Sony Ericsson C903 Preview

Introduction:

As we expected, Sony Ericsson did it again. The company has just taken the lead in the multi-megapixel rush with its newly introduced Idou at the MWC. Although we are biting our nails to get our hands on one of these 12-megapixel monsters due to come out like really soon, t here is that petty little off the map thing about it, called a price tag, which does make us somewhat ill at ease here. It´s a crying shame, but something tells us the coming flagship, top of the range beauty will hardly be a gadget that anyone can easily afford. At the same time an increasing number of people feel like getting a phone that can produce decent photos. Luckily, there are a few camera phones in Sony Ericsson´s product range, like the C903 that don´t require that you break the bank to get one. The compact slider has got a 5-megapixel camera with photo flash, along with face-detection and smile shot, A-GPS, accelerometer and a bunch of  these little, heartwarming add-ins that Sony Ericsson has been falling over backwards to fit its latest midrange models with.

Design:

In our Sony Ericsson C905 review we mentioned that the phone really has that digital camera look about it. The same holds true for the C903 as well, the only difference being the C903 is a bit smaller. Similarly to almost all other phones manufactured by Sony Ericsson, the D-Pad is located right below the 2.4-inch QVGA resolution screen and triggering the camera makes all allowed functions that can be performed by pressing the D-pad´s directional keys turn blue.



You can compare the Sony Ericsson C903 with many other phones using our Size Visualization Tool.

All in all, the C903 is quite an appealing phone and we certainly must give credit where credit is due, namely to its designers – the numeric keypad looks completely sleek and streamlined, while having a really pleasing and unobtrusive slant, all buttons large enough and easily discernible. Other thing that really goes over big with us is the camera lid; it takes up all the entire back side, but is extremely easy to slide open all the same.

What we hold no brief for is you need to take apart the phone (unlocked from below upwards) to reach the M2-card expansion slot (located on the left). Camera shutter, volume control, gallery quick access and camera mode buttons are all onto the phone´s right hand side. No designer´s flight of fancy to hit you like a ton of bricks or anything out of place here. The phone looks great, it is immensely appealing and will definitely pose a serious threat to the other models in the same class.

Sony Ericsson C903 360 Degrees View:

Interface and functions:

A thing we have always been quite fond of when it comes to Sony Ericsson and its phones is its zingy, dynamic interface (say, these animated start-up screens) that is quite easily changeable through different themes and the really good thing is getting them is all beer and skittles. Aside from this, every software generation incorporates new and pleasing improvements that add up to more ease of use, like, for an instance (one that is easy to escape notice), all latest Sony Ericsson models have that message composer enhancement that places a row of icons at the bottom of the screen to help you add pictures, animations, video clips, music, photos or voice recordings to your text message, allowing you to turn it into a multimedia feast epistle.

Naturally, come to the C903, the emphasis cannot but fall on the 5-megapixel autofocus camera with photo flash. Similarly to its easier-on-your-wallet cousin, the C510, C903´s interface offers the full range of options; as a matter of fact, some of these cannot even be found on the C905, non other but the C-series flagship. You have the smile and face recognition technology at your fingertips, tons of predefined settings to help you learn the ropes plus that nice function that allows you to use the built-in A-GPS unit to tag your current geographical location to the pictures being taken.



Yes, no doubt, navigation is the other key element here. Aside from what is rather standard navigation software to have on your phone these days, namely Google Maps, the phone comes with a preinstalled copy of Wayfinder Navigator. As we already had the chance to point it out in our C905 review, the program offers quite a nice array of available options that we are, unfortunately, not going to delve deeper into until we have had the chance to snatch up a final presale unit.



All told, we are really pleased with the Sony Ericsson C903. It remains to be seen whether or not it becomes a glut on market. Lacking ground-shaking or unique features, we do believe its fate to ultimately hinge on its end-user price and picture quality, i.e. final camera implementation. Competition in the same 5-megapixel camera phones sector is fierce as a number of similar phones are pretty easy to come by these days. Sony Ericsson is about to try to knock the props from under the other two major contenders, namely the Samsung G600 and the LG KC550. Having been on the market for some time now and given the relatively low price they are obtainable at, these two phones are expected to be the C903´s major rivals.