you can rely on without being too business orientated. The 3G and video call functionality along with the 2 megapixel camera and M2 memory card slot, all housed in a rather small package, make us think that if reasonably priced, the phone should become a market success. One can rarely see such a combination of extreme ease of use, fast interface response, a great web browser, wide connectivity options, and good battery life in such a small-sized bar shape phone. All that, along with the phone's classic design and looks, would surely provide its success in the battle for customers.