I've been an avid SE fanboy since I first got my T610. Its not that I have anything against Nokia, but I just think that Sony Ericsson have been churning out better phones over the last few years. Anyway, no need to start a flame war. 
As a big fan though, I had huge expectations for the K850i. I've am upgrading from the K750i, so I skipped the K800 generation. I have however played extensively with the K800, and although I never cared for its design, I felt that it was a worthy successor.
So here I am now with the K850i, and to be 100% honest, I feel disappointed. At least, that's how I felt at first... On the face of things, here's what I didn't care for, right off the bat:
The buttons are too small for efficient texting. I concede that this is subjective, but I truly don't think that they are "as good" as those on the K750i.
The three touch-sensitive buttons at the bottom of the LCD are not as responsive as I'd like. I find myself having to press them more than once quite often.
I am not happy about the Nokia-style button-layout that SE have reverted to. I am used to, and I LIKE, the old way of doing things.
The directional "navigation" button that surrounds the 2 and 5 keys is a bit pants.
Admittedly, all four of the issues mentioned above are things that I will get used to in time, and ALREADY I have to say that I am a lot happier than I was on the day that I picked up the phone. However one issue that will NOT change with time is probably the biggest gripe I have of them all... The K850i is underpowered. As far as I know, SE decided that the processor in the K800i has sufficient horsepower to drive the K850i. It doesn't. Menus and navigation are sluggish and slow to respond. Camera performance is slow (although I will admit, the phone takes great snaps). It is too slow in fact to make this phone a viable alternative to your dedicated point-and-shoot.
Oh, and I don't care for the battery cover at the bottom either. It is going to break at least once in the next two years that I have this phone, I just KNOW it.
On the other hand, the K850i is incredibly nice to look at, probably one of the nicest looking phones on the market. The rear-panel is a scratch and fingerprint MAGNET though, so a pouch of some sort is probably a good idea. The one that comes with the phone is ridiculously stupid. Although I don't like the Nokia-style keys, it is still a Sony Ericsson at heart, and there is a very small learning curve if you are moving from another SE handset.
I have definitely warmed to the phone since I first got it, but it has failed to meet the high expectations I had of it. I'll update this thread in a week or so once I've had some more time to fiddle. Damn you Sony Ericsson, why couldn't you have just put a faster processor in this phone!? I'd feel a lot happier about it now, that's for sure.
As a big fan though, I had huge expectations for the K850i. I've am upgrading from the K750i, so I skipped the K800 generation. I have however played extensively with the K800, and although I never cared for its design, I felt that it was a worthy successor.
So here I am now with the K850i, and to be 100% honest, I feel disappointed. At least, that's how I felt at first... On the face of things, here's what I didn't care for, right off the bat:
The buttons are too small for efficient texting. I concede that this is subjective, but I truly don't think that they are "as good" as those on the K750i.
The three touch-sensitive buttons at the bottom of the LCD are not as responsive as I'd like. I find myself having to press them more than once quite often.
I am not happy about the Nokia-style button-layout that SE have reverted to. I am used to, and I LIKE, the old way of doing things.
The directional "navigation" button that surrounds the 2 and 5 keys is a bit pants.
Admittedly, all four of the issues mentioned above are things that I will get used to in time, and ALREADY I have to say that I am a lot happier than I was on the day that I picked up the phone. However one issue that will NOT change with time is probably the biggest gripe I have of them all... The K850i is underpowered. As far as I know, SE decided that the processor in the K800i has sufficient horsepower to drive the K850i. It doesn't. Menus and navigation are sluggish and slow to respond. Camera performance is slow (although I will admit, the phone takes great snaps). It is too slow in fact to make this phone a viable alternative to your dedicated point-and-shoot.
Oh, and I don't care for the battery cover at the bottom either. It is going to break at least once in the next two years that I have this phone, I just KNOW it.
On the other hand, the K850i is incredibly nice to look at, probably one of the nicest looking phones on the market. The rear-panel is a scratch and fingerprint MAGNET though, so a pouch of some sort is probably a good idea. The one that comes with the phone is ridiculously stupid. Although I don't like the Nokia-style keys, it is still a Sony Ericsson at heart, and there is a very small learning curve if you are moving from another SE handset.
I have definitely warmed to the phone since I first got it, but it has failed to meet the high expectations I had of it. I'll update this thread in a week or so once I've had some more time to fiddle. Damn you Sony Ericsson, why couldn't you have just put a faster processor in this phone!? I'd feel a lot happier about it now, that's for sure.
