>> Test: Sony Ericsson T68i
Matteo Dal Prà
GSMBOX
April 9, 2002
It’s a small “i” but it makes a difference. Its predecessor, the T68m is already a technology champion, as it is the only one to offer third band, GPRS, Bluetooth and a colour display contemporaneously. The T68i boasts a new first: it is the first GSM on the market to support the long-awaited MMS messages (not to be confused with MS by TIM). These are the now famous multimedia messages, the natural evolution of the much-loved and used SMS messages. With respect to SMS messages, MMS messages offer more than text, in some cases, with pictures and sounds attached (see EMS and Nokia Smart Messaging). There is also the possibility for animation, images in movement, maybe even with the help of vibration...like in the T68i! Aside from enriching the content, MMS messages, compared to EMS messages or Nokia messages with pictures, offer the advantage of being a standard which will soon be shared by all manufacturers, including Nokia.
The T68i inaugurates a new path. It is the first product to be put on the market with the Sony Ericsson brand. This is despite the fact that in our opinion it is still 100% Ericsson. You cannot see any influence or contribution (other than financial) on the part of Sony, except for maybe added aesthetics in it renewed design. Its design is innovative, with respect to the “m” version, overall in the top part near the ear phone. The colour is also new; now available only in “Arctic Blue.” On the one hand the colour is pleasing and elegant, but on the other hand it is very delicate. Because it is porous, it gets dirty easily, and if your hands are dirty, fingerprints remain on the telephone. The resistance and duration of the paint job remains to be seen over time. However it seems very solid. The construction of the telephone is solid, well assembled, and free from annoying squeaks.
The external dimensions are the same as the “old” T68m, 100 x 48 x 20 mm, relatively reduced considering the high technological content and the large memory capacity. The dimensions are ideal, as it is very convenient to keep in your pocket or hold in your hand. The weight is also the same as its predecessor, only 84 grams, very little considering. The keyboard remains more or less unchanged, in the shape as well as behavior. The functioning of the “yes” and “no” keys is slightly improved, and they are better situated in their location. Aesthetic and functional changes can also be found in the lighting of the keys, which are now a pleasing electric blue colour (like the Bosch 909s).
Some small, but significant differences are in the software. The most substantial change is, as we said at the beginning, the support of MMS messages. To send and receive this type of messages, the telephone needs a specific configuration. You do not insert what is the traditional message service centre, but a gateway supplied by the operator. Sending occurs via a WAP connection, with the cost probably based on Kb sent. At the moment, however, none of the Italian operators seems ready to offer this service, even though Tim and Omnitel Vodafone seem to be close to putting this service on the market. For managing and memorising these multimedia messages, the T68i offers over 1000 Kb of internal memory.
On the theme of messages, the T68i can now send chained SMS messages up to 1530 characters long: almost 10 chained SMS messages! The only telephone that can do that now is the Nokia Communicator. But watch out for the cost, 10 SMS messages are debited. There is another peculiarity that is not publicised (the customer service operators of Sony Ericsson even deny its existence).
Still in the realm of messages, we were very surprised by the unexpected compatibility with messages with pictures...from the main competitor...Nokia. Incredible, but true. When you receive one, it is not visualised at the centre of the display, but a bit moved towards the top left. However you can see it perfectly! We verified that this compatibility also works with the “old” T68m. However debatable, this compatibility with the competitor Nokia’s standards is an intelligent and commercially positive choice.
The WAP browser has also changed. Now it is in the brand-new version 2.0 (that of the T68m was 1.2.1). The T68i, other than supporting MMS messages, is predisposed to visualise XHTML, JPEG, GIF and WBMP images, with all the obvious limitations of the display (101 x 80 pixels) and the colour (as we said, there are 256).
After having announced many times the updating for the old T68m (now predicted for May) GPRS has passed from 3+1 to 4+1 time slots, 4 in downlink and 1 in uplink. Naturally the faster speed in downloading data will be available only if the mobile operator makes all 4 channels available. The e-mail management is also new. If before the client configured only e-mail accounts that use POP3 protocol, now it can also configure e-mail accounts that use IMAP4 protocol.
With respect to the old versions of the T68m the games are new: now there are more, they have increased from 6 to 8. The new ones are mostly card games. The games are Naval Battle, Erix, Q, Contrari, Arizona, Four Piles, North Territori, Yukon and Struggle. To tell the truth they are a bit disappointing. A display this nice should be used better, with more refined and stimulating graphics and animation.
It’s a shame that it’s not possible to download new games through the new "download game on-demand" service offered by some operators (Omnitel Vodafone in Italy). The last new feature with respect to the old T68 is the possibility to associate a predefined image (present in the telephone) or a digital photo (downloaded into the telephone) to a calling number. This solution is graphically more interesting than actually useful.
With the new CommuniCam MCA-20 digital camera it will be possible to use the display of the T68i as a viewfinder and also see the photo just taken.
Unfortunately, we were not able to verify the working of the camera. There are also some new ring tones. Now there are 4 traditional ring tones and 17 musical ones, 10 melodies, plus others that can be personalised, composed or dowloaded via SMS.
Now we will list the main functions which are already present in the old T68m, but with small differences:
- date, time and alarm;
- calculator and currency convertor;
- code memo, with password;
- a large and well organised agenda with appointment reminder;
- over 500 contacts memoriseable in the telephone, organiseable in groups;
- the possibility to memorise SMS messages depending on the available memory in the phone;
- Voice Memo, for recording voice notes for over half an hour;
- Voice Dial, for calling the most-used numbers using your own voice;
- Voice Commands, for answering or refusing an incoming call, or for selecting a different profile (for Voice Dial and Voice Commands up to 100 vocal selections are available);
- sufficiently powerful vibration;
- display fonts variable in small, medium, and large;
- third band (1900 PCS) for using the telephone across the ocean (USA and Canada), and not for getting a better signal in tunnels (even if it seems like a joke, there are those who think it!);
- GPRS for package data transmission, fax, and Internet connection at high speeds (4+1);
- HSCSD for continuous transmission (not packet) of data and fax at high speeds where the networks supports the service (none of the Italian operators do, only a few foreign ones);
- IrDA infrared port;
- Bluetooth technology for connecting accessories (ear phone and viva voice) or peripheries (PCs and more).
The user interface is simple and intuitive. You note, aside from some slight improvement with respect to the precedent model, a certain slowness in scrolling through the menu choices, and above all in opening some applications (for example opening imagines to use as a background or screen saver). Turning on the telephone is also very slow (as if it were a PC starting up). Using the central “mouse” requires a bit of practice and sensitivity. Once acquired it becomes very easy and pretty practical.
The colour display is like that of the T68m, very nice and easily readable, except for specific light conditions (for example, with very strong light the legibility diminishes a bit). In reception, like the old T68, it does not offer exceptional features. You evidently note the absence of the external antenna, which would probably improve the sensitivity of the signal (see the T29, T39 and R320). Transmission is a bit better, where once the signal if found it is difficult to lose. The audio quality is optimum as always, received or diffused by the ear phone, or transmitted.
The battery is as always a lithium polymer of 700mAh which, considering the high consumption of the colour display, offers more than satisfactory power. You can exceed greatly the 100 hours in standby and 4 hours in conversation. With a mixed and pretty intense usage (calls, messages, games, WAP connection and waiting), you easily have three days of operation.
As always the accessories are very scarce. Inside the sales package (which seems like that of Nokia) you find, other than the battery, a small and light travel battery charger and the software for synchronising with the PC. A cable (serial or USB) and an ear phone would not have been a bad idea, seeing the high sales price. The accessories are the same as the T68m, aside from the battery and data cables, all the others are compatible with the most recent Ericsson models (T20, T28, T29, T65, T66, etc...).
The sales price is variable, from about 550 to 650 euros. The availability of the terminal is still very limited. It is difficult to find it in stores. Either they are sending it out with an eye dropper for a focused marketing strategy, or the first examples on sale presented some software bugs. The one that we tried (version sw R2A014) for example, locked up a few times while transferring numbers from the SIM card to the telephone, and when sending SMS messages, using an Omnitel 32K. With other SIM cards (TIM, Omnitel and Wind 16K) there were no problems. At the moment the T68i is produced in the old country, Sweden, contrary from the latest T68ms produced in Malaysia. Even if, unfortunately, rumours continue to circulate about the reduction of personnel in the Nordic country.
ALSO CONSIDER...
Currently there are no real rivals, if you exclude the V60 and the V66 (now also with an ice white display). These are also triband and GPRS, but do not have Bluetooth, colour displays, or IrDA. They do have the advantage of costing less and being a bit better in reception. Another rival could be the Nokia 6510. It is a bit smaller and more versatile, but without the third band, Bluetooth, or colour display. The Nokia 7650 is also arriving, if you really want MMS messages, but it is something else altogether, more in competition with the Sony Ericsson P800. The next Philips Fisio 820 also comes to mind, but...it is still too early to judge.
VERDICT
We believe that you can calmly affirm that the T68i is the GSM with the most elevated technological content currently on the market. It is impossible to have another terminal that offers third band, GPRS, Bluetooth and MMS messages at the same time. The thing that seems best developed in this renewed T68 is certainly the message management. It practically supports most of the standards around: EMS (messages with pictures and sounds, supported by more recent Ericsson, Alcatel, Siemens and Telit models), Nokia SMS messages with pictures (supported by Nokia as well as the most recent Samsung models, SGH-N500, N600 and some versions of the R200s). Needless to mention the innovative MMS messages (messages with brief animation, a “universal” standard supported by most GSMs). A disadvantage is that all of this technology creates some slowness in the execution of various functions, almost as if it were a PC with a slow processor and too little RAM.
With respect to the T68m, the memory capacity and the operating autonomy have been improved, even though the battery is of equal power. It is difficult to imagine a possible software update to transform the T68m into the T68i, without slowing down the functions even more. It would be like installing the XP operating system on a PC with a very small hard disk. The audio quality is optimum, the reception a bit less, not at the highest level. At the moment the much-awaited MMS messages are not available. It is the only telephone to manage them, and the operators are not ready to offer this type of multimedia service yet. We believe we can define the T68i a pioneer and point of reference for the next GSM telephones. Hasn’t Ericsson been a one of the pioneers in GSM terminals? Who knows if this will be the winning model, seeing the tentative commercial situation. On the other hand, the enormous success of the T68m is undeniable, despite the cost that makes it inaccessible for many. <<
- Eric - |
