Sony Ericsson Cyber-shot blowers have always been ahead in the camphone game with the like of the five-megapixel-toting C902 and K850i becoming favourites of casual snappers everywhere. So it’s no surprise to see the Asian-Scandinavian outfit lead the charge with the UK’s first ever eight-megapixel shooter, the Sony Ericsson C905.
But while this Cyber-shot sultan is quickest on the draw, it hasn’t got the entire mobile photography stage to itself, with the eight-megapixel wielding Samsung i8510, M8800 Pixon and LG KC910 Renoir jostling for supremacy. Can the C905 stave off the competition?
Unsurprisingly, with an 8.1 megapixel sensor, autofocus and a sizeable Xenon flash to accommodate, the C905 puffs the pocket. But while it may be king size its narrower torso makes it more compact compared to bruisers like the Nokia N96 and Samsung i8510.
Naturally, the camera set-up is imbued with photo mods galore, including Sony Ericsson’s BestPic photo buffering tech trickery, face detection and new Smart Contrast picture magic. This picture polishing voodoo brightens images and lifts details on picture taken in murky conditions. It works surprisingly well.
Picture is quality is easily good enough to have your masterpieces framed while the Xenon flash effectively illuminates indoor environments. Elsewhere, autofocus and macro focus for close-ups are sharp and there’s little shutter lag to annoy. There are some gripes though; after being spoiled with an auto lens cap on the K850i, its manual sliding cover feels disappointing and the QVGA quality at 30fps video capture is woefully lacklustre for a leading camphone.
It may not be smartphone savvy like the Samsung i8510 but the C905 still dutifully pulls through with the latest connectivity, including built-in GPS for navigation and geotagging your photos and built-in Wi-Fi to compliment its rapido HSPDA download speeds.
Verdict
If you’re keen on mobile photography then the impressive Sony Ericsson C905 should be winging its way to your pocket
Best features
Awesome camera
Bright Xenon flash
Delivers printable snaps
Built-in GPS and Wi-Fi
Not so good
No automatic lens caps
Video capture quality still suspect
Sony Ericsson C905 full specifications >>
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Closest rivals
Samsung F480 Tocco
The touchy feelie Tocco’s calling card is its compact stylish frame but underneath the dapper design hides a capable five-megapixel snapper complete with autofocus.
LG KU900 Viewty
This touch phone’s five-megapixel photographic prowess is impressive enough but its video capture capabilities steal the show: it shoots VGA quality motion pictures at 30fps and slow mo footage.
Nokia 6220 Classic
Nokia’s Symbian-powered smartie is a sharp shooter, sporting an autofocus-led Carl Zeiss lens packing five-megapixel snapper and VGA-quality video capture skills.
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