Sony Ericsson Idou first eyes-on (Update: now with video!)
By Paul Miller 
posted Feb 15th 2009 9:59PM
posted Feb 15th 2009 9:59PM
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Perfection
12mp camera and fastport? Does it also have 3.5mm?
No? Fail.
SE was'nt able to make even a piece of crap like the experia X1 ;they had to beg HTC to make it for them causing the prices to go out of control and forcing it to eliminate all sort of essential features in a smartphone.
I am ready to bet the farm (yours) that they will never manage to actually bring to the market anything worth buying for the forseable future.
This is just the tease, of the project of a prototype for a possible model of the next decade.
Poor Eriksson I'm really sorry for it, all its troubles started after the alliance with Sony, for which the cell phone division is not strategic and the last of its worries and that if it has money to invest in R&D it prefers to invest it in projects on which it does'nt have to share returns with the sweds.
12MP is great, but I think I will stick with my A700 for professional quality shots. Although I have an k800i 3.2 MP which takes pretty good shots, and my wife has ( bought for her ) a c905 8MP that takes even better shots. I highly doubt this thing would come close to comparing to the DSLRs currently on the market. 3.5mm jack would be a huge bonus, but considering how sony likes to bend over the consumer when it comes to aftermarket accessories I am not surprized they have stuck to the standard sony plugs.
Sony needs to make this function more like an SLR, meaning it needs....
Manual Zoom. Just like DSLRs.
Super Fast Auto focus ( so I can get my shots off quick )
6 FPS with flash
F2.0 Aperature lense with an 16-105 range.
ISO 100 - 6400 min
RAW mode
Priority mode shooting ( Auto, A, S, P )
scroll wheels for manual shooting adjustments.
I want to be able to harass local celebrities without having to tote all my SLR gear with me.
You are so full of it Kilgore. Ericsson had huge losses and was losing the battle against Nokia before the merger, yet you make it seem like Sony is the only one at fault even though it's a 50/50 merger, with the head office in UK, it being incorporated in Sweden, etc. The only reason SE isn't completely dead these days is because of the Cybershot and Walkman branded cell phones- both of which are SONY's.
This coming from a sony fanboy. Sony you're soo 2 years late. I seriously doubt you will have success getting provider subsidies at this time. I know you gonna try to price phone at $500-$650. Key to success in this world is sales ,ask any ceo . Im sure we all agree.,.,.,.,
the iPhone? I agree. We don't need this more megapixel crap, the iPhone 2MP is great quality.
Give me a 4 megapixel cam on an iphone 3G and I'm a happy customer.
To be perfectly honest, I don't really need it though.
Not only a 4mpx camera, you don't need anything at all, because anyway you would never understand how to use it, no matter what it is.
I love the schizophrenic mentality of the more vocal Apple fans. If its not in the iPhone then its something that is unnecessary and not needed.
However when the next revision includes a new feature, it is suddenly a must have, and all competitors that have had the same features for years are suddenly get accused of copying Apple.
Apple fans? Does this dude really represent ALL Apple fans? No! That you should take back. Flashpoint and iEye give all Apple fans bad rep, you must understand that they are common idiots. Probably not only when it comes to Apple either.
while i would normally say Flashpoint is a dick, i don't see what's wrong with this comment. he said he wouldn't mind having a higher resolution camera on the iphone (which is criticizing it), but that he didn't really need it. not everyone needs a nice camera.
though as an iphone user i would have to say the camera desperately needs an upgrade. the current cam is complete crap.
Stick Google Android on it and we have a winner :D
cool.
Make these guys even more slimmer and smaller. I'm gonna upgrade for my 3.2MP k790i once they touch the 20MP limit. would be cool recording HD vids on muh phone.
SE FTW!
As has been remarked many times (even on engadget - so i don't know why they're suddenly getting all excited by this), more megapixels doesn't necessarily equal better, especially on a cameraphone where the lens is so small.
chezzo I agree to what you said.
I'm excited because
1- They can still make the lens a little wider when needed, there's enough space for wider lens on the back of the phone (although i dont know any technical details about that, its not my field)
2- I love how my 3.2 MP comes handy whenever I'm out in a Park, or with friends on an unexpected visit to some cool place that's worth taking pictures at. The quality of this 3.2MP is much better than my 2MP k750. so even though the pictures wont be comparable to real cameras. Mobile phones still win my heart because you have them everywhere, in school, in the office, at home.
3- I'm an SE fan :)
SE fan? Wow, had no idea those two words could be used in the same sentence.
Just trollin' . . .
Nice phone though, don't expect it replace my DSLR but could be useful as long as the price tag isn't too scary.
I've been spoiled by the camera on the K790i as well. Sony knows how to put a decent camera on a phone. I keep waiting for someone to put together the perfect package of a smartphone, GPS and capable (preferably w/optical zoom) camera.
Isn't it time to dump the big edge connector and go mini USB (or micro USB)?
EPICLY AGREED
And they really really need to whack a propper headphone jack on it :)
I'm ok with the connector but putting it on the side...seriously SE whats wrong with putting it at the bottom?
Yes, SE's PC connectivity is made of mud and bricks.
The antenna is at the bottom of phones now to move it as far as possible from your brain and eyes. The RAZR started this. So recent Sony-Ericssons like my w760i move the charging connector off the bottom.
The Xperia X1 has mini-USB and normal headphone jack. Massive improvements over previous phones.
I have to say, having mini-usb rather than their edge connector has proven to be a godsend many times (most people have a mini-usb cable lying around, nabbing the car's tom-tom cable for a quick charge for example). Makes no sense to me for them to go back to edge connector, insane.
And yes, it seems there is NO 3,5mm jack audio. Oh Mr. Erisson! Will you never learn?
how about it looks awesome and I want it still, hopefully there isnt some outrageous price tag.
I say it's a good come-back show from Sony Ericsson. They've been struggling the whole last year, and at least they are now driving towards the right direction. I've been a SE fan since T610 and finally switched from P1i to HTC Diamond since there were now better alternative. But, now I think there's a reason to get back to SE again. Finally!
So WiFi?? youtube client?...memory?? battery??
Just announced?? Today?? This morning?? 12MP??
@Game_playa,
Honestly, this is the best reply I've ever seen in Engadget.
Yea, u knw more MP is necessarily better, my old K750i 2Mp produces ten times superior quality images to my current 5MP G900...
You mean "not" necessarily better.
I bought a G900 too, and a few months later, UIQ gets killed :(
The K750i was definitely a great shooter, lots of homebrew to modify the camera settings too. It was miles ahead of the competition at the time and I'd still be using mine (bought it on release for $700 AUD) if it had 3G support. Upgraded to a K770i which also has a nice camera.
Idou? Or Idrool?
+1 to SE for not making it iDou.
where 3,5 mm jack ??
It was cool till the whole no 3.5mm jack, now its just a fancy camera phone. :( They were on the right track, event the overall size looks pretty nice. Guess we will have to wait for the rest of the specs... but its dropped off of my "omg I want it list".
you dont like it anymore because it doesnt have a 3.5mm jack? you try shoving a 12.1mp camera and a 3.5mm jack up your ass and see if it fits. its a camera phone first and foremost, not a media phone.
go buy an iphone.
you dont like it anymore because it doesnt have a 3.5mm jack? you try shoving a 12.1mp camera and a 3.5mm jack up your ass and see if it fits. its a camera phone first and foremost, not a media phone.
That's a full 10 megapixels better than the iphone.
Thank You!
NO 3.5mm JACK?
Arrgghh! Sony Ericsson why do you make me hate you like this!
Will a 5.5 mm hole do?
"Will a 5.5 mm hole do?"
Des petits trous indeed.
That stupid connector and lack of 3.5mm jack makes this a disaster. ABORT!
After the miserable failure of the Experia X1 SE really needs to show that they can produce something, anything, worth buying.
But Engadget is right to be skeptical, this is just a tease, and if the X1 story is any indication it will remain so for the forseeable future.
Even the X1 , when it was first showed as a tease, more than a year before the final catastrophe made it to the market, looked impressive; SE qickly managed to burn out all the goodwill the device had accumulated by producing what the scandinavian press almost unanimously (when unbiased) defined "The worst Win Mob device on the market at the moment and probably ever".
I really, really hope to be wrong; in the late 1980' I bought 2 Erikkson mobiles, which at the time where top notch, highly desired, devices, if SE manages to deliver something like this and whitout major flaws (like the ones afflicting the X1) I may even be tempted to give it a chance.
I was able to actually hold an X1a last week. I thought that the build quality really impressive - the best device I have ever handled (I had the iPhone and have had N-series devices). I found the software sad and disappointing. I wanted that phone for a full year and what SE put out was shameful.
I think that SE needs to start putting out something special, or they are going to end up closing up shop.
I like that all phone makes are getting ready to defeat Big Brother ( Apple ) Ironic..they became what they swore to defeat..
You're an idiot. that's not the meaning behind Big Brother.
Yeah Big Brother is your government who is watching everything you and I and the rest type, speak, call, email, everything. They are watching.
o.-
@ Mark Leach
Now who is the naive??
http://www.audioholics.com/news/editorials/big-brother-jobs-confirms-apple-remotely-control-iphone
I don't see any irony there, just healthy competition. But no one's "defeated" it yet with 30% of the US smartphone marketshare, nor has anyone approached its level of usability with its UI. Lastly, no one device has, in recent years, gotten so much visibility due its sheer game-changing effect on an industry.
healthy competition?? I guess that's what IBM and Microsoft did before Apple became Big Brother, stop others from entering the market. Apple better not put their noses on Jailbreaking issues neither. Leave it as it is and everyone wins. Who cares about AT&T anyways?
Whoever says that Apple is playing fair, then you are not seeing the whole picture.
But to return to topic - I'm no Sony fan, but I'm a convergence fan. I like the promise of this device...
Pity they got caught up stuffing 12 megapixels into a phone when they should have focused on bringing out an Andriod based handset. They said this will be out in the second half of 2009 - that might slip into 2010 (remember the X1 delays?). By the time this comes out Samsung will have a 12 megapixel too. Sounds like Sammy has a 720p video phone due out which is way more interesting than this.
Who knows, maybe SE will suprise everyone and will 'do a Palm' and pull something captivating out of the hat. I doubt it.
Isn't there anybody curious about the OS? By "Symbian", does it mean S60 or a new OS from SE?
Sony must be crazy here. They're attaching a 12.1 megapixel sensor to that tiny little lens? (Assuming that the greenish circle in the pictures on the back of the camera is the lens that is). Might as well just take a picture with an iPhone and blow it up to 12MP in software, you'll get about the same quality... Okay, that's an exaggeration, but seriously megapixels don't mean anything with a horrible lens. Though, I guess the average consumer might just think more megapixels is better no matter what, maybe that's who they're going after.
no 3.5mm or microusb - FAIL.
The fast port on my hmp-90 inline remote is getting looser and looser to the point that it is practically unusable as it disconnects in my pocket all the time. MicroSD is much cheaper and more compatible than m2.
I've always had SEs because I like the build, the battery life and interface among other things, but switching to Nokia because they don't use proprietary accessories is getting more and more tempting.
Also, I bet this takes worse pictures than an average 5mp compact. Those 12mps will probably do little more than take up more space on the memory card.
I never thought I would use my Koine Greek for anything in the modern world, but idou means "behold," "look," or "listen."
This coming from a sony fanboy. Sony you're soo 2 years late. I seriously doubt you will have success getting provider subsidies at this time. I know you gonna try to price phone at $500-$650. Key to success in this world is sales ,ask any ceo . Im sure we all agree
The interface is pretty damn slick.
I'm starting to hate touchscreen phones. There's too many, it's no longer a special feature.
Except for the Palm Pre... this phone is special in so many ways...
theres like a random glass breaking in the background, then later you hear them cleaning it up, lol
FINALLY!!!! someone notices that! hahaha i was cracking up
Putting a 12 mega-pixel sensor (or a 720p video camera sensor) into a phone with a lens that small is like putting a Ferrari engine into a Honda Civic.
Anything with more than about 4 mega-pixels is a total waste, why do the phone makers do it?
I don't know about you, but a Ferrari engine in a Honda Civic sounds pretty fun to me!
Oh Holy Crap! i think i blew my brains off!!
Not A SE Fan but nice(neat) Phone by SE!
Eagerly waiting for Nokia and Moto!
from
Moto fan! (ROKR Series Only)
I still get this SE phone over apple phones.
(for the video):
iclooly
alumistand
idou
iclooly
alumistand
idou
iclooly
alumistand
idou
iclooly
alumistand
idou
ALREADY IN LOVE WITH IT :-) CANT WAIT TO GET IT
sorry man
no 3.5mm BYE..
I really like this phone. I've been waiting for a phoen that combines the phone features, smart phone features, camera, gps and wifi. I have the K850i with 5MP, yes 12.1 is surely too many for the size of the screen, but to have thsoe other features I don't mind the 12.1, couldn't possible take worse pictures than what I have now.
what I meant to say is that 12.1 MP is surely too much for the small lense to handle.
im so confused. there seems to be many iphone killers in the industry now. but the problem is chosing the correct one. got any opinions about the "Sony Ericsson Idou" i see it to come soon at puremobile.com
link>>>
http://www.puremobile.com/Sony-Ericsson/Sony-Ericsson-Idou-Black-GSM-Phone/
please reply to this. thanks in advance.