Sony Ericsson W205

Sony Ericsson W205 is an entry-level dual-band GSM/GPRS Walkman phone with a focus on music playback. It was announced on 7 April 2009 under the marketing tag ‘your first Walkman phone’.

Sony Ericsson W205
ManufacturerSony Ericsson
Compatible networksGSM 900/1800 (850/1900 for W205a), GPRS
Availability by regionQ3 2009
SuccessorSony Ericsson Spiro
Form factorSlider
Dimensions92 × 47 × 16.4 mm
Mass96 grams
Memory5 MB internal storage shared with other phone data
Removable storageMemory Stick Micro (M2) up to 2GB
BatteryType BST-33, Li-Poly
3.6 V, 950maH, 3.4Wh • Standby: 425 hours
(17 days and 17 hours)
• Talk time: 9 hours
• Playback time: 13 hours
Data inputsKeypad
Display16-bit high color (65k) TFT,
1.8", 128×160 pixels
Rear camera1.3 Mpix, 1280×1024 px;
Video: 128×96@15fps
Sound
  • Walkman music player
  • FM radio
ConnectivityBluetooth, USB

"The W205 is perfect for those who love portable music but have never had the Walkman phone experience," said Timo Maassmann, Marketing business manager at Sony Ericsson.[1]

The phone comes in a various colour schemes: Ambient Black, Creamy White, Sakura Pink and Windy Blue.[2]

Standby time (GSM/GPRS) is up to 425 hours (17 days and 17 hours), while talk time is up to 9 hours. Music listening time is up to 13 hours.

It has since been succeeded by the Sony Ericsson Spiro a year later.

Hardware

The device is a slider phone featuring a 1.8-inch, 16-bit high color (65k) TFT screen, with a resolution of 128×160 pixels. It features a rear-mounted 1.3 MP camera with up to 2.2× digital zoom and video recording[3] (mp4v 128×96 px, at 15 frames per second).

FastPort female plug on a Creamy White W205.

The phone's front side presents menu access, call start and stop, and navigation buttons that also double as playback controls. The left side of the phone includes hardware volume buttons and the FastPort outlet. The top right side features the memory card inlet covered with a rubber band. In addition to the camera, the back of the device includes a speakerphone for hands-free audio playback without the headset.

The W205 contains an FM radio with RDS and an integrated antenna. The ability is provided to record radio either onto the 5 MB of internal memory or up to 2GB of external memory to the Memory Stick Micro (M2) memory card. Such recordings can also be saved and used as ringtones.[4] Activation of the FM radio requires a FastPort-compatible headset connected to the phone; the headset is required to function as an antenna.

The phone employs a proprietary FastPort outlet for the charger, headphones and the data cable. The latter facilitates USB connectivity, and requires the model DCU-60 or compatible cable. USB charging via FastPort is not supported with this phone model.

Software

Software-wise, the device includes a Walkman player, which supports MP3 and AAC files, plus playlists, shuffle and loop modes, display of album art, and track identification via Sony Ericsson’s TrackID service.[5] Uncharacteristically for a device that was Walkman-branded and specifically marketed as audio-centric, its playback software does not feature an equalizer or equalizer presets for different musical genres.

On Internet access, the phone features a native WAP 2.0 browser and the Java-based Opera Mini.[6][7] Different connectivity profiles can be configured for the native browser and Java apps (Opera Mini); like, respectively, 'WAP' for very light-weight browsing and 'Internet' for complex content.

Other features include multiple phonebooks, copy and paste functionality of text snippets and numbers, a file manager, sound recorder, alarm clock with several alarm settings, calendar, torchlight (uses the phone's screen), tasks, notes, timer, stopper, and calculator.[8][7]

Marketing

In September 2009, the W205 was available in the UK for £99.99 SIM-free; at the time, UK Vodafone offered it for £40 on a pay-as-you-go plan.[9]

At the start of the 2010 Football World Cup on June 11, 2010, South African mobile operator and official event sponsor MTN had exclusive rights to the W205 phone, which was pre-loaded with World Cup-related content, such as FIFA wallpapers, themes, screensavers, and the FIFA 2009 soundtrack.[10]

References
  1. "Sony Ericsson W205 Walkman phone announced". Pocket-Lint. 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  2. "Sony Ericsson W205 in new colours". Cellphonehits.net. 2009-08-21. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  3. "Sony Ericsson W205". Mobile Gazette. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  4. "Sony Ericsson W205 wants to be a Nokia". PocketPicks. 2009-04-10. Retrieved 2010-08-06.
  5. "Sony Introduces New W205 Walkman Phone". Inquisitr. 2009-04-07. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  6. Mark R (2009-04-08). "Sony Ericsson W205 Walkman Phone". Coolest Gadgets. Retrieved 2010-07-08.
  7. Beavis, Gareth (2009-04-07). "Sony Ericsson's W205 - affordable mobile music". TechRadar. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  8. Vogel, Sandra (2011-02-05). "Sony Ericsson W205". Trusted Reviews. United Kingdom: Time Inc. p. 3. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  9. Vogel, Sandra (2011-02-05). "Sony Ericsson W205". Trusted Reviews. United Kingdom: Time Inc. p. 1. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
  10. "MTN Play brings new games to your cell phone" (Press release). MTN. 2010-06-11. Retrieved 2015-07-08.
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