Posted by masseur
ok, in no particular order and smoe not the best quality, here are my ilve pics from the smartphone show this morning. I spent nearly an hour looking over the phone, talking to two Sony Ericsson representatives.
The phones are still buggy and I was told the long lead time to availablity is to allow developers to create new software.
I was very impressed by the design, the feel of it in my hand and the UIQ 3 interface made me feel very at home right off from the start. The screen is superb and puttnig the P910 next to the P990 it doesn't feel like there is alot of screen area lost
I did ask quite alot of questions and some things are still secret/not fixed/to be determined etc, and the Opera 8 browser it was running via wifi was not able to show images yet so the browser picture below is a simple one.
There wasn't much else to see at the show that interestde me so a 10 minute walk around the other stands was all that was needed.
anyway, to the pics... or view them in my P990i gallery
These last two are images on screen of pictures taken by the phone (so I was told)
if anyone else has live pics please post them here!
_________________
Unless I'm very much mistaken...
my reviews: V800 K700i
[ This Message was edited by: masseur on 2005-10-12 21:08 ]
Posted by whizkidd
excellent!!!!
Posted by lor
I personally think that the p990 is a very beautiful phone. Hell, they should replace the blue lumination for the keyboard to white. Blue doesn't really suit I think,
[ This Message was edited by: lor on 2005-10-11 11:18 ]
Posted by Mad_Bob
Top looking phone, I hope that chrome part is metel, it would be a shame if it started to rub/peel off.
Posted by PeterKay
Cool Pics
Nice One.
Posted by Vipera ammodytes
masseur what about video quality???? resolution??
Posted by msmmsm
Never had a P series before, but this looks good and not to big. The WIFI part interests me.
Posted by masseur
they were not able to show me any video today
in regards to resolution, although the screen is slightly smaller than that in the P910 the 240x320 resolution of the P990 cmopared with the 208x320 of the P910 certanily works very well. Although the P910 was quoted as supporting 262,000 colours, we all know this was only in full screen picture mode otherwise it was 65,000 colours. I didn't ask the question but I'm fairly sure looking at the clarity of the screen and user interface etc that this may well fully support the 262,000 colours. I could read the screen without my glasses which is unusual in a device of this size. I can only just do it on my k-jam although the jasjar is quite easy to read benig such a large screen
Posted by dgilmartin
Oh, I really can't wait to get one!!! It looks so much better than the pics in the rumour threads
Posted by Guy H
nice report!
I really like this phone!
Posted by hyperken
nice one !!!!
Cant wait to get my hand on P990i
Posted by BrockenX
masseur does p990 has a brigther (backlight) screen compare to p910?
Posted by masseur
I believe it does have a slightly brighter screen and that was more obvious when using the screen as a vewfinder and when viewing images. if you look at the two pics with 500+ in them, they are the ones showing the screen being used as a viewfinder.
moving the P990 around while in that mode, btw, gave a crystal clear image at all times. I.e. it as very responsive
Posted by Indiandawg
masseur
hows the uiq 3 and can u describe something abt uiq 3?
did they tell u when are the apps for uiq 3 goin to released and
yes last but not the least the cost?
Posted by masseur
to be honest, neither of the two guys I spent time with would let the P990 out of their hands, even though they were attached to lanyards around their neck, so I didn't get much of a play myself.
Watching them moving through the menus I got a nice feeling for the easy navigation and saw that there were many options in each application we passed through. In summary, I felt UIQ 3 offered alot of customisation and tweaking of settings and options etc.
btw, I didn't have a P series for quite a while but the guy mention the agenda now has a week view and that is included in my pics (did anyone spot that?
)
as far as apps, that was a topic they wouldn't talk about...
no mention of cost either
_________________
Unless I'm very much mistaken...
my reviews: V800 K700i
[ This Message was edited by: masseur on 2005-10-11 12:22 ]
Posted by BrockenX
Thank you mr. masseur for that response.
Thats the only drawback i have with my p910i, Ill Gonna Buy that lovely phone once its available here in manila.
Posted by _LAU_
What I notice is that the onscreen buttons are large, and even the menu entries are huge!
Seems to me this phone will be easy to use without a stylus -> just tap on the screen with a finger.
I love that!
Posted by masseur
@_LAU_, indeed during the 20 minutes I spent with the second guy he didn't use the stylus at all
Posted by _LAU_
masseur,
maybe he never used a smartphone (with stylus) before too
I'm sure there is a Zoom setting somewhere, where the stylus lovers can reduce the size of those buttons and menus.
BTW, great report!
I would love to see more details on the new UIQ and embedded applications. Maybe next time.
Posted by masseur
no, he worked for Sony Ericsson in the smartphone area since the days of the P800 so he said, so I'm sure he has used a stylus before
yeah, they really were not letting on much about applications and to be honest I don't think there will be much to talk about yet since the SDK isn't available to developers for another 2 weeks
Posted by adnhk1
Hi masseur,
I realises P990 DOES NOT have our usual 2.5mm headphone jack... did you by any chance ask the SE guys with regards to this? I really hoped SE don't fall over to K series fast port as the phone is already big enough, a fast port will make it ever LARGER
Posted by masseur
that most definitly was a question I asked.
they had no accessories to show, and all the guy would say is that the connector is the same as that used on the K750 and W800, which you can see in the pics.
There is no other socket so if they do provide 2.5mm or 3.5mm compatibility it will have to be by way of somethnig similar to the HPM-70 that comes with the W800
Posted by S4k1s
Nice pics masseur.
No 2.5mm or 3.5mm jack is a _big_ step back for a phone of this caliber!
Also I was thinking .. no new announcements today?
Posted by _LAU_
Masseur,
Are you thinking in making some kind of first impressions review?
I mean, we are all hoping someone would collect all info and gather it in a page.
I've been reading the development PDF for the P990 in ...
http://developer.sonyericsson[....]ocstools/symbian/p_symbian.jsp
... and they talk a lot about software, supported codecs, etc.
[ This Message was edited by: _LAU_ on 2005-10-11 13:57 ]
Posted by masseur
While I can answer some specific questions I think you can probably draw your own conclusions from my replies as to what my initial impression is. I never thought I would get another P series but this will be on my list for next year at which time I may make more detailed comment but I don't think I can do that right now with the limited info I have from today, sorry...
Posted by aquila2
ehm 990 is not bad but HTC wizard or i-mate k-jam is better. better screen, better and more mature OS, way better ergonomics (how many hands do one has to have to operate 990 ? does one has to be an octopus ?
) and not to mention, by the time p990 will hit the street, there will be Moto Q here, successor to k-jam, new 67xx line form HP, new nokia smartphones with wifi ...
this would be a bummer if it was in the shops right now, but Q1/2006 ? nothing special ...
and I totaly forget about the thing that there will be almost no software available for P990. it is a completely new platform. new programming schemes, new resolution, it is not even binary compatible... i.e. the programms need to be completely rewritten to be compatible ...
well MS WM 5.0 has everything by now .. skype works even on a smartphone i-mate SP5/M over wifi by now ...
_________________
~ mfp ~
[ This Message was edited by: aquila2 on 2005-10-11 14:05 ]
Posted by adnhk1
Thanks masseur for your quick reply... This may be one big set back for us... wonder why SE chose such a large connector for an already big enough phone
Posted by masseur
@aquila2, your points are vaild but you forget the loyalty factor. Many people have moved through various P series phones, know them well, like the operation of them and would still choose to continue using the next p series regardless of the points you make. Many don't want to chop and change to whatever is the best each time they change devices. This is more a topic for the main (and more general) Sony Ericsson P990 discussion rather than this thread which is focussing on live photos and impressions from anyone who has handled the new P990
In regards to one issue. With the addition in windows mobile 5 of the soft keys I have noticed I am doing alot more on my k-jam with one hand, which is good. I was watching the guys operate the P990 this mornig and it was definitly a two handed deal.
btw, one of the buttons on the side under the jog dial is apparantly a "back" button which I understood was similar to the back button the the T series phones and would also work in Opera as a go to previous page button. This has apparantly been a popular request from users ni perference to pressnig the jog dial backwards.
Posted by natesaint
Were you able to see the difference in running applications in both flip open and flip closed mode?
Thanks btw!
Posted by masseur
no, they showed me most things with the flip open and to be honest, in the limited time I had, I didn't think to ask about flip closed apps.
if I had thought about it and known I would have the full and individual attention of these guys I would have made a list of questions in advance but instead I was thinking up stuff as we went.
I'll know better next time
still... anyone going later or tomorrow can perhaps cover the missing topics as they seemed very keen to demonstrate
_________________
Unless I'm very much mistaken...
my reviews: V800 K700i
[ This Message was edited by: masseur on 2005-10-11 14:36 ]
Posted by marran
If anyone could take a pic next to a p910?
then we will see how big it is.
Posted by masseur
they are virtually the same size. certainly I couldn't see any difference and I doubt a picture would show anything either
from the specs..
P990i 114 x 57 x 26 mm
P910i 115 x 58 x 26 mm
Posted by kenski
@masseur, nice work man! No projected release yet i guess. Untill then we drool
Posted by lesneo
Hey masseur, thanks for posting us this exclusive of the P990. Wish I were there like you, probably I'll pry the P990 of that guy's neck... hehe...
Since there isnt any 2.5mm jack, I really hope SE provided the bluetooth stereo profile for music to be listened through stereo bluetooth headset... any ideas? It seemed that the K750 and W800 did not support this. It will be cool to pair the Motorola HT820 headset with the P990...
Posted by FuzzyClam
Masseur,
Thanks for the input. Is there any news regarding something for the North American market.
thanks,
paul
Posted by danmoz98
How does the flip come off? I've seen pics of it without the flip but looking at these pics it doesn't look like an easy task? It also looks huge, despite being smaller than current Pxxx series phones. How much smaller is the screen too? A lot of people were saying it's the same size but I'm pretty sure they're incorrect.
Posted by PeterKay
The P990 does look bigger in the pics but so did the P910i at first....
Posted by getagrip15
Maybe it's just playing tricks with my eyes, but the P990 looks like it's a foot thick. Would make an excellent doorstop.
Posted by gardar
Great pictures mate! Couldn't have done it better myself
Posted by viper7
Have to say it is far nicer up close and personal than the pictures would have you believe!
There was certainly no shortage of people wanting to see the phone on the SE (and UIQ) stands at the show...got a demo and was pretty impressed...was even allowed to try the keyboard which is actually far more usable than I feared it would be!...the keyboard works with predictive text which was pretty cool. As for apps, Quickoffice apparantly demo'd there software for UIQ3 and a few other software providers I spoke too hinted they'd be supporting the P990i - I really don't think there'll be a lack of quality software for this handset!
Nice pics btw...sorry if I've posted this in wrong thread!...didn't take a camera though got few bits of marketing material.
Posted by deuxani
How thick is the phone without the flip?! 20mm, 19mm, etc?! How thick was the flip for instance on the P900i (which looks similar).
Posted by Indiandawg
one and last question masseur...i know u got quiet less information tho....still u got the vast knowledge...than others...
iz heromine p990i? or heromine iz p1000? ....according to rumours 2 smartphones were goin to come out....so.. do u hav any idea?
Posted by BobaFett
any info of the batt? ( sorry, i asked it already, but dont find the thread among the 999 new ones to p990... )
Posted by masseur
the guys today would not tell me anything that was not already officially announced, unfortunately
a year is a long time in this world but it does seem to be the time it takes between releases of Sony Ericsson P series devices
@BobaFett, they kept popping the battery to reset the phone but I couldn't get a picture of it for some reason, not that I could have given it a full test or anything anyway... so I guess you are stuck with their specs on battery life
_________________
Unless I'm very much mistaken...
my reviews: V800 K700i
[ This Message was edited by: masseur on 2005-10-11 20:17 ]
Posted by soulframe
| Quote: |
|
They did tell me there would be a Bluetooth Stereo handsfree that they would be showing tomorrow (12/10/05). I asked whether that was BT 2.0 or 1.2 he didn't know. I would hope it was BT 2.0 as listening to mp3's over BT 1.2 is pointless as there's not enough bandwith. I asked him also about A2DP, yet again he didn't know.
About the battery, he said it was a smaller capacity battery than than
the P910i. He said because the processor was more advanced and didn't need as much power as the Pxxx processors.
I saw a prerecorded mpeg clip off of CNN and tbh it looked very clear and very smooth (even better than anything i've seen Smartmovie do)
.
Posted by Arne Anka
| Quote: |
|
To my knowledge P990 has same battery capacity as P910 (~1200 mAh), but the dimension of it is smaller.
Posted by MR
For everybody here. The phone will be around April in the 2nd quarter
of 2006. I talked to a guy today via the MSN on the P990i and he told
me that the device would be around at that time and not sooner due
to marketing.
Developers are already ready with the software. The device is already
inside the developers teams from around April this year. The software
is already finished so far. So the software is not the issue but the
marketing which SE is planning now. My expectance is that 3GSM and
Cebit will be a large fairs related to the P990i. After that we will see
the device in the shops.
MR
Posted by Miss UK
Nice photo's @ Masseur.
I wasn't much impressed by the QWERTY at first but I do like that nice blue light and it's also better to have larger keys this time around !
I was wondering is there any speculation on the price yet?
Posted by govigov
is the camera cover an active cover like k750i? or is it just like the k500i?
active i think....
but why is the battery indicator, in a diff location from other? and what is that wierd symbol in its place?
and one other thing, will the touchscreen work in the flipclosed mode, unlike the other P series... ?
Posted by Supa_Fly
| Quote: |
|
Dude you and me are EYE2EYE on this one; you should've asked if teh P990 had BT v2.0 not just the handsfree. Stereo BT streaming needs the v2.0 bandwidth along with the extended usuage & standby rates of conserving battery power over previous BT versions. ANyone going tomorrow can state this fact to them please!!!
Personally I love this phone. Nice fresh Gui look over series60 (sounds like the Gnome/KDE GUI wars on Linux,lol).
@masseur, excellent photos & questions you asked! I also noticed that with so much menus on the still photo screen that the hardware key placing seems inefficient. Wouldnt it be usefull to have the scrollwheel on the same side as the capture button?? to scroll up down through settings?? Hmm. Other than that & a need for BTv2.0 for quality streaming audio for headphones this is how my next round of purchases will look like:
K750i (x2: Oxidized Black & Silver)
P990i (hopefully a black variant) + 2GB MS DuoPro
Nokia HS-W12 Stereo BT Headset with FM Radio+RDS.
[ This Message was edited by: Prom1 on 2005-10-12 00:01 ]