Review: The Sony Ericsson T616 (Not recommended)

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson,calgary.general (More info?)

The only thing I like about the T616 is the bluetooth, and when I bought it
3 months ago, choice was limited among BT cell phones.

Although this phone is quite functional, it comes at the unnecessary
sacrifice of useability. Menu navigation, in particular, is an area
with plenty of room for improvement. Here are my beefs:

-The "calls" list isn't accurately chronological, and doesn't allow
me to find out the exact time of a call.

-The joystick should be used more for for navigating menus - Right=execute, left=back.

-Why four buttons? 2 would have done, accompanied by the JS for navigation.
Their roles are inconsistent, and seem to change from menu to menu.
Really, they should just keep one to be consistently "execute" and the other
to be consistently "back/cancel".

-Stupid physical interface on the bottom - Plugs only go in one way, and
take special attention to get them in. Not easily done on the fly.

-Overzealous pressing of "Endcall " mutes the fone, but one press isn't
always enough - Making the act of "hanging up" require unnecessary
attention on my part.

-Screen not viewable outside.

-Anykey endcall ends up with a lot of accidentally killed calls.


Conclusion: I *HAD* to have a BT phone, but am otherwise disappoined in this
model. If you're thinking about buying it, wait. I'm sure something better
is just on the horizon.


--
..............................................................................

The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed ...by
menacing it with an endless series of hobgoblins, all of them imaginary.

- H. L. Mencken

..............................................................................
dswan@m3m3t1ccand1ru.com http://www.memeticcandiru.com

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson (More info?)

"Niall / Lina" <lnsubsHAT@malmo.bonet.se> schrieb im Newsbeitrag
news:c76b9v$a4s2$1@ID-113143.news.uni-berlin.de...
>
> <j4m4l_$1xp4ck@salmahayeksknockers.edu> skrev i meddelandet
> news:lxwlc.11894$LA4.6316@edtnps84...
> > The only thing I like about the T616 is the bluetooth, and when I
bought
> it
> > 3 months ago, choice was limited among BT cell phones.
> <snip>
>
> > -Stupid physical interface on the bottom - Plugs only go in one
way, and
> > take special attention to get them in. Not easily done on the
fly.
>
> How would you want the connector to work? Pretty much all connectors
on all
> electronic devices (with the exception of a few 2-pin connectors for
AC
> power or low-quality speakers) are designed to only fit one way
round. Or
> have I misunderstood what you mean?
>
Maybe;-)

The charger connector of the T6xx series is not bullet-proof.
You have to put it in with the flash symbol facing up,
at least the manual says it this way.

However, on my car charger adapter,
the flash symbol is hardly to see and hardly to feel with the finger
tips.

So yes, this is a construction failure.
Not of the adapter, but of the connector of the phone.

All my previous phones, and nearly all my other electronic devices
have charger connectors which can't be plugged in the wrong way.

Actually, I was very irritated when I read the appriorate paragraph in
the T630 manual.

The phone is well designed in most areas (IMHO), but this is a fatal
flaw.



Raymond

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson (More info?)

"Niall / Lina" <lnsubsHAT@malmo.bonet.se> wrote in
news:c7778e$fkhs$1@ID-113143.news.uni-berlin.de:

<snip>


> You mean you can plug in the charger to your T630 the wrong way? I
> dont think so.... Mind you, I agree that it is not always easy to see
> which way round to plug it without getting a close look (i always just
> look for the thicker plastic 'peg' rather than the symbol

For over a decade I have used a small dab of correction fluid (white out)
to indicate "this way up" on my various charging devices. Saves having to
squint and makes it speedier. As I use it on all of the chargers, I don't
have to remember "this devices thick plstic pegs goes on the right" sort of
thing.

--
Trevor S


"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
-Albert Einstein

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson (More info?)

"Niall / Lina" <lnsubsHAT@malmo.bonet.se> schrieb im Newsbeitrag
news:c7778e$fkhs$1@ID-113143.news.uni-berlin.de...
>
> "Raymond Del Tondo" <RDelT@gmx.de> skrev i meddelandet
> news:c76gjt$sf0$06$1@news.t-online.com...
> <snip>
> > The charger connector of the T6xx series is not bullet-proof.
> > You have to put it in with the flash symbol facing up,
> > at least the manual says it this way.
> >
> > However, on my car charger adapter,
> > the flash symbol is hardly to see and hardly to feel with the
finger
> > tips.
> >
> > So yes, this is a construction failure.
> > Not of the adapter, but of the connector of the phone.
> >
> > All my previous phones, and nearly all my other electronic devices
> > have charger connectors which can't be plugged in the wrong way.
>
> You mean you can plug in the charger to your T630 the wrong way? I
dont
> think so.... Mind you, I agree that it is not always easy to see
which way
> round to plug it without getting a close look (i always just look for
the
> thicker plastic 'peg' rather than the symbol
>
> Niall
>
I have to admit that with the original SE wall adapter (CST-13),
there's something like a 'peg' on the plug which eases orientation.
My adapter for charging the T630 in a car doesn't have that physical
mark,
so I have to take a very close look every time I use it,
which is not very comfortable when driving or when it's dark.
This wasn't needed with any previous car adapters for my previous
mobile phones,
so this is a step backwards.

Raymond

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson (More info?)

Raymond Del Tondo (RDelT@gmx.de) gurgled happily, sounding much like they
were saying :

> I have to admit that with the original SE wall adapter (CST-13),
> there's something like a 'peg' on the plug which eases orientation.
> My adapter for charging the T630 in a car doesn't have that physical
> mark,
> so I have to take a very close look every time I use it,
> which is not very comfortable when driving or when it's dark.

Erm, have you considered plugging it in BEFORE starting to drive? I mean,
call me picky, but I'd rather be comfortable in the belief that my fellow
road users were looking at the road they were using.

Archived from groups: alt.cellular.ericsson (More info?)

"Adrian" <spamtrap@achapman.freeisp.co.uk> schrieb im Newsbeitrag
news:Xns94E055FD95B33adrianachapmanfreeis@130.133.1.4...
> Raymond Del Tondo (RDelT@gmx.de) gurgled happily, sounding much like
they
> were saying :
>
> > I have to admit that with the original SE wall adapter (CST-13),
> > there's something like a 'peg' on the plug which eases orientation.
> > My adapter for charging the T630 in a car doesn't have that
physical
> > mark,
> > so I have to take a very close look every time I use it,
> > which is not very comfortable when driving or when it's dark.
>
> Erm, have you considered plugging it in BEFORE starting to drive? I
mean,
> call me picky, but I'd rather be comfortable in the belief that my
fellow
> road users were looking at the road they were using.
>
Yes, of course. Normally the plug will be put in when the car isn't
moving;-)
One reason is you can't concentrate on searching the small flash
symbol,
when doing other things.
And that's also the difference to the plugs for my previous phones,
where you didn't even need to look at, but apply the plug with one hand
w/o
moving away concentration and eyes from the road.

Thanks for the tip to illustrate my criticism about the T630 plug;-)

Raymond